It was the month of October and life was going on in the most routine way as always, i.e to and fro between office and home and then couple of days of weekend to relax ,watch any movies in mall and then go back to the same boring routine. The monotony had almost become a burden and was crying out loud to be broken. However I was clueless as to what different I could have done. While one day I was in office sitting in front of computer trying to incorporate some code changes as part of one of my assigned tasks,I saw an email that popped up on outlook,saying someone is going on vacation,and all i could think about was the word vacation. I pressed windows+L to lock the monitor,took my coffee mug and went to the cafeteria for a break ,while thinking about the vacation. I finished my coffee,came back to desk and quickly opened up the leave calendar to find out when could I take a substantial leave,(least worried about the code change that i had to submit soon) ,after scrolling through the leave calendar,I could find that I can utilize some holidays around Chirstmas and new Year and including my earned leaves I could take 7 to 8 days of leave.I got very excited with the probability of leave, to have a chance to do something new and different .While I tabled this in my thoughts ,I got back to work,finished what I could for the current day and left for the day.
while at home,I started research on internet where could I go for a week ,various results came up like a trip to Madhya Pradesh, heart of India,or a trip to Goa,or a trip to Kerala,or a trip to Delhi,or trekking in Himalayas. The word Himalayas caught my attention,I have always been fascinated about Himalayas and obviously never got a chance to see it from a close distance. I thought it would be great to visit perhaps some town in Himachal Pradesh or Uttarakhand ,however I reconsidered it,it said "Trekking" in Himalayas. I got almost discouraged for a while,I thought trekking?,really ?I don't even walk to the nearest mall and call a cab instead,is it really for me ?Perhaps I need to go through some fitness regimes before actually considering it. I started googling more with the keywords "trekking for beginners" ,read various blogs and answers on quora etc,even understood the difference between hiking and trekking ,and finally came to a conclusion that I could attempt some easy trek ,with not so many hurdles and it would be a good start for trekking mountains.I had no idea at that time that the easiest of treks in the mighty Himalayas ,even at the lesser Himalayas is no joke,and comes with its own obstacles that requires a tad of courage and determination and faith .
Next day I called my friend in Delhi,and suggested this idea about a beginner level Himalayan trek for this new year.He himself being a travel enthusiast,gave a tentative approval instantaneously,while we make the plan and confirm the schedule.So in the days to follow ,I submitted the leave request which got approved,then did research on various trekking destinations ,and after few discussions we decided on Kheerganga trek which looked majestic and apparently not very tough.I talked to the organizer asking him specifically that I am not used to these adventures ,so will i be able to complete it,He said surely if you show determination and with our help you can complete it ,moreover its not a very difficult trek ,every year newbies come for this trek and complete it,I took it with a pinch of salt given that he might be just promoting it,however by that time I was so much involved in this idea ,that I didn't pay any heed to any doubts I might have had and agreed. I did the registration to the trek along with my friends,booked the tickets for onward journey and return and started waiting for the month of December !
It was 23rd December ,my train left on 24th Dec from Hyderabad to Delhi,(I had booked train tickets for Delhi and flight tickets to return factoring in the budget and schedule),I had some unfinished office work that I wanted to complete before I left so I was totally lost in my computer whole day trying to finish off the work,while part of my mind kept nagging me did you pack all your stuff,did you take print out of the tickets,did you take money from ATM,I said shut up will do those by tomorrow,today I want to finish this.I tried however couldn't finish it that day,so I left for the day and went home. At home I Packed all of my clothes ,jackets,caps,shoes,gloves, etc everything that was recommended in the trekking brochure and for some of which I had done shopping few days ago like my wildcraft shoes tailor made for trekking ! . Next day i,e 24th Dec ,I went to office in morning,thinking of trying to finish off as much I could and then handover the rest to the team,I was fully focused on work and by afternoon to much of my surprise I could complete it ,I tested it on the servers and it worked like a charm,by this time it was 2:30 Pm already and I realized I had skipped my lunch,work was still not over ,I had to document all of the work and results and mail it to the team . I took some snacks ,got back to work,finished documentation of the work,how it met the objectives,how to use it,and what are the test results and mailed it over to the team and handed it over to my lead over a call. I looked at the clock it was 4:30 pm already and my train left somewhere around 7:00 pm.I quickly printed the tickets ,rushed out of office,and started looking for Ola cabs to take me home.
