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Blog Entry# 823009
Posted: Aug 08 2013 (10:33)
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Last Response: Sep 06 2013 (14:19)
109 Responses
Last Response: Sep 06 2013 (14:19)
Aug 08 2013 (10:33) 17311/MGR Chennai Central - SSS Hubballi SF Express (PT) | DDS/Dudh Sagar (1 PFs)
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MSN_Ponds~
MSN_Ponds~ 2477 blog postsEntry# 823009 Tags Past Edits
May 15 2016 (12:43PM)
Blog Category Changed: Travelogue by moderator*^~/12
Aug 14 2013 (3:37PM)
Part 1 :
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Part 1 :
Part 2 :
Part 3 :
Part 4 :
Part 5 :
Part 6 :
Part 7 :
Part 8 Concluding Part :
End of Part 1
Part 1 :
Part 2 :
Part 3 :
Part 4 :
Part 5 :
Part 6 :
Part 7 :
Part 8 Concluding Part :
Aug 08 2013 (10:37AM)
" and you always sub consciously listen to the sub conscious and ended up getting food thatwas would last a family for an entire week, some of which are still at home !!
Blog Category Changed: Travelogue by moderator*^~/12
Aug 14 2013 (3:37PM)
Part 1 :
--------
Part 1 :
Part 2 :
Part 3 :
Part 4 :
Part 5 :
Part 6 :
Part 7 :
Part 8 Concluding Part :
End of Part 1
Part 1 :
Part 2 :
Part 3 :
Part 4 :
Part 5 :
Part 6 :
Part 7 :
Part 8 Concluding Part :
Aug 08 2013 (10:37AM)
" and you always sub consciously listen to the sub conscious and ended up getting food that
Part 1 :
--------
Part 1 : /blog/post/823009
Part 2 : /blog/post/823009/2
Part 3 : /blog/post/823009/21
Part...
more...
--------
Part 1 : /blog/post/823009
Part 2 : /blog/post/823009/2
Part 3 : /blog/post/823009/21
Part...
more...
4 : /blog/post/823009/38
Part 5 : /blog/post/823009/46
Part 6 : /blog/post/823009/69
Part 7 : /blog/post/823009/78
Part 8 Concluding Part : /blog/post/823009/86
A trip report to the Mecca of RF's
-----------------------------------------
The Preparation :
----------------------
Started January 2013 onwards
This has been a trip which I wanted to do for a very long time and for some very known reasons, I was never able to do this at all for almost 5 years. This year come what may, this trip will happen and that is how I prepared myself. This also turned out to be a nice excuse to get all the things that I wanted for a long time. Well you will know that this is an overkill if you see my list below
.
1. Nice Swiss Champ Knife with 32 functions. Is it really needed ?
.
2. Super Fenix Flashlight with 650 lumens output (It lit an entire 15 x 12 room like a fresh and new tubelight). Is this really needed ?
.
In addition to these, I got high end rainwear, footwear, backpack and a whole lot of things which in reality is not an absolute necessity, but well make hay while the sun shines.
.
Aug 1 2013 :
----------------
Got my salary a day ago, but the excitement apparently does not seem to stem from that fact. 24 hrs to start for my long awaited trip, lots of undecided loose ends. We will stay at DDS, but where ? no idea. No idea if we will trek from CLR to DDS. No idea if we will stay at DDS. No idea if we will get a lift to Kulem. Oh no.. forget trek, shall we get down at DDS instead of CLR. Lots of questions, no answers. Well we decided to hell with all, lets all just go home and pack and get ready. It was a hectic day and lots of stuff to buy. We needed food for 2 days and after lots of deliberation, decided that 1 day stock should be enough. Your sub conscious always tells you .. "Arrey Bhai.. Just in case.." and you always sub consciously listen to the sub conscious and ended up getting food that would last a family for an entire week, some of which are still at home !!.
.
2 hrs of shopping and 1 hr of planning, I ended up with a list like this. Clothes, Cosmetics, SLR, Point and shoot, Charger for SLR, Charger for P&S, Cell phone and charger, Extra batteries for SLR and P&S, extra SD cards, Rain Jacket, Rain trousers, Ankle shoes, regular shoes / sandal, blanket, sleeping bag, medicines & first aid, flashlight, swiss knife, loads of food for 2 days, cooking utensil and well what not. Packed them all and found that I would need one more person to carry it for me. So off goes a lot of stuff and somehow managed to pack them all nicely into a single backpack. What really amuses me is that we pack so perfectly and once you start taking out things from your backpack, you find no place to put them back in. Somebody needs a lesson on free energy here ;)
.
