Last weekend was a long weekend, off for Ed and Ganesha Chaturthi. We decided to visit South Coorg for some adventure with white water rafting and trekking. We started from Bangalore at 6.00AM and took the Bangalore- Mysore- Hansur- Nagahole-Kutta route to reach Irpu falls. It was a 7 hr drive, with last 1 hr drive through the woody landscape of Nagarhole forest where we were greeted by wild elephants, peacock and herds of spotted dears.
We had booked our stay with Hillside View Homestay. On reaching, we were welcomed with warm smile by Jimmi & Indu, the owner of the Homestay. The location of the Homestay was very picturesque. Nestled amidst the coffee bushes, the front side of the house opened to the beautiful Irpu falls. We quickly freshened up and headed straight for lunch. Indu had prepared delicious chicken curry in Coorgi style which was served with white rice & ghee rice. Over the lunch, we introduced each other and chit chatted in general for an hour. Post lunch we headed for the most awaited part of the trip… White water rafting!!!
We were asked to assemble at the base camp of Ace Paddlers at 3.30PM. Ace Paddlers are Adventure Tourism consultants for the Karnataka Tourism Industry offering nature-packed thrilling outdoor activities. With just two of us, we were clubbed with another Enthu group from Hyderabad. Firstly, we were asked to put on all the safety gears and carry the raft to the bank of the river…… A tough task!!! The instructor then briefed us on the finer aspects of white water rafting including the rescue & paddling instructions… “Left forward… Right backward…. All forward…. Left backward. ..Right forward….all back….huuuh.” Confusing enough for a toddler. By the time we grabbed our paddle and stepped into the raft all the briefing was lost…:). We were just tooooo Xcited to Xperience the thrill…. With plenty of rains witnessed in last few days, rafting through the 4 rapids of the fast flowing white water was a mind blowing experience!! Especially the last two rapids named “Ram jane” & “Do or Die” were the most exhilarating.
After rafting, we drove back through the beautiful Tea plantation to our Homestay. In the evening after a cup of tea/coffee, we just relaxed by taking a stroll in the coffer estate. Night was followed with an early dinner & a well deserved 12 hrs long sleep. …. :)
The next morning after a scrumptious breakfast we left for the short trek to Irpu falls. With monsoons just over, the view of the falls were simply breath taking and the experience of getting hit while under it was just more than normal thrill!!! Time being a constraint, there was another 9km trek into the Bramhagiri forest which we decided to give a miss this time………. Wonder if it was really time or just the age…. :)
After freshening up we finally bid adieus to our wonderful host Jimmi & Indu and left for Bangalore at 11.30AM.
This trip indeed was one of our most adventurous weekend getaways!!
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