Chasing Bends In Brahmagiri

Streams Gleam With Crystal-clear Waters and Dense Groves Cling to Hills Like Green Beards in This Mountain Range Nestled Between Karnataka and Kerala

- Zac O'Yeah

I breathe without my tongue getting that dusty-crusty coating and if I clench my teeth, which I frequently must while pulling myself up the steep hillside, there’s no grit between them. I’m in the Brahmagiri Mountains, a mere 270-kilometre drive from Bengaluru, but far enough so that no pollution can reach it.

Over two days in the hills, the only filth I see is the cap from a Bisleri bottle that some previous trekker chucked on the pristine green ground. But thankfully, most other trekkers follow the diktat issued by the Forest Department: the Brahmagiri range is a no-garbage zone. And it shows. A few kilometres back we crossed a stream with water so crystal clear, cool and pure that we drank it straight. From there, the trail wound its way through shola forests watered by several more streams, the dense groves clinging to the hills like green beards.

They are apparently something of a hot spot among the world’s ecosystems and rife with medicinal plants, which explains why Kerala, abutting Brahmagiri peak, is where Ayurveda first took root. Approximately 2,015 of the flowering species are endemic, or native to this limited geographical area. When I breathe deeply, I sniff something pungent which I presume to be the scent of wholesome Ayurvedic herbs, until the forest guards quip that it is the reek of wild tuskers lurking outside our vision range, waiting for us to pass by so that they can come out and frolic.