“There ain't a journey that doesn’t change you some” – Trek to Dudhsagar waterfalls

Sometimes you don’t know your own strength until you test it. Last year on a Friday night I spontaneously packed my bags and headed for a trip to the Dudhsagar falls. The Dudhsagar Falls (Sea of Milk) are located in the Indian state of Goa, on Goa's border with Karnataka state.

I didn’t have a clue that the itinerary included travel by train in second class. A friend of mine and I, who were exhilarated at the thought of our last minute adventure trip, didn’t even have a bed sheet to cover ourselves with in the shivering cold. The train journey was super fun with a bunch of strangers who soon became acquaintances, thanks to dumb charades.

We were all excited to get down at the castle rock station. Then came the moment of truth, a trek of 14 kilometers over the railway track. Are you kidding me!

I started trekking holding my breath and dreading that I wouldn’t make it to the top. Let me tell you that the trek was not easy at all. We were trekking on a railway track full of “shit," rubble, and a lot of garbage that Indian railway passengers bestow our railways tracks with. There were tunnels in between and for the first time I actually understood the literal meaning of the phrase “there is a light at the end of every tunnel” when I saw the train entering the tunnel. It was scary and fun at the same time. We had nowhere to go but to lean on the dirty wall of the dark tunnel and the sound of the train was reverberating.

While we trekked, we saw nature at its best. The valley looked beautiful with greenery all over and the monsoon added to the beauty with a drizzle now and then. Nature is best when it is left untouched. You can breathe the fresh air and drink the sweet water falling from a creek.  All you want to do is sit idle for hours and treat your eyes with the breathtaking beauty. That’s why they say “destination is not important, but the journey is."

After trekking for 7 long hours, finally we reached Dudhsagar. It was evening, and I could still see a white line falling through the Ghats. We pitched in the tents that we had carried all the way from Hyderabad so that we could sleep in them.  There were a lot of firsts for me during the trek and sleeping in a tent was one of them.

Soon all the enthusiastic backpackers were beaming with the idea of bonfire and antakshari (spoken parlor game played in India). Once we had somewhat exhausted ourselves, we all headed towards our tents to catch some sleep. The night was cold and I had to wear everything that I packed to combat the chilly weather. We were instructed to get up at 5 am for some sight-seeing. After a long, challenging and yet interesting day I was not sure whether I would be able to get up at 5 am. 

The night was dreadful with muscle soreness and mosquitoes. Odomos provided us some relief.

Whilst night enveloped the valley with a pin drop silence, the sound of the waterfall in that starry night was enchanting. For the first time ever, I could find peace and solace far away from the mundane crowd of the city in the arms of a minimalist surrounding.

Morning was even more beautiful; as the sun rose over the horizon, a train passed beneath the Dudhsagar over a bridge giving us a marvelous view. The morning air was sweet and clouds were floating in the air like cotton balls. The waterfall looked pristine and signified purity, innocence, perfection and wholeness. The view is still engraved in my mind and I can feel the fresh air and hear the noise of white milky waves falling onto the bedrock.

I loved every part of this journey; it taught me to trust strangers, overcome my own fears, live minimally and explore my own strengths.