Chasing Ordeals at Dhanushkodi

Down the infinite lane. Dreamy road to the tip of  Dhanushkodi with Bay of Bengal on the left and Indian Ocean on the right.

It was the hottest month of summer;March. And we were traveling to the very tip of the Indian subcontinent, Dhanushkodi. Along with my friends Salman and Chandu, I boarded the train from Madurai and reached Rameswaram very comfortably on the Rameswaram passenger. We sat down on the footboard and witnessed some heartbreaking scenes from the slums of Madurai; the utterly downtrodden state of things, where there was a very thin line of distinction between daily life and garbage. By passing the wonderfull Pamban bridge in its nocturnal beauty, we reached Rameswaram by 10:30 at night and started stuffing our bags with food items to be eaten the next day. So we stepped out and started walking towards the beach. It was my idea to reach the beach and spend the night there. The roads were being emptied slowly and there were only a few people on the streets. As we walked in the direction of Dhanushkodi, a local guy came to us and started enquiring about our intentions, for we were obviously the only tourists out on the streets at that time of the night. We told him our plans but he suddenly demanded us not to go there and said it was dangerous to go to the beach at night . Seeing no logic whatsoever in this warning and also having encountered many such pessimistic people whenever we were up to some adventure, we decided to neglect him. We agreed with him to cool him off and then stealthily started moving towards Dhanushkodi.

The floor of the pine forest covered with long fallen pointed leaves and twigs, creating a comfortable carpet to lie down

The walk

First of all, we had to walk through fairly inhabited areas. This was one of my scariest nights ever, thanks to the hundreds and hundreds of stray dogs that rule the streets at night. They were ganged up beneath every street light and hated to see intruders at night. These angered guys cornered us every single time to scare us out of our minds. We got some sticks and stuck together whenever they approached us. Salman was really scared of dogs and he was literally hiding behind us whenever dogs approached. After about an hour of slow progress down the road and facing off a handful of the dog gangs, we finally reached a totally deserted stretch of road with no lights whatsoever. Just the black tarmac running and dissolving into pitch darkness. So we lit our phone torches and continued. There was neither a single soul nor vehicle to be seen.

Trail hunting

My plan was to turn towards the beach once we found an opening through the trees that lined both sides of the road. However, there was no clear path to be seen. Only dark forest on either side of us. Besides, the road was so spooky and dark with an unpleasant silence. Those moments and the feelings that the spookiness evoked are unforgettable. Thankfully, we had a half-moon above that lit up the night beautifully. The walk felt like an eternity and still we had found no signs of the beach. What we hadn’t realized was that the beach was close to the roads only after at least 4-5 km from the Rameswaram town. At the point where we were standing, we had a thick forest cover that extended a long way till the sea on either side . Once we saw a tiny opening on the side of the road and a trail that led into the thick tree cover, we decided to take the turn. We suddenly found ourselves covered not only in pitch darkness but also inside a really thick jungle. It was insanely scary despite knowing that there was nothing to be scared of. After wandering around through the woods, we reached a beautiful opening. A barren landscape bathed in the moonlight and the illuminated white sands. There was an Aura of a dream. We decided to rest a bit on a sand dune to take in all this beauty before moving on to find a way to the beach.

Freedom

 We continued aimlessly in the deserted region and finally stumbled upon a trail that led us again into a forest cover. But this time we could clearly hear the roar of the ocean waves crashing against the beach. Adrenaline was rushing, it had been about 3 hours since we had left Rameswaram town. We walked through a narrow path surrounded by thorny shrubs and saw the path gradually opening up to a vast empty space. Finally, freedom… The sight was glorious..White sands and dark bluishness looked beautiful in the moonlight and the ambiance was tranquil. With no souls or civilization in sight, we started strolling through the beach gently until we reached a spot where we felt like we should halt. So we erected a couple of sticks for protection from dogs and lied down on the sands. There was a soft breeze blowing from the sea and we could see waves dancing to its graceful rhythm. We felt so relaxed after a tiring journey. This place has a unique ability to make you feel peaceful from the inside, no matter what you are going through. I lied down on the sand and the half moon made me smile at the universe and its magical creations..

Dawn

We woke up early that morning and headed for the roads. We found our way through the trees and reached the road. There was a long wait for the first bus which started at around 5 from Rameswaram.  Meanwhile the drama had begun on the eastern skyline. Silhouettes of trees looked otherworldly with the blue hour background.  The bus arrived and we met 7-8 of our college mates who were also traveling to the tip. We joined them, reached Satram,  the point where bus service ends. 

Dawn break

 Together we witnessed the sunrise in all it's glory. There was a long walkway extended into the sea. 

We went and sat down on it's edge and watched an interesting hunting game between the sea birds and the fishes. 

Chilling by the ocean

When the sun became unbearable we took off on a bus back to a spot near Kothandaramar temple en route to Rameshwaram. We alighted and went straight for the beach which we had no difficulty reaching. That was my favorite part of the trip.

Ahh..The treetops <3 <3

 Not a soul around. Sitting in the shades of the pine trees and watching the waves crashing one after the other. Everything was beautiful around us.

Endless rows of pine

Sometimes taking a barefooted stroll through the endless rows of pine trees, watching the branches sway, and the Eagles go round in circles. 

Silence of the woods

The place is so tranquil it pours true bliss into the soul. After that, we took a mandatory dip in the powerful Indian Ocean, also known as Aankadal in these regions for the ferocious waves that it brings. 

A refreshing dip in the Ocean

The irony; beauty and harshness

Brief detour to hell.

Then as we started to walk back to the roads, I still do not know why or how but we were lost. Maybe we just walked a long way from the path that led to the road. We tried to get to the road but the path was full of thorny bushes. We kept trying again from many other points ahead and behind but the wide thorny barriers stopped us.

Walking through the boiling white sand in Dhanushkodi beach

 It was beyond noon and we had finished all the water and whatever snacks we had carried. Above all , it was getting incredibly hot by 12 in the noon.

Trail hunting in searing heat

 We were literally drenched in sweat and all of us started feeling nauseous. So we decided to lie down and we took a breather on the floor. I could feel panic in the air and head throbbing with pain. We were so close to the road yet so far away. That was the worst part of it. After a nap we decided to go back in the direction where we came from. 

Taking a much needed break on the forest floor.

The walk through the beach was long and exhausting. There were endless expanses of thorns lying in the heat. We checked whenever we saw what looked like a trail and returned disappointed. Sun was all over us.. The walk was endless and heat unforgiving..dizziness was setting in again..Finally after an hour of the unbelievable heat, we reached the actual trail through which we came in. We were just relieved that it was over... We reached the road dragging along our heavy bodies, sat down in a small shack and regained breath. The experience was heavy and unforgiving. It was a immense relief to gulp down water from that shack as we waited for our bus back to Rameswaram.

Nature has this weird way of shaking you to the core briefly and then bringing you back to reality. It gives you hell at least briefly, reminding you of all the privileges you enjoyed till then, and then makes you want to get a second shot at it, this time as a better, more experienced version of yourself. I guess we received a brief reminder by nature about the need to respect the elements. No matter how easy it seems, you should never underestimate the power of it. The countless mysteries that it hides in plain sight are beyond our imaginative capacities. So it is better to pay respect to mother nature and then she will unravel her true gems for you to admire and get lost in...Peace...