Nature-Thy name reflects beauty-3

It was 4:00 am on Saturday. The outside was dark resonating with silence. I got ready for another trip to be in sync with nature. And this time, it was to Bandipur and Mudhumalai. The journey started with enthusiasm and cheer reverberating all around the car. We drove down through Mysore Road, had breakfast at Cafe Coffee Day located at a beautiful spot, overlooking the main road yet cozily resting in a corner surrounded by greens. We were right on time as we embarked on our journey after food. As we drove along, we spotted sunflowers smiling at us, blooming brightly towards the sun, waving alongside with the breeze speeding by. They continued for a long stretch that painted the entire left side with yellow. All of a sudden, our eyes caught a splash of orange on the right side from marigolds that sprung beautifying the concrete roadside.
The weather was just perfect with droplets of drizzle occasionally. The landscape slowly started changing from yellow to orange and to water. Tall trees slowly emerged at the horizon. There appeared lakes full with fresh water till the brim.
We started climbing the hills of Gopal Bhetta where we were literally tearing through the clouds. The moist in them stuck to our face as we inhaled the fresh air that seemed to carry with it the aroma of herbs. The steep continued for sometime as we slowly trudged along. We got out of the car, kicked a football that we carried along as we climbed and reached a Temple. Behind the temple, land continued to slide down towards a valley (which I presume must be the Bandipur forest). We waded through bushes and shrubs and trekked along to find a perfect spot to stop for lunch. Sitting on a huge rock, overlooking the forest, our legs hanging down, we relished the masala dosas and pooris we had packed en route.
We continued wading through post lunch through the mesh of shrubs and greens till we decided it was time to proceed towards Bandipur.
With anticipation and excitement, we drove through the forest area. As we proceeded from Bandipur towards Mudumalai, searching for some form of wildlife, our eyes suddenly caught a herd of deers grazing. What a beautiful sight it was!! Brown, spotted, graceful deers nibbled at grass with sharp alertness for any sound. Monkey scrambled close. What struck me was how they co-existed with harmony...made me wonder why humans could not be so.
Having relished this sight, we moved only to find a couple of elephants hidden behind an overgrown bush. We were careful not to make any noise lest we disturb them.
We reached Mudhumalai, hungry for good food. A stream gushed by, covering rocks with its frequent gushes. We took a safari ride that gave us a tour through the interiors of the forest area. It was a beautiful journey through wilderness, covering spots that were well hidden into some of the pockets of the woods. Peacoks seemed to be in absolute ease within this peaceful arena that they flew around in bliss.
It was time to take on the return journey. As we entered the car, we saw monkeys scampering around with mischief. We fed them with danish cookies and clicked snaps.
We took the same road back and stopped to take a few videos of a peacock crossing the road, elephants munching, deers proceeding back home at dusk.
You can see a couple of snaps below.

It was indeed a treat for the eyes and the soul that yearned to be back n touch with nature.