"I will lift mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my strength"I first read Psalm 121 not in the Bible, but in a description about the Valley of Flowers. These words are inscribed on the tombstone of Miss Margarate Legge, a botanist who lost her life while documenting the flaura and fauna of this beautiful valley in Uttaranchal. For about four years the desire to visit this 'valley of fairies and little people' remained in my Bucket List, till I finally made it this August. For me, it was finally time to lift my eyes unto the hills and ask for strength.
Unlike many of my other treks, plans were made in detail, maps were drawn, itinerary was prepared and tickets were booked in advance. We were a group of five, reduced from an initial seven, as two unfortunate souls had to drop off at the last minute due to professional commitments. This post will be sorely incomplete without a few words on the 'Famous Five'.. real specimens I say. Its always customary to say something good about every one before I let the cat out of the bag in the following posts. So here we go..
Robert "shitpot" Devasia : A man who believes in reverse-epicureanism. Unlike the Epicureans who believes that life is one big meal, Robzz believes that life is better spent on a shitpot. He did not forget to carry the toilet paper roll even when he forgot his glasses.. what if you find a good locale and feel the uncontrollable urge to contribute? Makes sense!!
Disney "wastebasket" Jacob : That's me. I eat anything that is not plastic or paper that many had a suspicion that I am pig's soul trapped inside a human body. Carelessness is like my twin brother. As I do not believe in self adulation and derive more pleasure from bashing the people around me, I want to say nothing more.
Jayan "oil-less" KK : A person who is so allergic to oil that he will ask for oil-less pooris at hotels. Heard that the Arabs have even announced a reward on his head for his hatred towards oil. Nothing makes him happy like a bowl of curd that he has wowed to take a cow with him on our next trip to Gangharia!!
Yuvaraj "starving" Jayakumar : The only man to survive a famine on Earth. When the rest of us gobbled up three over sized aaloo parathas for breakfast alone, he managed with two and half for the entire day. Remember that this was after walking an average of 15 Kms a day. If starving becomes a competition item at Olympics ever, I am sure India will get the Gold, even with strong competition from Somalia.
Subbu "mythology-kumar" H : A walking encyclopedia on mythology and religious rituals, he knew even the color of the sari Draupadi wore on her Swargarohan yaatra. Jokes apart, he is a person who understands what he does when he walks into a place of worship.. he don't go there to compare clothing like many of us do. Did you know that its your and my grand parents who control heaven for 6 months a year..? I told you!!
With the team in place, our plan was to travel to Uttaranchal on a 9 days trip, and trek to the Valley of Flowers (an 85 sq. km. protected land which is the home of many exotic flowers - 3250m), Hemkund (a glacier lake and also a pilgrim center for the Sikhs - 4329m), Auli (A skiing resort with India' longest cable car) and Vasudhara falls (a waterfall beyond Mana, the last Indian village before the Chinese border - 3500m). The itinerary looked like this:7-Aug-09 Delhi >> Rishikesh
8-Aug-09 Rishikesh >> Joshimath
9-Aug-09 Joshimat >> Ghangria
10-Aug-09 Ghangria >> Valley of Flowers
11-Aug-09 Ghangria >> Hemkund
12-Aug-09 Ghangria >> Joshimath >> Auli
13-Aug-09 Joshimath >> Badrinath >> Vasudhara Falls
14-Aug-09 Badrinath >> Rishikesh
14-Aug-09 Rishikesh >> Delhi
15-Aug-09 Buffer Day
16-Aug-09 Delhi >> Banglore
17-Aug-09 Reach Bangalore
I was always attracted and amazed by the grandeur and majesty of mountains, but nothing prepared me for the onslaught, as I stood awestruck before the great Himalayas. Walking 85 kilometers in 5 days at altitudes of 3,000 - 4,000 meters proved really taxing on the body.. but the experience and content more than enough compensated for all the fatigue.
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Day 0 : Valley Trek - Team & Itinerary
Day 1 : Bangalore to Rudraprayag
Day 2 : Rudraprayag to Ghangaria
Day 3 : The Valley of Flowers
Day 4 : Hemkund Lake
Day 5 : Auli
Day 6 : Badrinath, Mana & Vasudhara Falls
Day 7,8,9,10 : Haridwar, Delhi & back to Bangalore
1 comment:
Awesome dude! You guys have had something beyond fun
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