It was just another lousy week at office and with the weekend approaching I was in the mood for another trip to the outdoors. Some friend suggested we visit Kalavaarahalli Betta(also called Skandagiri) which is around 70 KM from Bangalore. We Googled and found that some people trek the mountain under moonlight. We got very excited but a bit concerned as it was a place unknown to us; we had to trek on the mountain at night and the weather lately had been dicey for the unpredictable rain. As always, the adventurer in us pushed us to go for it.We bought some torches and packed our bags, with the essential stuff, lots of water, eatables, and some drinks. We, 6 guys on 4 bikes, assembled at KFC, Indiranagar at 11:30 PM on Saturday and had a quick bite (our dinner actually). The weather was pleasant and we started off at midnight towards the Hebbal Flyover. Suddenly, it started drizzling. It was fun driving in the rain at night, yet we did not want to reach our destination all soggy and spoil the fun. We kept our fingers crossed and kept driving in the rain which got strong intermittently.For once, the heaven’s smiled and the rain stopped. It was then that I experienced one of the most amazing rides on my bike ever. The sky was dark and cloudy over the newly renovated and well lit road to Devanhalli and we could see the half-moon peeping from behind the clouds every now and then, the cool breeze murmuring in our ears and almost freezing our hands. I went in somwhat like a trance and couldn’t stop singing in this mesmerizing ambiance.
We crossed Devanhalli and reached Chikballapur. After driving through the city for some time, we took a left turn to a road adjacent to a Ganesha Temple. After travelling for around 4-5 Km’s on the narrow road, we reached Omkara Jyoti Ashrama / Papagni Mutt, which is situated at the base of the Kalavaarahalli betta, at 2AM . We parked our bikes, paid for the entry to the area and started the ascent at 2:30 AM, our torches lit, for the moon had decided to not bless us with the cool blue light and guide us in our journey uphill.
We could see the lights of some villages close by, twinkling like stars. We found ourselves walking in eerie silence amidst the bushes overgrowing on both sides of the narrow, rocky path winding towards the top with an the occasional flashing of lights of some other groups making their way uphill, in the distance. The trees were repeatedly asserting their claim to the rocky kingdom with the whistling of the leaves in the strong breeze and yet some mortals could be heard trying to subdue the noise with their shrieks, getting defeated in the contest every time.
The trek was moderate yet tiring. We took rest numerous times, to catch our breath or to just drink and discuss some crucial things in life at some strategic location atop the rocks on the way. We reached the top at 4:30 AM. The breeze was so strong that we could hear a loud roar, our bones almost resonating with the noise, and we were finding it hard to restrain our bodies from being blown away with the force, time and again. We probed around in the dark and found the best spot of the place, yet no other group had ventured there, as it was a bit scary being almost on the edge and we too at times feared being carried down with the wind.
We wrapped ourselves in some bed-sheets and after some more exploration, found a slightly flat rocky area where the wind was relatively weak. We lay down on the rock and covered the bed-sheet over us to form a flat tent or more aptly a cocoon, which reduced the impact of the strong wind. We could hear a lot of voices in the distant darkness but could not see clearly the sources of the noise. We lay there for some time and after around half an hour, we saw some 
light of the day. We got up and realized that the place was crowded with more than 150 revelers, a lot of them standing around a small fire lit in the makeshift shop at the summit.
The wind grew stronger than ever and our hopes of viewing the sun rise drowned. At some places towards the edge and atop some small rocks, we felt as if we could just spread our hands and fly away from this maddening world.We spent some more time exploring the hill top, taking snaps and finally rested at one place for a long time, nobody wanting to go back, although the place was almost deserted now.
With a heavy heart, we started our decent at 7AM and reached the base of the hill in around an hour. The sun had come out and it started to grow a bit hot. We had some tender coconut and started again for Bangalore. The rain gods played some more hide and seek with us, and we reached our homes at around 10 AM, just in time to cuddle back in our beds for a perfectly lazy Sunday ahead!