Rush! - Waterfall Rappelling
Waterfall:
-- noun
1.a steep fall or flow of water in a watercourse from a height, as over a precipice; cascade.
2.a manner of arranging women's hair, as in long, loose waves.
Rappel:
-- noun
1.(in mountaineering) the act or method of moving down a steep incline or past an overhang by means of a double rope secured above and placed around the body.
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Golden rule of rappelling: Always wear a helmet
Golden rule of rappelling for women: Always keep your waterfalls tucked inside of the helmet; you don't want them to get entangled with the equipment.
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Waterfalls cascading down a slope bring out a sense of awe in me. The sheer force of the water is despite of the grace of the fall. At the base of the falls, as one inches towards the centre of the cascade, one feels the many piercing needles of water ping the skin and then the weight of the water that steadily pounds.
And then one negotiates these forces while descending a vertical rock face; descending face up and legs held taut against the slippery moss-laden rock face. The water weighs you down. The moss makes your legs slip. The water needles numb your senses. And then when you finally get a footing, you hold yourself suspended for an eternity - Nirvana.
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My first waterfall rappelling was at Bekare Waterfalls near Bhivpuri. Then second came at Dudhiware Waterfall near Lonavala.
The fear of slipping and hurting yourself in the process played a lot on my mind initially. As a result, I tended to avoid routes laden with moss. But then I got a handle on things. Especially with the kind of footwear that would work. The regular Action trekking Shoes work just fine here too, except for the discomfort of wearing soggy shoes for the rest of the day. The flat soled sandles from MSA turned out to be very good here.
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One of my favorite waterfalls to rappel is the Kalu waterfall at Malshej. Though the rappelling is not through the waterfall, the place is too serene to be missed. The 1200 ft. waterfall falls in five patches and we camped between the 2nd and 3rd patches with the waterfall mere feet away. Serenity at its best.
Attaching links to Arun Sawant Sir's picset.
Kalu Waterfall picset 1
Kalu Waterfall picset 2
- Kapil Pilankar
Waterfall:
-- noun
1.a steep fall or flow of water in a watercourse from a height, as over a precipice; cascade.
2.a manner of arranging women's hair, as in long, loose waves.
Waterfall type1 demonstrated at Malshej Ghat
Rappel:
-- noun
1.(in mountaineering) the act or method of moving down a steep incline or past an overhang by means of a double rope secured above and placed around the body.
Rappelling - In action yours truly
Pic by Adarsh Hemrajani at Rethi cha Zura
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Golden rule of rappelling: Always wear a helmet
Golden rule of rappelling for women: Always keep your waterfalls tucked inside of the helmet; you don't want them to get entangled with the equipment.
-x-x-x-
Waterfalls cascading down a slope bring out a sense of awe in me. The sheer force of the water is despite of the grace of the fall. At the base of the falls, as one inches towards the centre of the cascade, one feels the many piercing needles of water ping the skin and then the weight of the water that steadily pounds.
And then one negotiates these forces while descending a vertical rock face; descending face up and legs held taut against the slippery moss-laden rock face. The water weighs you down. The moss makes your legs slip. The water needles numb your senses. And then when you finally get a footing, you hold yourself suspended for an eternity - Nirvana.
In action at Bekare Waterfall - Bhivpuri
Pic by Krunal Visherya
-x-x-x-
My first waterfall rappelling was at Bekare Waterfalls near Bhivpuri. Then second came at Dudhiware Waterfall near Lonavala.
The fear of slipping and hurting yourself in the process played a lot on my mind initially. As a result, I tended to avoid routes laden with moss. But then I got a handle on things. Especially with the kind of footwear that would work. The regular Action trekking Shoes work just fine here too, except for the discomfort of wearing soggy shoes for the rest of the day. The flat soled sandles from MSA turned out to be very good here.
Hail on sandles
Pic by Krunal Visherya
-x-x-x-
One of my favorite waterfalls to rappel is the Kalu waterfall at Malshej. Though the rappelling is not through the waterfall, the place is too serene to be missed. The 1200 ft. waterfall falls in five patches and we camped between the 2nd and 3rd patches with the waterfall mere feet away. Serenity at its best.
Attaching links to Arun Sawant Sir's picset.
Kalu Waterfall picset 1
Kalu Waterfall picset 2
- Kapil Pilankar
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