Moon Night Trekking at Skandagiri Mountain

The title of this post is quite misleading as it was not a "Moon night or "Moon-Walk" by Michael Jackson but we experienced more than kinda dance by trekking on Skandagiri also called as Kalavara Durga (peak is of 1350 Mt altitude source-Wiki :P) 40 KM from Bengaluru, and 3 KM from Chickballapur. This mid-night trekking as it is convention to exaggerate about this adventurous trip (see everything is relative and should be gauged accordingly) we hired two Qualis; total 18 pro trekkers(:P) happily seated and kicked-off from the Forum Mall, Kormangala at midnight precisely 12:30 A.M. on June 13th i.e., two days after my birthday; so as usual imagining a great inception on my new year. It was in the way towards Hebal, Bangalore International Airport the roads are slick so was the drivers; we reached Chickballapur quickly. As we thought the place was a village kind but it is perfectly fine place on par with Bangalore City standards moreover we couldn't find any person on road (why the darn people be awake at 2 A.M to offer us a grand welcome?? :P but I mean I didn't find any vagabond sleeping on the road side might be the place living standards shows a good economic sign..this is not an axiom so don't draw any info further).

As we know everything cannot be planned ideal in overnight this is one such trip so we do have let-outs like we know what place to go but after Chickballapur we have no clue of the Kalavara Durga hills. So we were looking curiously if any heck of a guy is awake to guide us; but finally found one and was told which direction to go. This time we found no street light as we are moving away from village and interior part of some base of the hill. As said by the man we got inside some arch where temple is located and went interior of it finally reached a dead-end where we have no clue of the people. As it was too dark, we took torch lights (thanks to the organizers of the trip who arranged it) & started searching for the mountain professional guides but no clue of them in fact no living being was sighted. We got confused by lightbees as the people going with torch lights. For sometime we scoured the place in the hope of trekkers around. So after sometime it is confirmed we took a "WRONG TURN".

Some of us felt we could be mugged at this place as we came to no-man's land in the darkness. So many things ran into our mind thinking about wild animals to the victims which can be used for a script of the sequel of movie "Wrong Turn". Its not that horrifying situation as we could able to make decision quickly to return back to the base(Chickballapur) and ask for the route. This time we are guided in a right direction. Finally reached the base of Skandagiri at 2:45 am. We were informed by 1 am we should start from the base of the hill as we could reach to see the wonderful view of sunrise and angels above the clouds (:D). So all set now we started at 3:00 am from the base by taking a snap and head-count (8 girls and 10 boys).

As it is the base of the hill we felt a bit chilly so many of us wore sweat shirts to jerkins. Initially it is less steeper as we are heading it became more slope & slippery. We are behind the guide and following like sheeps behind guardian dog (don't make literal meanings). Or you can say him as a sheperd and we are flocks of sheep. We took many breaks during the trek as it is too tiring for the beginners like us ( this is contradictory to the aforementioned professional trekkers :O). Luckily it was not raining that day otherwise it would be more slippery and unsafe. He took us like in a maze but we knew that we can hold clouds and can puncture it to drink rain water (how illogical am I ?..Yes because what I have studied may not be true always this was a known-unknown for me). Some of them cursing themselves as they would have happily slept like a log after a hard-working weekend. Some of us thought to give-up the climbing. But eventually with no choice left than to follow the shepard. We were focusing lights upward in the sky and we could feel that clouds were not very far from us. Also we knew that when we reach to the top of the him we are above the clouds. During this time we took snaps but there is a heavy mist which couldn't get a proper image of us. This time we are sure we are puncturing the clouds and distance 1 metre far is invisible to us. So no choice than to follow the sheperd.

When we were heading to no-where we were greeted by the dawn and found few meters away from the pinnacle. We reached the top of the hill at 5:20 A.M. Already many people were there at that time with tents and some people are behind us. As it is visible now we can see everyone around us but we are still inside the cloud only. so we didn't surpassed the clouds some of us disappointed as we couldn't see the sunrise either due to dense-clouds. If it was a perfect day like most of the days our reactions would be different. We people had Maggi, tea and arranged a campfire. Most of us didn't regretted the trekking part as we felt it was the most fun. If we could see the clouds and sunrise then it would be perfect for us. We stayed on the top of the hill for 1:30 hr by taking snaps, waiting for maggi, tea. As Skandagiri is known as the "adventurer's paradise" and features a beautiful night trek, altitude camping, stunning sunrise, and serene and ocean like clouds. All we experienced is only a beautiful night trek which is very satisfying to most of us.

