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Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Happy and Adventurous New Year 2014

Dear Adventurers!

On behalf of the entire GHAC Family, I'd like to wish you all a very happy new year 2014.

The year 2013 has been marked by following few things that have made a big impact to our club.
  • GHAC was mentioned in Limca Book of records 2013 for promoting adventure in Hyderabad.

http://www.limcabookofrecords.in/recorddetails.aspx?recid=334

  • Our overall membership Strength has grown to over 15000+ members, 150+ Outdoors Leaders with over 3000+ events completed till date.
  • We  launched the "GHAC Travel and Leisure" wing at http://travel.ghac.in to offer different and unique travel experiences to our members.
  • We conducted India's largest open Triathlon including a Half Iron Level with close to 600 participants taking part from all over India.
  • We Conducted 2 Outdoor leadership training workshops and score of other outdoor skills workshop to develop good and competent Outdoor Leadership in GHAC Organisers..
  • We had over a few of our leaders complete their advance and basic mountaineering courses.
  • The Hyderabad Rockathon conducted along with Society to Save Rocks was a successful event with lot of impact and awareness created on saving rocks.
  • The Hyderabad Mudrun was a super duper hit with over 400 participants getting back to their childhood and getting dirty in the 2 kms mud, slush and obstacle course.
  • The Hyderabad Climbing Championships another huge success with many national level climbers participating in it.
With this new year 2014 the Club has few new resolutions to achieve.
  • Full time Mountaineering Wing that will lead expeditions from Hyderabad.
  • Conduct a full Iron level Triathlon on a fully professional scale with timing chips.
  • Expansion to other cities to spread the adventure Buzz. (passionate members who want to start one in your city can contact me.)
  • Add more new Adventure Activities to our kitty.
  • Do more explorations and discover new places for adventure and trekking.
This new year I would also request all our online admirers who have never attended any event with GHAC to step out and get more out of life. The point is, in 2014, make an effort to not only define what adventure means to you, but pursue a few more of your own. This can include everything from a short hike to a days trekking trip, a rock climbing session, a weekend escape to a nearby forest or a weeks long journey to explore a destination you've always wanted to experience. It'll make for a more interesting and exciting year to say the least, and you may find that it is a more fulfilling one as well.

Happy New Year everyone! Have an adventurous 2014!

Get More Out of Life

Diyanat Ali
Founder, GHAC  | www.ghac.in
Founder, OUTLIFE | www.outlife.in
http://about.me/diyanat
09603473470


Tuesday, December 17, 2013

GHAC Glimpses of Nature


A Unique Nature Photo Exhibition in Hyderabad

Hyderabad is blessed with a lot of nature around it, it is one of the few cities in India that can boast of 100s of lakes big and small. From the huge Hussain Sagar that is now more used for recreation to the Gandipet  which is  home to many residents as well as migrant birds like Flamingos etc. In order to encourage a more closer interaction between nature and citizens of Hyderabad, we recently conducted a one of its kind exhibition where not just professional photographers but also common citizens who are concerned about nature submitted their pictures. 
There were some very unique things about the exhibition first of all it was not hosted in a art gallery, but in the office of GHAC which is surrounded by greenery. 

Pictures were exhibited in the office as well as on tree trunks, in the bushes, and it was a site to behold. You could see a picture of butterfly hanging on a  small branch with some real butterflies hovering on it. While looking at the pictures you could hear the sounds of sunbirds chirping from the canopy of the trees above. 

Well known photographer Mr. Chandrasekhar Singh inaugurated the exhibition and on last day Mr. Saurabh Chatterjee conducted a workshop on taking better pictures. We had more than 25 photographers from Hyderabad and surrounding areas participating in the exhibition that was well attended by people from the twin cities. 

A Kingfisher (pic by Bobz Chowdhary)
The best part of the exhibition is that it was totally conceptualized and executed by GHAC volunteers who helped at every stage of the exhibition.  Indeed GHAC volunteers are the strength of GHAC and we must be the largest volunteer based adventure club anywhere in India. Although originally the plan was to keep the exhibition for three days, but considering the good response received we have extended the exhibition for another week so that more people can come and enjoy the pictures exhibited.  You will find pictures of  Tigers cubs birds like Ashy Prinia, Bulbul, butterflies, jewel bugs  etc in the exhibition.  Below are some of the pictures from the exhibition.
Pictures exhibited in Garden
Mr. Chandrasekhar Singh Checking Pictures
A Macro Shot from Exhibition

Wonderful  GHAC Volunteers
The Bugs in the Garden

The exhibition has a Facebook page that can be checked here. We hope to continue to conduct more such exhibition and activities that will bring people closer to nature, and encourage them to work towards protecting all aspects of nature from lakes to wild animals.

