Mangaluru: Sunday, 1 March 2015, while the coastal city was all gearing up for the mega “Samajotsava”, me and my friends, Loy D’Souza and Naresh Kumar decided to head out of Mangaluru to celebrate our own “Utsava” in the picturesque Chikkamagaluru and its surrounding vicinity. It was a right choice that we made to get out of the Coastal city, since it was literally dead on that Sunday – with shops, malls, cinema theatres and watering-holes closed, because of the Samajotsava. We left Mangaluru during the wee hours of Sunday morning, and passing through the ghat section during the morning mist and cool weather, it was indeed a “Hark..Hark..Hark. Beautiful Sunday!”. (Remember the 80s song by Daniel Boone)
With Loy playing some country music on his car audio-system, there was John Denver’s evergreen ode played while we cruised down the highway/ghat section towards Chikkamagaluru, flanked by lush green country views on either side. Except that it was this easy-breezy highway and not a bumpy country road as I drifted in and out of sleep. Waking up as we reached Mudigere, there was this heady aroma of rain and soil, and when that was swirled with the aroma of coffee, I knew I was approaching my destination. Crossing the Charmadi Ghats was a unique experience as the weather was quite pleasant and the ghat scenes were breathtakingly charming and a treat to the eyes. Although it was still dark in the morning on the Ghat section, and as we entered the Malnadu region, it simply got better and better with lots of greenery around, with blossomed flowers on coffee plants, lots of arecanut trees with pepper plants surrounding them, and so on.
We stopped in Mudigere for our morning breakfast, which was awesome with authentic Malnadu cuisine. Driving about 30kms more we reached Chikkamagaluru, which is simply nature at its best! Though I had been to Chikkamagaluru in the past, this tour revived my memories and interest. As we headed towards Bababudangiri, the coffee estates with lush green bunches of coffee, pepper wines clinging to the tall silver oak trees and passing mountainous landscape were just beyond any words. I was amazed with the beauty of the mountainous topography and recalled my travel through Sampage Ghat when I was on a trip to yet another coffee destinations-Mercara and Gonikoppal few weeks ago.
We made it to Bababudangiri- although this was not the right time of the year to visit this place, since all greenery had turned into yellow, but the scenic view from top of this region was breadth taking. Passing through the steep winding road we reached a spot known as Manikyadhara where some of the tourists wash themselves in the pond of water collected from the natural waterfall and as per belief have to leave their shirts at that place. No, we decided not to visit this place- for we didn’t carry an extra shirt!
One interesting story we heard from the locals there, when we were having a coffee break at a street side tea/coffee vendor about how Coffee plantation started in the region.-A Muslim Saint Bada Budan lived here. When he went to Mecca for Haj, he saw that the locals there were drinking coffee, and coffee was grown in Arabia as a plantation crop. Muslims were not permitted to consumer alcohol, but, coffee has caffeine that was capable of giving a mild kick, and hence the Muslims there, cultivated coffee, and consumed it, as an alternative. Saint Bada Budan liked it, and brought coffee seeds to India. So, the coffee that is grown in this part is the Coffee Arabica variety. Later, the local estate owners introduced other varieties of coffee here, like Coffee Brasilia and Coffee Robusta. Excellent isn’t it?
Rolling green hill slopes in every direction you can turn around and look at; Your eyes cozily indulging in the game played between the mist and the mountain peaks; all this, and spending the evenings sipping steaming hot coffee lying around doing nothing in a 300 year old heritage home – this is the summary of what we did on a one day trip in the heart of Western Ghats – the pride of southern India. I may never get tired of visiting Chikkamagaluru again and again. There must be some magic in this quaint little district in central Karnataka. This is the district that grows most of the coffee we drink; the home of the tallest peak in the state; the land where the spectacularly ravishing Malnad dishes like kadubu, akki rotti, shevige and kaai haalu have reigned high; the supplier of iron ore for over a quarter of a century; an area of rich bio-diversity; and most importantly, the place where many of my friends own coffee estates.
