Sarala Hole waterfalls

Prologue

The first time when I saw this waterfall was in 2005. We were trekking to a popular place, and we saw the water flowing majestically from a hill far away. Mesmerised by its beauty, I decided to go to the base of that falls sometime in future. At that time, I was not aware of the path to reach that place. Later, I came to know from my adventurous friends that it was possible to reach the waterfall, but the path was difficult. The stream was called as Sarala hole. But this place fell off my radar for some unknown reasons. It was only last year when I was in my native place, I made a sudden plan to hike to this waterfall with my uncle and cousins. But the monsoon rains, thick undergrowth and heavy flow of water made our task difficult. A snake we encountered got aggressive, and we had to make a hasty retreat.

This year, I got another opportunity when I went to my native place for Deepavali. By then, my uncle and cousin had already solved this waterfall problem by finding a way to it. With monsoon over, it was a good opportunity to visit this place.

Trekking to the waterfall

Like last time, we parked our car next to the highway and started walking. We could have taken our car further down, but I preferred walking than taking the risk with my car on steep and bad roads. I felt good about the decision when I saw a group of people stranded. They had taken their vehicle down without any incident. By the time they returned back, a tree had fallen down blocking their way. They were trying to search for people who could help to cut the tree. Interestingly, I was walking on this road for the third time and I had seen a fallen tree blocking the way each time!!

After walking for more than a km on the road, it was time to enter the forest. My cousin, who had already visited the falls before guided us for the rest of our journey. I was worried about snakes, but luckily we did not see any. The surprise came from a different corner in the form of leeches. I never expected them to be present during the dry season and hence we had not brought salt that could dissuade them. I generally get badly hit by leeches, and it was not an exception this time also.

After some time, we reached the stream, and from here we had to find our own way. My cousin Anujith explained how they managed to find the falls last time by hearing the sound of the water. We crossed some huge rocks and had to crawl at many places through the bushes and trees. This place was a perfect home for sloth bear and other wild animals, and it was a worry for us. Luckily, the forest was calm during our visit.

At the waterfalls

Finally, we reached the main falls after about 90 minutes of walking. It had taken much longer than our expectation. Nevertheless, we had made to this place successfully. While the last stage of the hike to the falls was very steep, there was enough place in front of the falls to relax and see it peacefully. A pool formed at the base of the falls was ideal for swimming.

Return journey

The return journey was uneventful, but we were tired when we reached the highway. The hot weather had made the walk difficult. I was happy to see this waterfall which was still in the pristine state in the times of mindless destruction of tourist spots. This place is rarely visited, and we could feel it by the absence of trash in the forest. I hope this place retains its charm and welcomes only adventurous and responsible people.