Next day I called my friend in Delhi,and suggested this idea about a beginner level Himalayan trek for this new year.He himself being a travel enthusiast,gave a tentative approval instantaneously,while we make the plan and confirm the schedule.So in the days to follow ,I submitted the leave request which got approved,then did research on various trekking destinations ,and after few discussions we decided on Kheerganga trek which looked majestic and apparently not very tough.I talked to the organizer asking him specifically that I am not used to these adventures ,so will i be able to complete it,He said surely if you show determination and with our help you can complete it ,moreover its not a very difficult trek ,every year newbies come for this trek and complete it,I took it with a pinch of salt given that he might be just promoting it,however by that time I was so much involved in this idea ,that I didn't pay any heed to any doubts I might have had and agreed. I did the registration to the trek along with my friends,booked the tickets for onward journey and return and started waiting for the month of December !
It was 23rd December ,my train left on 24th Dec from Hyderabad to Delhi,(I had booked train tickets for Delhi and flight tickets to return factoring in the budget and schedule),I had some unfinished office work that I wanted to complete before I left so I was totally lost in my computer whole day trying to finish off the work,while part of my mind kept nagging me did you pack all your stuff,did you take print out of the tickets,did you take money from ATM,I said shut up will do those by tomorrow,today I want to finish this.I tried however couldn't finish it that day,so I left for the day and went home. At home I Packed all of my clothes ,jackets,caps,shoes,gloves, etc everything that was recommended in the trekking brochure and for some of which I had done shopping few days ago like my wildcraft shoes tailor made for trekking ! . Next day i,e 24th Dec ,I went to office in morning,thinking of trying to finish off as much I could and then handover the rest to the team,I was fully focused on work and by afternoon to much of my surprise I could complete it ,I tested it on the servers and it worked like a charm,by this time it was 2:30 Pm already and I realized I had skipped my lunch,work was still not over ,I had to document all of the work and results and mail it to the team . I took some snacks ,got back to work,finished documentation of the work,how it met the objectives,how to use it,and what are the test results and mailed it over to the team and handed it over to my lead over a call. I looked at the clock it was 4:30 pm already and my train left somewhere around 7:00 pm.I quickly printed the tickets ,rushed out of office,and started looking for Ola cabs to take me home.
After 15 20 mins of trying for booking the cab,I gave up and booked a local auto ,bargained with him about the fare for booking upto the railway station with one stop at my house for me to take my packed bags for the journey.post an agreement on the fare,the autowala started the engine and accelerated to a good speed as i kept pressuring him "thoda fast chalao " i have a train. I stopped at home took my bags and after few mins was back in auto enroute to the station ,it was 5:40 pm already ! . I had around 90 mins to reach station ,auto was running on top speed amidst all the traffic ,I had around 20 kms to cover ,was possible however there was no scope for complacency . so I kept nagging the autowala to speed up,and amidst him getting irritated due to the same,pressure moments when the signal didnt turn green or a car infront of us didnt move swiftly ,people blocking the road at times,I finally reached station at around 6:45 pm. I made the payment,rushed to the station,to my coach and boarded the train just in time !.After few mins ,train departed from station as i put my mind to rest until I reach Delhi !
After 24 hours of train journey I reached Delhi and went to my friends house. we stayed in Delhi for few days and during the stay we had lots of discussions filled with laughter over food and also roamed around nearby places.And then on scheduled day we boarded the bus from Delhi to Manali,Himachal Pradesh.
The bus journey itself was quite an experience ,it started from chilly nights of delhi ,and overnight it transformed into a journey in the laps of heavenly Himalyas ,when i opened my eyes in the morning ,I could see nothing but mountains all around me and the well paved roads ahead on which the bus was travelling ,we had reached Himachal Pradesh and we were in Mandi .The bus stopped there for a while, few people had lit up bon fire to escape from the unbearable chilliness in the morning ,we got off the bus ,took some comfort in the warmth of the bonfire and few sips of tea while admiring the sereneness of nature all around us .
The driver signalled and we all went back to our seats as we steered forward on the journey.