Friday, November 29, 2013

Hyderabad Rockathon is on Sun 01 Dec - Discount for Kids and Groups.

The 2nd Hyderabad Rockathon is on Sunday, 1. December 2013 from 7 am
to 4.30 pm. Conducted by the Great Hyderabad Adventure Club and
Society to Save Rocks to highlight the preservation and protection of
our stunning Deccan rock-scapes for adventure sports, recreation and
environmental care.

Its a full-day programme of Rock Activities for friends and family at
the University of Hyderabad Campus around Amazing Rock-Scapes. The
Activities includes Rock Walks, Rappelling and Bouldering, Valley
crossing, Slack and Zip Lining to Rock Photography, Rock Quiz, Rock
Drawing, Rock Shot Put, Rock Art and Rock Balancing. Check out the
details of the Activities and register on www.hyderabadrockathon.com.

Entrance Fee is Rs. 500 for adults and Rs. 400 for children 6 -12
Years of Age. For families with kids a discount of Rs. 200 per child
is given from the 2nd child onwards. This fee includes Breakfast,
Lunch and Tea and all the activities. You can pay online on the
website or do a Spot Registration.

For Schools and Group Discounts please call on 040-68888197 or 09885039230

There will be a visitors desk at the Main Gate of the University of
Hyderabad. You will be given directions on how to reach the venue.
Early morning Trail Run starts at 7.30 am, and Rock Walk at 8 am. All
other programmes will follow from 9:00 am onwards. Please check out
the specific timings on the website at www.hyderabadrockathon.com


Would be great to see you all on Sunday!


Diyanat Ali, Founder
Great Hyderabad Adventure Club, GHAC


Frauke Quader, Secretary
Society to Save Rocks

Monday, October 21, 2013

Thank you for making Hyderabad Triathlon 2013 - A Huge Success

The Hyderabad Triathlon held at Gachibowli Stadium on Sunday 20th Oct
2013 was a Huge success with over 600 participants attending it and
supported by about 300 volunteers. It was a lovely day started with
the flag off of the Half Iron - Swimming by Mr. Deenanath Chairman and
Founder Atlanta Foundation.

I thank all the participants for the overwhelming response and
energetic participation in all the events, without their zeal and
energy the event would not have been successful. Special Thanks to the
following triathletes for their participation including Madhurjya
Borah, Richard McDowell, Sunil Menon and Most notably Mr Rajiv Trivedi
IPS Addl. DGP, Sports A.P Police. My Thanks to Dr. Akun Sabhrawal,
IPS Asst Director Outdoors, NPA who was instrumental in motivating 50
Athletes from the National Police Academy to participate in the event.

Special Mention of the Specially-abled Brave-hearts who took up the
Triathlon and Duathlon challenge and completed it successfully
including Aditya Mehta, Kiran Kanojia, Srinivasa Naidu, Manish Pandey
and many others. All of them were inspirational role models for
everyone

I thank the people and partners that have chosen to sponsor and
support the event. Without them this event was not possible- A big
thank you to all the following sponsors and partners

OutLife our Co-Sponosor. Tiktauli our associate sponsor who provided
T-shirts for the Half Iron Level and volunteers. TeamHWS who helped
with coverage of the photography of the entire event, Hyderabad
Bicycling Club for providing the cycles. MeeCabs for providing
vehicles for logistics support. Panache school of Music for adding
energy to the event by playing the Music. Hyderabad Runners who came
out in large numbers to support the event. RLSS for the First Aid
support, Sports authority of AP for providing the venue and support.
Thanks to Rajesh Vetcha Chief of Hyderabad Runners who was there along
with HR team whole day long participating and providing, encouragement
and support to the participants. Special Thanks to Maneck Debora from
Pinkee Events for helping us with the event promotion and PR.

