#western ghats

[pangeen]

" Malabar Pit Viper " // © Sebinster Francis

[billionneuronscurious]

Few Moments with Kalu Waterfall.

[musingsofom]

Mangrove Man groves 🌱🍃

[sitting-on-me-bum]

Amboli, Maharashtra, India, 2022.

The deccan banded gecko (Cyrtodactylus deccanensis) is an endemic species of the Western Ghats in India. This image was taken in the Amboli rainforest on a drizzly evening. Banded geckos are insectivorous animals that are about 15 centimetres long and seek warm and humid temperatures.

Photo by Soumya Ranjan Bhattacharyya

The Prince Albert II Of Monaco Foundation Environmental Photographer Of The Year 2023

Environmental Photography Award

[fromtraveldiaries]

White-bellied blue flycatcher, Ganeshgudi, December, 2022

[therewasabrowncrow]

Draft of the asian elephant for Current Conservation, I will be collaging flora over this after approval. Have used the Western Ghats- Anamalai Hills, Palakkad, Kadamakuddy as reference

The final should look like this: I have previously illustrated the Gaur, Anamalai frog, Giant Malabar squirrel, Andaman gecko all for CC

This type of illustration project is my comfort zone but the initial planning stage is a lot of work :')

[greenudon]

Fußabdrücke im Regenwald

7:30 Uhr im tropischen Regenwald der Westerngaths. Nach ein paar Schritten sagt der Guide: "Look, elephant footprints". Und wirklich, ein riesiger Fußabdruck im Matsch des Urwaldes. Über 2,5h liefen wir auf einen Pfad hindurch und sahen verschiedene Affen, Gaue, Wildschweine und farbenfrohe Vögel. Dazu kamen Spuren von Elefanten und Bären. Grundsätzlich bestand auch die Chance, Tiger oder auch Elefanten zu sichten. Leider ergab sich diese aber nicht. Übrigens war ich dieses Mal mit einer langen Sicherheitssocke ausgerüstet, sodass die Blutegel erfolgreich abgeschirmt werden könnten. Warum gab es diese Biester eigentlich bisher weder in Malaysia noch in Costa Rica?

Der Ausflug in den Nationalpark, wo man verschiedenste Touren absolvieren kann, wurde mit einer Bootsfahrt auf dem Stausee abgeschlossen. Sehr ruhig und entspannt aber mit Schwimmweste und Platzkarte. Als einziger Westler auf dem Deck war ich mal wieder etwas besonderes und wurde mehrmals gefragt, ob ich fotografiert werden darf und dabei ergaben sich einige nette Gespräche. So waren viele jüngere auf ihren Flitterwochen teilweise mit Familienanhang. Interessanterweise sind fast ausschließlich ausländische Touristen an aktiven Trekkingtouren interessiert, denn die Inder mögen es eher bequem und entspannt, wenn sie Urlaub machen. So fahren Sie hauptsächlich in den Nationalpark für die Bootsfahrt oder zu einer Jeep Safari.

Am Abend hatte es noch einmal einen richtigen Wolkenbruch gegeben und für 2 Stunden geregnet. Dies war ungewöhnlich und ist einem Ausläufer eines Zyklon geschuldet. Danach bin ich mit einem französischen Paar aus Toulouse in ein Bistro gegangen und wir haben den Abend bei Lime Soda und chinesischen Nudeln ausklingen lassen. Die beiden hatten vor Covid ihren Job quittiert und begannen abwechselnd zu reisen und Saisonjobs zu machen - Tomatenernte in der Schweiz oder Hafenlogistik in Den Fjörden Norwegens.

[flumpytripod]

Ghats 1 thru 10

A little comic series I've been working on.

Full Collection

[theviraltruth]

Veerendra heggade | The vigorous monsoons of the western ghats

The temple has a square plan and thus a pyramidal roof. The steep and needle like roof is made of wood and is covered with gold-plated copper plates in order to protect the inner skeletal framework from the vigorous monsoons of the western ghats. 

[pangeen]

" Verditer flycatcher " //© Ayush Singh

[billionneuronscurious]

Tree surrounded by Flowers.

[fromtraveldiaries]

Tickell’s blue flycatcher, Ganeshgudi, December, 2022

[exploresouthindiaheritage]

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[gurukulabotanicalsanctuary]

Musings from a Rewilding Retreat

Editor's Note: From April 2024, Gurukula Botanical Sanctuary has been hosting Rewilding Retreats every month. The intention behind these programs is to come together as a learning community which is concerned about the state of the world and wishes to collectively enquire into and engage with this time of crisis. The cornerstone being- rewilding - of the land, and also of ourselves. Participants from a recent retreat share their experiences. Illustrations by Diya Haneena.

“Instructions for living a life.

Pay attention.

Be astonished.

Tell about it.”

― Mary Oliver, Sometimes

"From the keen privilege of being hosted by the community at Gurukula, it was immediately clear that the project was not only a rare and intentional rewilding of plants and of the forest. Rather, every radical care had been taken to counter any commodification of the decades of process or the ongoing result. Even the community was not commodified, akin to the false intimacies of liberalism. Rather, people were invited in as much to learn from, as to learn and, build solidarities with. Not spoon fed wisdom or preached to. The conversation felt as ongoing as the continual rain, as uninterrupted as the green because it wasn’t necessarily happening through chats. I learnt walking as wonder, conversation as care, presence as attention and listening and laughing as belonging. 

This grown and green imagination was, to me, as beautiful (if not more) than the vaulting rainforest architecture coaxed back from tea plantation land. It was not an inattentive afforestation  in the classical sense of savarna depoliticised environmental conservation. Rather, community, caste and indigeneity had been reckoned with long before that vocabulary was utilised by those interested in conservation and questions of ecology. To be in Gurukula was to be suffused with the radical as an instinctive response to the foliage and to the land. I even felt a sort of political grief at how apparent it was that it was rare, maybe even endemic.

