People often ask travellers, “Why do you go to the mountains frequently?”
I incessantly think about how mountains stand unbothered. Whether the tectonic plate movement or lava burst, they have passed the test of time with bright colours (literally): Notice that the slopes that emanate with life presently were once barren? Mountains just existed; life got attracted to them. It is this simplicity that brings me to the mountains.
I am Supriya, the Content Strategist and Travel Writer at Plan the Unplanned. The Kumara Parvatha trek toughness nudged me away for the longest time, but I was determined to complete it in 2022. Tasked up, I hopped on the trail with one rule on 24 December, keep walking at a constant pace, and keep breathing.
I had zero expectations from the trail, but the scenes, the challenge, and the topography made it my best trek in the Western Ghats. KP trek is a two-day 28 km trek – split into 7 km and 21 km.
On the first day, we started at ease at around 8 am to finish by 2 pm in Bhattara Mane. It was tough. At the sunset point near the campsite, I had my first epiphany. My perception of dusk took a flip turn here only. Earlier I liked dawn for its brightness, positivity and peace. But here I found dusk unfurls colours of life. Sitting in front of the setting sun, I broke my negativity with the vanishing hues of sunset. It was a signal asking us to go back HOME and take a break. At this moment, I learnt the significance of the right places, the right timing, with the right people. Shesha Parvatha peak, aka False Peak, appears from here, giving us false hopes of KP peak, hence the name.
After dinner, trekkers sit and lie at the same point for a mesmerising stargazing session. Scores of stars colour the darkness. At the campsite, staying in the cosy setting of pitch black night, all trekkers slipped into sleep. But I couldn’t sleep. I finished my morning routine by 3 am. The second day was rigorous; we started at 4 am in darkness and then kept on climbing till Shesha Parvatha Peak. Midway, Kallu Mantapa gave us some respite. We reached Shesha Parvatha at around 8:30 am.
Shesha Parvatha appears giant from afar. Finally, conquering it gives a feeling of gratification. It was good to be there. When I searched for the last day’s sunset point, it was nowhere to be seen. This introduced me to my second epiphany, “No matter how big the problem, once you start, you will reach your destination.”
I sat there and clicked photos before starting to reach KP Peak finally. After a descent, walking in the forest section and boulder climbing, we reached the much-awaited KP Peak. The peak area gave me a final beauty blow. It is a tabletop with a small temple. Tired, we lay down, soaked in the sun and only got up when our trek leader, Asha, gave us the final call.
The ascent for the trek was done. We then started a 7 km descent to reach the campsite, had lunch where we ate two big plates of rice, sambhar and pickle, packed up and started again for the base. At around 5:30 pm, we completed the trek.
Coming to the lessons I learnt: Being inactive before the trek posed great misery to me for the first few kilometres when I began. But by large, as we continued to move, step by step, the views summed with the sound of water streams and birds made my experience pleasing. KP trek, although demanding, is pretty. Everything challenged us, from the base to the top and back. I completed this trek, but to truly enjoy such a challenge in future, I aspire to be in utmost fitness.
I suggest to all beginners to first attempt treks like Kudremukha and Kodachadri. This is not to undermine your strength but to ensure your confidence remains intact in all scenarios. In the end, follow just one rule, “Keep exercising, keep coming back.”
