My Vellagavi Trek: Kumbakkarai to Kodaikanal in Two Days
The trek from Kumbakkarai Falls through Vellagavi to Kodaikanal was one of the toughest I have done. We started at roughly 400 metres above sea level and finished near 2,150 metres, going from a hot, exposed climb to heavy rain and then a cool morning in the hills. Five of us cousins were part of the group. I had travelled from Bengaluru, the others from Chennai, and we met in Dindigul before taking a taxi to Kumbakkarai. A late start from Kumbakkarai We left Dindigul around 6:30 am and reached the starting point near Kumbakkarai Falls at about 8:45. By the time everyone had arrived and we finished the forms and photo formalities, it was 9:45 before we started walking. One person in the group had already arranged for someone to carry his bag. I should have immediately picked up on that idea. I didn’t, and really paid for it. I was carrying a 50-litre backpack with about five kilos of luggage, plus three bottles of water. The first two kilometres were not particularly difficult, bu...