7000 Feet above sea level

Unforgettable Moments - 18th, 19th Feb'06

After a few hectic months at work and achievements of some key milestones under the belt, the TCS-CRI Pumps project team at Coimbatore set themselves on a relatively unchartered course; a trek in the Nilgiris. The entire project team set out in a van on a cool sunny morning to Coonoor in the Nilgiris. After a sumptuous lunch at the guest house, we were quite taken in by the clear blue sky, lush green tea estates and the natural chill, typical of the Nilgiris. We promptly set off on a long walk through the tea bushes. While we braced ourselves to sight king cobras and pythons, all that we encountered were a few garden slugs and snails, much to the relief of our few lion-hearted comrades. With the customary set of photographs taken, we descended from the shady heights to our guest house only to set off on another exciting mission; playing cricket at 7000 feet above sea level!

A dilapidated, sparingly used football stadium in the neighbourhood came handy. We quickly formed two teams of six each and each team batted for six overs in the evening twilight and lush green grass imagining as though we were playing cricket in the English countryside. Just when the team was about to retire to bed after tending to their scratched knees and elbows, the statement of the day was made; the caretaker of the guest house quietly walked up to us and said in a low voice: “Sirs, three panthers are on the prowl every night, two were recently caught but one is still at large. Even yesterday, it had killed two dogs in the neighbourhood. So please avoid coming out of your rooms in the night!!” There certainly were no pug marks or knocks on our doors that night and all of us were happy to see each other in good shape the next morning.

With a quick breakfast and some packed lunch, we set off on our grueling trek to Kodanadu view point.

We did not know the exact distance from our starting point and everyone we encountered on the road simply said ‘just round the bend’. We would eagerly march off to that particular bend only to see another bend in the far distance. So we went round and round every bend till our knee- joints creaked and ached. While one team of able-bodied & strong-willed men trekked throughout, others would often hitch hike lifts for a short distance, gather some breath and again start their walk through the deserted country roads, tea estates and jungle trails. Every now and then we would rest and savour the wilderness of the mountains surrounding us. Adding flavour to the walk were a few instant Platos and Aristotles practicing their philosophy on a hapless set of gullible team members!


Finally, we reached the Kodanadu view point and what we saw was simply breath-taking. From about 5000 feet above sea level, we could not differentiate where the sky ended and where the plains began. On the one side were the plains of Mysore and on the other were the thick green forests with a glistening streak of the Moyar river winding its way towards the vast expanse of water called the Bhavani reservoir. As if by magic, all our pains vanished and we quietly sat on one of the rocks relishing the panoramic view that Mother Nature was offering, feeling very belittled in front the endless horizon.

Only on the return to our base by the van, we realized that the seemingly endless trek of round and round the mountains was a distance of 13 kilometres! A few in the team could hardly believe this feat as they confessed that they had not walked this distance in their entire life time!!!

Text Courtesy - Mr. G. Vivekanandan - Group Leader, TCS - My Mentor