It is 10PM now and all set. I want to sleep. I am desperate to sleep and in the excitement I did sleep around 4 am, when my body could take no more. Still those unanswered questions remained unanswered. Some wild instinct told me it will all fall in place. With that in mind, my body slowly took over my brain and dozed me off to a much needed rest in preparation for an exciting 2 days. Stay tuned for more
.
To be continued ...
End of Part 1.
Part 1 : /blog/post/823009
Part 2 : /blog/post/823009/2
Part 3 : /blog/post/823009/21
Part 4 : /blog/post/823009/38
Part 5 : /blog/post/823009/46
Part 6 : /blog/post/823009/69
Part 7 : /blog/post/823009/78
Part 8 Concluding Part : /blog/post/823009/86
Part 5 : /blog/post/823009/46
Part 6 : /blog/post/823009/69
Part 7 : /blog/post/823009/78
Part 8 Concluding Part : /blog/post/823009/86
A trip report to the Mecca of RF's
-----------------------------------------
The Preparation :
----------------------
Started January 2013 onwards
This has been a trip which I wanted to do for a very long time and for some very known reasons, I was never able to do this at all for almost 5 years. This year come what may, this trip will happen and that is how I prepared myself. This also turned out to be a nice excuse to get all the things that I wanted for a long time. Well you will know that this is an overkill if you see my list below
.
1. Nice Swiss Champ Knife with 32 functions. Is it really needed ?
.
2. Super Fenix Flashlight with 650 lumens output (It lit an entire 15 x 12 room like a fresh and new tubelight). Is this really needed ?
.
In addition to these, I got high end rainwear, footwear, backpack and a whole lot of things which in reality is not an absolute necessity, but well make hay while the sun shines.
.
Aug 1 2013 :
----------------
Got my salary a day ago, but the excitement apparently does not seem to stem from that fact. 24 hrs to start for my long awaited trip, lots of undecided loose ends. We will stay at DDS, but where ? no idea. No idea if we will trek from CLR to DDS. No idea if we will stay at DDS. No idea if we will get a lift to Kulem. Oh no.. forget trek, shall we get down at DDS instead of CLR. Lots of questions, no answers. Well we decided to hell with all, lets all just go home and pack and get ready. It was a hectic day and lots of stuff to buy. We needed food for 2 days and after lots of deliberation, decided that 1 day stock should be enough. Your sub conscious always tells you .. "Arrey Bhai.. Just in case.." and you always sub consciously listen to the sub conscious and ended up getting food that would last a family for an entire week, some of which are still at home !!.
.
2 hrs of shopping and 1 hr of planning, I ended up with a list like this. Clothes, Cosmetics, SLR, Point and shoot, Charger for SLR, Charger for P&S, Cell phone and charger, Extra batteries for SLR and P&S, extra SD cards, Rain Jacket, Rain trousers, Ankle shoes, regular shoes / sandal, blanket, sleeping bag, medicines & first aid, flashlight, swiss knife, loads of food for 2 days, cooking utensil and well what not. Packed them all and found that I would need one more person to carry it for me. So off goes a lot of stuff and somehow managed to pack them all nicely into a single backpack. What really amuses me is that we pack so perfectly and once you start taking out things from your backpack, you find no place to put them back in. Somebody needs a lesson on free energy here ;)
.
It is 10PM now and all set. I want to sleep. I am desperate to sleep and in the excitement I did sleep around 4 am, when my body could take no more. Still those unanswered questions remained unanswered. Some wild instinct told me it will all fall in place. With that in mind, my body slowly took over my brain and dozed me off to a much needed rest in preparation for an exciting 2 days. Stay tuned for more
.
To be continued ...
End of Part 1.
Part 1 : /blog/post/823009
Part 2 : /blog/post/823009/2
Part 3 : /blog/post/823009/21
Part 4 : /blog/post/823009/38
Part 5 : /blog/post/823009/46
Part 6 : /blog/post/823009/69
Part 7 : /blog/post/823009/78
Part 8 Concluding Part : /blog/post/823009/86
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MSN_Ponds~
MSN_Ponds~ 2477 blog postsRe# 823009-21 Past Edits
Aug 14 2013 (3:42PM)
---------
Part 8 Concluding Part :
Aug 14 2013 (3:39PM)
Part 3 :
Part 1 :
Part 2 :
Part 3 :
Part 4 :
Part 5 :
Part 6 :
Part 7 :
Part 8 Concluding Part :
End of Part 3
Part 1 :
Part 2 :
Part 3 :
Part 4 :
Part 5 :
Part 6 :
Part 7 :
Part 8 Concluding Part :
---------
Part 8 Concluding Part :
Aug 14 2013 (3:39PM)
Part 3 :
Part 1 :
Part 2 :
Part 3 :
Part 4 :
Part 5 :
Part 6 :
Part 7 :
Part 8 Concluding Part :
End of Part 3
Part 1 :
Part 2 :
Part 3 :
Part 4 :
Part 5 :
Part 6 :
Part 7 :
Part 8 Concluding Part :
Part 3 :
---------
Part 1 : /blog/post/823009
Part 2 : /blog/post/823009/2
Part 3 : /blog/post/823009/21
Part...
more...
