Deserted village

04 April 2020

An older post which was hidden somewhere in mobile notes. This was documented nearly 3 months back. Hope you enjoy it now as well.

The lockdown is in force. The village is deserted. The village which was almost deserted is now completely silenced due to ongoing lockdown. The noise is only fluttering of coconut plantation. The euphony of melodic birds is dominating morning time. The egrets are fearless due to reduced human activity and flying freely over the fields. Hopefully, the silence will be broken in the form thunderstorms just to have temporary relief from scorching weather. The vegetation also deserted due to lack of rains. It rained few drops couple of days back. Hence there is hope. The clouds are continuously ferrying over troposphere which strengthens our hope.

Distant hope of thunderstorms

I am at a place where night temperatures are above 28 degree Celsius and humidity crossing 80%. The biting ants are out of burrows to escape heat. Despite the soaring mercury, we drink boiled water. They say virus dies in hot & humid conditions but that's not predictable. Who knows if it gets quickly adapted to any temperature? That's why it's called novel and mystical too. Ignorance has costed developed countries astronomically in terms of human lives and economy. So let's be humble and stay at home instead of assumptions until a suitable medicine is invented.

The silence of human civilization is bringing cheers in wild all round globe. The nature is enjoying and wild is fearlessly roaming. This shows that wild does not need human for survival. They are thoroughly enjoying the quiet time. Probably god heard their prayers too

Hinduism believes that every living thing earth has part of God in it. Through this pandemic, the God wants to teach humans that this earth is not exclusive to human civilization. God has created this beautiful place for everyone and nobody has exclusive right on the resource. Remember there is someone above man's intellect. The pandemic is beyond human control and only saviour is the supreme lord. Let's be humble and understand that the universe is under supreme lord and no-one has control over it. Let's seek asylum under supreme lord and believe that current crisis is fallout of human greed and ignorance

Take care everyone.

Much awaited pre-monsoon rains

Cyclone amphan has its influence in coastal Karnataka too. Good amount rain fell for couple of days and thus blooming the parched ground. The humidity is still in tact which is good news for advancement of SW monsoon. The cyclone is likely to delay advancement of monsoon by 9 days which is alarming but weather experts have predicted normal monsoon. But this shift in time is difficult for farmers to outset farming activities. The uneven distribution creates jitter in farming community on the pattern of rainfall. Hopefully we will have less fluctuations and farmers can peacefully cultivate paddy.

Meanwhile, this was one of the best pre-monsoon rains witnessed at my in laws place, a village near Kundapura this year. After a long wait, 3rd week of May saw heavy pre monsoon downpour for nearly 30 minutes. Till then the water problem was terrible and people were praying for rains. The heavy downpour filled umpteen relief in people of the region finally and temporarily released water starvation. Look how the parched regions are desperately waiting for rains. The dry shrubs also depict the absence of rains from many months. It is quite ironic that the region which receives 5000 mm annually suffers from severe water shortage around fag end of May. Probably this is consequence of non uniform distribution of rains which are concentrated only during months of June to September. Keeping the concerns apart, enjoy the solid rains for a while :-)

So I kept natural things natural. All pictures are straight from camera with zero edits

And yet another pre-monsoon rain video but this time from Kundapura village. Hope you enjoy!

Prelims of Monsoon

23rd May 2020

Fag end of May, it's common sight to witness huge stream of clouds visiting evening skies. Thanks to strong onshore winds, the clouds are seamlessly moving from Arabian sea to landmass.  The amphan cyclone faded away just in a day but with a huge tale of destruction. The prolonged stay of cyclone would have further aggravated the advancement of monsoon. Now that fear is wiped out and MET department has released good news of no more cyclonic activity predicted neither over Bay of Bengal nor Arabian Sea. This further fosters smooth advancement of monsoon activity.

The lockdowns are relaxed, the businesses are blooming again. Consequently, I too decided to travel back to Bangalore tomorrow. There are many circumstances which made me to take decision and rather tough one. The monsoon would soon make its landfall in our region assumed to result in decline of Internet speed quality dampening WFH activity. Hence I inevitably chose to travel to Bangalore. On my penultimate day of stay, I captured the heavy band of clouds flying from west towards mainland. The humidity is still high which is excellent news. The intense cloud activity and high humidity sets perfect environment for onset of monsoon. I thought it would rain at night but it did not. Hopes are soaring. We will have good monsoon season this year as per MET department but not even. Let's hope for best and pray god for prosperity.

I don't know when can I revisit my village due to ongoing pandemic. As of now, with heavy heart, I am bidding adieu to the beautiful nature. I had longing to stay for a month to enjoy those pearls of heaven. But I can't. Sometimes you need to accept the reality and move ON.

Ten days of Pre-Monsoon rains

May 23, 2020

The contrast is eye catching. The initial lull activity of pre monsoon rains accelerated in our village during early days of May. Now the fresh grass shoots are beautifying the village. The verdancy has brought back the photogenic face of nature in the month of May. Today I ventured to those green fields flashed by stunning light and caught the portrait of nature. Oh! what a majesty and beauty of nature The peacocks were playing all over the field. The sky was clean and the vegetation was greener. This is the picture a landscape photographer yearns for. The monsoon would soon begin in our village. The atmosphere will turn more beautiful thanks to artificial streams, turbid rivers and heavy clouds.

Here are pictures post the healthy of rains of may. The vegetation resembles the early days of monsoon in June. I call this as prelims of monsoon. There is something positive even during pandemic.

