Ride for Freedom: In the land of Maoists and wild elephants

[diffuser911]

14th August:


Ghatshila hills from the train

Completing the logs soon and uploading the pics now...

[Aryan]

Topic Approved.

[ken cool]

I like the title. Yes, it has been a very long time since I have traversed these parts... Ghatshila, such a familiar bell it rings... Kalaikunda, Saranda, Simlipal...

[chicane1879]

Bring it on.I hope you have captured some shots of those elephants and even some Maoists too!!

[Praful]

14th August: I open my eyes on the train and get mesmerized by a beautiful sight.

Good going and now stop teasing us and post the rest...

Bring it on.I hope you have captured some shots of those elephants and even some Maoists too!!

When this thread first appeared on the tracker I thought this was your thread.....How long are you going to sit on 'that' ride

[diffuser911]

Bring it on.I hope you have captured some shots of those elephants and even some Maoists too!!

I dared not!! I did get a pic of some elephant dump though. Too gross to post.

Good going and now stop teasing us and post the rest...

On it right away sir!

[bibekjyoti.de]

bring it on.. really interested to know about the maosists ..actually I have some plan to ride through this place ...so a little bit scared about them

[chicane1879]

When this thread first appeared on the tracker I thought this was your thread.....How long are you going to sit on 'that' ride

Man, i still have to post the other ride which i did 8 months back!!

I dared not!! I did get a pic of some elephant dump though. Too gross to post.

You will be infracted if you do so!!

[diffuser911]

The Ride

15th August:


A city waking up


Fantastic early morning view


Cloud-capped hills on my left


Paddy fields along the NH


The good road

Once in Ghatshila, I asked around for the village Burudih. The diversion off the NH took me through roads with stones jutting out. Soon enough, I was devoid of human habitat and riding into the deserted roads filled with mud, sand and running among trees and farms. An occasional villager passed by at times, giving me you-are-crazy looks. After some struggle with sandy roads, I hit muddy ones and then, watery ones. Fighting my way and following the roads taken by local cycle champs, I made it to the village. One good thing about traveling in your state is that you can get the directions without any ambiguity, and just by affixing a chacha or bhaiya


Going off road


The greens on way


First view of the dam


The road leading there


The captivating first look


Surrounded by hills


Submerged stumps


From the dam's wall


Strange rock formation in the dry area


The mirror


Green all around


Going to the water


My favorite pic

nalla and got down to take a picture, but went back on the road ASAP. I came upon some village folk riding on cycles and heaved a sigh of relief. After some riding, I reached a village covered in green of the farms around. It was fascinating to see the jugads (indigenous methods) applied by the folks for diverting water into and out of the fields. I took some pics, and then propelled my ride towards the village interior. I was surprised to see four army men sitting on a khaat (cot). They stopped me and asked where I came from and what I was doing here. Using the extremely useful ploy that I was a student, I asked them the way to Dhaaragiri, my next stop. Being told to follow the road ahead, I rode slowly through the village, sensing the uncomfortable stares from people around me. After a right at a fork, I and my machine were pitted against a merciless and stony track, hardly four feet wide. I found it hard to steep on the slippery stones and cut down my pace to a mere crawl. The section got over soon and I was in a clearing, which again went into a narrow path. I could see the hill clearly which was pointed out the army jawans as the backdrop of the falls. The road ahead was getting difficult, plus there were occasional water crossings formed by the channels of the waterfall. All of a sudden, I came upon a flimsy bridge made of thin tree stems across a stream that had branched off from the falls. I got of the bike and analyzed the area beyond and followed a trail that seemed to be an alternate way to avoid the bridge. I reached a dead-end when the trail ended into a field. I could see workers sweating it off on a far off rice field. Heading back to by bike, I pulled it back from the makeshift bridge and locked it in a small clearing along the track. Now its time to take a hike!


