from thinking twice,
to enrolling thrice;
persuading few,
to the experience so new..
pushing through the crowd,
noisy, musical & loud;
was the local train ride,
with the scheduled time we could abide..
reaching the nearest station,
feeling like awesome vacation;
waiting for the colleagues to join,
no shops open to buy anything with a coin..
here came in a small cargo truck,
loading us over onto with good luck;
driving through the silent zig zag lanes,
with sleep pumping out of our veins..
we did reach Mahuli Village,
eager to capture some image;
lacing up with trek gear,
erasing the uncertain fear..
Welcome to Tansa Wildlife Sanctuary
we walked towards the Entry Gate,
ensuring to reach there by 12am not late;
clicking a photo for attendance & count,
with clear rules no discount..
testing our head lamps,
did warmup to avoid cramps;
begins our midnight stride,
with our eyes open & wide..
taking regular breathing breaks,
with equal ownership & stakes;
climbing through uphill,
craving for some breeze & chill..
conversations started - stories begun,
from star gazing, astronomy, to the Moon & the Sun;
strangers felt like childhood friends,
climbed together uphill, slopes & bends..
reaching the ancient caves at morning four,
in deep sweat & pain down to the core;
did we all choose to rest on the soil,
but few skipped the sleep & kept the water to boil..
never in my life yet did I start my day with pasta,
@ 6am this was served to us as piping hot nashta (breakfast);
with green sprouts to share & care,
accompanied the monkeys to eat & stare..
heading to scale & measure,
to also find the treasure;
within & around Mahuli Fort,
attending through each temple & court..
scorching heat couldn't stop us so to say,
plucking & biting each jamun, karvanda, mango on the way;
finding a cave with chilled water,
time was almost One to a Quarter..
our friends setup a Cloud Kitchen with woodfire,
cooking meals tastier than our desire;
resting under the water cooled cave,
with the limited energy we could recharge & save..
here we start heading back through a steeper route,
up & awake enough - not skipping to taste any fruit;
photo clicks weren't enough to capture the charm,
the aura, the breeze, the peaceful calm..
walking downhill with some rhythm & trance,
magical was the nature around at every glance;
a dozen of lemons, water, sugar, jaljeera & ice,
could relieve our pain almost instantly so nice..
eating everything found in our bag,
crossing each victory flag;
near were we to exit this paradise,
what next? asked a pro trekker so wise..
the pain the missing rain,
the gain the steep lane;
made us feel like never before,
without which we never could discover our core..
here we are Tuning in for More..
