Last year, I had barely managed to finish a couple of moderate treks when I saw the invite for TH. Though I was fascinated by the idea of a treasure hunt, especially on a trek, I did not have enough courage to push myself to join any team. My philosophy is quite straightforward – I’ve never wanted to be viewed as a burden. The least I could do for the team is to take care of myself and ensure that I do not come in the way of other’s fun and happiness – either by being slow or by getting injured! So, in view of social welfare, I stayed out of it!
Imagine my thrill on receiving the invite for TH2? However I was soon dismayed to find out that it was scheduled for the weekend after PX6. Having booked my tickets and being one of the confirmed participants for PX6 right from the beginning, despite stringent and innovative methods of shortlisting, it meant that I had to miss TH2 as I can’t take leave on consecutive weekends (I work 6 days a week).
My participation in TH2 – should I say it was an act of fate? Or, to those who do not believe in destiny, should I say it was a mere coincidence? Either way, what actually happened was that I had to drop out of PX6 (which, by the way, was an utter disappointment) due to some unavoidable circumstance and hence could transfer my leave for TH2. I learnt that from every disappointment stems an adventure.
Nachiketa & Mani asked me to join their team – the Maverick Meerkats! And so I did. It was a strong team with mostly seasoned trekkers (except me) – Mani, Nachi, Raj Jacob, Ela, Rajesh, Arun Sekhar, Vipin Lal and few others. The irony was that the guys who initiated and formed the team – Nachi & Mani, amongst few others had to drop out due to some pressing commitments/injury. A team that initially had a member base of 11, had to manage with only 7 . We were faced with the uncertainty of further dropouts leading to disqualification of the team on the grounds of minimum size till the last minute – what with Arun wanting to go to Rat Tail Falls and charming Ela and Vipin to follow suit?!
Finally, we set off at 4.30 a.m, a 7-member team comprising Rajesh, Praveen, Samim & myself from Anna Nagar, in Praveen’s car. Ela waited for Arun who was to be picked up on his bike at Nathan’s Café in Koyembedu. Arun did not pick up our wake up calls which indeed gave us peptic ulcers but finally he managed to turn up at TP Kota (a few minutes ahead of us, advantage: bike ride), where the teams were to receive the instructions for the Hunt.
There were 5 teams lead by Prem, Arun Prabahar, Alex, Arun/Vipin & Brijesh respectively. The rules were quite clear – each team would be given a clue to start with apart from which there would be three more clues to be unearthed to reach the treasure (treasure was to be collected from Peter at a specific location and the third clue of every team would direct the members to Peter). Subsequent to finding each clue a photo of the team members (except the one capturing the snap) with the clue was to be taken. The treasure could be collected from Peter only upon producing these photos as well as all the clues.
Following the eastern pool, we kept moving towards the base of the central peak. It was already 5.30 p.m and lot of deliberations on when and where to camp took place, without any clarity. Finally at 5.50 p.m we decided to camp where we were, beside a couple of thatched roofs as further progress would mean trekking post dusk and camping after two hours. Vipin was the catalyst in this decision as he was clearly not upto night trekking. Plus, our chilled out team’s main focus was completing the hunt and enjoying the whole experience of team spirit and landscape rather than getting anxious about the timing.
Once at the campsite beside water, we settled down and stretched our worn out limbs, the moans of pleasure echoing through the surrounding dusky ambience. Succour to the body emboldened the mind which commenced an analysis of the situation, teams and possible timelines. We had concluded that Prem’s team would have finished the hunt (at 6.30 p.m) and that the other emperor’s team would also be faced with a similar fate. We fervently hoped the other teams would give us company the next day. The comforting thought was Peter’s revelation that difficulty level was equal across clues and teams.