I would like to take this opportunity to place on record my hearty
thanks to Mr. Deepam Morparia for his vision and efforts for being the
driving force behind the Hyderabad Triathlon event. Without his vision
and ideas this event would not have been possible. The very concept of
hosting the first ever Triathlon in July 2011 and driving it to the
current stage goes to him.

An event of this magnitude with over 600 participants cannot happen
overnight. The wheels start rolling 6 months ago. It required
meticulous planning and a bird's eye for details. GHAC have been
fortunate enough to be backed by a team of very motivated, dedicated
and passionate organisers and volunteers who know their job and are
result oriented.

The following leaders with their respective volunteer teams did a
great job with their respective roles.

Rajesh R Parasa – Main Event Coordinator.
Logistics Support – Nataraj, Krishna & Faisal.
Half Iron – Swathi Vasireddy.
Olympic – Prithvi Raj.
Sprint – Niranjan Kumar.
Novice – Shraddha Bajaj.
Olympic Duathlon – Shankar Reddy.
Sprint Duathlon and Relay – Yogi Ganta.
Novice Duathlon – Oindrilla.
Novice Relay – Vivek Gupta.
Aquathlon – Arun Raj.

I cannot thank everyone enough for their involvement and their
willingness to take on the completion of tasks beyond their comfort
zones!. I would like to thank each and everyone who have helped with
the event. Lastly I would like to thank all the participants friends,
families and guests for attending the event and cheering up the
participants.

We at GHAC promise a much bigger triathlon for Hyderabad including a
full iron level next year.

Regards

Diyanat Ali
Founder & Director
Great Hyderabad Adventure Club
09603473470, 040-68888197

Friday, October 18, 2013

Hyderabad Triathlon is finally here

The Hyderabad Triathlon is scheduled to happen on the 20th October2013 at the Gachibowli Stadium and captures the essence of endurance,fitness and sports. Though it's not a competition race it is perfectly designed to be a challenge to test your fitness and can also be a fun event to do along with friends. It will be a blast for athletes of all abilities!



This year the Hyderabad Triathlon has grown to a new level with over 500 registrations and addition of Half Iron level. With Just a day to the event we are almost full and only a few slots are available in the
Sprint, Novice and Team Relay events. For those who do not know swimming we have the Duathlon category which includes cycling and running over varying distances. for registrations please visit
www.hyderabadtriathlon.com

On Sun 20th October, the Half Iron and Olympic Level will begin early in the morning with swimming in the Olympic pool of the GMC Balyogi Stadium, followed by cycling and, running on the ORR service road and
finishing at the stadium. The Sprint Level will have cycling first, followed by a run on the ORR service road and swim in the Olympic pool. The Novice Level with cycle, run and swim will be conducted in and around the stadium itself. In the afternoon participants will try their skills in the Team Relay Triathlon and Duathlon. There is a Para Triathlon Relay event for the specially-abled athletes which will be an inspiration for many others.

We are witnessing a great interest from triathletes from across the nation and going by the response to the event I am very jubilant that the Hyderabad Triathlon will quickly become a favorite of athletes
from across the Nation.

This event would not have been possible without the inspiring leadership of Deepam Morparia the man behind the initiation and success of the event and all the participants, volunteers and supporting partners who are working hard since past 6 months to make this year's Hyderabad Triathlon a huge success.

Wishing all the participants a great and enjoyable event that will bring out the best in them.

regards

--
Diyanat Ali
Founder, GHAC | www.ghac.in
Founder, OUTLIFE | www.outlife.in
09603473470

Sunday, August 18, 2013

GHAC Celebrates Independence Day


Independence day  Celebrations by GHAC


True to our nature, GHAC celebrated Independence day by promoting the spirit of adventure as well as spirit of giving back to society.

A Team of GHAC climbed the Machleswar Rocks and hoisted the Tiranga on top of the rocks. It was a scene to watch with the tricolor flying high in the sky. Another team hoisted the Tiranga at Khajaguda, the same hills that we cleaned some time back.

GHAC Team at Machleswar


GHAC Team at Khajaguda



GHAC team also organized a blood donation camp at GHAC office in Banjara hills. Various GHAC volunteers as well as organizers donated blood on the occasion of Independence day. ( Check previous post for more details)


Blood Donation Camp AT GHAC Office



GHAC Volunteers donating blood to celebrate Independence day


If you would like to join GHAC and participate activities conducted by GHAC please check here.