Jungle stream


Irrigation water...see the number of stones used


Loved this


The stony path


End of road...for the bike

Once on the trek, I realized that even if there had been a way, it would have taken a motocross bike to carry on the path. Stepping on rocks to avoid the water from seeping in shoes, I came upon a meandering stream and guessed the way I head towards. Just imagine: all you can hear is the noise of water crashing agains the rocks, not one person or animal in vicinity (at least not visible). After crossing the stream, I located a footmark on the wet mud, made from a sports shoe. Hoping to find others near the waterfall, I braved ahead. Strangely, I saw no one who might have worn the shoes, nor any footmarks returning. The wet path through the jungle was scary, to say the least. Fueled by adrenaline, I was almost jogging to get to the waterfall soon. The path ended beside the stream and it was rock-hopping time again. Jumping across due to the lack of a suitable track, I judged that I was nearing the waterfall from the sound of the water hitting the rocks. When I finally got the first view of the Dhaaragiri, it was better than what I had read on the net. The small, but powerful fall was around 15-20 feet in height and white water was gushing down the rocks. Taking a jump to near the base, my casual shoes gave away and I slipped on a rock, breaking the fall using the hand that held the cell. No damage done, but confidence gone for trekking ahead. Knowing that it was deep enough into the jungle, I took a couple of pics with shaky hands and decided not to push my luck too far. The return was speedy and I tread carefully. The shoes came in useless for the trek, since water had seeped in and made my feet soggy.


All shaken up in the jungle


Upstream


Dharagiri falls


Area around the fall


Had to cross this on foot

I rode back towards the army check post, now more confident coming back to population. Once missing a turn and then correcting myself, I neared the check-post, where I was stopped by the army men, again. Surprised when they asked me to get off the bike, I sensed that it was time for questions. This time, they grilled me thoroughly about my hometown and college. After they finished, they said that it was not safe to ride alone into where I had went to. I was utterly respectful and mentioned that I had guessed so when I saw them posted here. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a couple of jawans JJ. A few minutes drive got me the roaring muddy-yellow waters of the Swarnrekha. And that was where there was a dearth of rains in the region! The white capped hills beyond the barrage were too inviting, but that would have to be some other time. Coming back to the rail crossing, I took the shortcut again and reached the NH. Now it was time to fly like a rocket; stopping once to photograph my poor bike, I flew home non-stop.


Riding along the hillside


The road downhill

***CENSORED***
Elephant's dump


The last view of the dam


Back on the scenic highway


The thundering Swarnarekha


White-capped hills beyond


The faithful Victor and the flimsy lid

Half an hour later, I am at home, reading the headlines: Maoists and police engaged in a gun-battle in Patamda, connected to the place where I went.

[diffuser911]

All pics up now...Rest on Picasa Web Albums - diff911 - Freedom Ride ...

[ken cool]

Wow! Thanks. Ah, the Paddy fields! That brings back nostalgic memories.

That was a nice read. The part with the fall with the mobile in hand was quite tense. Keep writing thus. You should have gone all the way to the falls. You should have pushed yourself.

[diffuser911]

Wow! Thanks. Ah, the Paddy fields! That brings back nostalgic memories.

That was a nice read. The part with the fall with the mobile in hand was quite tense. Keep writing thus. You should have gone all the way to the falls. You should have pushed yourself.

Thanks Ken da. I was quite far off from the village and with the Maoists roaming freely, I was getting a bit jittery when I approached the waterfall. It felt like eyes watching me behind the green cover. Would have gone much beyond if had somebody with me though!

[happybiking]

Nice writeup there pal!!!

But it seems the Dam has kinda dried up a bit...I went there last december...and managed a few clicks of the Dam...As of now could find just this one...



Will upload some more pics of the same spots that you cliked once i find them...

[DevilisH]

Hey !!! trip from our hometown cool man !!!

[chicane1879]

Nice pics, dude. Your narration style is always good.Thanks for sharing.

You surprised to see only 90km/hr from your 'moped'.I wonder what would have happened if you had seen these speeds.

PS:It hits close to 110km/hr without breaking a sweat.And that's fast for 'any' moped!!