We reached manali by afternoon , stayed there for a day visited as many places as we could and then next day we left for barshaini where our trekking was scheduled to begin.
As I reached barshaini and was standing in front of the daunting mountains a sense of chill ran down my spine as I came to terms with the fact that I have to reach the top of these mountains. Our guide described the path and destination with lot of enthusiasm while all I could think was the risks and different ways I could plummet down to death off an edge of these mountains .
I asked my friends should we get some sticks and probably a torch and a knife etc in case if required during navigation,they said we are not climbing Everest,and they were novices like me and didnt entertain that thought. Meanwhile the guide shouted "all ready ?" We shouted yesssssss.
I quickly fastened my shoe laces like 10 times just to be sure that I dont die with stupidity.
I said to myself "I can do it" and we started the trek .before we actually begin ascent we had to cross a low lying area which required us descending on broken stone made stairs and then ascend again to reach on the other side .This much of excercise itself left me gasping for breath and exhausted not me but my spirit.the guide explained the next 12 kms of journey lying ahead of us that would take us to the top. I thought to myself I can't do it it seems,if 1 km has done this to me I certainly cant survive another 12 kms of difficult terrain in ascent . I told to the guide I am having second thoughts about the trip probably I should return from here ,"
he said "dekh lijiye aap upar oxygen ki bhi kami hoti hai to dikkat badh jaayegi" he almost convinced me to not go contrary to what his job was .I decided and conveyed the same to my friends ,they were furious and disappointed ,however i was sure that i dont want to attempt this and get in trouble so my friends finally gave up convincing me and agreed to my decision. We had drinks and I exchanged the various things of the trek with them and I saw them go as i sat dejected on a boulder feeling like a loser to an extent that it felt like mountains around me are laughing at me.
As I sat there an old lady from the tea stall near me asked me "chai ?" I nodded.
as I was drinking the tea she asked me if everything is fine with me in langauge which was partly hindi and partly some local language.
I explained ,I wanted to go for trekking then I got tired and gave up the idea.
She told me "rudranag tak aap chale jaao,waha tak rasta thik hi,uske bad man na ho to laut jana" .rudranag was halfway down the road ,I thought it made sense ,if i get to there and if i get tired or unable to find my friends I will come back or else I will continue. However I still asked her " aap to aksar kheerganga jaate honge girne ka dar to nhi hota ?"
She replied "thoda dar to rehta hi andhere me lekin aap to din din me pahunch jaaoge " .I had all the convincing that I needed, probably what the guide should have done , I put on my backpack and instead of returning I started the journey forwards.
I had travelled for 15-20 mins and the path was not that troublesome ,it would ascend for 100m or so and then a descend and so on ,just needed bit of athleticism at the point of transition ,sometimes a jump ,sometimes walking nice and slow,sometimes even almost a crawl .however it was not as daunting as I had thought at the time I had given up, I was able to tread,the weather was pleasant,I was listening to some songs I had downloaded, surrounded by mountains from everywhere,I was feeling blessed.River parvati flowing down in the valley and the musical sound coming out of it felt so divine almost like a blessing .this feeling of ecstasy didnt last long as once again a spooky feeling came to mind, what if I get lost?, or what if I don't catch up to my friends?what if it gets dark and I fall off an edge .so instead of being lost and enjoying the paradise that I was in ,I decided to focus on the journey ahead .
I had walked for around 45 mins now, had taken calculated guesses when faced with decision of selecting one among multiple paths originating from a crossover point,had even retracted on the paths that seemed wrong after walking for few mins .
As I kept on walking i could spot something that looked like a cafeteria in the distance .I just started walking towards that thinking i could get some refreshments there and then ask for the path towards kheerganga peak and continue from thereon.After few mins of walking I reached quite close to the hut that I had guessed to be cafeteria and yes it was a cafeteria as I could see my friends eating snacks there .my happiness didnt know bounds when I was reunited with friends in this wilderness , as I approached closer ,my friend spotted me from distance and started shouting "ye dekho kaun aa rha hi " :D .I went inside and told him with swag "dude humne life me give up karna nhi sikha" ..and we burst into laughter we were so happy that we could walk the trek together as originally planned.I looked at the guide and told him " I am going to the top and you have to be there for me " ,he said humbly " Maine to aapke liye hi kaha tha,waise rasta aage kharab hota hi ,lekin ho jaayega bas aage dariyega mat " .I told to my friends " abe ye kahe ka guide hi humesha demotivate hi karta hi " .to this guide replied with positivity for the first time "ho jaayega sir ,aaram se chalte rhiye" .I took some tea and breakfast , while I was awestruck by the beautiful scenery all around me ,the majestic mountains ,the river parvati flowing joyfully ,the bright sunshine, green dense forest and a soothing breeze in the shade of cafeteria. It was nearly the definition of paradise. As inertia made me motionless for a while ,I finally stood up and got ready for the trek.the guide had left by then and friends had started shouting "rahul chal late ho rha hi ".I waved them and joined them for the journey ahead.