Thursday, August 15, 2013

Blood Donation Camp by GHAC on 15th August 2013

Whether in our City or beyond, blood donors perform daily miracles. Statistics show that about every few seconds someone will need blood.

It could be a child suffering from Thalassemia requiring blood transfusion or a mother requiring blood after delivery, a victim of a accident, or a patient undergoing surgery. There’s also a good chance you or I will need a blood transfusion in our lifetime. Blood donors are special members of a caring and socially responsible community that assures that blood is always available to save lives.

Will there be enough of this life-saving gift on the shelves the day I, you, a family member, friend, neighbor or co-worker needs it?. With your help there is no doubt the answer will always be a "Yes".

On this independence day 15 Aug 2013 GHAC members participated and helped conduct a blood donation camp at its office. About 70 blood donors came and 50 units of blood were collected. The blood collected will be with Gandhi Hospital and will be given free of cost to the needy.
 
Thanks to Aditya Bohra and Dr. Geethanjali who volunteered to conduct all the arrangements. Thanks to Sanjay Ram and Team from IDF. Thanks to Doctors from Gandhi Hospital for collecting the blood.


GHAC will conduct more such camps and encourges corporates and colleges to reach out to us to help conduct such camps.













Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Hike to Rachakonda Fort


Scaling Rachakonda Fort


One of our Trainee Organizers Varun Sugandhi led a team of 19, GHACians to the historical 19th century Rachikonda fort near Ibrahimpattnam, about 70 KM from Hyderabad.


It was a bright sunny day, perfect for conquering a  historical fort. The path to the fort was lush green in monsoon, but it was a bit slippery due to loose soil. So the team hiked slowly one step at a time, till finally reaching the summing.

The team that scaled Rachakonda Fort


The Path to the fort was through lush green forest





Some Ruins on top of Fort



But This Guy was not happy to see them


Once the team scaled the fort, they had some fun time, clicking pictures, but this South Indian Rock Agama was not very happy to see them. So the team left him alone and got busy with clicking pictures.


The Team Had a Good time at the Top of the Fort



Varun The Trek Leader

If  you would like to join a GHAC trek check our website or meetup page.






Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Matheran in Maharashtra



Matheran a unique hill station in Maharashtra



Matheran is a colonial time small hill station in a quiet corner of Maharashtra. I say unique  because unlike the devastating flood inducing development in Uttarakhand, and most other hill-stations in India, Matheran  has maintained its character of a sleepy town.

All development  is highly regulated, motor vehicles are not allowed and  you need to walk or take a horse cart to move around. Recently GHAC organized a trek to Matheran, which began by some social responsibility by distributing stationary and sports kit at a local school for underprivileged kids.
GHAC Team distributing stationary and sports kit to school kids

GHAC Team at the beginning of Trek in Matheran


For most of the time weather was very nice with light drizzle making the hills lush green and mysterious with the fog.





Rains added to the fun








The Magic of Mist

We  had a great time exploring, hiking and just chilling in Matheran. A Few more treks to Matheran are planned in coming weeks. Please check here to join them.








Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Slacklining - Balancing for fitness


Slacklinig- From Street Performance to Modern days


I am sure all of you have been to circus or have seen Banjara kids perform on streets of India using tight rope. I always wondered how they are able to do it.  The  higher the rope the faster my heart used to beat. While in Circus there is a safety net to keep the performers safe, there is no such thing for the Banjara kids performing on the streets.

Net or no net, slacklining has been performed in India for ages, but like a lot of ancient Indian art forms it has also lost its relevance in the modern days. But we at GHAC here love to keep on trying new things and some time back we started meetups for Slacklining. Now you may wonder what are we doing in Slacklining. Well a few things to note here:

  • The Slacklining used for GHAC events is actually not very high, it is just around 1 ft in air. So that even if somebody falls there is no injury.
  • The slacklining may not be very high but you still have to cross it without any support and that forces your instincts to work to balance your body.
  • This is where the benefits to your body start coming, as your body and mind are on high alert your ability to focus increases many folds. 
  • The adrenaline rush in your blood gives you a  high and you thoroughly enjoy the crossing of the slack line.
  • As you try to balance your body various muscles in your body come in action and all energy is used to keep the balance on the slack line.
But more than anything else the whole process is full of  fun and you should listen to the squeaks of joy and laughter coming from the participants. Below are some pictures from the recent event that we held in KBR park. 