---------
Part 1 : /blog/post/823009
Part 2 : /blog/post/823009/2
Part 3 : /blog/post/823009/21
Part...
more...
4 : /blog/post/823009/38
Part 5 : /blog/post/823009/46
Part 6 : /blog/post/823009/69
Part 7 : /blog/post/823009/78
Part 8 Concluding Part : /blog/post/823009/86
Aug 3 2013 :
----------------
A good sleep and woke up to an absolutely beautiful morning @Hubli. I had always wanted to see this place and gotta admit that I have never seen a cleaner station in IR network. The million dollar question was whether to have breakfast at the station or should I eat what I got. Finally decided to eat my own breakfast to reduce the carrying load a bit.
.
Well, just after we left Hubli, the same questions arose as to what is it we are gonna do. The train was running around 40 mins late and trekking from CLR to DDS meant that we would reach DDS only around 4 PM in the evening. It was then that I received the call from my Pune counterparts who were waiting for us at Londa. There were 11 of them and 16 of us. All 27 needed a place to stay for the night. We all wanted to trek to DDS from CLR, but practicality and the crowd in the train ensured that we did not fall for this. After an hour of discussion, it was settled that we will go all the way to DDS and take it forward from there. Now that the next 3 hrs have been taken care of, I decided to doorplate before someone else occupies my seat :)
.
Just as the train moved out from Dharwad, I took to the door and it was a visual treat. Lush green outdoors with ominous looking skies and the Sun peeping out every now and then, added to that the never ending curves. What more could a rail lover need. Absolutely fantastic sight with terrific weather and time just drifted aimlessly. The standout on this section was the station "Mugad". One of the most picteresque stations, I have seen. This was one time I wished, I had my SLR while doorplating and not my P&S, but hey convenience won this game again. Mugad Station picture will be up shortly.
.
Crawled slowly into Londa. The rest of our gang from Pune boarded the train and the discussion continued. In 5 minutes, we reconfirmed our plans and decided to get down at DDS instead of CLR. Needless to say, the door seat was never compromised and I continued with my blissful experience upto CLR.
.
After seeing CLR in absolutely a million photos all over the web, seeing it live was absolutely fantastic. I somehow felt immediately that I knew this place inch by inch. It was a long halt of around 15-20 mins at CLR. Majority of the trekkers got down here. The station was an absolute nightmare to look at with the crowds getting ready for their long 14KM trek and hence I moved on to the other side. Feasted my eyes on a load of DG4's , brakers attached and all clear given.
.
We crawled out of CLR at a leisurely pace, saw the all to familiar board welcoming us to Braganza ghat section, saw the 2 medical relief vans seen all over the web, saw a lot of trekkers en route to DDS who were all too excited to keep waving at us, which was mutually reciprocated, entered the first tunnel, the second and the rest, saw the welcome to Goa board somewhere before Caranzol, sprinkled ourselves with fresh mineral mountain water from numerous falls and the entry and exit points of the tunnel. The train was in absolutely no hurry and took a nice relaxed 20 mins to stop at Caranzol for the brake testing.
.
It was about time we broke from our blissful experience and get ready to de-board at DDS. So off we all went, rain jackets worn, rain trousers worn, food and camera repacked to be made easily accesible, bags packed, sleeping bags packed, tents packed and we were all set to de-board at DDS. The train stops for a mere 40 - 60 secs and all the 27 of us have to get down with all our baggage. We entered DDS, the already crawling train showed no signs of stopping. Oh God please dont do this. The train kept on with its 15-25 kmph speed and showed no signs of testing its brakes. While we just about gave up hope, the familar squeak of the brakes being applied and bang it stopped. The steps and outside were wet and slippery. Somehow we managed to quickly get down without slipping. 40 secs later (Yes I timed it) the train left on its way towards Kulem.
.
So here I am at DDS station, hardly a KM away from something which I wanted to see for a long time and the excitement was overwhelming. What happens next ?