We started treading with confidence sharing jokes and laughter ,the terrain was such that it felt like we were riding some waves through the crests and the troughs and as more and more time went by the ascent for the crests became difficult. So after having walked for an hour ,while taking momentary rests on the boulders and getting back up again on feet ,walking around the narrow edges while overlooking the steep fall on the side ,and knowing that the worst part is still not here,we reached a place where streams of water was flowing from the mountain there was a bridge over
over the stream and beyond that what appeared a temple as few people started shouting "Rudranag" "Rudranag" .we played with the stream water for a while ,took some photographs on the bridge and then as we arrived near the temple,I knew I had to go in the temple,before that though, I found a resting place on a stone and I just sat there motionless for quite some time.
After I regained my strength and could breathe again ,I got up went to the temple which was a Shiva temple, I stood there in front of lord Shiva in humility ,I sought his blessings for the remainder of the trek . We then had some snacks while we shared some lite moments and we were celebrating the fact that we have completed the half of the trek while at the same time aware of the fact that it's the later half that has been said to be more difficult right from the beginning.
As we got ready to resume the trek,I looked ahead on the path,there was another bridge over the river stream which further lead to an ever rising steep terrain which finally ended near an almost vertical cliff. I saw that people were barely able to cross that cliff. It had stairs made of stones buried in the mountain clay ,it started out with an inclination and became upright towards the end .to accompany us further there was fall all along the path on the left side and there were thin streams of water coming out of mountains from the right making the path slippery.
I was scared again , however I couldn't have returned from here .I made things simpler for me, all I have to do is not focus on the fall on the left side ,make sure that I have a nice grip with my every step and while on the cliff I have to watch for my balance so that I just don't roll off and get injured. This was the plan and I had Shiva 's blessings, so I went for it along with my friends.
We took some photos while at the bridge, and we started the trek from there,we went up on the continuosly rising terrain, while we avoided few slips in the water which could have led us to an edge and made us fall,and finally we stood near the vertical cliff .It had stairs so it wasn't a regular cliff however the path was quite vertical .I took off the mud from my shoes so that they are not slippery while I rested for a while.
I said to myself alright here we go, I started climbing the cliff one stair at a time few initial steps were quite easy and all of a sudden I was in middle from where paths going down and up appeared equally scary .I started crawling considering it the safer option at this point ,slowly moving upwards and with a final push at the top I was on the other side of it .my friends were there before me already.
They looked exhausted just like me and we all had just one question at that time ,
From which angle is this a beginner level trek ? .we all had our hearts in mouths at various points in the trek and this definitely looked scarier than what a beginner should have attempted.As we geared up for the journey I asked my friend " abe upar to aagye ,utarenge kaise ? " we started laughing as we continued moving further.
I dusted off and continued treading on the path ,now as I took few steps further I could feel the fatigue getting to me .we had travelled for around 6 kms on quite a difficult terrain and instead of feeling blissful in the mountains I had started feeling mountain sickness if that's a term.
My fatigue stopped me on the path,As I drank few sips of water I found comfort in reciting a line from Robert Frost's poem "Woods are lovely dark and deep ,but I have promises to keep and miles to go before I sleep" ,while a part of me laughed at myself for dramatizing the situation :D ,another part felt motivated and so I started walking again.
As we kept on moving we found numerous streams of water coming out of mountains making the path muddy and slippery we treaded carefully through these and the terrain had become more steep now ,the path was an incline at 45 degrees for most part of it . Sometimes I would be walking towards a peak of the path rise beyond which I couldn't see,hoping the path would descend from there on,only to find out to my dismay that there is level road for around 50 to 100ms and then never ending rise again from thereon.the non stop rise was really testing us but we kept pushing one step at a time and we finally arrived at another cafeteria,where we could have some snacks and rest for a while.
