Adventure for its own sake (Economic Times 20 April 1997)
D.Govardan finds out more about the pulsating action offered by a new club
Adventurism seems to be a way of life for the urbanites. From finding the right place to live, to negotiating the right moves on the road and the career, adventurism and urbanites go hand in hand. As a result they seldom find time, energy and the urge to indulge in adventurism for the sake of it. Even for the brave few, who seem to want more, notwithstanding their usual quota in real life, the avenues turn out to be very limited and of course routine. There are many, living around us, who either indulge in some thing in the name of adventure or resign themselves to what fate has destined for them. But at last, there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel, for the real adventure seekers. If one is willing to believe what the newly formed, Wildertrails Adventure Club in Chennai has on offer. It offers a calendar of activities like camping (complete with pitched tents), rock climbing, trekking, cycle treks, jungle visits, nature trails etc. The club also plans to offer water sports and aerial sports in a phased manner. Sounds interesting. "This is certainly not the proverbial summer camp but something different. A journey into a different world is what we are aiming at," says Major Ashok S Candade. The club is his brainchild. A retired army officer, who felt his children were missing out on important fundamentals, especially outdoor living. "The club brings to the public a unique umbrella concept of adventure," he says. The objective is to fill a deeply felt need in every individual for excitement and adventure, by systematically equipping members, especially children and youngsters, for outdoor life, he adds. "The idea is to discover nature and provide an avenue for the people who want something more in life," he points out, while adding that one has to get used to living in the outside world. Outdoor activities will be organised on a regular basis by the club with at least two varieties of activities a month. Not wanting to wait for long, the club is on the way to serve its first item on their adventure cuisine menu. "We have planned a 4-day camp at Amaravati, a hill country near Coimbatore. The camp starts from May 1," he says. The camps and trips would be targeted at places that are not frequented by tourist population. To begin with, the club has identified places including Nagari hills, Pulicat lake, Mamandoor near Renigunta and Kaambakkam village near Tada on the Tamil Nadu - A P border. Who can be part of the club? Anyone, who is willing and daring to taste nature in the true way. The club offers activities that can be done together as a family or as individual members. The membership is open in two categories - family and individual. While the invitational membership offer for a family (husband, wife and up to 2 children below the age of 16 years) has been pegged at Rs.1,750, an individual's membership would cost Rs.900. "We plan to utilise the potential of the large number of ex-servicemen," he says. The club would shortly offer training programmes for schools and corporate getaways. Plans on the anvil include a marketing division for camping and adventure sports equipment. "Besides providing a change from the routine, such camps would help in strengthening family cohesion, which plays an important role in keeping families happy," says A N Jagannatha Rao, who is actively involved with the conservation of wildlife and nature. He is also the retired Founder Trustee of Madras Snake Park and Crocodile Bank. He says the regular tourist spots do not offer much for all the ages. "We often do not get much to see, except the tourists in thousands," he says. Without providing newer avenues for the children, there is no meaning in blaming them on their disinterest in extra-curricular activities except watching the television, Rao feels. Echoing the same sentiment, R Bhanumathi, senior project officer of WWF India says such activities give an opportunity for children to go out and explore. Otherwise, they remain glued to the television sets, she says. Bhanumathi is in charge of the Biodiversity Hotspot Conservation programme of WWF. Though there are programmes of such kind in other states, most of them are education oriented, she observes. "But this programme attempts at combining adventurism and eco-tourism," she points out. "We are not assuring the members an air-conditioned atmosphere but make them to learn and understand the outside world at economical cost," he observes. Though, initially the club will pitch its (camp) in Chennai, Major Candade asserts confidently that the concept would soon catch up in other states. He says, "Slowly and progressively, we will reach out to all the southern states".
Wildertrails home | about Wildertrails | feedback | site map
