Kumaraparvata is located amidst dense forest of Western Ghats in Karnataka. Trek to the peak of Kumaraparvata can be started from two points viz Kukke Subrahmanya and Somwarpet, and can be ended on either of the sides. Total length of trek is about 16-20 kms (depending on the start and end points chosen) and will require two days. There are NO hotels/shops available (except for Bhattara Mane) anywhere after starting the trek, hence it is required to carry food and all the other necessary items to spend two days and one night in the forest.
Pack with you a lot of juicy fruits (which serve dual purpose of quenching your thirst and providing you energy), dry fruits, juices/energy-drinks, bread, bun, biscuits, water etc which can hold you alive for two days. There are few streams of water on the way but they will be almost dry during summer and later winter. Also take tents, sleeping mats, sleeping bags etc to have some shelter in the night.
And remember, you will have to carry your luggage on your back for the entire trek, so have your luggage as less as possible.
Here I start the trek from Beedalli, Somwarpet and end at Kukke Subrahmanya so that it covers the entire stretch. Other possibilities can easily be derived from this one.
Starting the trek from Beedalli, Somwarpet (ಬೀದಳ್ಳಿ, ಸೋಮವಾರಪೇಟೆ):
Somwarpet - also spelt as Somavarpet is a taluk of Kodagu district.
Reaching there: There are frequent KSRTC buses from Bangalore to Somwarpet, it is preferrable to take a bus which reaches Somwarpet before 6.00 AM.
There are few lodges and hotels available in Somwarpet where one can get freshed up and get ready to start the trek (Lodges charge around Rs. 250 per room and have adequate facilities).From Somwarpet one has to take a local bus to Beedalli - there are very few buses to Beedalli and one of them starts from Somwarpet between 7.00 AM and 7.20 AM.
After getting down at Beedalli one has to proceed (by walk) towards Pushpagiri/Heggade Mane. After walking for about 4 kms there is a temple of Lord Shiva (Mallikarjuna). The road ends here and the mountains start. After about 1 km there is a Forest Office where a fee of Rs. 135 per head and Camera fees has to be paid to enter the forest. Forest Officer gives a brief information about do's and dont's. Here onwards one enters the dense forest.
The scenic beauty of the forests is unexplainable by words and supports the saying “Experience cannot be explained”. There are boards to indicate the direction in which to proceed, follow the directions indicated towards PUSHPAGIRI (moreover there is only one route in the forest and there are NO chances of getting LOST in forest unless one purposefully leaves the way and enters the forest). After trekking for sometime there is a small waterfalls with water in its purest possible form.
Going further one enjoys the nature, walking in the forest while making brief stops to remove the leeches sticking. Trekking for another 2-3 hours you will reach a point where the path divertsto direction with indications Pushpagiri and Girigadde (ಗಿರಿಗಡ್ಡೆ).
Taking the direction towards Pushpagiri leads you to peak of Kumaraparvata (actually Pushpagiri 'is' the peak of Kumaraparvata, local people find it difficult to understand if asked for Kumaraparvata), and taking the direction towards Girigadde leads you towards Kukke Subrahmanya via Bhattara Mane (ಭಟ್ಟರ ಮನೆ).
After this deviation while going towards Pushpagiri you will have to climb a rock which is inclined at an angle of about 60-70 degrees. This will be very slippery and atmost care has to be taken while climbing this. The best option is making one climbing it from one of the corners carrying a rope alongwith, then helping others to climb holding the rope (make sure both rope and the person holding it above are strong enough to pull others up).
A few minutes trek in the vegetation after this sixty degree rock, you will be on the rocks again. This will be another strenuous stretch while going towards the peak as you will be trekking uphill while being directly under the sun without any shade from the trees. After completing this stretch you will get a signboard saying Pushpagiri 0 km, but believe me this is not the peak! You have to go about 300 meters towards the direction indicated by board to find a small temple like structure and that is the peak of KUMARAPARVATA!!
Now you have two options to trek down. One is returning back in the same way towards Beedalli and the second one is taking the way towards Kukke Subrahmanya. Taking the same way back has nothing much to say except that you have to make sure that you reach Beedalli before 5.30PM (or earlier. Have to confirm it at Somwarpet while starting to Beedalli) as you will not have any buses to Somwarpet after that time.
And the other way to trek down is taking the way towards Kukke Subrahmanya, here you will get to enjoy the nature further.
Whichever way you might choose, it is required to spend the night in the forest. And if you have the idea of camping at the peak, just forget it because there are chances of wind with speeds so high that can even blow away your tents!! If you choose to trek down towards Kukke Subrahmanya then go a little more further in that direction before halting, so that you will reduce the distance to be covered on the next day, if you are careless or adamant enough NOT to carry a tent or any kind of shelter with you then you will need to go until a place called Mantapa not because you can get a shelter there but because you can escape from leeches there!! And reaching Mantapa requires trekking down a dangerously steep, slippery rock which should never be done in a hurry.
