Trekking with Griffons: Dodi Tal via Darwa Pass
The trek to Dodi Tal, the lake believed to be the birthplace of Lord Ganesha, is a beautiful introduction to the Western Himalaya for many first-time trekkers
Category: Sahastra
All posts authored by Sahastra
Encounter: The Sacred Grove at Oorani
The sacred grove at Oorani is the last stand of Tropical Dry Evergreen Forests — a postage stamp-sized green patch in the middle of insipid featureless coastal plain dotted with coconut plantations. It does not exactly draw your attention. That, however, would be a huge miss.
Encounter: Rhododendron, sentinel of the highlands
Never mind its cough-syrupy taste, or its tongue-twister of a name, a Rhododendron in flower is inspiration enough to walk the Himalaya, or the Nilgiris
Manjhi Akshayavat, an immortal Banyan tree
Located not far from Lucknow, the Manjhi Akshayavat, one of India’s celebrated great banyans, is all that survives of the vast forest that once protected it.
Encounter: Himalayan Bluetail
What do you call a bird with no name? Or one whose name has been changed lately? Such questions such briefly but subside when confronted with the dazzling beauty of the Himalayan Bluetail — or…
Le Question: What did God do?
When a mundane classroom question raises questions about God and the universe Shashwat : The early crustaceans gave way to archosaurs and then to Dinosaurs. Me : Yes, I guess so. Shashwat : They in…
Life and death – Another Richard Dawkins lesson
Silent in life — and in death While critiquing a book by his contemporary Stephen Jay Gould, the noted writer on evolutionary theory Richard Dawkins refutes his contention that the idea of progress in evolutionary history…
Encounter: Large-tailed Nightjar
When the dim, shadowy silence of the leaf-litter suddenly takes wing, it’s either a ghost or a nightjar that sets your heart racing. Our search that began in the hunt for a peacock feather took…
Shrieks of silence in Pondicherry’s treeless avenues
Statistically, 35 people perished in the carnage essayed by Cyclone Thane. Yet, the obituaries that will never be written are of Pondicherry’s beautiful avenue trees, many of which we have celebrated on The Green Ogre.…
Encounter: Cyclone Thane, Pondicherry
To those of us sitting in Bangalore, Cyclone Thane is just a cold, wet day to grumble about. Or perhaps even enjoy as we huddle (or perhaps cuddle – but don’t let us give you…
When Sky Jasmine rained down
The Indian Cork Tree’s expended blossoms infuse rare magic into the morning after a stormy monsoon night I stay on the coast in Pondicherry. My sense of infinity is linked to the sea. It is not…
Grey-headed Canary Flycatcher: An Afternoon Haiku
What could be common to a tiny forest bird and a temple statuette that embodies grace, beauty and wild power? Having looked at a small group of 4-5 highly energetic and extremely acrobatic birds with…
A Red Cassia in late flower
The late-blooming Red Cassia sets the avenue canopy aflame, flowering as it does when all colour is spent after the monsoon’s departure In early August I had posted an encounter with the lovely Red Cassia (Cassia roxburghii)…
The Bicoloured Frog’s Wedding Suit
Here was the Bicoloured Frog again, dressed for its wedding party.
Review: Carl Safina’s pursuit of the Leatherback Turtle
Carl Safina’s mellifluous prose evokes the beauty and mystery of the sea and its ancient denizen, the Leatherback turtle Voyage Of The Turtle: In Pursuit Of The Earth’s Last Dinosaur by Carl Safina Published by Henry Holt…