Dudhsagar Trail

Jumpy! That's how I become if well-housed, well-warmed and well-fed for too long – I rationalize this as 'life oxidized - need for fresh oxygen'. Cramped in a four-walled cubicle, I was drowning into the routine – work, inhale, home, exhale, perish! I call my husband a saviour, yes, he might be a hopeless cook and never a home-mate, but an oxygen tank who can sense my madness and numbness both, all without a word exchanged and unshackle me from all that I every time tactlessly take on myself and get locked in! This time, he doped me with the magic word ‘Goa’!

Though Goa only rings a bell for its hip beaches, there is another side of this place beyond sea, sand and sun, which is greener, quieter and rare. So close to the city and yet so elusive. Wonder why! You would find many but accurate information online about this place, especially the trekking routes to this part of the country and that, I assume, was one of the sundry reasons which made me extra irked to witness the crash, the growl, the epic fall –  Dudhsagar Waterfall in Goa.

Honestly, I am not a trekker, not even a treadmill walker, but this one had me eyeing for it for long, more because of the ceaseless charm of walking barefoot through a ravine which is a part of a wildlife sanctuary (Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary in the Western Ghats) just to touch the base of the humongous waterfall – it’s more than just trekking!

There is another route via Castle Rock railway station (Dudhsagar situated between Castle Rock and Kullem (another railway station ahead of Castle Rock). Dudhsagar is exactly 15 kms from Castle Rock station and it is said that this route is scarier in terms of the gradient of the track and the bridges and quainter for its numerous ancient tunnels on the way down (13 tunnels till Dudhsagar and 16 tunnels till Kulem Station). We took the easier or rather woodier path to the fall via Kullem station – yes, solely for the woods and the foliage to disguise our panting into pleasure in anticipation of spotting birds, and other hidden jewels of the legendary ‘Sea of Falls’ trail.

Our homework taught us that this Dudhsagar Fall is India's 5th tallest waterfall and 227th in the world and it is located at a height of 310 meters on the Mandovi River on Goa-Karnataka border. And with this little knowledge of the demography, we marked the beginning of a beautiful journey on an overcast October morning which certainly remained as one of my best expeditions in a while.

To put it meatily, we covered the distance between Mumbain and Margaon by a volvo semi-sleeper bus and an A.C. car thereafter to take us to our resort (Dudhsagar Spa Resort - 60 kms. from Margaon which costed around INR 500). 

The next morning, we were booked in a Government jeep from Kullem check-point along with the mandatory life jackets given to wear and deposit on our way back. The jeep crawled about an hour dodging the dips and dents of the dirt-uphill road while the rest was saved for those hair-raising twist and turns surging through small streams where groups of local kids merrily took their playful saunas. The muddy serpentine road left no stone unturned to give us all sorts of somersaults!

Many jeeps packed with foreigners came dashing down the same slim track causing a full stop to the stream of traffic. Impatient and dripping with sweat, we got off the vehicle and and what we saw left us sweating more - a seemingly endless queue of such jeeps at a standstill and humans in flock merrily climbing up the track with no questions asked. We kept waiting there - faces grim and patience nil. At last, we, oblivious as to how long this trek would be, decided to go with the crowd and hike up to the destination.

As I struggled trudging up the steep incline of the waterfall trail, I cursed myself, my unfitting shoes, my decision not to wait in the jeep and my ever-smiling, never-complaining husband ahead of me. The blazing sun and the newly found foot-sores crushed my commitment to birding – I was craving for water, breather and impetus. To distract my discouraging thoughts, I started mounting my camera lens and I happened to hear a deafening, thriving sound – sound of the falls – the adrenaline kicked in rapidly. Our spirits up, we expeditiously crisscrossed the slippery path and quite a few brooks and creeks - all barefooted. An hour more of such isometrics and we were undeniably in for a jolt as we got the glimpse of our much-awaited sight of Dudhsagar – literally, a gigantic sea of milk – looked silvery white while oozing powerfully out of the thick green cover and hitting to the auburn basin below! A never-before feeling of absorption in sheer amusement replaced my grogginess in a fleet of a second.

The majestic waterfall poured in to create a foaming torrent and formed into a deep green pool of fresh mountain spring water where the entire crowd was pulled into for obvious reasons. The green tropical canopy around us worked wonders for our aching legs and I, without complaining, dipped my bruised and blistering feet into the freezing cold water and instantly sensed a euphoria inside - I was up, close and personal with the legend - the long wait was over - I was standing right in front! Nothing could kept me from being charmed by its intense drift – I was in love with the symbiotic of the living and non-living, with the green and the white, with my coexistence with the nature and its splendour.

And when we thought that the trek has shown us all including the falls, the descent on our way back through the deep dark forest outdid all our expectations – the trail gifted us with those rare openings to the sighting of an indolent Green Vine Snake spiralling around a brushwood, a Giant Wood Spider feeding on its fresh catch, a Malabar Giant Squirrel quickly cutting across our path to climb up to one of the top tree branches and a Indian Bison munching on its day meal at a distance. Tickled and captivated as I then defined ourselves.

Gawking at the steep ridge on my right and the sea of milk gradually getting further distant, I picked up gratitude – a feeling far more intense than the waterfall and far deeper than the forest. I held my husband’s hand who was busy clicking our selfie with the incredible trekking trail behind – I promised! I promised not to let go of this moment, I swore not to whine again for anything in life, I thanked the almighty for this life and vowed to live through every moment of this gift called life. He beheld with the deepest smile ever and pressed my hand in couched reassurance - we were ready to get back to our bustling urban cycle - together as always!