Agasthyarkoodam Trip - Part IV

The water from the stream there was the tastiest I have ever drunk. And so cold even at midday. The Agasthya forests contain numerous medicinal herbs and plants that are not found elsewhere. And the water that comes trickling through the roots of these plants and filtered by nature is supposed to be medicinal and healthy. After drinking like 2 bottlefuls after trekking – I totally have to agree.

So after the refreshing dip at the Bona Falls we continued our journey – again through the dense forest till we re-joined the official trail. All through our slight detour we only saw one soul – a tribal guard. He was amazed to see us emerge from the dense clearing with no guide. Anyway he pointed us to right direction and we finally joined the others who had started before us. The last group that went before us were obviously going slowly and we were moving very quickly, which is why we could catch up with them even though we had taken a longer route.

Another exciting feature of an Agasthyaarkoodam trip is that you pass through all types of scenery – from dense forests with huge trees to grasslands peppered with bonsai trees to steep rocks. We pass all these to come to Athirumala, about 10kms below the summit, where we rest for the day. Since the next stage of the trekking is extremely steep and dangerous no one is allowed to proceed after dusk. However there are pilgrims who insist on going the same day itself but since we are devoid of any divine intentions we stop and rest for the day.

(To be continued...)

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Gerald Posner resignation

.Gerald Posner, a noted writer and journalist, resigned from the newspaper he was working for - Daily Beast - on allegations of plagiarism. He published his views on the issue in his blog where he expresses regret for the inadvertent mistakes he made. I think this is an important letter to be read by every journalist, especially in the age of the New Media.

Some excerpts:

"I realize how it is that I have inadvertently, but repeatedly, violated my own high standards. The core of my problem was in shifting from that of a book writer – with two years or more on a project – to what I describe as the “warp speed of the net.” For the Beast articles, I created master electronic files, which contained all the information I developed about a topic – that included interviews, scanned documents, published articles, and public information. I often had master files that were 15,000 words, that needed to be cut into a story of 1,000 to 1500 words.

In the compressed deadlines of the Beast, it now seems certain that those master file were a recipe for disaster for me. It allowed already published sources to get through to a number of my final and in the quick turnaround I then obviously lost sight of the fact that it belonged to a published source instead of being something I wrote."

I am posting the link of the entire letter below. Read on.

http://geraldposner.blogspot.com/2010/02/my-resignation-from-daily-beast.html



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Agasthyarkoodam Trip - Part III

Luckily the wind came to soothe our fears a little bit. The breeze brought us relief as we were soaking wet with sweat from walking with our backpacks (as well as fear too, I believe). The wind also provided some much needed noise through the swaying trees. We continued walking and the sound of the breeze grew bigger and the forest grew thicker.

Suddenly Pakaran stopped and said “Listen carefully!” We stopped dead in our tracks. “What? What is it?” He said “It is not the sound of the wind getting stronger. It is the sound of water. Falling on rocks. A waterfall!” We listened carefully now and realized he was telling the truth. We ran straight ahead. We could see a clearing in front of us and we ran together and came out from behind the last tree to see the most breath-taking view of a wonderful waterfall nested right there in between lush greenery, the spray from the fall drawing a rainbow in front of our eyes! This was paradise! And not another single soul in sight but us! A small lake had formed where the water fell and the rocks right below the fall was raised like a platform and we immediately slipped out of our clothes and those of us who knew swimming swam there while the rest of us waded through the side between the rocks to reach there. And we stood there right beside the water falling from such a height with so much power. We held our hands together and shouted like we had conquered the world. All our tiredness and exhaustion had disappeared like a bad dream. This was certainly the closest place to heaven on earth.

Pakaran told us that this time the water was less since it had been a couple of weeks without rain. Usually the water falls from the top to much farther so we can actually stand on the platform behind the waterfall. We could see the place where water usually fell was deep though it looked shallow. Even then it was an amazing sight. The pit formed from the waterfall was colourful like nothing I had ever seen before. There were designs on the smooth rocks below, presumably algae, in different colours – green, blue, red, yellow. You couldn’t stop looking – it seemed as if a magical world existed down there. So alluring and so deadly too for we were warned it was much deeper than it appeared. And with the ice cold water someone not an expert would be in real danger if he tried to swim cross.

(To be continued ...)

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Agasthyarkoodam Trip - Part II

By the time we started it had become almost noon and all the 4 groups allowed for this day had proceeded with the designated guides, leaving us without anyone to guide or protect us. All the more better! Pakaran was making his 9th trip and we were pretty much confident in him. Going without a guide could prove to be a blessing so we could do as we pleased – though I must certainly admit it was dangerous.