Search for a proper place to pitch up your tent. If you are on the way towards Kukke Subrahmanya you will get good amount of fair enough flat places to pitch up the tent. After pitching up the tent, make sure that no leeches have entered into it.
On the way to Kukke Subrahmanya, as mentioned earlier, you will encounter a dangerously steep, slippery rock inclined at more than 70 degrees.Once again you will require the rope to climb down this rock.
After getting down from this rock you will enter into the thick forest where even sun rays cannot reach the ground. And you will feel to enjoy the nature by standing/sitting ther for a while. But you will not even stop there to take a snap because it is full of leeches and whatever precautions you have taken to avoid leeches are sure to be proven waste in this stretch. Thats why we want to call it as “Leech Valley”!!
Once you come out of this fabulous Leech Valley you will be on top of a mountain by the name Sheshaparvata (ಶೇಷಪರ್ವತ). This has a little bit of rocky place where you can sit for some time removing the bunch of leeches stuck to you. And the view from this place is awesome. From here you will not be in the forest but on the mountains. Trekking down for nearly 3-4 hours on these mountain and after crossing the Mantapa and a view point you will reach another Forest Office. Going further you will come across a place called as “Bhattara Mane” (ಭಟ್ಟರ ಮನೆ) which means “Bhat's House”. The only house which you will see in the entire trek of 16-20 kms. They are very friendly people staying there since a long time and provide food to the trekkers. The food provided is little above average in taste but you will feel it delicious and assume that you had never had such good food in your life, don't forget to drink the butter-milk provided by them. If you have the plans of extending the trek to third day, you can halt in “Bhattara Mane” which has a long corridor where you can sleep and food will be provided them. They charge about Rs. 50 per person for a meal and halting charges are additional.
Starting from Bhattara Mane and after half an hour of trek you will enter the forests again. And this is the most deceiving part of the trek as you need to climb down and up a few times and every time you climb down there is a feeling of you have reached the end, adding to it you can clearly hear the bells and drum beats from the temple at Kukke Subrahmanya which boosts your belief. After climbing down and up quite a few times and continuing for about other 3-4 hours, you will see a small pond like strucuture and crossing it you will be on the road which takes you to Kukke Subrahmanya. You might get some means of transport which can take you to Kukke Subrahmanya else you are compelled to walk about 3 kms again.Kukke Subrahmanya is a famous Hindu pilgrim center and has good accommodation facilities with lot of lodges but most of them have to be booked in advance. But still you can manage to get a room to fresh up yourself. From Kukke Subrahmanya you have frequent buses to Bangalore. Don't forget to visit the temple.
PS:
Noteworthy things:
It is said that the best time to visit is between October to March. Avoid this trek in rainy season because the mountains will be highly slippery, leeches will be more in density and number and mainly it rains so heavily that one cannot see what is at a distance of 10 meters.
Though there are good number of buses between Bangalore - Somwarpet and Bangalore - Kukke Subrahmanya, but they will be crowded very easily hence it is better to have the tickets reserved in advance (2-3 days prior to journey if its an holiday season or long weekend).
Carry good amount of salt or limestone or tobacco powder to prevent leeches from sticking and/or to remove them.
One can also take a guide alongwith from Bangalore and there are professional groups which organise these kinds of trekking. Check:
IQUEST SOLUTIONS
#2, 1st Cross, Ex Service Men Colony,
R.T.Nagar,
Bangalore - 560032
www.iquestindia.com
It is highly recommended to carry a good quality tent (available in different sizes), sleeping mats (one for each) to have a proper shelter and sleep in the forest. All these are available for rent in almost all Wildcraft showrooms where you need to deposit an amount of 4000/tent and 100/sleeping mat. The rents are tent - 800/day, sleeping bag - 150/day.
There are other people who do provide these in a fairly reasonable amount of deposit, rents and one of them is:
Wild Horse - The Luggage Shop and Travel Agency
No. 57, Govinayakanhalli, 1st cross,
Opp. SBI Bank, Kumaraswamy Layout,
1st Stage, Bangalore - 560078
Ph: 080 42104120
Email: wildhorse009@yahoo.co.in
The dense forests of Western Ghats passed through in this trek are notorious for blood sucking Leeches which are very common, so have your precautions to avoid these leeches. There are very rare chances of existence of any other wild animals as even they cannot tolerate the leeches. Only animal which you have to watch out is for Elephant.Beware, it is also said that these forests have the highest density of King Cobras!!