Medak Church, Medak Fort, Pocharam Wildlife Sanctuary, Pocharam Lake

The town of Medak, is one of those places in Andhra Pradesh, which has tremendous historical importance. Being a buzzing center during the reign of Kakatiyas, today’s Medak town awaits its turn to reap the fruits of many of the technological advances that has been achieved.  Barely 100 kms from Hyderabad, Medak offers us following options for spending a wonderful holiday.

 

Coming to the team for the journey, following are the bullets:-

·         Vijay was very anxious at the start of the trail. The way he was walking towards us at Mangatrai (our meeting point) made it obvious that he had 100 questions regarding the days he going to pass with us.  Vijay, I must tell you again that the Dosas, Chutney, Chicken, Sweet Potatoes, Chocolates, Fruits all were simply too good with a very special note for Dosas and Chicken.

·         Prasad’s tremendous knowledge about many fields was good discussion during the car journey. The way that he convinced the forest official to keep his car’s AC on during the Pocharam WLS drive was amazing.  The old man just adhered to what Prasad said.  On a lighter note after the entire tour, dude! You must atleast now admit that the grunting and the growling leopard on the Nizam’s terrace was ‘the vibration in your respiratory structure’ and not poor me!! Loved your driving. Any time you want company for long drives... Count me in!!  Lucky you, spotted the Scorpion in the dark.

·         Rashmi, thanks for making all attempts to ruin all the group photos. Poor Vijay and me too. Every time we tried to take group photos she would be the one lost somewhere else… Piscean affinity with water was proved this time again when you were not at all ready to come into the boats and came swimming to the GHAC Island. (I liked this name)

·         Mel – our TREK LEADER, what a champion swimmer, trekker, singer and guitarist you are. By the way did you like the names given to by Prajakta – Mel** ,… , ... If not then please tell her about it. On our next trek she would get you some more names.

·         Prajakta and Me – Well for the entire trek, I was busy taking her photographs and she looking at my camera lens. So nothing much about us. Towards the end - Prajakta – the team would glad if we can have that Extra Salted Potato Veggie and the Kadai Chai again!!!

Medak Church

Medak Fort

Pocharam Wildlife Sanctuary

Pocharam Lake

Fact File:- Distances:- Medak is approximately 120 km from Hyderabad. Food and Stay:- For this entire tour Medak town is the central place from where you can pick your food and water. Hotels near the bus stop offer excellent South Indian food.  There are lodges available near the police station of Medak.

Pocharam Lake

For a trekker, adventurist or camper this is the place which would in no means disappoint you.  One can trek the extensive fringe of the lake or the Pocharam forest; one can spend lot of time swimming or fishing at the lake; or otherwise one can just merrily slug out on an abandoned building near the lake. Many people refer to this building as Nizam’s guest house. One a nearby hill there is one more building which is referred as Nizam’s hunting lodge. For moving in the Pocharam forest one should take prior permission. Given the risks involved in swimming one should take enough precaution while swimming in this lake. A life jacket would be most preferable. Pocharam dam is constructed on Manjira river gets its water from the surrounding catchment and the Manjira dam.

Birders can sight many water birds on the trek circuit which circumvents the lake.  This man made wet land is also a house to migrant flamingoes.

Pocharam Wildlife Sanctuary

Charges for having a drive in the sanctuary: - ` 50 per car,  ` 50 per camera,  ` 2 per human.

A forest official accompanies us on the drive. This 4.5 km drive though not a typical safari but is certainly a refreshing one and the jungle is thick enough to keep us interested. We spotted Spotted Deer, Sambar Deer, Wild Boar, Peacock and Peahen in this sanctuary. Given the time we were there we should consider ourselves lucky to seen all this in semi-wild kind of condition.

The team in the sanctuary looks interested in the development of the sanctuary, but I hope that in the process they do not kill the visual beauty of the sanctuary.

Medak Church

Completely made of white granite this architectural wonder is indeed an asset to the people of Medak. The white granite is quite unique in the sense that it has a beautiful pink shade on it which reflects stunningly when sunlight falls on it.  Artistically Gothic, this church was earlier Anglican. Considered as the second largest diocese of world, this church now belongs to CSI. Artistically Gothic, this church was earlier Anglican.

