"Green Route- Railway Track Trek"

One of the mussssts in Trekkers To Do List has to be the "Green Route- Railway Track Trek".
Sakleshpura is around 220kms from Bangalore and Donigal is 7kms further up in NH48. It runs around NH48 near Donigal, but gradually moves to the south of highway. The track passes through the stations Yedikumeri and Shiribagilu and then crosses the Subramanya road, which connects Subramanya with the NH48 at Gundya.

The journey to Sakleshpura by bus was not a cake walk. The driver was real sleepy despite of the nap break he took when all of us inside the bus were past asleep. On top of that he happily rammed into the divider dozing away to glory. Somehow with several tea breaks we reached (alive!!) to Donigal from where we started our trek. This place must be around 7km away from Sakleshpura and on the NH4.

We forked off from the highway and got into the railway track. A goods train carrying oil tankers from Indian Railway.. From there started the journey. We expected it to rain heavy there, but it was totally dry. Initially took a while for us to get used to be walking on the track having huge boulders, but the legs got used to rhythmic walk.

There were few bridges and tunnels along the way (that’s why we went there for). The bridges were around 20-30ft high invariably and was enough scary for acrophobic. I heard the fish-plates (the metal coverings) which are now there was not there a year ago, so that trekking would have been more adventurous. Only few of the tracks did not have the fish-plates and were sufficiently scary :)

Then were the tunnels there. Longest one being around 543m before Yedikumeri. The tunnels were pitch dark, moist, drippy and we could hear bats screeching. For an Achluophobic (fear of darkness - sorry for the technicality of the term used :P), like me it was definitely a night-mare. All my friends already know it - When I call them at the night for no reason, there should be power cut at my area :)... I tried a couple of tunnels holding my breath and did really want to get the fear out. I tried distracting myself by talking (which otherwise also I do). But didn’t succeed. I still am scared of darkness for sure :(

The experience that definitely has to be quoted which I can never forget was when we were in the 510m long tunnel and a goods train passed by!! Amazing experience it was, its pitch dark inside and narrow spacing of about 4ft between the train and you!!

We pit-stopped by a stream and had our lunch. I should admire the energy few aunties and uncles had (Sorry I don’t remember any names). They walked much faster than we did and had the hot water ready to prepare the ready to eat MTR food packets. We relaxed and had the food there, while another goods train passed by which was so close that my heart literally came to my mouth for the noise it made:-|

Finally we walked to Yedikumeri which was 18km from where we started. This was just a platform and some rooms for the station master. There were two taps around and inside the half-build station was a metal cot for the watchman to sleep. I knew we were camping at a station but the station per my imagination was ABSOLUTELY not this... We walked to a near-by water fall and took shower there. Not one but many leeches bit us mercilessly and had a feast of Bangalore blood. Back to the platform there was no place for us to change!! Arvind the coordinator gave a huge plastic bag and asked us to hide behind it to change!! Gross was the feeling, but we didn’t have a choice.


The pun was when my friend Sayeesha found a baby viper in his sleeping bag. It looked very sane though!! All of us checked our sleeping bags over and over after that. Whatever breed it was the color of it was flamboyant.

Most of the guys got frustrated because it was so frustrated that there was no place to sleep. It was 42 of us and another group was also at the site. Somehow few people found places to sleep and didn’t realize it was too early to hit the sack (It was just 8PM and since there was no activity in that place, it really looked like late night).

Some found dry wood and lit the camp-fire, but clouds did not seem to like it. It started pouring soon as we lit the fire and lit it all off. We had dinner (MTR gets the take) while we waited for the rain to stop. It stopped thankfully and we lit it again. Hooray!! and there it was. We sat around it playing Antakshari and Dumb-charades and the people at the station were really getting annoyed!! J After a few shouting’s from them and keen monitoring from friend Sayeesha who “sshhhhh shhhhhh” every time we made noise - and since the lights were turned off one by one, we had to bid bye to the games n hit the sack.

And to our surprise that was not IT…We had a overly friendly (!!) and obnoxious watch-man who was drunk like a fish who started talking in his own language to all. After all of us went to bed he still wanted to have some more fun so he kept on talking non-sense for a long time till Arvind shouted at him. He threw the backpack which was kept there (and my slip-ons, towel and some other stuff too, for I simply was a spectator - too scared to protest :-|). He left the place and returned with a triumph. Said- it was his place n slept next to the other watch-man who was sleeping on the metal cot. But his non-sense DID continue. Not that I saw but I heard from Arvind that he tried to take out some stuff from some ones bag. I heard a loud thud and whack!!! There he was getting beaten up from Arvind and was thrown out like a dead mouse. So all this added to my adventure trek while I realized it was time to catch the 4.20 am train to Subramanya Road.

We waited for the passenger train to stop. Only 3 bogies were un-reserved and we were 42 in number. Those who were used to travelling in local train in Mumbai could easily get in (So did I) and others could not for one of the bogies was reserved for women. It was not so a cakewalk for us who got inside. The train was overly crowded since it was an auspicious day for God Subramanya, there was no place even to stand. Some good Samaritans gave us some place to sit – some managed to sit on half bum and others stood on one or another half feet. Some things happen for the first time and this was it that 20 of us travelled 60km without tickets :)

We reached Subramanya Road junction and tried contacting the rest who were left back at the Yedikumeri Station. We got through the station master and heard that the batch still was there. Tried calling the bus driver and could not get through. We decided to take the cabs back to Gundya where our bus was parked. Gundya was 30km from Subramanya Road and it took 30 minutes to reach.

It was a real pain to while away time there till others reached. Some of them decided to take a bus back to Bangalore and they did so. Guru and others found a pond around and we spent some time there around. I met a lil new friend – a pup, she was very fond of us and followed us till the bus from where she was. She swam across the pond better than any of us did and had a cozy- warm Praveen’s lap to sleep on.

By 1pm the ones who trekked back reached the bus. It was terrible to see them. They did not have enough food and were tired even to have lunch. We started from Gundya after lunch. Ruthvika lead the underworld Mafia war game and Mafias killed a lot of them over and over despite of doctor’s presence.

Over all the experience was amazing despite of so much of cliché and I am sure as eggs is eggs that all of us had a memorable trek.


This is my side of the story.. I don’t know what happened to those who missed the train and trekked back. I would love to hear their side of the story. Soon :)

(You can see the pics at Yedikumeri Trek Gallery )