[airguitar]

Memory 1: As a child growing up in a small town ( you could call it a village back then ), one of the rented houses we stayed at belonged to a farmer. He lived next door to us and they had cattle, haystack and bales, heaps of freshly cut vegetables, tractors and sundry farming doohickies. Also, the rented house was a stone's throw from a cemetery. So, we had regular serpentine visitors at the doorsteps, on window-sills and hey, sometimes through the window too. There was always an unstated fear of when our next reptilian encounter would be. As a kid, I was terrified of these visitors but gradually learnt to be in awe of them and keep a respectable distance. Some years later, I remember trading a chemistry experiments book for a book on snakes with my classmate. She and I had won a competition for which we had won those books. Such was my fascination with snakes.

Memory 2: Our drinking water had to be obtained from a borewell half a kilometer away. The path was a narrow mudpath ( what we call 'Kaaludaari' in Kannada) bordering the cemetery, with either side of the road bordered with dense undergrowth. In the pitch darkness of the night, we would see quite a few fireflies hovering by. It was an image that has remained with me for decades. Beyond those years, I never remember sighting fireflies or snakes.

Decades later, on a boring Sunday afternoon, I was trying to reconnect myself to some of those images from childhood, and I was reminded of the fireflies. A Google search for "Firefly sightings" brought me to the Mojo Plantation's website (the homestay part of the plantation is called Rainforest Retreat). The place is run by a scientist ( PhD in Bio Chemistry ) couple. The place also doubles great snake-sighting during early monsoons. Wrote an email to Ms Sujata (the owner) asking her about the season for fireflies. A few emails back and forth later, we had a confirmed reservation. Fireflies come out in millions for mating after the first rains of the summer. You need to go when the first shower or two has happened and then not rain, which is typically in April around the time of Coffee Bloom/ Rama Navami. The property is located on Kallur road, 8-9 kms from Madikeri town-center. The place is pretty basic and close to nature. If you a merry-maker, then the place is not for you - they wouldn't take too kindly to noisy, drunk guests. Mojo plantation will be closed for guests from end of June to end of August due to heavy rains.

Have visited the property about 3 -4 times for firefly sightings, sometimes with kids, sometimes with friends. The fireflies begin their show typically around 8pm ( which is dinner time at the Mojo plantation ). Post dinner, we are taken to interior parts of their plantshation by foot. There is no artificial light so as to not distract the flies and to be one with nature. One has to walk carefully. If you are going with kids, carry them on your shoulders (especially if younger than 5 years ). There are various points in the plantation from where you would look at the flies. Millions of them shine together in the valley and then go vanish (not). Then they shine again and fade away. This repeats endlessly and looks like a serial lamp-set that glows on apartment walls during Diwali or the New Year's. The feeling is so indescribable that one has to experience it to believe it. Outside the plantation, on the Kallur road, if you walk towards Madikeri at night, you can see the same phenomenon on the trees on the roads. A quiet walk on the edge of the road at night for a kilometer or two will be unforgettable and make you feel like the stars have descended to touching distance. At a short distance ( 2 kms ) from the plantation is a small plateau accessible via a mud road which provides a view of the areas around. At night the place also serves as a great location to gaze at the stars and some night photography. Our night walk on the main road turned out to be eventful not just due to the flies, but also due to some wild animal that tailed us from behind a row of trees for a long time, eerie!

Other than the fireflies, the plantation is known for herp sightings during late June and for Civet poo picking (for Civet coffee berries) in Nov/Dec. Their organic farming techniques are superior too. In the mornings you will be taken around the plantation on a walk with a great opportunity to witness and understand varied plants and trees of the western ghats and farming techniques. They also have an in-house counter where you can shop for coffee table books, export quality spices and of course Civet coffee! You can also intern at the farm. You get to stay and eat at the farm, in lieu of working at the farm and understanding organic farming and attending to the homestay guests.

The property is not far from Mandalapatti and so, a drive to Mandalapatti in my 4x4 is a given whenever I visit Mojo.

Let me get the pictures to do the talking, of course they don't do full justice to the fireflies.

[airguitar]

The fireflies' show. As I said, isn't anything close to what it actually is.










Pictures of snakes from around the property. A Shieldtail snake, A Malabar Pitviper and Vinesnake. Jun 2023.







A typical morning at the property, with the Malabar Whistling Thrush acting as your alarm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIYw1HVghDA

A busy-looking snail




The self-drive to Mandalapatti





'Poo'berry Coffee, anyone?