The sight of well crafted wooden furniture, the intricate paintings on the stained glasses above the side entrances, a huge and antique Pipe Organ, beautiful sculptures of eagles and peaceful surrounding gives us immense pleasure which one desires at any praying destination.

Medak Fort

This 12^th century art piece is a telling testimony of the Kakatiyan glory during its reign. Built on a small hillock near the Medak town this fort was also under Qutubshahs for some period. This strongly fortified fort has all a secret exit on the eastern end of the fort. The fort also houses a lake, a warehouse and a barrack. The barracks can be found near the first major entrance of the fort which is also known as ‘Pratam Dwaram’. This door is strategically constructed at such a place so that the waging enemy soldiers cannot spot it easily.

After passing through Pratham Dwaram one reaches an entrance which is flanked by two lions on both the sides of the entrance. This entrance is called as ‘Simha Dwaram’.  As one passes through the Simha Dwaram, one can see a warehouse on the left hand side.  This is the most important door of the fort and hence is flanked by powerful hexagonal bastions.

Moving ahead one can reach at the most exquisite entrance of the fort. This is the ‘Gaja Dwaram’, called so because of the sculptures of the Elephants on the walls around it.  Passing though this door one can reach a mosque which was constructed during Qutubshahi regime.

The summit of this fort offers breathtaking view of the Medak town and picturesque country side around it.

Nagarjuna Sagar and Nagarjunakonda Island

Nagarjuna is a big name in Southern India, not just because of the Akkineni Nagarjuna famous for his Tollywood movies and his construction company in Hyderabad, but also because it is related with largest man made reservoir in entire world.  Built on Krishna River and located in Nalagonda district of Andhra Pradesh Nagarjuna Sagar was earlier called as Nandikonda and derives its current name from Buddhist saint Acharya Nagarjuna.

Situated at a distance of 150 km from Hyderabad, Nagarjuna Sagar is an excellent destination for the trekkers as wells the city picnickers alike.  The area which the dam submerged has got relevance since ancient times. In those times the city of Nandikonda which got submerged during the construction of this dam was called as Vijaypuri.  Even today for the people who want to enjoy the boat ride and visit Nagarjunakonda have to park their vehicles or alight at Vijaypuri south.  Along with the enjoyable experience of boating a visit to Nagarjunakonda enriches with the numerous destinations that we can visit on Nagarjunakonda island.

Enroute to Nagarjuna Sagar from Hyderabad, after crossing Pedda Uru going ahead for approximately 12 km, we are welcomed by a board ‘Crocodile Zone – Swimming here is not safe’. Looking around you will find some boat men.  At this point one can enjoy the Coracle (a small circular boat made of cane) ride offered by these boat men for a cost of  ` 20 – ` 30. After coracling for a while one can proceed towards Vijaypuri south.  Enroute to Vijaypuri we pass over a newly constructed bridge. The sight of the Nagarjuna Sagar dam especially when the flood gates are open is mind blowing.  After crossing this bridge it takes approximately 30 minutes to reach the boating station.  There after purchasing the tickets, one can board the launch. A launch which can carry 100-150 people takes 60 - 70 minutes to reach the island.

Nagarjunakonda Island

This island stretches east west with the launch dropping us at the eastern end. Nearby we can find some fortification which is a sign of obvious fort at this place.  A flight of steps and then a walkway through the garden takes us to the museum.  This museum is a very good attempt by Archeological Society of India for protecting the Buddhists remnants found in this area. However after having a look at this museum the obvious suggestion would be that the statues should be barricaded so that visitors cannot touch them.  The wonderful statues hoisted by the museum are truly appealing and reminds us about the glorious rock art of bygone era.

After visiting the museum, an ancient graveyard can also be spotted on the way to a large Buddhist statue.  Near this Buddha’s statue there is a uniquely constructed stupa.  This stupa is decorated by some brickwork which is made to appear like a garland to the stupa.  On our way to this stupa one can see the fortification which still stands testimony to the importance of this place in the ancient era. The settlement of Nagarjunakonda was the capital of the Ikshvaku dynasty (225 AD - 325 AD), the successors of the Satvahanas in the eastern Deccan

After visiting these spots one can come to the lone eatery on the island. After having some snacks one can spend time relaxing at the steps near this eatery. A warm evening with your friends around you and you sitting beside a huge water body with your legs dipped in it is all that one can ask for the moment.  During all this don’t forget to keep a watch on the boat timings!!!

