Foot Notes | Altitude challenge

The wet fury of the south-west monsoon has abated. The Western Ghats are now open for business. Pick from these two weekend adventures out of Bangalore as the best season for treks and hikes gets under way:

Chembra Peak, Wayanad, Kerala

On a clear day, you get a view of the entire Wayanad district from the top of Chembra Peak. You can see a pristine heart-shaped lake embedded in a valley below. These are but two of the highlights of a trek to the 2,100m Chembra Peak, the highest peak in Wayanad.

Chembra Peak is around 290km from Bangalore. The trek takes 4 hours in each direction, and can be done over a weekend.

To go to Chembra, take a bus from Bangalore to Kalpetta (6 hours). Karnataka and Kerala state buses ply on the route, as do private buses. These buses typically require prior reservation. From Kalpetta take a local bus to Meppadi, 30 minutes away. From Meppadi, take an autorickshaw to the forest office, 7km away. If you’re driving, you can directly go to the forest office, passing by green beds of tea estates along the way.

At the forest office, buy the tickets ( ₹ 500 for a group of up to 10). The forest office will assign you a guide for the trek; you can park your car near the office. The guide will drive you to a watchtower 5km from the forest office, from where you start the trek.

Thadiyandamol, Coorg, Karnataka

The 1,740m Thadiyandamol is the tallest peak in Coorg and the second tallest in Karnataka. The peak, the foothills and sites on the way are also very popular camping spots.

The road to the base of the peak runs along sprawling coffee estates, many of them neatly arranged in terraces. The trekking route up the mountain is lined by mountain grass, towering forests and colourful flowers.

There are 18 routes to the top. The most popular of these go by the intriguing names of “Honey Valley route” and “Palace route”. The former is longer and much more scenic than the latter, but it is open only to trekkers who have a reservation on a homestay located on the route. The Palace route is a shorter, direct route to the top.

To reach Thadiyandamol by the Palace route, take a bus from Bangalore (247km) or Mysore (104km) to Virajpet. There are frequent government buses on the route—the daytime buses do not require reservation. From Virajpet, take local buses to Kakkabe, the nearest big town, to buy food and refreshments. This is a 30km journey. To get started on the trek, take a bus to Kaikamba—and get off at Aramane bus stop (or “palace” in Kannada).

The “palace” refers to the Nalku Nadu Palace, which stands at the entrance to the trekking route. Take a right turn at the fork in the road immediately after the palace, and you begin your hike almost immediately.

The Bangalore Mountaineering Club frequently organizes treks to spots around Bangalore, including Chembra and Thadiyandamol. For details, visit www.bmcindia.org

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