Balancing Act

The best part about Slacklining is that you do not need any expensive equipment or training, all you need is a little bit of space and will to have some fun (how tough is that ?). Age is no barrier as long as you do not have any major injuries in your limbs. We regularly have parents enjoying with their kids as family during our Slacklining events.
So what are you waiting for Slacklining is a regular event at GHAC, go ahead and RSVP for the same and have some fun with adrenaline rush.



Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Increase in GHAC Fee and Addition of Service Tax

As you are aware GHAC charges a nominal 10% Fee for all its events.
This amount goes to pay for salaries of the support staff, rent for
GHAC office, repair and renewal of equipment, purchase of equipment
and other administrative expenses. Over the last two years, the cost
of everything has gone up and we were still charging 10% only. As a
result, we have not been able to buy new equipment or replace our worn
out equipment. We have instead taken loans from senior organizers to
buy and repair equipment. At best, this is a short term measure and we
cannot continue like this.

The GHAC Committee in the meetings held on 12 June and subsequently on
19th June has decided that the GHAC margin will be hiked to 15 % on
all events that will be put up from 1st July 2013. There will be no
change in events that have already been announced and posted.

We also want to communicate that as a registered adventure club we are
now in the service tax bracket. Going forward, all meetups will have a
3.09 % service tax on the total trek amount, per head. This amount
will be paid to
the Department of Customs and Central Excise, Govt of India and will
contribute to the nations growth.

There will be no increase in cost for local events and they will
continue to be Rs 50 inclusive of service tax.

We are committed to promote adventure and will continue to strive to
provide better events and rich experience for all our members.

For questions please reach us on feedback@ghac.in or call on 040-23350008

regards

Diyanat Ali
Founder and Director
Great Hyderabad Adventure Club
www.ghac.in
040-23350008

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

How To Help Uttarakhand


We are all aware of the massive tragedy that has happened in the hill states of Uttarakhand and Himachal in North India. The floods have devastated whole villages, towns and washed away roads, bridges and all infrastructure is in mayhem. With thousands of pilgrims and locals still being evacuated by our armed forces it is a tragedy for all humanity. While we sure needs to do introspection on our policies towards tourism and construction of dams etc.  in hills, and analyze what caused the floods in Uttarakhand and understand that we are all in some way responsible not only for the floods but also for providing help to the pilgrims and locals alive.

At this stage it is more important to get together and help in every possible way to the people stranded and help their friends and families to help find them.

So the first thing we can do is spread information about the relief efforts and refrain from spreading or paying heed to any rumors.

Given below are some useful numbers that you can share on your social networks for people to use them:

Here are helpline nos for relief efforts for Uttarakhand floods
Flood helpline numbers : 0135-2710334 , 0135-2710335 , 0135-2710233.
Nainital & around: 05946-250138.
Uttarkashi: 01374-226126, 226161
Chamoli: 01372-251437
Tehri: 01376-233433
Rudraprayag: 01732-1077
ITBP helpline and control room, Uttrakhand: 011-24362892 and 9968383478
Uttarakhand govt helpline: 0135-2716201, 2710925
Besides spreading information about the help line numbers here is a searchable database that is about the people who were found/rescued by various agencies


But search is only one part of the equation. The economy and the people of Uttarakhand have suffered heavy losses and need to be built again. You can provide help in both monetary and non-monetary ways to help the people.

Goonj is one such organization that is making efforts to collect materials and money to help the people in Uttarakhand.

You can contribute Clothes, medicine, food, utensils and also money so that it reaches the people who need it today. This is the link of Goonj website to take some action and help in a way only you can.

You can also contribute to the Prime Minister  National Relief fund or to any other organization that you trust and feel will help the people in Uttarakhand.

The important thing is that we all need to contribute in whatever form to help our friends in Uttarakhand.




Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Treks To Outstation Locations

Traveling and Trekking to Far off Locations 


With the onset of Monsoons we will start planning a lot more outstation treks to places where one needs to travel overnight to reach the starting point.

But outstation travel brings a few of its own challenges. As most of the outstation treks specially to far off places like Maharashtra, Kerala, and Coastal Karnataka requires overnight travel, every body prefers to travel by train. But getting tickets on train is  not easy and a lot of members respond only at last minute. This leads to non availability of tickets in train.

