I had never thought that I would be stepping on one of the biggest mountain ranges on the planet. Unexpectedly, Himalayas didn't forget to invite me with open arms. I could not hold back my excitement and was all in smiles when I put my step forward for the trek. Totally clueless, I moved ahead to pack up stuffs which me and my friends could remember.
We reached Delhi and were shaken by soaring temperatures of the city. The trek was primarily to be kicked off at Kasol. Somehow succumbing to this excruciating heat, we booked our evening tickets to Bhuntar which was supposed to be the pivot for Kasol. I felt sordid to carry the clammy myself to every nook and corner. At the same time, ironically, my hoary thoughts passed a chill across my nerves. Vehemently squashing down the sun to sunset, we eagerly boarded the bus to Bhuntar. Hardly cognizant about how we passed the night, we woke up to find that we were already reaching Bhuntar. Alighting at Bhuntar, we immediately got a bus to Kasol. Thus, we were nearing our destination.
We were greeted by a view of tents pitched on a small flat piece of land adjoining which river Parvati was flowing elegantly. This was supposed to be the base camp. The ambience was really welcoming and soothing my carcass with cold breeze. It was totally an antithetical life I could smell. The snow clad peaks were constantly drawing my attention. We reported at the base camp and settled down at our tents. To my relief, there were no activities scheduled on that day. I decided that it was time for me to scour myself after all the dirty travelling I have been doing. But who can defy the freezing water running on the taps?! That’s when a suggestion was dropped by one of the organizers that hot water springs of Manikaran could be an option. All gritty about having a bath, we all set forward to Manikaran. It was a blissful experience altogether; bath, Ram temple and finally Gurudwara. After some tits and bits of shopping for the foreseen frost, we returned back to base camp.
Day 2 and Day 3 started with morning exercises which played a vital role later. It gave enough warmth to my taut muscles and made them slack grooming them for the upcoming trek. We also had an acclimatization walk, rappelling and rock climbing which were quite interesting and helped us in connecting with our peers.
Finally the day to depart the base camp arrived. We were all set with our rucksack which had all the necessary stuffs dumped. Weather seemed to be urging me to promptly see off the base camp. With an anxious heart, I marched ahead with the flow.
The way to Grahan was mind blowing. It was through lush green forests which didn’t seem to have much of flora. I could constantly hear the reverberation of the stream flowing parallel to our route. I didn’t bother to rush ahead in the group and my pace turned out to be a boon as I was completely fusing with my Mother Nature. My eyes were constantly hunting for my aerial friends but couldn’t find any (other than our typical wild crows with its peculiar funny caws :D). My mind bubbled with happiness every time a leaf rubbed off my cheeks. To add to my joy, we had no option other than drinking cool water straight from the stream! Slowly we started seeing small houses and residents smiling at us. Few kids passed by. I stopped them to ask their name. They giggled shyly and didn’t seem to have understood my question. I pulled their pink chubby cheeks making sure I am not touching their noses which had dried phlegm peeping out. I was stunned by their charm, tightly hugged them and offered mango candies. They were extremely delighted. I taught the youngest kid how to unfold the candy wrapper. He hopped merrily with sense of achievement of learning something new for the day and bid good bye with a sweet smile. Finally upon reaching Grahan, I happily settled down and drowned with the sunset.
Next day, we ensued our way to next goal, Padri where our next camp was based at. Route seemed to be much better as we got various plains to walk through. I loved the cool breeze which was constantly shivering me as the sun was still hiding behind the hills. This route mainly comprised of different facets of rocks. Also we had to traverse through massive tree trunks which had traced a crooked path making us mould into every shape possible. The forest-like ambience suddenly opened into vast plain grassland with small tents erected in the centre. My mind boggled with happiness when I saw a big herd of cattle grazing all around. I flung my sack inside and rushed towards the tiniest calf present. It wasn’t ready to budge away from its mom even for a moment. Padri seemed to be a dream to me; a place which I have always been dreaming about. Snow clad peaks were still drawing my attention which seemed to intensely beckon me. We were asked to rely upon a gentle stream flowing in the frontage of the row of tents for washing and drinking. It was a pleasure to share the possession of cattle that also use the same current. All of a sudden, I happened to hear few feeble bleats. I turned only to find a huge herd of goats proceeding towards our tents. I was ecstatic and tried running behind some of those but sadly none of them paved way to my love L (Wish I was a shepherd!!). To add to my woes, the day at Padri was almost reaching to an end. Half-heartedly, I curled inside my sleeping bag and dozed off.
Next day, the journey to ex-Ratapani, Minthas(spellcheck please!) began. Personally, it was quite tiring for me as we encountered few steep uphill. At lunch point, traces of snow began luring us to play. The entire group started bringing piles of snow and began the most awaited snow fight. It wasn’t really a snowy region but the temptation leaped out. After spending sufficient amount of time, we proceeded to the camp. Due to an altogether tired trip, I chose not to drain any more energy. I chose to stay back in one of the corners of tents and slept peacefully.