After rest to body, the stomach expressed its protest vehemently at being ignored for over 6 hours. Dinner, or the lack of it, gave us a sinking feeling. Why? We wanted to capitalize on the magnanimity of other teams, by borrowing their pot for cooking our dinner. Not for one moment did we consider the chances of not camping with other teams. Nevertheless, necessity is the mother of invention. We used whatever we had, to manage dinner, though not a sumptuous meal (that would have been a welcome relief to our growling stomach), a decent one, enough to stop our stomach from making rumbling sounds. Thanks to Ela for his apple pie! Sleep claimed us within the few minutes of stretching out on our mats. I woke up through the night to admire the silver of the moonlight washing everything under its expanse with mysterious, yet spectacular shadows. Such admiration, despite sleep’s attempt at drowning my senses was only possible due to the magnificence of the sight that embraced me!
Samim was always ready for exploration and assisted Arun & Vipin in navigation at all palces. Praveen was a constant pillar of strength! Ela and Rajesh were forever, either ahead/behind me patiently listening to and letting me babble (which is a regular occurrence, especially during a difficult trek) – much needed moral support!
Maverick Merrkat’s navigator cum human alarm, Arun, woke us up at 6.30 a.m and we started our journey at 7.05 a.m in search of the third clue. We climbed up towards the central peak water point and reached Peter’s team at 8.30 a.m. There we got wind of the state of affairs of all other teams – Prem’s team had found their treasure at 11.30 p.m., Brijesh’s team was just collecting their treasure, Arun Prabahar’s team was at clue three and the other team was at clue two. So, Peter said we stood a good chance of coming third if we left immediately and that it would take around 40 minutes from the water point. Feeling a renewed surge of energy, we ran in search of clue three. Peter mentioned that we had to walk along the grassland and that there would be waterfalls at the spot. However, ‘along the grassland’ was forgotten and ‘waterfalls’ remained ingrained in our minds. At an inflexion point, we had two options – walk along the grasslands or go down to check out the waterfalls. Our decision was to check out the waterfalls. There was no trail, unmanageable number of thorny bushes, entwined roots and branches of shrubs which took away almost two hours of our time. We came back to the inflexion point absolutely dejected and demotivated. In fact, at 11.25 a.m we were tempted to give up and retrace to the coordinates of Peter & Co. Five minutes of rest and reflection reiterated the purpose of our participation in treasure hunt – completion! We decided to rise above all odds to locate the third and final clue (since we already knew the location of the coordinates N 13, 29’, 35”; E 79, 47’, 40” of the third clue– Peter’s Den). Within 20 minutes of the decision, we had found the spot where the clue lay inside a small pool of water, unable to breath, beneath a lonely tree, thanks to Vipin & Rajesh! The grandeur of the find electrified our souls – “I rise from the ocean, I fall from the sky, I flow inbetween”! As usual Arun was perched on a boulder, overlooking the spot of the clue, ready to click the victory picture. At 11.45 a.m we were done finding all our clues, taking a break for a few minutes, we started our march to collect the treasure. We met a couple of teams on the way and heard that Peter was wrapping up and getting ready to leave. So we ran, and reached the water point in 20 minutes. We became the fourth team to have completed the hunt. But, the number did not matter. All that mattered was that we completed the hunt! And what a treasure it was – box of chocolates; certainly the best of the lot! Not having had breakfast/lunch, the chocolates just disappeared in no time! “Cheese” – the proud moment was captured and framed forever by Durai & Peter – seven of us with all the clues; hungry, yet beaming, satisfied and blissful faces.
Many times through the hunt, we were discussing the efficiency of planning and execution of the whole event in awe and reverence, a meticulous effort by the organizing team. The clues were intriguing and kept our anticipation at a constant high. Finally what stood out was the fairness of the clues. Each team had to go through equal rigor to get to the treasure.
They say the spirit behind any competition is participation, more than winning. Each team proved its spirit by being there, going all over Nagala and beating the heat – never mind the result!
With such a lovely team, a fulfilling experience and unimaginable levels of fun, I was bathed in ineffaceable elation!