.
To be continued ...
End of Part 3
Part 1 : /blog/post/823009
Part 2 : /blog/post/823009/2
Part 3 : /blog/post/823009/21
Part 4 : /blog/post/823009/38
Part 5 : /blog/post/823009/46
Part 6 : /blog/post/823009/69
Part 7 : /blog/post/823009/78
Part 8 Concluding Part : /blog/post/823009/86
Part 5 : /blog/post/823009/46
Part 6 : /blog/post/823009/69
Part 7 : /blog/post/823009/78
Part 8 Concluding Part : /blog/post/823009/86
Aug 3 2013 :
----------------
A good sleep and woke up to an absolutely beautiful morning @Hubli. I had always wanted to see this place and gotta admit that I have never seen a cleaner station in IR network. The million dollar question was whether to have breakfast at the station or should I eat what I got. Finally decided to eat my own breakfast to reduce the carrying load a bit.
.
Well, just after we left Hubli, the same questions arose as to what is it we are gonna do. The train was running around 40 mins late and trekking from CLR to DDS meant that we would reach DDS only around 4 PM in the evening. It was then that I received the call from my Pune counterparts who were waiting for us at Londa. There were 11 of them and 16 of us. All 27 needed a place to stay for the night. We all wanted to trek to DDS from CLR, but practicality and the crowd in the train ensured that we did not fall for this. After an hour of discussion, it was settled that we will go all the way to DDS and take it forward from there. Now that the next 3 hrs have been taken care of, I decided to doorplate before someone else occupies my seat :)
.
Just as the train moved out from Dharwad, I took to the door and it was a visual treat. Lush green outdoors with ominous looking skies and the Sun peeping out every now and then, added to that the never ending curves. What more could a rail lover need. Absolutely fantastic sight with terrific weather and time just drifted aimlessly. The standout on this section was the station "Mugad". One of the most picteresque stations, I have seen. This was one time I wished, I had my SLR while doorplating and not my P&S, but hey convenience won this game again. Mugad Station picture will be up shortly.
.
Crawled slowly into Londa. The rest of our gang from Pune boarded the train and the discussion continued. In 5 minutes, we reconfirmed our plans and decided to get down at DDS instead of CLR. Needless to say, the door seat was never compromised and I continued with my blissful experience upto CLR.
.
After seeing CLR in absolutely a million photos all over the web, seeing it live was absolutely fantastic. I somehow felt immediately that I knew this place inch by inch. It was a long halt of around 15-20 mins at CLR. Majority of the trekkers got down here. The station was an absolute nightmare to look at with the crowds getting ready for their long 14KM trek and hence I moved on to the other side. Feasted my eyes on a load of DG4's , brakers attached and all clear given.
.
We crawled out of CLR at a leisurely pace, saw the all to familiar board welcoming us to Braganza ghat section, saw the 2 medical relief vans seen all over the web, saw a lot of trekkers en route to DDS who were all too excited to keep waving at us, which was mutually reciprocated, entered the first tunnel, the second and the rest, saw the welcome to Goa board somewhere before Caranzol, sprinkled ourselves with fresh mineral mountain water from numerous falls and the entry and exit points of the tunnel. The train was in absolutely no hurry and took a nice relaxed 20 mins to stop at Caranzol for the brake testing.
.
It was about time we broke from our blissful experience and get ready to de-board at DDS. So off we all went, rain jackets worn, rain trousers worn, food and camera repacked to be made easily accesible, bags packed, sleeping bags packed, tents packed and we were all set to de-board at DDS. The train stops for a mere 40 - 60 secs and all the 27 of us have to get down with all our baggage. We entered DDS, the already crawling train showed no signs of stopping. Oh God please dont do this. The train kept on with its 15-25 kmph speed and showed no signs of testing its brakes. While we just about gave up hope, the familar squeak of the brakes being applied and bang it stopped. The steps and outside were wet and slippery. Somehow we managed to quickly get down without slipping. 40 secs later (Yes I timed it) the train left on its way towards Kulem.
.
So here I am at DDS station, hardly a KM away from something which I wanted to see for a long time and the excitement was overwhelming. What happens next ?
.
To be continued ...
End of Part 3
Part 1 : /blog/post/823009
Part 2 : /blog/post/823009/2
Part 3 : /blog/post/823009/21
Part 4 : /blog/post/823009/38
Part 5 : /blog/post/823009/46
Part 6 : /blog/post/823009/69
Part 7 : /blog/post/823009/78
Part 8 Concluding Part : /blog/post/823009/86
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please wait...Translate to Hindi
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