By Shobha Rao Smilemaker
Dec 18: This year’s annual holiday with a group of close friends was at a homestay near a pristine village called Yeslur. After a night of partying, my husband and me were the only ones to decide to get up early and go on a one hour drive on the Bisle Ghat road.
The early morning sun enveloped in the hazy mist added to the surreal feeling of the morning drive. Soon we were surrounded by what looked like virgin Bisle forest reserve area.
Our local hosts had suggested that we visit the Bisle hills view point which was erected due to the efforts of their visionary great grandfather who wanted to attract tourists to the Bisle hills area.
Once we reached the two level view point, we were just overwhelmed with the lush green forests all around us. Later I learned that it was the Kagneri Reserve Forest to the north, Bhagimalai Reserve Forest to the west, Kukke Subramanya forest range to the southwest and the Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanctuary in the South.
Shanding on this Bisle Ghat range, we saw the shining reflection of the sun on the small Giri river which separated our view point from the mountain ranges. These waters would join the Kumaradhara River, which is a tributary of the Netravati river.
Our over enthusiastic hosts so had told me that people used to consider as very holy, a the five mountain peaks visible from this point. We saw the Kumara Parvatha peak of Dakshina Kannada district, the Pushpagiri and Dodda Betta peaks of the Kodagu district, and also the Patta Betta and Enni Kallu peaks of the Hassan district.
There were few bike borne tourists at this place who were reading and enjoying the morning view.
From the view point I admired the thick tree coverage on the steep slopes of the forests and the warmth of the morning sun. It helped that I had a thick jacket to face the noisy strong winds.
These reserve forests are now included in the protected area category, in a bid to protect the rich flora and fauna of the region.
We too some photos to capture this scenery for posterity. We spent some more time in the lower deck soaking in the warm morning sun on an otherwise chilly day.
We then drove back with a smile, cherishing the memories of a beautiful morning surrounded with mountains on all sides.
Shobha Rao Smilemaker has a vision of living in a world where people use their ability to find and make smiles in any situation. She is a lawyer by qualification, a soft skills trainer by passion, a motivational speaker, a freelance journalist, a bestselling author, an avid traveler and founder of 'Smilemakers Trainings'. She can be contacted at www.shobhasmilemaker.com.