I went off the trail and ran towards the cafeteria and took a chair as I breathed a sigh of relief. As my friends approached me I looked towards them and ordered one Maggie,chilled water and tea to be served later.
As I sat and looked around, I saw that ,we had reached quite some height,the peaks were appearing closer,the sound from the river in valley had almost disappeared,the continuous rise for last 1 hours had made us gain quite some height it seems. Time was around 2:30 PM,I thought the peak is near ,someone was discussing 4-4.5 kms more to go ,I thought to myself 4 hours more considering we are slowing down as time passed. We had Maggie,we cracked some jokes and even shared who is going to carry whom if one of us needed it.we spent around 20 mins there,gained a bit of breath and energy and while legs didnt want to move at all,I requested them to endure for some time more.
We started walking once again,the path had not given up and was still rising and after another half n hour or so I could barely walk ,I stopped at few places and stood motionless and then tried to walk again. I still kept on walking,taking small steps,I was slowing down my friends also,they told me dude can't stop now have to keep walking .I nodded and kept on pushing until I started developing cramps in my leg.I felt an excruciating pain in my lower leg ,I could barely stand let alone walk.I stood taking support of the mountain overlooking the steep fall in front of me having momentarily lost any ability to walk. My friends came towards me and held me as I stood trying to overcome the pain ,I sat down slowly leaning back against the mountain wall.
I told to my friends,I need to sit here for sometime I cant stand or walk until the pain subsides. They said its okay take your time we are here.my movie influenced mind made me feel like some warrior who has fought so much and is now dying hoplessly,I then looked around and imagined what it would be to get stuck here in night,I might fall asleep,roll down towards death,or the cold will get to me or perhaps some wild animal out of the dense forests around me will get me ,so I knew despite all pain I had to walk. We had waited for 10 mins ,it was around 4 PM,one of the friends told "chal yaar nhi to phas jaayenge yha",I said yup let's go,I stood up grabbing the hand of my friend .I started walking slowly so that I didn't exert too much pressure ,and it was just 15 miuntues more that I started feeling another cramp this time on the other leg ,I tried to ignore it and keep walking and in that effort became unbalanced and almost fell of the edge as I somehow avoided it.So I had to stop again . Now I was really scared ,Can't walk ,I will be stuck here,don't know if the guide will come to rescue me,will i die ? I was really nervous because i wasn't used to such exertions especially with death walking side by side in form of deep fall into nothingness .it had become chilly ,snow was frosting on my cap ,so I said to my friends dude you guys can carry on further just wait for me after walking for some distance , while I regain my strength and overcome this pain. I was sitting hopeless thinking probably I should have never come on this "beginners trek" .
My friends waited for me as I stood again after 5 mins ready to walk.I told my friends "yaar mai to ready hu par pair sath nhi de rhe " ,my friends assured me don't worry lets just keep walking .
As I walked ever so slowly I came in front of a tree right in the middle of the track ,leaving very little space on either side of it .I selected the mountain side and slowly carefully pushed myself through it ,I couldn't be reckless as i could have picked an injury or even worst fell down.As I kept on walking for a while unlike my fear the pain from cramps didn't return ,I got reassured that perhaps it's gonna be alright.
As we kept walking the narrow path which took steep turns from time to time,sometimes from a distance it felt as if there is no path beyond the turn,as we approached nearer we could see the path turning 90 degrees at the point of turn , and we walked alongside it very carefully.As I walked ,at times i would look down the edge and it was so high that we could only see the tree branches coming off the sides of the mountains and thin air beyond that.I made myself understand there is no point getting scared of height as whether you fall from 100ms or 1 km the result was same .so better to focus on the journey ahead,however from time to time the height was still scaring me as I kept fighting the fear and kept on moving.