Here comes one of the best trips of all, the trip to Nagaru! It started raining a bit with heavy storm. It would be wrong if I don’t mention about our guide who was our moral support. We had lot of steep uphill and lot of snow to be crossed. Without our guides nothing would have been possible. After long and tiring climbing trip we reached Nagaru, the land of snow. It was a totally exciting time in Nagaru as we were already feeling on the top of the world. I could see myself rubbing shoulders with many of the peaks present in the Himalayan ranges. . I was tremendously curious as to what SAR pass would be then! Surprisingly, I found few tiny birds looking as cute as and sounding as sweet sparrows. It would be really great if anyone could get their names right. But this doesn’t mean we were left without crows. They still accompanied us with their hilarious caws. We were instructed to set off at 3.30 in the morning to SAR Pass when the snow was hard. I could hardly sleep the entire night. It was almost 4.30 when we moved ahead for our final destination. Things weren’t easy for me. The cold winds of dawn proved to be a nightmare. I was almost on the verge of getting carried away by the wind. The nightmare went on for about an hour till the sun showered some rays of hope on me. The snow was shining golden. I couldn’t take my eyes off from the beauty. Struggling all the way through the steep paths, the guide pulled me and said, “Welcome to SAR Pass”. It was music to my ears and lo! Here’s a big white carpet put ahead in front of me. I sat in one of the corners, immersed into myself, connecting with the Nature. The view elicited the spiritual side of me. I experienced Oneness!
Subsequent to a brief break, we were asked to proceed for the upcoming slides. Slides were truly a compensation for all the hard work we had done and definitely the best inference a trek can have. After all the sliding fun, we were at the welcoming doors of our Biskeri camp.
Our faces were still beaming with pride for having made it to SAR Pass. None of the odds at camp touched the light hearts present as we never bothered what next is kept in store for us. I felt lighter for the very fact that we will be moving downhill. Following day, we were offered two options: Bandak thatch or Kasol base camp. I was already contented with my SAR Pass and didn’t wish to spend a day more in tent. Following a lot of confusions we finally decided to proceed to Kasol. It was a simple downhill though rains made the route tougher. It was the longest journey we had wherein we walked for about 9 hours. Totally drained out, we finally reached our base camp Kasol. Amidst all the difficulties, we were still smiling and complimenting each other for having made through.
To conclude, it was an amazing experience for having climbed 14000 feet, being so close to nature and experiencing temperatures that squat as low as possible. Rest I would leave it up to your imagination!
We reached Delhi and were shaken by soaring temperatures of the city. The trek was primarily to be kicked off at Kasol. Somehow succumbing to this excruciating heat, we booked our evening tickets to Bhuntar which was supposed to be the pivot for Kasol. I felt sordid to carry the clammy myself to every nook and corner. At the same time, ironically, my hoary thoughts passed a chill across my nerves. Vehemently squashing down the sun to sunset, we eagerly boarded the bus to Bhuntar. Hardly cognizant about how we passed the night, we woke up to find that we were already reaching Bhuntar. Alighting at Bhuntar, we immediately got a bus to Kasol. Thus, we were nearing our destination.
We were greeted by a view of tents pitched on a small flat piece of land adjoining which river Parvati was flowing elegantly. This was supposed to be the base camp. The ambience was really welcoming and soothing my carcass with cold breeze. It was totally an antithetical life I could smell. The snow clad peaks were constantly drawing my attention. We reported at the base camp and settled down at our tents. To my relief, there were no activities scheduled on that day. I decided that it was time for me to scour myself after all the dirty travelling I have been doing. But who can defy the freezing water running on the taps?! That’s when a suggestion was dropped by one of the organizers that hot water springs of Manikaran could be an option. All gritty about having a bath, we all set forward to Manikaran. It was a blissful experience altogether; bath, Ram temple and finally Gurudwara. After some tits and bits of shopping for the foreseen frost, we returned back to base camp.
Day 2 and Day 3 started with morning exercises which played a vital role later. It gave enough warmth to my taut muscles and made them slack grooming them for the upcoming trek. We also had an acclimatization walk, rappelling and rock climbing which were quite interesting and helped us in connecting with our peers.
Finally the day to depart the base camp arrived. We were all set with our rucksack which had all the necessary stuffs dumped. Weather seemed to be urging me to promptly see off the base camp. With an anxious heart, I marched ahead with the flow.
