Buran Ghati - The Best Natural Slide One Can Find

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There are things which you lust for from a long time and plan meticulously and then there are those which just happen by chance. My trek to Buran Ghati was due to the latter reason. Ankur, Bhavesh, Rahul and I had booked for KGL trek in July and decided that we ought to do one in May too since our vacations would refresh in July anyway. So we booked Rupin pass initially after seeing the glowing reviews from a number of trekkers. But then all of a sudden a lot more people were interested in joining us and since there were no more slots for the Rupin pass batch, we decided to shift our trek to Buran Ghati which seemed good. My first thoughts were that Indiahikes were just trying to publicize it to lure folks there but I was totally wrong (My apologies for that thought Indiahikes 😊 ). Finally with our friends, friends' friends, friends' friends' friends registering for the batch, we were 11 in number (First Aakriti and Ankit decided they were also interested along with Sidhi and her friends - Shubha and Shatha. Then Purva after a lot of deliberation decided she was also interested. Sravanth and Rashi who had registered decided to skip. In all this, Ankur H, Bhavesh, Rahul and his wife, Saumya and I were constant. I guess this simple complication occurs in all groups). We also booked our flights and hotels with all the optimizations with respect to price, quality and distance applied. As the day of the trek grew closer, we did our best to be fit for the trek considering that this was a moderate-difficult trek.

I was pretty excited to again get a chance to use my rucksack after a space of an year. The mountains are an addiction once you start and you long to go back again and again when possible. If only we got more vacations and less workload :P. With all the basic items packed, I added a few extra items for experimentation to my camera gear. I had bought a new Sigma 10-20 mm ultra wide angle lens for landscapes and photographing the night sky. For both my lenses, I had also got a few filters for better long exposure shots with the sun up. Armed with all the gear and enthusiasm, a few of us started out to Chandigarh which was where our flight was to on 15th June. In Chandigarh, we met with Bhavesh's mother and sister at the bus stand. They had got delicious lunch with them which we ate in one of the restaurants in the bus stand itself. The restaurant had a hard time accommodating us with all of our huge backpacks which took up most of the space near the counter. Thankfully they obliged and we enjoyed a delightfully heavy lunch. Though the initial plan had been that we would enjoy our time at a lake, the weather made sure that we look for cooler (preferably with AC) options. It was unbearably hot outside and so, we visited the 2nd best place in things to do in Chandigarh on TripAdvisor, Elante mall. Never did I expect a mall to be in the top places to visit in any city (unless it was the Marina Bay Sands or so). The concierge service there had the shock of their lives seeing 7 folks with 4 ft tall trekking backpacks. We explored the mall, had snacks at McDonalds in the evening and decided that it was time to head to Kalka where our hotel booking was for the night. Before that we took a few photos in front of a sign "I love Chandigarh" since Bhavesh's mom was commanding everyone into position with great zeal. We took cabs to the bus station where we dropped off Bhavesh's mother and sister and then boarded a bus to Kalka. It was 8 pm by the time we reached our hotel, Park Inn. Quickly all of us assembled at the restaurant and had our dinner while watching a pretty underwhelming Champion's trophy match of India. With our alarm set to 4 am to catch the Kalka Toy Train in the morning, we called it a day.

The toy train was an adorable locomotive with a very simple interior. Each coach could accommodate about 20-25 people and had seats which one could arrange to face in two directions. We had two seats in a different coach but that got resolved easily when a family wanted room for two in that. The train was so fast that we thought Ankur could run to Shimla come back and go again to Shimla by the time this reached. But he said he declined the challenge saying it was too easy for him. The views were well below our expectations and most of us even slept for some time. All of us were relieved when we reached the Shimla station. The plan was to walk to Hotel White since there was a lot of time to kill and the hotel was not too far off. Google maps led us through quite a few small unknown gullies before we reached the main road which led to the hotel. At that point, it started raining heavily and we had to take shelter below a shop. Then one by one we slowly started moving towards the hotel in the rain itself since it had subsided. The hotel was white in colour as the name said (Hotel White) and had pretty good rooms. Sidhi cheated Ankur and me out of a room with beautiful view but we let it slide with us being the morally superior and non-fussy folk. Till the evening, we played a few card games before Aakriti, Ankit, Shubha and Shatha too joined us at the hotel. Later, everyone went out for a walk to explore Shimla. The famous Christ Church of Shimla had a beautiful glow with the lights on. As we proceeded further, the photography sessions started where Bhavesh was clicking pics at the speed of light (a bit less maybe since we know science gets a bit weird at the speed of light) while Purva threw poses at the speed of sound. The ones clicked as a result of the difference in speed were deemed useless along with more than 90% of the rest (its extremely difficult to get the poses, lighting, timing, expressions, background, foreground etc right). All the streets were very crowded since it was the start of the main tourist season. For dinner, none of us were able to come to a consensus on what to eat. This led to random folks eating what they wanted at random places. Everyone returned to the hotel before 10 pm which was the closing time of everything in Shimla.

