Ramanagudda Trek, Charmadi

On a beautiful morning I started my journey with based team Sahyadri Trekkers, we went for Ramanagudda trek which is one of the most magnificent natural treasures of the Charmadi hidden among a blanket of greenery. 18 people crammed up in tempo traveler we left Mangalore around early in the morning. I witnessed the marvel of green Charmadi through the drenched glass of my TT window. The feeling was as if I was seeing a pearl in the ocean.

 My affection and attraction leaped with every single visit I made in Charmadi. I don’t know the reason but this temptation may be because of my urge to enjoy the spectacle of Barekallu Jenkallu in moon light or to spend a night in dark forest of Devaramane, Kumbhakalu, Dodderibetta, Jenkallu, Hosamangudda, Durgadabtta,Yettinabuja, Divatigebetta and shiver with excitement in entire night.

Furthermore, the breathe-taking feel of the gust of wind from top of Yettinabuja, sight of the highest pinnacle of Amdicallu, making of delicious barbecue between colorful wild flowers of Baremale (Butterfly hill) reaching at the bottom of Minchukallu in search of few drops of water, hanging the body well above 1150m while rock climbing at Yerikallu pinnacle, its numerous delightful routes, both easy and difficult all these justify, well beyond doubt my love and affection for this lovely heaven on Earth.

There was not a single moment which I wanted to miss absorbing every single thing in nature the majestic mountains, many gurgling streams, many small waterfalls ,hidden caves, green covered peaks were few things in that beautiful Charmadi hill ranges, many small  sleepy villages was very quiet with moving around in their own world. The sub-tropical climate and heavy rains during the wet season create an environment where several unique plant and animal species flourish.

The Charmadi range is the central part of the Western Ghats, a major mountain range of Karnataka, well known for its flora, fauna and mountain tops. It runs parallel to the Arabian Sea and forms a long wall, which gathers to it monsoon clouds and has much thick forest.  The northern part of this range, from the Bandaje River to the Ombattu Gudda is called the Charmadi. The Charmadi range is 50 km long, north to south, and is 10 to 20 km in width on east-west axis. The height varies between 900 to 1350 m.

Nevertheless I have always come across great and divine people during travelling. It’s hard to forget people whom I met while roaming in Charmadi, my friends with whom I shared my last drop of water, it was an amazing experience being in deep forest, stretching the limits of verticality of terrain. Some say it pain of trekking, while I feel it to be the joy of achieving new heights. All said the reality is that I have fallen in love with Charmadi and wish this journey continue with more spectacles to explore tantalizing windows in.

The starting point is Malayamarutha guest house from where the trail starts. The initial trail is through a fairly dense forest. Then the forest cover disappears slowly and beautiful grasslands appear which continues to the summit.

Spikes of rock occasionally break through the green carpet smothering the mountains and remind me of sleeping dinosaurs. The creator must have taken all the time in the world to create such a beautiful place and then send his children to admire play and enjoy in his magical land.

The route is moderate gradient and passes through dense coniferous forests. We had to climb up a ridge till halfway up. This trail on the ridge was easy terrain if somewhat steep. The group made good speed as we kept walking up the hill. The hike is quite steep in the middle and later flattens out.

One by one everyone reached the summit. We were all tired and hungry. The packed lunches were out and finished within minutes. It was scalding hot and except a few trees there was nothing to offer us a cool shadow. The views from the top are absolutely stunning. No picture can do justice to it and it further bolsters the view that Ramanagudda is one of the most scenic treks you can do in the Charmadi. We stayed about an hour at the summit soaking in the views and the achievement

 Finally after many hours of exploration we finally emerged and started our way back but our minds were still dwelling in the prehistoric times, totally a unique experience than our regular treks.