As we reached further I asked some of the people returning from the top ,"kitni dur hai " .they said it's near, around 2 kms more.I shouted "dude lets rest for a while its only 2 kms now ."we stopped we all were tired,we took some sips of cold drinks we had and as for me I was fully exhausted.As I stopped, I asked my friends guys cant walk anymore,its too much,another friend told "haa I am tired too bas ek baar himmat karke 2km aur chal lena hi " to which i replied "it's not the walk on the city on comfy roads " its 2 km of disastrous terrain it's still remaining,its not over.we regained our strength and started once again one final time towards the destination .
I was walking very slowly, stopping momentarily left gasping for breath,walking again few steps and again stopping and so on.My friend pointed out "dekho rahul kaise chal rha hi " to which i said "ab ek ghanta late pahuchenge aur kya ",while my friend said "par torch kaha laya hai humne ,andhere me gir gye toh?" To which I said "point to hai lekin agar jaldi chala to waise bhi girunga" .we were in trouble,as sun was returning home,it had started getting dusky it was around 5 PM.I thought around 2 kms more and 1.5 hours before sunset ,at current speed it looks like I will take much more than that,probably I would stop and wait for rescue or a torch if it gets too dark .
We were walking so slowly and a bit frightened as the darkness was looming near. It had become much more chilly as well. We were just walking as much we could however I was slowing down my friends and they didn'want to leave me alone in this wilderness.
As we kept on walking a very enthusiastic traveler,approached us while walking behind us,he shouted " to kaisa chal rha trek maja aa rha hai? " , we said yeah trying to reach however we are very tired and among us rahul is hardly able to walk .he replied at once "Aap sticks leke nhi chale the ? Aur torch wagairah" ,he continued and facing towards me he said "aap ye stick le lo ,aapko chalne me aaram hoga " I said "and you?" He said " I dont need as I am used to these mountains" .He said to me dont worry "the stick belongs to religious place of Shiva ,you will be fine " bye bye :) ".saying this he flew past us with amazing speed on the mountains as if walking on plain road.
The moment I started walking with the stick it all became very simple ,all the pressure was on the sticks and my legs were relaxed. I started walking swiftly with my friends as we reached very near to the top ,after some time of continuous walk ,we heard someone shout "aa gya kheerganga" we were near less than a km far.it was 5:45 PM and we were on time. The sun had set however it was still 45 mins before it would be dark .we kept on walking swiftly me almost swinging on the sticks at times,there is batman,spiderman and who am I? StickMan :D .There were times though where I had to really use the stick with lot of care or else I could have picked an injury if I slipped.
Aftr sometimes,I started feeling fatigued again,and at that very moment I saw tht there is this path rising upwards and where it finished I saw people and tents.My happines didnt know bounds I was hardly 400 ms away and I shouted "Kheerganga yuhu" I made it .it had become dark however I had no fear as the path was clear in front of me . In another 15 mins I crossed the remaining distance and reached the peak Kheerganga.
I was quite tired I put down my bag and went toward a very well lit bonfire,took a chair and just put myself at ease.I looked up , stars were shining brighter than usual ,I could see the dense trees on mountains all around me,and I was feeling satisfied and accomplished.
Everyone went on talking for a while ,each narrating funny and some scary experiences from the trek ,after some time the guide shouted "food is ready " ,we went and had dinner ,and after that eyes were ready to be closed ,caring the least about anything else.
We woke up early in the morning went to a Shiva temple, took dip in the sacred kund which was a reservoir ,the source of which was hot water spring .we went to Shiva Temple ,I thanked God for bringing me up in one piece and asked his blessings for the journey downwards. After sometime We had breakfast and we started the descend .
During the descent I was bit afraid as gravity pulled you downwards and it was difficult to maintain grip at times,however we treaded carefully and we were down in about5 hours compared to 9 hours that it took during the ascend .
I was finally out of the mountains having completed 24 kms of walking on the terrain .I had got tired from within. If I sat anywhere without any activity I would doze off ,.few days later I was in Delhi getting ready for my flight,and the moment I boarded flight I dozed off again until landing. The fatigue lasted for around 10 days or more after trek , and it took me 1 week more to start feeling my usual self .
The trek was over and I was left with some great memories that I could never forget.
I attempted few more "simple" treks in uttarakhand in subsequent years ,however more on that later.The mountains had made a mark on me and had left me wanting for more,if fate permits I would be trekking few more mountains in future and not necessarily in India . Until then have a good time and thanks for joining me on my journey!