Once the train tickets are not available the organizers try to book the buses, now here also the earlier we book the more economical the tickets we can buy, as at last minute the tickets are either not available or one needs to book the most costly tour operator as the normal seats are all gone. This leads to increase in the cost. Some time people will respond at the last minute, when the tickets for others have already been booked in train, so they try to book tickets in tatkal for the train. But it is sometimes very tough to  get confirmed tickets in taktal. So the best option for a smooth journey is to make the payment as well as your confirmation the very first day the RSVP for an outstation trek opens.

This will have many advantages
  • The biggest advantage is the organizers will be able to keep the cost of the trek low, as the train is the cheapest option to travel
  • You will arrive at the starting point of trek, fresh as train travel is very comfortable compared to bus or self driving long distance
  • This will help the organizer to know how many people are coming well in advance and negotiate better rates with hotel etc. at the trek location if stay in hotel or dormitory is needed.
  • An early booking will ensure that all seats are together in same coach leading to more fun in the journey as people can talk, play antrakshi etc.
So in everybody's interest it is a good idea to RSVP as well as make payment the day an outstation trek opens on Ghac meetup site. Also please add the email address of Meetup in your mail box as this will prevent it from going to your spam box.

We would love to hear your inputs on GHAC treks and this blog. Please use this link on GHAC feedback link to give your feedback confidentially.

Happy Trekking and Safe Travels  :)

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Chimney Caving and Zig Zag Passages at ZTS Grounds


Practicing for Chimney and Caving in Zig Zag Passages at ZTS Grounds

Caving and chimney requires special skills and agility

  • You need to be highly flexible
  • Not afraid of dark
  • Not scared of insects
  • Willing to crawl in little space
  • Great team work is needed to coordinate movement in small spaces
One of our groups practiced Caving and Chimney at ZTS grounds recently. They had a lot of fun and went through some pretty steep, and narrow paths. Check the pictures below:

Climbing Narrow Spaces in Rocks

Resting Between Rocks


Rocks and Rock Climbers

The View From Top



Most of Hyderabad area from the top was visible with the waters of a lake nearby shining like a jewel in distance.

Do check  GHAC  meetup site for future events. 

These city based events help you prepare for the longer treks in nature. Remember practice makes a man or woman perfect. 


Monday, June 10, 2013

Cleanup Activity At Khajaguda Hyderabad by GHAC Volunteers


Celebrating World Environment Day- The GHAC Way


5th June is world environment day, world over people try to do some thing or other for mother earth. A lot of these activities are not sustained and end up more as media hype or photo opportunities. Not with GHAC, on this world environment day a group of GHAC volunteers visited the hilly area of Khajaguda in Hyderabad and decided to take things in their own hands.

Khajaguda is close to the Hitech city in Hyderabad and  popular among active Hyderabadis for hiking and rock climbing activities. Unfortunately the area is also very littered with plastic bags, bottles and other non biodegradable items.

So this environment day GHAC volunteers aggregated in large numbers at Khajaguda to clean the area. 
They came armed with gloves, bags to collect garbage and of-course with cameras to click pictures and  spread the message. 

Both Young and Old GHAC Volunteers Came to clean Khajaguda



Garbage Collected From Khajaguda




Cleaning Khajaguda 

Breakfast after cleaning Khajaguda


The volunteers collected many bags of plastic bottles, polythene, chocolate wrappers, chips packs etc. Every body was very hungry after the activity and stopped by for some yummy breakfast close by.

GHAC regularly conducts cleanup drives in and around Hyderabad to make our city better. Click here to know more about GHAC and its activities.

About Author: Prasad Np is a GHAC volunteer and heads GHAC Nature, he writes family travel blog from India-desi Traveler


Sunday, June 9, 2013

GHAC Outdoor Leadership Workshop


GHAC Outdoor Leadership Workshop


While outdoors are fun, you are also with nature, that can be unpredictable and one needs to be prepared all the times. A lot of preparation needs to go to go out in wild to take full advantage of the bounty of nature, unlike in Bollywood movies like Yeh Jawani Hai Diwani where you just show up without any preparation.
Participants Arriving for GHAC Outdoor Workshop


All GHAC trek leaders are trained in both theory and practical aspects of outdoors so that all treks are safe, nature friendly and no negative impact is left on mother nature.
As part of preparing GHAC trek leaders for future leadership roles, a 2 day residential workshop was organized in outskirts of Hyderabad in pristine surroundings to impart various outdoor skills like