The way to Grahan was mind blowing. It was through lush green forests which didn’t seem to have much of flora. I could constantly hear the reverberation of the stream flowing parallel to our route. I didn’t bother to rush ahead in the group and my pace turned out to be a boon as I was completely fusing with my Mother Nature. My eyes were constantly hunting for my aerial friends but couldn’t find any (other than our typical wild crows with its peculiar funny caws :D). My mind bubbled with happiness every time a leaf rubbed off my cheeks. To add to my joy, we had no option other than drinking cool water straight from the stream! Slowly we started seeing small houses and residents smiling at us. Few kids passed by. I stopped them to ask their name. They giggled shyly and didn’t seem to have understood my question. I pulled their pink chubby cheeks making sure I am not touching their noses which had dried phlegm peeping out. I was stunned by their charm, tightly hugged them and offered mango candies. They were extremely delighted. I taught the youngest kid how to unfold the candy wrapper. He hopped merrily with sense of achievement of learning something new for the day and bid good bye with a sweet smile. Finally upon reaching Grahan, I happily settled down and drowned with the sunset.
Next day, we ensued our way to next goal, Padri where our next camp was based at. Route seemed to be much better as we got various plains to walk through. I loved the cool breeze which was constantly shivering me as the sun was still hiding behind the hills. This route mainly comprised of different facets of rocks. Also we had to traverse through massive tree trunks which had traced a crooked path making us mould into every shape possible. The forest-like ambience suddenly opened into vast plain grassland with small tents erected in the centre. My mind boggled with happiness when I saw a big herd of cattle grazing all around. I flung my sack inside and rushed towards the tiniest calf present. It wasn’t ready to budge away from its mom even for a moment. Padri seemed to be a dream to me; a place which I have always been dreaming about. Snow clad peaks were still drawing my attention which seemed to intensely beckon me. We were asked to rely upon a gentle stream flowing in the frontage of the row of tents for washing and drinking. It was a pleasure to share the possession of cattle that also use the same current. All of a sudden, I happened to hear few feeble bleats. I turned only to find a huge herd of goats proceeding towards our tents. I was ecstatic and tried running behind some of those but sadly none of them paved way to my love L (Wish I was a shepherd!!). To add to my woes, the day at Padri was almost reaching to an end. Half-heartedly, I curled inside my sleeping bag and dozed off.
Next day, the journey to ex-Ratapani, Minthas(spellcheck please!) began. Personally, it was quite tiring for me as we encountered few steep uphill. At lunch point, traces of snow began luring us to play. The entire group started bringing piles of snow and began the most awaited snow fight. It wasn’t really a snowy region but the temptation leaped out. After spending sufficient amount of time, we proceeded to the camp. Due to an altogether tired trip, I chose not to drain any more energy. I chose to stay back in one of the corners of tents and slept peacefully.
Here comes one of the best trips of all, the trip to Nagaru! It started raining a bit with heavy storm. It would be wrong if I don’t mention about our guide who was our moral support. We had lot of steep uphill and lot of snow to be crossed. Without our guides nothing would have been possible. After long and tiring climbing trip we reached Nagaru, the land of snow. It was a totally exciting time in Nagaru as we were already feeling on the top of the world. I could see myself rubbing shoulders with many of the peaks present in the Himalayan ranges. . I was tremendously curious as to what SAR pass would be then! Surprisingly, I found few tiny birds looking as cute as and sounding as sweet sparrows. It would be really great if anyone could get their names right. But this doesn’t mean we were left without crows. They still accompanied us with their hilarious caws. We were instructed to set off at 3.30 in the morning to SAR Pass when the snow was hard. I could hardly sleep the entire night. It was almost 4.30 when we moved ahead for our final destination. Things weren’t easy for me. The cold winds of dawn proved to be a nightmare. I was almost on the verge of getting carried away by the wind. The nightmare went on for about an hour till the sun showered some rays of hope on me. The snow was shining golden. I couldn’t take my eyes off from the beauty. Struggling all the way through the steep paths, the guide pulled me and said, “Welcome to SAR Pass”. It was music to my ears and lo! Here’s a big white carpet put ahead in front of me. I sat in one of the corners, immersed into myself, connecting with the Nature. The view elicited the spiritual side of me. I experienced Oneness!
Subsequent to a brief break, we were asked to proceed for the upcoming slides. Slides were truly a compensation for all the hard work we had done and definitely the best inference a trek can have. After all the sliding fun, we were at the welcoming doors of our Biskeri camp.
Our faces were still beaming with pride for having made it to SAR Pass. None of the odds at camp touched the light hearts present as we never bothered what next is kept in store for us. I felt lighter for the very fact that we will be moving downhill. Following day, we were offered two options: Bandak thatch or Kasol base camp. I was already contented with my SAR Pass and didn’t wish to spend a day more in tent. Following a lot of confusions we finally decided to proceed to Kasol. It was a simple downhill though rains made the route tougher. It was the longest journey we had wherein we walked for about 9 hours. Totally drained out, we finally reached our base camp Kasol. Amidst all the difficulties, we were still smiling and complimenting each other for having made through.
To conclude, it was an amazing experience for having climbed 14000 feet, being so close to nature and experiencing temperatures that squat as low as possible. Rest I would leave it up to your imagination!
Subha..
ReplyDeleteYou are really nice writer :) Keep it up..