Anupu:

To prevent submersion of the outstanding structures in the valley, a rare feat of reconstruction of the remains was taken up. Anupu, 4 km from the dam site, was chosen for relocation of a Buddhist University.

Tiger sanctuary:

The largest wildlife sanctuary in Andhra Pradesh lies between Nagarjuna Sagar and upstream Srisailam. Spreadover 3,500 sq.km, it encompasses thickly wooded hills in five districts - Nalgonda, Kurnool, Mahboobnagar, Guntur and Prakasam.

On a special note please see following link:- CEPCE India is committed for electrification of villages, clean drinking water and schools for primary education. The ongoing projects target electrification of two tribal villages; Geesugandi and Kudichintabaayalu. http://www.cepceindia.org/programs/rural-electrification/

How to Reach This Place

Road : Located at 150 km from Hyderabad. Buses are available from Hyderabad to Vijaypuri south.
Rail : 20 kms from Macherla.
Air : Hyderabad Airport.

Chandrampalli Dam and Chincholi Forest

Karnataka is blessed with many beautiful water bodies of which Chandrampalli dam is a less known nevertheless an equally exquisite one. The sleepy village of Chandrampalli approximately 140 km from Hyderabad welcomes us with its two small tea stalls and one pan ki dukaan. (Diya.. you should have purchased something in this dukaan. You surveyed this entire little shop without even asking for a price of a single item.) One can park the vehicles near these stalls or near the Horticulture training centre behind one of these stalls. Well ... Moving ahead from this point we enter a gate which takes us to the earthen boundary of Chandrampalli dam. The dam has its release gates in the southern end.  This dam which is built on Bhima River has an island in it.  This island and the area surrounding this dam offer a beautiful camping site for the trekkers.  A flight of steps on the adjoining hillock takes us to Hanuman temple.  This temple is very unique in its sense. For me this was the first time when I saw Nandi in the mandapa of Hanuman temple. As we all know Nandi, (vehicle of Lord Shiva) is generally a feature of Lord Shiva’s temple. However in this temple we can find it in front of Hanuman’s temple.  After a small hike on the route adjoining this temple we reach an abandoned bungalow.  This bungalow offers us a panoramic view of dam and the Chincholi forest; our next destination.  

Retracing back to the tea stalls a dirt track towards southwest takes us to the Chincholi forest. It would be advisable to fill your water bottles at this point as there is hardly any potable water source on its way to Chincholi forest. After trekking for a distance of approximately 5 km one can reach the highest point of Chincholi forest.  The trail from Chandrampalli village to highest point of Chincholi forest is amazing. It’s a paradise for a birdie, for a butterfly lover, for a snake lover and of course for a person who wishes to have solace in isolation. On our trail we spotted birds like Spotted Pigeons, Rollers, Wagtails, Bee eaters, Jacanas and many more.  Sight of a baby Russell Viper was the peak of it. 

As the route is marked with thorny trees on its way one should have clothes which fully cover hands and legs.  Shorts and Bermudas should be a strict NO for such treks.

Well this trip will be a permanent memory for me for tons of reasons prominent being Diyanat’s crude and jolly Hyderabadi entertainment, Mel singing all the way from Hydera-BAD (as Mel would pronounce) to Chandrampalli and ofcourse for  ‘Maa ki Kirkiri’ by Arun. But without the queen of this trip ‘Bawa ki Gadi’ this trip was not complete. Bawa ki Gadi is Arun’s Dads Maruti Alto which we (read Arun) really toiled on the route for which no Alto would have been tested or would be tested.  Every time Arun skidded it, bumped it on a pot hole, hit it on a speed breaker he would scream ‘Bawa ki Gadi’ in Hyderabadi Hindi with a devilish smile on his face. Without undermining the beauty of the terrain, abundance of butterflies, terrific landscape and amazing beauty of the dam  – guys, without Mel, Diyanat and Arun this trek was not worth it !!! Long Live the Karnataka roads, long live the Bawa ki Gadi !!!