  • Using a compass
  • Map reading
  • Finding direction and your location in  the outdoors
  • Creating a shelter in outdoors
  • Making a fire using minimum resources and without damaging nature
  • How to choose a campsite
  • How to pitch tent 
  • Survival Skills
  • How to find and use water in jungle
  • Ropes and knots
Tents were pitched for night

From GHAC leadership team Keku talked about how to prepare and survive outdoors in nature, Diyanat conducted workshops and activities on leadership and Manish from accounts team talked about how to manage the financial aspect of  a trek.
Manish Giving Presentation on Financial aspects of a trek


Group Photo of GHAC Leadership Workshop



The workshop was not just work we  had lots of fun too!

The workshop concluded with the participants receiving their certificates and GHAC caps.
GHAC conducts these workshops every few months and if you are interested please get in touch with GHAC though our website.

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Organic Food Workshop By GHAC Nature

Grow your own organic food in your own home


GHAC Nature has started a new initiative to encourage Hyderabadis to grow organic food in their own homes in limited space like balcony or terrace.

The first workshop was organized today at GHAC office in Banjara  Hills. Arun Raj who is a key memeber of GHAC core team and Mr. Venugopal Reddy an avid Gardner and nature lover gave a demo and  explained to the participants

  • Types of Soils
  • Preparing compost
  • Difference between vermicompost and normal compost
  • Type of plants that do well in pots
  • Plants to grow in Hyderabad
  • How to take care of pests and disease using organic, nature friendly means
Mr. Venugopal explaining about pots and plants


Participants to the Grow Organic Food Workshop


Arun Raj Talking to Participants


The participants actively asked a lot of questions and are all very keen to start their own gardens. Keep watching this space for  updates. 

Monday, June 3, 2013

GHAC Feedback System is Launched

Dear GHACians,

In a continuous effort to improve the adventure activities at GHAC, we bring to you a Feedback System comprising various modes.  If you don’t like something about us, tell us.  And, if we are doing well, let us know.

We would like to hear from you. Please feel free to share your experiences during a meetup and suggestions for improvement, if any, through the following appropriate channels. 

1. Suggestions & Ideas

If you have suggestions & ideas and wish to engage the GHAC community in a discussion, please do so at

http://meetup.ghac.in/messages/boards/forum/1132684

We would appreciate your effort in keeping the forum clean and relevant to adventure.

2. Report a problem or a negative experience

Email details to feedback@ghac.in for any of the following:

Report behavior that is not in accordance with the club guidelines (by members or organizers). To acquaint yourself with the guidelines, visit http://meetup.ghac.in/pages/Club_Guidelines/

To know the status of a refund (in case you have not received a satisfactory response from the organizer) Anything else that you would like to bring to the notice of the GHAC Feedback Team

Our Resolution Team will try to respond to you within 48 hours and resolve the issue at the earliest.

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If you want to share your opinion anonymously, post it at http://www.whatiswrongwith.me/ghac

You are always welcome to visit us from 0930 to 1830 hours, Monday through Saturday at

Great Hyderabad Adventure Club
8-2-350/B/B, A.K. Enclave,
Lane adjacent to Pizza Corner,
Road No. 3, Banjara Hills,
Hyderabad 500 034
Ph: 040-2335 0008

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Saturday, January 19, 2013

Mysterious Island : The Mystery Unleashes


A team of 20 passionate Trekkers, a herd of fun lovers indeed, started their journey to experience the rarest of the rare, the exquisite Mysterious Island. Lone amidst water, this island is located right in the center of the NagarjunaSagar Reservoir, Nalagonda, Andhra Pradesh.

True to the title, the entire trek was infused with mystery. Filled with excitement, each juncture was bringing a surprise on this trip.

From KambalPalli village, the group started moving towards the Island. First exciting occurrence was climbing the initial hill that would give us a scenic view of the Island. The sun was shining bright, an unbroken stream descending on us as we continuously ascended up the hill. As we reached the hilltop, all of us were wilting due to the blistering heat. Most of the trekkers started cursing the organizer and also themselves for joining the trek. 