The best part is that drive to Chikkamagaluru through the Ghats has only become better than ever. The whole stretch of Ghat section has been broadened and resurfaced. Earlier in the years, I remember it was a nightmare to travel through Charmadi. I also found out that the best thing to do in Chikkamagaluru would be doing nothing. Just take a reclining chair with you to sit in the verandah of your homestay/resort, sip on a hot coffee or a cold one or a cocktail, and gaze at the hills. The western ghats have been witness to many a historical events and culturally significant turnarounds – all the time nurturing in themselves the abundant flora and fauna – a lot of them endemic to this part of the world.
Whether or not Western Ghats have to be a UNESCO world heritage site is a hotly debated topic these days. The need of the hour for development. as well as the need to preserve the bio-diversity of the valleys – both sides of the argument find merit. My only hope is that the district of Chikkamagaluru, and the Western Ghats in general, retain the loving memories they manage to invoke today – for the generations to follow too.
The heritage cottage where we stayed was built to give guests a coffee country experience close to nature, so that the guests can enjoy the serenity of the hills and cherish the oneness with their soul and that is the reason there is no television and an Internet connection. Even the mobile connectivity is limited. I consider this to be an achievement in itself to give this league an opportunity to experience nature so closely. This resort is not a place where you come chasing starred luxury. The cottages are a perfect meeting point of rustic country life and classic modernist function, with stylish yet warm interiors. Colonial-style brickwork and vintage furniture, high-beamed ceiling, whitewashed brick walls, designer tile floors make for easy, photogenic charm.
But wait — the highlight of the cottages lies in an outdoor shower area connected to the really mammoth bathroom. What’s more, the water in the shower faucet is heated in a copper cauldron — to make the bath ‘mineral rich’. A shower under the cerulean skies is an experience that is strongly recommended. Warm yourself after that at the traditional fireplace in the evening or in the sun shining into a private sit out facing the hills during the day. While the rest of the estate earn their keep.
You, meanwhile, are completely cut off from the cacophony of a busy world. The no TV, no music policy protects the quiet and frees you to commune only with nature and the odd neighbour. The only things you hear are the sounds of the chirping cricket and the gushing wind, for the most part. Silence and tranquillity are the mainstay of these estate dwellings. Let us also add romance, and sometimes, adventure. We also visited a carefully nurtured nursery of plants and the estate cowshed. I learnt a lot about coffee as well. Unlike the ubiquitous robusta and Chicory blends, the area where we nestled prides itself on being a premium 100% Arabica coffee.
The package for this sun-dried and hand-picked coffee also carries a genuine seal, giving the green light to the environmentally minded. The coffee here is grown under the shade of various jungle trees, in harmony with its natural surroundings. The iron-rich soil, high altitude and low temperature allow the coffee bean to mature slowly, incorporating subtle flavours and thus giving it a clean, fresh taste profile. The dark-leaved coffee shrubs growing between bars of silver oak, dense pepper vines and fertile orange trees were a welcome change from drab city views. Hedges demarcate fields, plantations and forests — greenery separating greenery from greenery.
Coffee plants are of two kinds. Arabica and Robusta. While there is not a lot of difference between these two from the end user perspective, the coffee state owners prefer one of these varieties according to their needs. While Arabica coffee plants are smaller in size, Robusta coffee plants are larger. Moreover, Arabica needs more manual maintenance as compared to Robusta. Accordingly, a coffee estate owners decides which variety of coffee beans to cultivate. The cycle of accumulating coffee beans lasts for a year. The estate owners get yield once in a year around Dec-Jan. If you want to see a coffee plantation in it’s true magnificence, visit a coffee estate in Dec end or Jan beginning. It is post that when the plucking of coffee beans is done. You will be able to see a massive presence of reddish brown color in the estate due to coffee beans. But right now it’s blossoming season, where you will see pretty white flowers on thew coffee plants all around.
They say that Monsoon is one of the best times to visit Chikkamagaluru. The brown iron-rich slopes of the lazy mountains of western ghats especially get blanketed in green during the monsoons. Well, then I will plan my trip again during monsoon time.