About Us
The Journey
Feel the earth, listen in on zephyr discourse. No walls to shade the breaking orange horizon, just you and the stars above. The best way to experience the outdoors – camping!
The first one in the series, this campsite located in a quaint lil’ town in Sathnur (66km from Bangalore) is on a farmland that fancies its backyard open to a lake a few acres away. The jamun, neem, jacaranda , cassia and a variety of ficus and fruiting trees super-abound and host myriad species of birds like the blue-faced malkohas, rufous treepies, honey buzzards, barbets and sunbirds. We have critters of all kinds, and we love them all.
It’s here we want you to find whatever that makes you happy, content – read a book under the jamun tree, scribble away listening to frogs residing in the living pond, relish local food, play the guitar, go on a hike, observe paper wasps build nests, bird watch, farm, or experience the joy of doing absolutely nothing.
The Campers
We love wildlife and the outdoors. The constant urge to get away from the mayhem that’s a city remains consistent. Taking time off to do “nothing” or to do what we really like (read, stargaze, play music, write, farm, run, cycle, birdwatch) felt more real & imperative. This is our little farm and we have opened it out for you. We hope you relish these modest experiences... away from the city.
The camp is Kaushik Bajibab’s dream project – founder, Wishbone, (www.wishbone.co.in) and Wishbone School. His accomplice, Gana Kedlaya is a freelance environment and travel journalist.
- We are resilient campaigners for nature and wildlife.
- We don’t use pesticides.
- We love our critters and care about the sustenance of the soil.
- We abide by the Leave no Trace lifestyle. We avoid plastic & don't trash the land and encourage you to do the same.
- We love our birds and frogs and swing to nature sounds. So, loud music is definitely ringing out of a jungle babbler’s mouth and not from any speakers.
FAQS
Can I play loud music, dancing allowed?
No. We want you to come over and enjoy nature sounds and not disturb the natural sonic energy. Also, we respect local people's need for silence and space.
We started Backyard to encourage people to connect with nature, enjoy nature sounds, stargaze... and basically relish those moments you don't get to experience in the city.
What do I do with my dry waste?
You will have to carry your dry waste back with you to the city - the waste management in remote places like small villages cannot handle excess and will only cause more damage to its immediate habitat and wildlife.
Things I CANNOT do:
You cannot discard dry waste, bottles, cigarette butts or chewing gums at the farm - its very difficult to cleanup once its lost amidst the undergrowth and is harmful for animals.
We have birds roosting on the farm, and we would appreciate if you do not get close, or take pictures of their nests.
We do not endure people whose idea of a break is getting very drunk and loud.
Come for the stillness, the charm of the wilderness, and most importantly, come to decamp the city in you :)
Do you have wildlife in the area?
Yes. The farm is very close to the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary. We have elephants, leopards, civet cats among other species that frequent the area.
Can I step out of the farm post 6 pm?
No. There is a lot of wildlife activity in the area. We do not encourage campers to step out post 6 to sustain peaceful co-existence of wildlife and us humans :)
What can I do at the farm?
Walk, read, stargaze, play indoor games... It has taken us over 10 years of careful planting and nurturing of the soil to be able to today, have loads of wild visitors. We have over 100 species of insects (documented), critters, bird life. Feel free to ask us about the same or about the wildlife and conservation situation in the area, and we will be happy to share verified information with you.