Wanderlust - Yana

I've always been fond of hopping around. And this is the story of my hop-trips to Yana. Cushioned in the lap of the western ghats, Yana is a treat. If you've missed the green of your pots at home, its time to go get some green there. You can reach Yana from Sirsi or Kumta (Now lets get this right – both of them are cute little towns in coastal Karnataka) I traveled by the Kumta route. To get to Kumta is a task in itself. No trains from Bangalore stop at Kumta (though Kumta does have a railway station, conveniently, with trains running into Goa!) I took the VRL bus (But surprisingly, VRL has no buses to Goa! Else its veins reach into the darkest corners, thankfully) to Kumta. It leaves at around 9:30 pm at Bangalore and reaches Kumta by 7:30 ish in the morning.
If you think you'll like the Poornima Railotel, you just might. Ask around for that one at Kumta, they'll take you to that place.The rooms that I got were dirty, but sufficient enough. Its a comfortable establishment, beds and bathroom and a television set. But they could have been kept locked for a really long time, you might have to get the cleaner up to clean it for a bit before you unpack. I was in a room just opposite where trains would stop – ah, what music. Can keep you awake, amused and perhaps even entertained, if you did not have the television set.
Yana is a popular trek route – and the Kumta folks know it. They'll charge you for what you're worth and more, and you can bargain. I took an auto into Yana. It will sweep across Kumta and take you into the ghatsYou can choose to walk up from a distance of 13 kms – or take it to about 3-4 kms range, after which, from the Kumta route – you cannot drive. Its a beautiful walk, lush green, tall trees, tamed yet wild (its not so wild that you should expect a tiger to come and say hi to you. No, no, just watch out for the odd leach). It was the little streams that caught my attention. Beautiful little ones, if you walk off the path into the wild trying to spot a turtle. There's a plantation or two, owned by some folks with dogs that you'd see on the way. Puff puff houses and all, real cute sight. Since there is a temple at the Yana, the path to Yana has some modern facilities. You'd find a water-pump. But let me not unravel the whole plot, then there would be nothing for you to discover.
Watch out for the sign board “wines and chickens not allowed” and you'd know you aren't far from the rocks. Yana has huge limestone rocks, so huge I could not get them full length on my camera. ( but not that I'm very savvy with them!) You can explore interesting little caves, if you are interested, that is. There is a tuck-shop at Yana where you can get your Miranda. Its actually a relief to the tired soles when you reach the Bhairaveshwara rock. The famous kannada movie, “Nammoora mandara hoove” was shot there I hear. I haven't seen it, but its widely recommended. You can walk the way back discovering off-beat paths, depending on your disposition. I ran out of patience. My friends and I just aimed at getting back to the auto on our way back.
Ah, I forget, we checked out the Dhareshwar beach (8 kms from Railotel, we took the same auto). The beach is untouched by tourists, but fully littered by the fishermen. The fishermen use the beach as their drain and my sincere advise is not to step into the holes that they have dug out – they don't have a well constructed loo in their huts, it would seem. But Dhareshwar sunset is a feast to the eyes, you're left on your own to contemplate on the mysteries of life and enjoy the waters. I remember spending a considerable amount of time resting at the Dhareshwar beach, waiting for the sun to go down. Kumta by the night is eerie. Atleast, it was eerie to me, who is used to the brightly lit city lights. Kumta is dark by night, very dark. And very quiet, that I was whispering.
You'll be fed up with Railotel food service. Check into the Chic looking Panduranga International Hotel, which is a walk away, if you feel like eating some better food. I encountered a lot of weird people at Kumta, including one cleaner at the Railotel. He gives out glares while you are eating, like he is waiting for you finish, so he can pull the plate away and clean the table. If you do go into the Railotel and find him there still, you'll see that he'll be something to write about in a comedy movie script. You'll want to check out Kumta town life – walk around, it aint so wide that you can't go around it. The marker has cute, very tiny, colorful plastic pots. Nearby places to visit around Kumta are Bhatkal, Sirsi and most definitely Gokarna. Happy Yana!