While getting down the hill we came across some scenic views which made us feel good and strong.

"Eyjafjallajoekull" says Take a break!! for business activities

A volcano, named Eyjafjallajoekull, in Iceland has spread havoc across Europe hitting businesses across the world. The below are some of the Industries affected by this “island-mountain-glacier” volcano:

Airline Industry:

Airlines are losing over $200 million per day according to the International Air Transport Association. The Indian airline industry, which had started recovering from the recession, has also lost crores in terms of passenger revenue. Millions of passengers have been stranded at various airports across Europe. Airlines and travel firms are the biggest losers. A total of 313 airports have been affected, with over 63,000 flight cancellations since April 15. Flights to the UK and other European destinations of Air India, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines remained cancelled for the sixth consecutive day today in the wake of huge clouds of volcanic ash emanating from Iceland. To add to their woes, airlines will have to bear additional costs for re-routing their aircraft and taking care for stranded passengers and aircraft at various airports. While the ailing airline industry has borne the brunt volcanic ash from Iceland, several other businesses also remain affected.

Merchandise Business:

High-end merchandise exports from India worth $1 billion are likely to be affected due to the air travel crisis, says a Business Standard report. Exporters, particularly, those dealing with new clients are more at risk of losing their business, rejection of shipment and cancellation of order bookings. According to industry estimates, exporters are incurring a daily loss of around Rs 20 crore (Rs 200 million). In Maharashtra, exporters have stopped buying fresh vegetables and fruits from farmers because they expect air services to resume after April 23, the report said. Exports from the Korean electronics industry have been hit. Europe accounts for about 10 per cent of the nation's electronics product exports. Exporters of perishable goods, including food and flowers have been badly hit. Food exports from Africa, Kenya, South America and the Caribbean have been affected.

Economy of Country:

The Kenyan economy is losing $3.8 million a day as a result of flight cancellations to Europe. About $12 million worth of flowers and vegetables exports for European markets have already got cancelled. The New Zealand economy is likely to lose $1.1 million a day due to the Iceland volcano disruption. Meanwhile, the Turkish lira hit a 10-day low and Turkish stocks hit 2-1/2 week lows over concerns about the tourism industry.

Conferences & Activities:

Many events and conferences had to be cancelled. Two major events in London - Marathon and London Book Fair - will be affected. Indian publishing companies were forced to cancel their plans of opening stalls at the fair. Flipkart.com cancelled its participation at the London Book Fair 2010. The mass cancellation of flights from Europe due to the volcanic eruption in Iceland is likely to deal a blow to China's exhibition industry which every year helps Chinese businessmen to strike billions of dollars of deals to sell their goods there in European markets. April typically marks the beginning of the exhibition season in the country. Auto China 2010 - an annual exhibition for global auto giants to promote new cars that was slated to start on Friday in Beijing - now faces some uncertainty.

Business Drops:

Major courier companies have seen business drop. They are burdened with piling consignment and stranded goods. FedEx, DHL and TNT have reported disruption of services. The Japanese MotoGP race, an international sporting event had to be postponed due to the flight cancellations.

Crisis:

This is not the first time a volcanic eruption is threatening air travel. There have been over 126 instances involving planes and volcanic ash in the past. Planes that flew through the ash clouds have faced engine damage. This time, several NATO F-16 fighters suffered engine damage after flying through the volcanic ash cloud. Meanwhile, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has blamed the government for its slow response to the crisis that is robbing the industry of billions of dollars. "We are far enough into this crisis to express our dissatisfaction on how governments have managed it-with no risk assessment, no consultation, coordination, and leadership. This crisis is costing airlines at least $200 million a day in lost revenues and the European economy is suffering billions of dollars in lost business. In the face of such dire economic consequences, it is incredible that Europe's transport ministers have taken five days to organize a teleconference," said Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's Director General and CEO.

Industries Benefiting:

Amidst this colossal loss, there are some gainers. Railways in France, UK, Sweden are helping stranded passengers. European Railways, like Eurostar which operates high-speed trains, connecting London with Paris and Brussels has seen a rise in business. The company is operating additional trains between London and Paris. Eateries and shops in the airports see more business with stranded passengers.