In mid-May, when Mercury is supposed to be soaring high,
there was a sudden downpour early that morning. The trip from Hyderabad began
with the assumption that it’s going to be a dud. But that was not the case to
be
The 280-km journey in the APTDC luxury bus from Tank Bund
may have started with Telugu mass masala movies like ‘Badshaah’ and ‘Mirchi’
screened in the bus, but the asli spice was the landscape on the way to Jannaram
village in Adilabad district in Andhra Pradesh. The first stop was at Haritha
Restaurant at Pragnapur for a breakfast accompanied by yummy guavas. The paddy,
corn, cotton farms, the mango trees and the high rising mountains came alive
with the rains and forced the tourists to pull out their cameras and capture them
before they disappear. Jannaram village, situated at the edge of a dense forest,
was once known for its timber depots, teak and bamboo forest. But now, it’s known
for Kawal Wildlife Santury which is declared as second forest in the state
after Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve.
The first glimpse of the cottages nestled among greenery at
the Haritha Resort in Jannaram was breathtaking. The mud-coloured cottages with
Warli paintings created a rustic ambience and intuitively made the tourists
unwind and soak in the feel of entering a village.
Keeping in line with the Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development
Corporation (APTDC) tradition of giving a Telugu touch to everything, the curtains
in cottages were of Pochampally material. The popular traditional geometric
patterns and one of the finest works by the weavers in the state added a unique
touch. The dining area sported Lepakshi and Nirmal wall paintings.
The next destination was a quaint museum near the resort where
structures of wild buffalo, tiger, bear and a few other animals were placed to recreate
a mini forest. The live peacocks to the left of the entrance attracted all the
tourists towards them and then came the selfie time with peacocks. Then came shopping time at the artifact exhibits stall
in the museum itself. Ashok, the hand behind the creativity, said that the
artifacts are made of mud. The mud is moulded in various shapes like a bell or
a vase or tortoise or even an elephant, and is dried for a few days. It takes
four to five days to make one.
Next on the itinerary was the thrill of going for a forest
trekking to Kawal Tiger Reserve. The joy of the heading towards another
adventurous phase of the trip was mixed with the fear of being attacked by the
tiger. The idea of going inside the forest in an open jeep scared the tourists
more. A few even developed cold feet at the idea of going inside the forest,
but later joined in after they realised that the safari and the adventure walks
are the whole reason they had come all the way for. The weak-hearted chose not
to sit on the sides in the jeep.
Right before entering the forest, one gets to see a few deer
including spotted deer, in an enclosure. The moment the jeep entered forest, the
wait to spot the tiger began. The untimely rain surely played spoilsport as the
tyre of the jeeps kept getting stuck as mud on the vehicle track had loosened.
It looked like the season was not appropriate for a forest visit. The best time
to visit the forest is between November and April.
Although the 10-km trek into the 841 Sq Km-forest started
with the wait for tiger sighting, the trekkers soon forget about it and enjoyed
exploring the vegetation in the forest. The sight of a flock of 40 deer grabbed
everyone’s attention for some time. Rains had made trekking a bit challenging
as the sticky mud in the forest was getting onto the footwear making it
difficult to tourists to walk. But then, what is a bit of trekking without getting
your feet dirty.
The sight of dry leaves coming together to form a net-like
pattern fascinated the city slickers. A few of them clicked pictures of it
while the others wanted to possess them. The saga of people getting lost in the
forest and then others going to find them or shouting to give them directions added
to the drama of the ‘rain forest’.
The sight of medicated brinjal was a relief to people who
believe in growing herbal medicines at their backyard. They plucked a part of
it and took them home to plant them.
Amidst keeping a lookout for the tiger, everyone posed for a
groupie perched on a steep mountain-like mud structure. When the end of trek
was announced, everyone seemed disappointed as the date with the tiger did not
happen. The whereabouts of tiger still
seemed to be a mystery.
The jeep rode everyone out of the forest. Then came the
kahani mein twist with the Divisional Forest Officer of the forest, Damodhar
Reddy, breaking the suspense - There is no tiger in the forest though it is called
a tiger reserve! He said that there is only one tiger which is brought to the
reserve occasionally.
Briefing about the other animals in the reserve, he reeled
off the statistics. Four wild boars, six spotted deer, less than one sambar and
one panther per sq km of the reserve forest.
The next destination was Kadem dam built on River Kadem, a
tributary of River Godavari. The dam irrigates 68,000 hectares in Adilabad
district. A speed boat ride in the waters along with the scenic beauty of the
dam during the sunset mesmerised everyone.
Hot pakodas and tea at 7.30 pm after the boating marked the end
of the trip. The bus, via Kama Reddy brought everyone home after a small dinner
break in Haritha Restaurant there.
Itinerary by APTDC
The APTDC has planned this as a weekend trip. The APTDC bus
will pick tourists from their pick up spot in the morning. The trip will be a
two-day affair. Leave your worries back at home and head to the tour with a
fresh mind to be able to enjoy every bit of it.
Day 1-
Travel to Jannaram
Breakfast at Harita restaurant
Lunch at Haritha Resort
Forest trekking
Adventure activities at the resort
Night stay in cottage
Day 2- Visit to Kadem dam and boating
Visit to Basar saraswati temple
Viewing of Nirmal paintings and exhibits
Visit to Kuntala Waterfalls
The package will be open from June this year. For adventure
activities and forest trekking, the tourists are recommended to carry a dress
they are comfortable in along with pair of sports shoe.
The cost for the entire package is Rs 1,500 (everything
included). Bookings can be done through www.aptdc.gov.in
or by calling 09603667724
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