Dandeli in the Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka is the prime water adventure destination in South India.
In the long Christmas weekend, we planned for a group trip to Dandeli with 15 enthusiastic travellers. We planned to start from Bengaluru on the 24th night at 22:00 hours by a comfortable Mini Bus and reach Dandeli by 6:00 in the morning of Christmas Day.
When everything was set came the news of the night curfew in Karnataka. Our transport partner made it clear that we can’t travel overnight to Dandeli. All the tickets were booked, people were travelling from Chennai. We were on the verge of taking a go / no go decision.
None of our travellers wanted to call off the trip. They wanted to make it to Dandeli somehow even if there were hassles. That motivated us to look for other options and within an hour we spoke to the property person in Dandeli, arranged local transport there, booked KSRTC from Bengaluru – Dandeli – Bengaluru. Taking a vehicle from our transport partner would have made the trip easier but buddy this is an adventure trip. The adventure started right from the planning.
We made it to Dandeli but we reached only around 9 A.M. because of the delay by KSRTC. So we had to reschedule the itinerary on spot. We checked in and without any second thoughts, we just jumped into the pool which was much needed after a very long journey. After refreshing, a homely lunch was awaiting us. After lunch, we decided to go on a short trail to the Moulangi Eco Park which then resulted in a very short trail as it was next door to the resort. The Eco Park was established along the banks of the tributary of River Kali. The jungle swing, viewpoints, rope crossing, water streams and the lush green was worth the evening.
We then retreated to the resort for a refreshing tea. The evening’s temperature was in contrast to that of the time when we checked in. It became kind, pleasing, luring us into group talks and socialising games. The group suddenly became very open in expressing and confessing, setting up the vibe for a perfect rain dance later in the evening. The group had a blast in the rain dance which gave a lot of space to consume more food. We then crashed into our tents and the night surprised us more with its cold.
We woke up early to head on a trek into the woods of Dandeli. It was a short trek that took about 1 and a half hours but the path was amazing and challenging at times. After breakfast, we headed to River Kali to indulge in a day’s long water adventure activities. As it was the Christmas weekend the footfall was huge. We had to wait for about 3 hours in the queue to do the White Water Rafting but again the experience was worth the wait. The day got even better with the natural Jacuzzi. The intensity of the stream gradually increased with time. Kayaking, Zorbing and Zipline are other attractions there. And our day ended there. We headed to the Dandeli bus stand and had our dinner nearby. The next morning around 7:00 AM we reached Bengaluru.
From calling off the trip to calling it one of the best experiences in recent times!
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