5th July 2014
An uphill road that goes from
Muthodi in Bhadra wildlife sanctuary leads to Shigekhan which provides
panoramic views of the sanctuary. This
2.5 km stretch was fit for only four wheel drive vehicles. A forest guest house is also located here.
Last week I was in Muthodi with my family for an
evening visit. A casual talk with forest official revealed that
the road to Shigekhan was improved. He encouraged us to go up and have a look. That
was great news!! And indeed that road though muddy was decent enough for any
cars to move.
What we did not expect was that
the Shigekhan guesthouse was occupied by drunkards. Shocked to see someone ‘encroaching’
their ‘holy land’, they tried to bully us by claiming themselves as forest
officials. Without permission no one can enter this area, they barked. While I
was taken aback, my wife started telling that they do not look like forest
officials!! I clearly told that it was forest department people at Muthodi who sent us here.
Unfortunately, due to the canopy of
trees, the views can be seen only from the terrace of the guest house.
The caretaker seemed to be
worried and came to me and told that he would take us to the terrace. It was
then I realized those guests were ‘drunk’. Obviously they were not forest officials but some law abusing citizens. Considering its isolation, it was
not safe to spend much time when family was around. So, we quickly took some
snaps and drove down.
Though the place was great, we
were disappointed that we could not spend good amount of time in that serene
place.
Its a pity that there seems to no end to my
encounters with unruly drunkards!! Whether it is Bhadra, Anashi or Belikal the
story remains the same.
Labels: Forest, hill, travel
