13 November 2016 / leggypeggy

The beauty of a new day

clouds, hills, homestays, mountains, Overland Expeditions India, sunrise, travel, Western Ghats

early morning, Western Ghats, India

When our host at the homestay near Koppe suggested that we set out at 5am and go for an hour-long drive/hike to see a sunrise from a hill, I was rather ho-hum about the whole thing.

In our extensive travels, we’ve seen scores of sunsets in scores of countries, and only a few have ever really impressed. Perhaps you have noticed that I only occasionally post sunrise and/or sunset photos.

So we put the option to a vote. Anand said he’d drive for those who wanted to do the sunrise, and Deepti said she’d lead a walking tour for those who wanted to bird-watch. Sleep was also an option, but no one ever chooses that.

Marian and Deepti take a closer look

Marian’s argument tipped the balance. She so sensibly said, I’m doing the sunrise. It’s probably the only time in my life that I’ll have the chance to see the sun come up over this valley.

She had a point. We’d be aiming for a hill in the Nawallakulaguda district of the Western Ghats, the mountains that run down the southwestern side of India. We’d drive for 30 minutes or so and then pick up a guide, Monappa.

He’d show us the rest of the way by road, and then lead us up an unmarked path to the top of a stony hill and the best viewpoint.

When we got out of the van at the base of the hill, I looked to my right and saw a small slice of clouds billowing below us. Hey, look at this everyone, I said, but Monappa (who spoke no English but understood Hindi) indicated that we were to hurry up before we missed the best bits.

Western Ghats in early morning

Poor John and me in the Western Ghats

So on we trudged. By then, it was 5:50 and still on the chilly side. It took just short of 20 minutes to reach the top, and one of the most remarkable views I’ve ever seen.

The hill itself was a mix of intricate colours and textures, but there before us was the breathtaking spread of clouds shrouding the valley below.

The pictures can never do the scene justice, but I share them here for your enjoyment. The sunrise itself was lovely but pretty much unremarkable, but the sea of clouds dotted with close and distant hills was magical. Add temple music that started to play somewhere below about the time the sun started to appear, and we had the perfect start to a new day.

clouds at early morning, Western Ghats, India

Monappa enjoys the view

It must be one of Monappa’s favourite places. Soon after we reached the top, he went to the edge to sit for a few minutes so he could enjoy the sweeping views.

The only cloudy sunrise I’ve seen that rivals this one was about 55 years ago. My dad flew a DC-3 and, as a child, I was often allowed to accompany him. One morning we took off to the east well before sunrise.

Below us was a thick blanket of clouds. I was sitting in the cockpit when the sun lit the clouds from below—flashing red, orange, gold, pink and purple, along with flashes of white. No camera back then, but my mind’s eye remembers it well.

To quote a line from Rudyard Kipling’s poem ‘Mandalay’—the dawn comes up like thunder.

sunrise, Western Ghats, India