Big rescue: Lost trekkers of Hyderabad

City trekkers Vivek Gupta and Shashi Dhar from Hyderabad are just plain lucky to have survived their very wild adventure. The “lost and found” duo were rescued from neighbouring Karnataka’s Chikmagalur forest on Tuesday — after three whole days of no food! And neither of them had a phone because “which hardcore adventurer treks with a phone”.

A weak-sounding Vivek recalls how the two actually got lost. “It was a route that we always take but because of the mist we couldn’t find the trail. Then both of us went ahead to find the route and asked others to stay back near Galikere itself. Soon it became three whole days of just walking… we kept searching for the right route to get out of the jungle. We survived on water.”

They didn’t have any form of connectivity either. “We just had a compass with us. We knew the locations and kept following the marked directions. We knew we could get out of the forest but yes, it was very tough,” he says.

He admits it was just survival skills and instincts which kept them alive. “The first night we slept on branches of trees...... and the second night, we found a cave,” reveals Vivek, who has been on more than 150 treks. The Chikmagalur forests are also notorious for leeches. “We kept walking along open paths and ridges. The third day, by 5 pm, we had found the main road.”

RESCUE FORCE: But as soon as news of two missing trekkers reached the city, plans were immediately drawn by the Greater Hyderabad Adventure Club. “The cops there were really helpful. I think that’s what helped the rescue mission a lot, everyone there — the Chikmagalur Adventure Club, the locals, everyone was out there to help,” said Diyanat Ali. “We traced their tracks and by the end of the second day, we were quite sure we would find them. By the third day, the number of rescuers had reached 50,” he adds. And Vivek is just glad to be home. “When I saw the forest officials, I just had one word in my mind, ‘Survived’. I have been talking to everyone for just about 30 seconds and letting them know that I’m fine. Now, I just want to be back in Hyderabad.”