What's a Coorg Trip without buying honey? Note that this is not at Mojo, but at a place called "Coorg Honey Industry" https://www.google.com/maps/place/Co...75.7462093,17z
The gentleman is genuinely passionate about apiary and honeys and a visit to his house to buy honey is an experience in itself. He will explain the process, give you free samples and finally you get to buy. Depending on the seasons, you would get high quality unifloral (e.g, in April you would get Coffee honey, of course it won't take like coffee, but is obtained from coffee flowers during the flowering season, Jamun honey etc ) or multifloral honey. May be expensive than other mixed honey you find at other places, but for us it has been very good each time we bought.





Sundry other pictures








And finally, the rain in 'Rainforest'. This is in summers and from the patio of your cottage.

https://youtu.be/f1523LYFGyw

Disclaimer: Pictures taken across seasons (summer, monsoon and winter) and most are my pictures with a few contributed by my friend.

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[deepak_misra]

Originally Posted by airguitar

Decades later, on a boring Sunday afternoon, I was trying to reconnect myself to some of those images from childhood, and I was reminded of the fireflies. A Google search for "Firefly sightings" brought me to the Mojo Plantation's website (the homestay part of the plantation is called Rainforest Retreat). The place is run by a scientist ( PhD in Bio Chemistry ) couple.

Really interesting. I was there for new year 2004 , that is 31st Dec 2003. My family and friends had booked the whole property.
I hope the eco friendly cottages are still in the same shape as they were then without power and hot water being "wood fired". Very interesting place and interesting talking with the owners. They were doing research into the traditional methods of farming and lamenting the loss of knowledge of traditional wisdom. If I find the photos from then, will hijack your thread and post them.
I do not remember seeing any of the fireflies then. It might be a new addition.

[W.A.G.7]

Very interesting thread! While I have always read about fireflies, I have never seen them in person. I would really love to watch them in person. I am sure that the spectacle would not be "describe"-able in words. I am also sure that it will be 100x more beautiful than what any camera can capture. Maybe some things and places in nature are to be experienced, rather than waiting with a camera in hand!

I also second your opening paragraph - A lot of creatures that we used to see during our childhood are no longer visible. As an example, when I was a 10 year old kid, we always used to spot mongooses in and around our homes. Similarly with a wide variety of birds and sparrows. Fast forward to the millenium (~2000s) and they all vanished without a trace. In a concrete jungle like Pune, where I live; I would blame the unprecendented concretisation of the land and also the thick cement compound walls which tend to restrict all the creatures movements. The less said about the human interference, the better. But this is a debate for another thread!

I am glad that you were able to experience nature in its finest form at this place!

[ARAY]

A brilliant travel log indeed covers a lot of details about the destination and anyone planning to make the same journey. Madikeri is a place very close to my heart and I wish I could travel to this place more often it has a lot of landscape unexplored. Being an 80's kid I was lucky enough to see fireflies in my village unfortunately the opportunity has been lost when it comes to the newer generation.

Thanks for sharing such a brilliantly written travelogue keep traveling and sharing such wonderful threads.

[Mustang Sammy]

Nice write up and pics. Kodagu is truly a paradise in terms of proximity to nature, clean air and of course the local food is to die for.
How does the famous Civet coffee taste by the way?
Had stayed in the southern part close to Wayanad many years back. It was a wonderful experience, and will definitely visit again.

[airguitar]

Originally Posted by deepak_misra

Really interesting. I was there for new year 2004 , that is 31st Dec 2003.

I hope the eco friendly cottages are still in the same shape as they were then without power and hot water being "wood fired". Very interesting place and interesting talking with the owners.

I do not remember seeing any of the fireflies then. It might be a new addition.

Nice! It's still a basic eco friendly cottage and environment friendly setups. You may not have seen the fireflies back then as it was December. They come out more in April.

Originally Posted by W.A.G.7

I also second your opening paragraph - A lot of creatures that we used to see during our childhood are no longer visible. As an example, when I was a 10 year old kid, we always used to spot mongooses in and around our homes.

Mongooses are a bit more resilient. If you were to just step outside the concrete limits of Pune into grasslands or rural Pune, I'm sure that you would be able to catch a glimpse. But yes, agreed that normal sightings that we always had have been dwindling.

Originally Posted by ARAY

A brilliant travel log indeed covers a lot of details about the destination and anyone planning to make the same journey. Madikeri is a place very close to my heart and I wish I could travel to this place more often it has a lot of landscape unexplored. Being an 80's kid I was lucky enough to see fireflies in my village unfortunately the opportunity has been lost when it comes to the newer generation.

Thanks for sharing such a brilliantly written travelogue keep traveling and sharing such wonderful threads.

Thank you sir.

Originally Posted by Mustang Sammy

=
How does the famous Civet coffee taste by the way?

No idea sir, didn't venture into committing a misadventure. The closest we got to was seeing the Civet's poo inside the plantation with berry remnants in it - not coffee berries, but the berries of the Fishtail Palm (ಬಗನೆ, ಬಯನೆ or ಬಯ್ನೆ tree)