Rendezvous with nature.

If you think that Goa is place only for sun, sand and shores, think again for I have experienced a thrilling and spine chilling experience in the Western Ghats forests of Goa.



We 15 students of Ah-4 hostel decided to go on a trek to Netravali falls but nature wanted to us to be somewhere else. We went little further cutting borders to Karnataka where mainapy falls are located. The bus took us to top of the hill and the driver said it is just 20 minutes walk(can be called trek)from there to falls,  so we set out walking and after 40 minutes we were in the middle of nowhere just when a guy from a nearby hut came and dropped Hiroshima and Nagasaki together saying that. Falls are still about 1 hour trek into the forest.  Taking the route from him we started into the forest but to our dismay we lost our way in the first five minutes. Then when that guy came again from some (no) where saying he will guide us to the falls we thought ‘oh!!God is watching us’.



Into the forest where light is very scarce on a rather hot and sunny day outside, we maneuvered through the trees, rocks, and many other weird things. After about 50 minutes of trek we saw an awesome sight of water (for a moment I thought it is water) falling from over 40 feet height. Now came the most difficult part of the trek where we need to climb down the hill which was having almost 90 degree slope. All of us took our time to climb down carefully and to take our eyes away from the waterfalls and concentrate on the path which is more uneven with rocks, trees and whatnot.










At last we reached the bottom of the falls and then a sense of achievement filled us. After playing in teeth breaking cold water on a very hot and sunny day for a while we took photographs and then had lunch.

Now a herculean task was in front of us, to climb that hill again that too after being in water and having lunch. I swear stars were just perfect for us on that day. We slowly climbed and walked back a little while when that guide (guy) told he cannot come any further as it may become dark by the time he reaches his home. Then our future was in our eyes and everyone was tensed because we need to walk a minimum 3 hours from his house to our bus..??!!.



Then he relieved us by saying that there is a shortcut through the forest by which we can reach our bus within 1hour. So we paid him and noted the route and some landmarks. Aaahhh…!!! So here we are alone in the forest completely cut away from the hustle and rustles of daily life. We slowly and silently moved on the only route (if we can call it!!)for almost 1 hour and then we reached a small river flowing, the first landmark, seeing which we sighed a relief and we marched forward in the direction but after half an hour we were bewildered as one and half hour has passed and we have absolutely no clue where we are.









We sat down on a dry stream by the side of river and were discussing what action institute will take to find us and will there be any wild animals sort of weird topics. Sensing that we have only one hour before it gets dark, we thought it is prudent to walk even if we are not sure of the way and we started.

We walked for another half an hour to find a large clearance and as I thought it be the middle of forest, we found a very clear path leading somewhere...God…I bet India would have won the world cup if it had this kind of luck….I told u God was watching us..he wanted us to be back in campus…





We heard dogs barking at a distance and when the barking became louder it became clear that we were at the  end of forest and we found a couple of huts….hurray!. No wonder he shouted eureka..




We then drenched our mouths with water. What can we do, it is as if floods after a drought. we then came to know our bus is just half an hour walk away. Those reliefs, that sense of ecstasy, that feeling of proud, for once I thought we were all eligible for Bharat ratna. We then sang all the way, slept on the road, and then came our bus. We all boarded the bus and the next thing I knew we were at the campus gate.




We went along the road (not actually a road) less travelled or rather not travelled. The rewards are for lifetime, the experience unforgettable and memories eternal…