We followed the official trail for some distance and then Pakaran took a detour. He said he would take us to the Bona Falls which is a waterfall in the middle of the forest a little far away from the official path. It was near here where last year’s tragedy had taken place and so it was strictly forbidden for anyone to go near the falls. Anyway it was apparent that the way we were going was through thick forest and there was absolutely no trail of any kind. Or any sign of water or a stream let alone a waterfall. Our confidence in Pakaran quickly turned into skepticism and then doubt and then fear as we went deeper into the forest and had to climb over or crawl under fallen trees as it became more and more silent all around. I have been to many forests and I have heard elephants and other animals roar. They are frightening but absolute silence is eerily more frightening that the deafening roar you expect to hear in a forest.

Every few steps we would ask “Brother, is this the right way?” and he would simply say “Follow me” without saying yes or no. Now that answer makes you very uncomfortable because you don’t know whether he knows the way or he too is lost. I mean if he just said “Yes this is the way” or at least “No we are lost” we would have felt better. Knowing you are lost is definitely better than not knowing whether you are lost or not. And so we continued our journey wondering what lay ahead.

(To be continued...)

Agasthyarkoodam Trip - Part I

I have always wanted to go to Agasthyaarkoodam since I had first heard of it. It is the second highest mountain peak in Kerala after Anamudi, standing at a height of 1890 m above sea level. It is a protected ecological area and you have to obtain sanction from the Forest Office at Trivandrum to make the trip, which is usually only permitted in January – February period.

We started our journey early morning on 27th January, 2009. We traveled by car and bike to Bonakkadu from where the trekking starts. We had reached by 7 AM when the first team of trekkers is allowed to go. There are about 15 people in one group and a guard / guide will be assigned to them. Though we had reached before the first group took off some technical problems delayed our start. There were seven people in our group. But two of them couldn’t make the trip due to personal reasons. So we included two other friends in their place at the last moment. The senior most person in our group, affectionately called ‘Pakaran’ by us, said that this would be no problem with the forest authorities since they had gone likewise in the previous years too. But when we reached there the forest authorities wouldn’t permit these two ‘others’ to enter.

Last year one trekker had been killed by an elephant and it seemed the authorities were very strict after that. We couldn’t blame them for taking stringent precautionary measures but we were desperate too. We wouldn’t get another chance this year and so made some phone calls to the Forest Division office in Trivandrum to contact the forest officers here and convince them that we weren’t trouble makers or terrorists and in the end we were allowed to proceed.


(To be continued...)

Greatest discovery of the century in the Antarctic – 100 year old whiskey

We usually find ice in whiskey. But this time whiskey has been found in ice.

One of the greatest re-discoveries of the 21st century was made in the Antarctic this year when 5 crates containing whiskey was recovered after lying for more than 100 years in the ice.

They belonged to the polar explorer Ernest Shackleton who attempted to be the first person to reach South Pole in 1908. Due to hazardous conditions the trip would not be successful although he became the man to come closest to the South Pole at that time.

The crates containing the whiskey were found buried beneath Shackleton’s Antarctic hut where his expedition team was forced to leave behind supplies. According to the researchers who found the crates they are confident the liquor is intact inside as liquid could be heard when the crates were moved. It is believed the crates contain Mackinlay’s whiskey and according to the company this discovery may open a door into history since the original recipe no longer exists – “a gift from heaven for whiskey lovers.”

So here’s a toast to the bravery of men like Shackleton who journeyed into uncharted lands in the most hazardous conditions armed with nothing but strength of mind and whiskey – Cheers!

Wayanadu – brilliant political move by CPI (M)

The latest struggle by Adivasis for the land held by Shreyamskumar and George Pothan is the result of a brilliant tactical move by the CPI (M). M P Veerendrakumar should have been expecting this since after being with them for so long he should know that CPI (M) never forgives its enemies.

M P VeerendraKumar though his books and speeches gives out the image of someone who loves nature. As far as we know a good part of the land in Wayandu district belongs to him and his family. And his friends. Even the opposition leaders are finding it extremely hard to protect his interests since it was Oomen Chandy himself who first spoke out about the encroachment by Veerendra Kumar some years back when he was with the Left.

Even Mathrubhumi has utterly failed to in its attempt to malign the CPI (M) in this matter. Even though they have now dedicated an entire page with rants against the ‘encroachment’ by CPI (M) led Adivasis on the ‘encroached’ land, these outbursts of protest are by leaders of small parties, mostly JanataDal, within the UDF. No major literary or cultural figures have come out in support of Veerendra Kumar.

CPI(M) already has the upper hand in this political labyrinth. This battle is political, no doubt about it. Either way it is a win –win for CPI(M). If the courts decide against Veerendra Kumar hundreds of Adivasi families will get land. Even if it ends otherwise CPI (M) has already wreaked enough damage to Veeran’s reputation.