After a 15 minutes halt, we started walking again. This time all of us were prepared for the next surprise or adventure. We kept walking for almost 3 kilometers and were day dreaming about the destination which was some distance away. Some of them got dehydrated in the radiant heat. But then- we reached the next point and stopped abruptly, the fascinating first view of the Island greeted us. We couldn’t bring ourselves to tear our eyes off it.

A hill in the middle of the oceanic water, surrounded by numerous hills, the white colored temples on both the edges of the hilltop, greenery around the shore, the herd of sheep, goats and cows eating the grass simply reminded us of the romantic movies that were seen during the college days. Each of us started humming romantic songs and smiles were all around. It was fun watching each other. The Island seemed a perfect honeymoon spot. We could romance with the nature and the photographers perfectly captured the melodrama happening around in their clicks.


Soon we started descending the next hill to reach the Island. It was around 2 kilometers stretch and it took almost an hour and half to reach the shore. Relaxing under the rock shade, we all were admiring the nature and building the rapport with the other trekkers. A few started walking on the river bank and the rest started following. We had a competition of pelting stones in to the water and this time no one could win the title, as we had to soon get on to the boat.

We boarded the boat. As it started moving towards the Island, we were delighted by the beauty of the nature. Away from the urban routine, this experience made each of us think of settling ourselves on the serene Island. After 20 minutes of boat journey, we reached the Island. This Island is called as Yeleshwargattu, popularly known as Mysterious Island. We got off the boat and soon scattered around the island for our respective cooking tasks. A few went to collect the fire wood, few were busy cutting vegetables, others got the water from the reservoir, while the rest were busy clicking pictures and describing the crocodile stories to scare the crowd.

Soon the Sun started disappearing below the horizon and we continued cooking. The best delicacies were prepared on the fire wood. Few trekkers were flashing the torch light for quick preparation. The dinner was ready with Biryani in the Hyderabadi pulav style, Chicken Masala, and the tomato curry to go with it.It was a special meal or the hunger must have been the best sauce for the night.  



After such a delectable dinner, all we could think of was warm sleep in the cold windy breeze. But of course, the trek had its own surprises. We had to stake our lives and start climbing up the hill on the island. Every step reminded us of our favorite God. The dense and the dark atmosphere, the blowing breeze, the sound of the bees and the dead leaves literally reminded us of those haunted stories heard in our retrospect.
Enduringly, we all culminated over the hill. Closing our eyes and the torch lights as per the organizer’s instructions, we lay down on the floor. As we opened our eyes and gazed at the sky, the common feeling among us was Wowwww…..! The sky exploded with a million stars. Few of them spotted the shooting stars and we were rejoicing the diorama of the sky. 

Few trekkers who were feeling sick, turned active, few fell asleep soon and a few were still hanging around capturing the pictures. As per the instructions we were not supposed to move left, right, front or back. We were supposed to sleep in the given place.

Out of the blue, when everyone was deep in sleep, something poked the organizer’s head. He ignored it expecting it to be some sharp edge of the bag. Soon we discovered that a beautiful golden-ish black Centipede has bit him. It was stuck to the bag like a key chain and was all set to attack the next person. After a little research on Google, we found out that it was not fatal. After the incident, sleep simply fled from our eyes and somehow we managed to spend the night. 

The Sun was rising up the horizon. The view around was exemplifying. We were on the top of the Island, with two temples on both the edges. We were stand right between the temples and all we could see around was water. The sun rays in the water, the hills all around mesmerized us. Amazing pictures were captured by the photographers. Despite having the better subject around, they were too generous to click our pictures too.

Before long we started descending from the Island. Tapping our feet in the water for a while, we boarded the boat again and this time the ride was around one hour through the valleys and the landscapes, we reached the other end of the shore. It was time for us to test our endurance level, as the heat in the sky and the hill at the shore reminded us of all the Glucon-D ads. Soon we ascended the hill and trekked and scrambled for 6 Kms reaching the KambalPalli Village. 

Another surprise was waiting at the village. The world best Rice and Charu (Rasam) was prepared by one of the sweet ladies in the village. All of us couldn’t resist eating lunch twice. We started moving towards the bus stop and soon took a bus.


It was the hardest moment for all, as we had to reluctantly say good bye to each other. It was the best ever experience of life and had set new standards for our future choice of treks. This trek was a blend of every single thing a trekker expects including trekking, scrambling, boating, cooking, eating, climbing, and photography among the others.

Awaiting more such mind blowing experiences. :):)