It was an amazing evening and a group of 18 of my friends started the daring journey to the historical Velliyangiri temple. We start our journey from the heart of the city. We boarded the last bus to poondi on Saturday night. As we approached the terminal, it was pitch black. We could see the silhouette of the majestic hill. We were received by the local wise men in the hills. As it was rainy season at that time, forest officials and sages warned against walking on the hill at that time. But what we really had in mind was walking up the hill at midnight and coming back at dawn. His usual routine for devotees is to walk down the hill during the lunar eclipse. Due to the restriction of the local forestry officials, we abandoned the night hike plan. We stayed in a temple at the foot of the hills. The officials warned us not to wander around at night as the place is overrun with elephants and wild animals. It was one of the most exciting nights I’ve ever had. It was raining outside, the cold breeze chilled my body, and I had a hard time sleeping. Some of my friends also felt the same. We look at the wall paintings and some portraits around the temple. It was 3 o’clock, I tried to fall asleep but suddenly I heard the cracking of cookies. To our surprise, it was the local tribes that chased away the herd of wild elephants. We felt a wave of horror and then everyone woke up. It was 5’0 o’clock, we freshened up and our journey to the seven hills began with camphor lighting and a special pooja.
He had a single flashlight, ten glucose pockets, an emergency water bottle, and some snacks. we started our trekking at 5:30 am The whole forest was calm and we couldn’t see anything except the steep steps. After a few minutes of going up we felt exhausted, as the whole place was wet from the continuous drizzle. We went up barefoot. While we were going up the hill, people were aware of three things, the first is the blood sucking leech, the next is the slippery rocks, and finally the encounter with wild animals.
As we got closer, we started to feel the sunrise. We were surrounded by giant trees and after an hour of climbing we stopped at a place where we saw some strewn sticks. We all select separate sticks for each other. Finally we walked the first hill. The beginning of the second hill was felt by the wider steps. The road was very bumpy due to soil erosion from the rain. We found it very difficult to climb the second hill. At a crossroads we find a small stream frequented by wild animals. As we ascended, the path became more and more complicated.
As we approached the third hill, we faced a new difficulty, clouds making visibility difficult. Later we felt that we were walking among the clouds. That was the most ecstatic and nostalgic moment of my life. As a photographer I took a lot of photos. Our journey was interrupted by a sudden scream from one of my friends. He had a leech attack. We were surprised to see his pants soaked in blood. It was a blood-sucking leech. He suddenly he pricked the leech with his hands. The blood began to gush endlessly. Like leech saliva has an enzyme that prevents blood clotting. My friend was very lucky to see the leech before it was too late. I wrapped a handkerchief around his legs, but the blood kept gushing out continuously.
We reached the fourth hill. It was a flat terrain. Widely called as “sitamala”. as we can see the cliff of the various hills of Coimbatore.It was one of the fantastic places I have ever seen. Clouds crossed me often. The weather changed intermittently.
We often feel exhausted. We do not have enough water to quench our thirst. We only had a few packets of glucose. We had divided into nine pairs and shared the glucose packets. I felt the true power of glucose at that moment. We feel energized after drinking small vials of glucose. Since I was the photographer, I have to lead the group and take a lot of risks. I really enjoyed myself and kept the group energetic with my pep talk. We had a short break on a large rock almost 3000m above sea level.
We reach the next stage of the hill. The road was rough and in very poor condition.
Also the hill was frequented by ridges and valleys. One of my friends slipped and badly hurt his knee. But thank God, he managed to walk with our group. Lots of guys developed muscle cramps, including me. But nothing hindered our indomitable zeal to conquer the seven hills.
We approach a valley. A large stream flowed in the middle. It was a stunning scene of nature and we really admired the green beauty covered by the mist. We had a natural shower in the creek. The ice water drove away the pain and we cheered up after the bath. As we ascended through the hill, we went higher in altitude. We are approaching the sixth hill. The path was very narrow and we couldn’t see anything as the visibility was poor due to the clouds. Finally we reach the last stage of the hill. Although it seemed small compared to the rest of the hill we had conquered, it was the most difficult to climb.
There was no proper path, it was incline at 45 and the path was slippery due to algae deposit. Visibility was poor and the strong wind made the ascent difficult. Also a constant stream of water flowed between the rough path, where we saw many blood sucking leeches. There was a great confusion in everyone’s mind. How to go down the hill. Since the path was almost steep. Anyway, after two hours of enormous efforts we reached the top of the hill. There were gigantic rocks and we, the almost exhausted people, had the relief of conquering the majestic seven hills.
Two giant rocks, each about 20 meters tall, stood up majestically blocking the clouds from reaching the other side, and there was a narrow crack between the rocks, where part of the clouds escaped to the other side. It was the simple concept of windward and leeward that we studied in our grade level geography. At the bottom of the huge rock was a cave. Inside the cave we saw panchaloha idol of lord shiva and nandhi adorned with flowers and had a nice blessing from the sadhu who stayed on the cliff for years.
We did not see any human population there. The siddhar was the only person who used to live on the deserted cliff. He didn’t talk to us either, he just offered a box full of Arabian dates and a pomegranate. He went to his little hut after doing the pooja. We had a nice blessing and started from there after taking a nostalgic photo at 6000m above sea level.
We started our return at 11.30am and had split into two lots as the downhill part of the hill is a much more complicated and life threatening task. The task of going down the hill was very difficult than we expected, we struggled a lot to get to the stream. We ran out of glucose and water. Although it was noon we still noticed the cool breeze. We saw the scenic beauty of siruvani falls in the remote hills, the entire hill was instantly vanished by a giant cloud. One of my friends passed out due to dehydration and there were only five members with me at the time, but luckily he had an emergency water bottle. He helped him at that time.
As we got closer to the second hill, everyone was feeling exhausted, we sat down near the small stream and refreshed ourselves. But to everyone’s surprise, we suddenly heard the sound of a wild bison approaching towards us. A sudden wave of panic rose in everyone’s mind. It was one of those moments where I really felt the real danger coming. We can’t even run because the road was rough. I gave clear instructions to the team that they were to remain silent and not move if they came across the bison.
With a bold mind we started moving down, but the sound was constantly buzzing. Later it subsided and we breathed a sigh of relief. At last we reached the place where we collected the sticks. And on the way we met some of the old men who had started their journey. We gave them enough instructions and gave them our clubs. And at last we reached the foothills at 5:00 sharp.
It was one of the best expeditions of my life. I took almost 350 photos and it was a great experience for all 18 members, we still cherish the nostalgic memories.
The place is maintained by the “Isha Foundation”. Many NGOs organized regular camps. But for new hikers it seems to be a death trap in many cases. Many casualties are reported and women are not allowed to walk. So efficient planning and bold mind make Velliyangiri a nostalgic place in one’s life.