Pine cones for everybody | Nilgiris Trek
Clicked in May 2004 / Anumapura camp / Nilgiris Trek (*album)
Camping at Anumapura was quite an experience. It was evening and people decided to play antakshari… a clear indication for me to sneak out and run into the woods. I do manage to get myself out and realized Vivek is outside too, checking out the scenery. He seems to have slithered away unnoticed, even before me. Well ! Some have the talent and some don’t. Hmprh!
Armed with our cameras we head out into the pine forest (it was awesome). I felt like I never wanted to leave the place - the tall trees, a hairy mattress like floor and fading light. It was truly mind blowing. Listening to the sounds of the wild, chatting for a while, taking loads of pictures, experimenting slow shutter photography using the tripod (my new acquisition). And we realized that two more of the party were outside. They probably got bored playing antakshari. We all sat to chat and converse as time flowed and soon it was dark.
Few kids, localities walked by and we called out to them. Vivek played our translator, after all he is the one guy who knows Tamil fluently. A Tamilian by birth and a Kannadiga by upbringing but he goes around parading/claiming he is a Kannadiga.
Well! These kids had plenty of adventurous stories to tell. We talked about elephants, big cats and the fact that they frequented the area was verified. All in all a good time and lovely conversations. Some day I will write about it in more detail 
It was almost 1930 hrs when the guys playing in the shack at camp realized that four of the party were actually missing and they got worried and started shouting for us from the door. The funny thing was that we could see them, while they couldn’t see us. We gave a shout to clarify that we were still alive and that no big cat had carried us away.
We had no animal sightings during the time we were in the pine forest. Though I’m not sure whether to be glad or to feel sad, but I was hoping to have seen something wild pass us by and live to talk about it.