I took away from Gurukula, in some wonder, that I could, in fact, do presence – noun as it is. Surrounded by orchids, stories, monsoon clouds, canopies and generations of solidarities I realised presence is actually a verb. A verb that allowed me to dwell more on the grasslands, ground orchids and touch-me-nots than on deservedness and self-worthiness. A verb that managed to vanquish despair. What, indeed, was I going to do with my one wild and precious life? As Lobo asked us, quoting Mary Oliver. It was precious and wild, for a time at least, at Gurukula. Precious, wild and present.

The past is unpredictable and I'm still learning what I will do with the memories and purpose imbued from Gurukula. Supi’s words, that the purpose at Gurukula is loosely defined, the rewilding and plants as a location for purpose…stayed with me. What I have carried with me is for me to cook and to politicise. I hope to share more laughs with the community someday." - Ilavarsi

"A visit to GBS had been overdue, and I chose Rewilding Retreats (peak monsoon edition) to visit the place (against Ashwin’s advice) because I wanted to see it pour in the Western Ghats for myself. 

I didn’t really expect much else from it and decided to visit with an open mind. Yes, I’ve long wanted to be able to break out of my inner world and be in touch with my senses again, to rediscover my sense of wonder, but I didn’t let that become an expectation. 

It was great to finally see GBS and the things you hear about that happen there. 

For me though, I’d never heard so many cicadas before. Where does their energy come from? They’re truly small, singing at such decibels persistently would demand a great deal of energy. A battery the size of a cicada’s body cannot sustain those sounds for very long, so how are they able to? 

Rational dissections of natural beauty aside, I truly enjoyed the darkness and the quiet. I’m quite sensitive to light and noise, and when in the city, use thick blankets for curtains and cotton ear plugs as a sleeping aid. Neither of those were needed at GBS. 

It may be possible to block out the noise in many places, but there’s very few places left that offer true darkness. I think I miss that a lot about GBS. To go to bed tired, fall asleep in the lap of absolute darkness, wake up in the middle of the night to the sounds of a thousand raindrops crashing on your roof, and fall back asleep again." - Mandeep

"When I first heard the name Gurukula Botanical Sanctuary, it made me instantly think of these botanical gardens. One learns about it from EVS textbooks and nothing beyond that, but the profound meaning for the name was only made known to me on the last day of our retreat which I will talk about later. 

I went for the retreat not knowing much about the sanctuary beforehand but with the curiosity to explore this haven for western ghat’ flora and to understand the idea of rewilding.The word ‘retreat’, also hinted at a possible reflective journey helping me find myself which I was hoping for. And I must admit that I did find a piece of myself, maybe not in the way I envisaged. I believe it to be true that each one of us attending the retreat did find something meaningful and profound while we were there. 

As soon as we arrived, the Kerala monsoons welcomed us with open arms (and very wet feet). The whole time we were there , we got the chance to meander through the lush greenery, our feet sinking into the moist earth and this in itself was an experience that generated some sort of connectedness within me. During the whole time there , you will not just be re-introduced to the interconnectedness of nature and us and be discussing about its extent, but you will really get the feeling of being part of that interconnectedness and the depth of it. 

The retreat is very mindfully curated and it doesn’t overwhelm or overload you. Rather it makes you feel like having more time in the day. One underlying thought and a key takeaway I had while I was whiling away there was that the forest doesn’t rush, and neither should we. Every breath, every moment is a lesson in patience and presence. It’s like nature’s way of saying, “Chill out, Yo tiny girl. You’re part of something bigger.” 

I felt that the sanctuary isn’t just a place; it’s a living, breathing entity that invites you to rediscover your place in the world. And the retreat turned out to be not just a reflection to me, it was a whole lot of unlearnings and “aha” moments, a big scoop of new learnings, a blend of awe and a pinch of reflections as well, making one a little more in tune with the heartbeat of the Earth. 

Each session (discussions and experiential alike) was a grounding experience, teaching me to be present and attuned to the natural rhythms around me 

Community living at the sanctuary was a beautiful symphony of shared meals, laughter, and stories. 

Another thing I cherish from the experience was the interaction with the gardeners and the experts from the tribal communities #.Their wisdom and traditions are like a living, breathing library of nature’s secrets. 

And according to them , the most difficult subject to ever master is the forest (and nature) in itself. Being there, just in that small piece of land and feeling so overwhelmed by the vastness of what all it entails, I will have to agree with them. The Rewilding Retreat gives you that opportunity to study the biggest subject we could ever have.

So, now coming back to the name of the Sanctuary which struck me as the most profound. According to the guardians and stewards of the sanctuary , it is named Gurukula to hint at the idea that nature itself is the ultimate teacher. All we need to do is step outside and be open to its lessons. Every leaf, every creature, and every breath of wind whispered lessons of resilience, balance, and interconnectedness. And this made me feel a small peace that as long as I look up to nature to teach me, I carry a piece of Gurukula Botanical Sanctuary with me. " - Rose

[outdoorkeedanorthstate]

Adventure Awaits: Unwinding the Magic of Tamhini Ghat

Tamhini Ghat, located in the Sahyadri mountain range of Maharashtra, is a breathtaking mountain pass renowned for its lush greenery, cascading waterfalls, and mist-covered valleys. This picturesque destination offers an ideal escape for nature lovers, trekkers, and photographers, especially during the monsoon season when the landscape transforms into a verdant paradise. Explore the serene beauty of Tamhini Ghat, where every turn unveils a new panorama of nature's untouched splendor, making it a must-visit spot in the Western Ghats.