While getting down from Parvathamalai during my third trek there, I decided to explore a stream that flows parallel to the famous Thenmadhimangalam route. It took me to a small waterfalls and a wonderful cave. It was great to see all this in Parvathamalai which has been highly polluted by too many visitors. So this time, I decided to climb it from the other side via the Kadaladi route and see what's in store. Guess what, it didn't disappoint!
Karthik, Kailash, Deepak and I started to climb at around 9:50PM guarded by two dogs. The climb was beautiful and much more satisfying than the well-lit, cemented path in the Thenmadhimangalam route. We were guided by our narrow torch light beams that lit the rocks below us.. It was rising at a constant slope of almost 40 degrees and we encountered many palm-sized scorpions, millipedes and countless other insects. We could hear the rumbling sounds made by ants when they moved in large numbers after we stepped near their nest. The sound was beautiful!The hot, humid weather began to harass us and we were sweating like hell. My tees were so wet that I almost doubted if I would reach the peak without suffering from dehydration. We proceeded however, with perfect belief in our skills and reached the peak at around midnight. We found some pilgrims inside the temple and hence we decided to sleep in the open as it would also mean some fresh air. At around 3AM, we could see mist forming around us. Our torchlight beams were able to show us some fine droplets and a faint halo around the beam. I was quick enough to realise what was happening. A miracle! I have already seen this in many treks and during my first trek in Parvathamalai too. I decided not to tell what the miracle was and slept off. We had not brought any warm clothing(peak summer) and hence shared whatever we had among us. As expected, it became horribly cold and our teeth began to chatter non stop. Somehow, Karthik and I slept off while the other two struggled hard and couldn't get any sleep. In the morning, I woke up the others and showed them the magic around us. We were standing above the clouds!
A lot of photo sessions followed and we started to descend. This is when the problem began. A group of 15-odd monkeys surrounded us and one of them started to attack us. Kailash threw a bag at it(God knows why!) and all the monkeys started to attack us more violently now. Karthik was in the front and he somehow managed to get down from the 80 degree slope we were standing on. When he went to get help from some locals nearby, the rest of us climbed again and reached a spot where it was safer to move here and there. It was a dangerous spot and a fall could mean death or at least a few fractured bones. Soon, Karthik came back with a stick and we chased away the monkeys. The descent was beautiful after this and we were walking through the clouds and it just added to the beauty. We also encountered a juvenile snake on the way. We reached the base and now made the boring walk to the bus stop. Personally, I felt this was the most painful part of the entire trek. The return to the concrete jungle :P We took some rest in a field on the way and refreshed ourselves. Another wonderful trek, done and dusted :)
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