Unchalli falls, Uttara Kannada District

Yet another picturesque waterfall of Uttara Kannada district formed by pristine Aghanishini river cascading through the dense western ghats and plunging towards the deep valleys of rainforest. On our concluding day of Sonda visit, we visited this waterfall enroute to Kumta from Sirsi. This waterfall is bit far from the Sirsi-Kumta highway which is about 25 kms. Although it looks like small distance, the winding road through dense jungles will make you feel like travel distance of 100 kms. This was pre-planned and was executed without any hiccups.

The waterfall is situated in Heggarane village of Sirsi (or Siddapur) taluk of Uttara Kannada district is also knowns as Lushington falls (named after his discovery). It looks like 10 yrs back, the waterfall was only reachable via trekking from Heggarane village for about 5 kms. Now the road network is properly laid which takes you to nearest possible location.

It seemed like longer journey due to winding and narrow roads. The authorities collect fees from traveller at the forest gate near Heggarane separately for automobile and individuals. We reached the parking lot comfortably after curvy journey from Sirsi. There is ample parking space and well maintained. We could hear the roar from parking lot itself. From here, a trek of 500m leads you to viewpoint of waterfalls. Either you can opt for muddy trail or adjoining stairs constructed from concrete. While the muddy trail is slippery, the stairs are too not easy to manage due to their above normal spacing. The path though completely precludes the sunlight due to the presence of gigantic rainforest trees.

There are three spots enroute to final viewpoint. The first one is large space where you can relax after arduous trek. The second one is viewpoint where you get side-view of waterfall and the final one is where you can enjoy the gushing ocean. We reached the final viewpoint and delighted to view the mesmerizing natural splendour roaring with deafening sound. The view would be breathtaking during monsoon season. I could not resist photographing the site and captured motion pictures too! We had healthy time of 30 minutes spent here in the lap of nature. The uptrek was filled with fatigue and perspiration despite the winter season. By the time we reached parking lot, we were completely soaked in sweat. After having short drinking break, we left the beautiful natural delight and enthralled with visit.

Reaching the spot

Turn on google maps and you reach comfortably. Enjoy the drive through the dense forest with paltry human presence. Make sure to fuel and service your vehicle well in advance. There are no repair station along the path except the towns Kumta and Sirsi. Also there is public transport to the location. Bank on your vehicle to visit.

Food

Carry your own food. A petty shop located at the waterfall site but sells minimal food supplies like beverages & biscuits.

When to visit

Monsoon is best time to visit but not without battling with biting leeches. There may be disappointments during monsoon season due to natural calamities or valley being engulfed with monsoon clouds and thus obstructing view of waterfall. During rains, it may be difficult to trek unless you have firm grip shoes. November-December time frame is ideal season to visit the waterfalls without any obstacles. During our visit during December, there was enough water gushing towards valley with loud voice. The viewpoint was getting sprayed by water from waterfall blew by the artificial breeze created by waterfall plunge. October timeframe would also be viable provided no unseasonal rains crop up.

Last but not least, the dustbins are erected throughout the trail. Please do not litter the beautiful location. Understand these are homes of wild animals and respect their habitat. 

A short video to conclude the blog. Hope you enjoy!

Balamuri Ganapathy Temple, Sahakarnagar, Bangalore

01 Nov 2019

Being holiday on eve of Karnataka Rajyotsava, we decided to visit the balamuri ganapathi temple located at Sahakarnagar, Bangalore. I spotted this beautiful temple just a week back while buying deepavali crackers. I was enthralled by the Shiva statue which tempted me to visit the temple on this holiday. Here are some of pictures from our brief visit

It was easy 2km drive to temple with the moderate traffic. The temple can be easily near Sahakarnagar ground and seems to be well known.  The parking space is available at temple premises but has limited area. Since the visitor count was minimal, we could easily park our car without minding the traffic police. This also helps focus our mind on supreme lord than automobile :-)

The main deity is as name suggests is ganapathy with trunk twisted towards right side. Needless to say, the temple has no historical significance. It is a temple of modern times. The temple inside has wide opening with plenty of space. The temple is neatly maintained and granite floored. There is sense of devotion arising as you enter the temple despite the modern attire. Tiny shrines surround the temple namely, Lord Venkateshwara, Lord Shiva, Goddess Kannika Parameshwari, Goddess Banashankari & Navagrahas. The primary attraction is none other than the Large statue of Lord shiva at the entrance. 

Divine skies to end our short visit. I lament not to be near lakefront to enjoy the colourful skies. Eventually, more than colourful attraction, divinity was of primary importance. To reach divine realm, surrendering the senses is the first step.

Winter Moves On

February 29, 2020

Those were the days when pandemic was still at early stages in India. We could freely move around the places and enjoy the spring evenings. This is one such experience. Let us pray for the pandemic to end soon and the life on earth regains normality.

It is a leap year and hence month of February extends to 29th. A week after MahaShivaratri, the summer feel is already felt in Bangalore. The empty skies are filled with clouds. The heat is building up. The spring blossoms have sprung up and more importantly the buffeting winds have subsided.

Last week, the intense winds bode the onset of spring. Those seasonal winds also carry lot of infectious disease which confuses human body and causes common cold. Today after a gap of two months, we visited Rachenahalli lake park and I was elated to capture the early scenes of spring evening. The clouds added marvel to the entire scene which tempted me to grab few shots after a prolonged dry season. 

There has been reports of rains too in coast and thus dipping the mercury levels. Even the bangalore city needs couple good spells of rains which can contain pollution for 2-3 weeks. Hopefully, rain gods would soon shower good news over the city. Alarmingly, the MET department has already warned of intense heat for the month of March and May.