The decision was made to warm up for the trek 12 hours later in the day by walking to the taxi stand where we were supposed to be picked up. We would be transported to Janglik where the first campsite was located. The walk was totally in contrast with the one the previous day with all the roads being completely devoid of any signs of life. By the time we reached the old bus stand, the transport was ready. There were 3 cabs for 20 odd people and 8 of us fit into one cab. Kushal and Pranay were among the 8 in the cab while the other 6 were from our group of 11. It was a pretty long journey to reach Janglik (8 - 10 hrs). During that time, we played a few games, had lunch and snacks in between and slept a lot. One of the notable games we played was giving the other team the name of a bollywood movie in which any actor of the previous movie was present. The final aim transformed into all of us trying to get a movie whose actor Purva or Aakriti were not aware of (If you want an encyclopedia of bollywood movies, they are it). Also, since they were dead against antakshari for some reason we did not end up playing that. The most notable feature of this journey though was buttermilk. What's so special about that you ask ? For lunch, after finally finding a place which served buttermilk (one of my favourite menu item which I had been craving for the last 2 days), I was excited and ordered it. Unfortunately the restaurant took about an hour to serve the same. By the time they served it, rest of the cab folks had finished their lunch (we came 5-10 minutes prior to other folks). We kept thinking if the guy was actually getting the milk, making the curd and getting it. But man was I in for a surprise. He actually seemed to have made butter from the curd and literally given me sweet milk with butter filled at the top. You might have heard of taking things too literally and this was the pinnacle of that.

The cabs reached the end point at around 4 or 5 pm after which we had to trek to reach our stay. It was a pretty steep climb and Rahul at once decided that he would offload his backpack post that. The environment was beautiful with greenery and hills all over. We had to stay in a wooden lodge like construction. The guys got 2 rooms and the girls got a room at the first floor. Snacks and tea was served when we reached and then by 7 pm, we had our medical checkup where our blood pressure and oximeter reading was checked. We then got our first speech from our trek lead, Sandeep. As always he scared the hell out of new trekkers with the description on medical conditions - AMS, HAPE and HACE ( kidding 😊 I frankly feel its very important to share this at the level of detail Indiahikes does to ensure that trekkers do not take it lightly and let the trek lead know of any symptoms). His team explained the importance of oximeter readings and how it would vary at altitudes (Oxymeter is a device which measures oxygen saturation and thus, helps figure out the possible symptoms of any of the high altitude issues). He also gave us all the details as to what to expect, how to behave during the trek and the itinerary. It was time for dinner by then and everyone got a glimpse of what to expect from the famed Indiahikes affiliated cooks in the days to come. We would go on to have phulkas, one curry (varying daily), rice, dal and a dessert (gulab jamun, jalebi, carrot halwa etc) daily for dinner. That night, I also got a glimpse of the milky way partially hidden behind the mountains. Though cloudy, my hopes went up as I expected at least one night of the 6 nights to be clear. As an added bonus the timing was perfect since it was just around the new moon time and hence, the moon's brightness would not affect the clarity of stars. I also met Pulak (the budding orthopedic surgeon) and Kushagra (the youngest of our group pursuing engineering at Manipal) at that time who too were trying to capture the night sky. After washing our cups and plates, we got back to our dorm to sleep. Unfortunately, our room had two very loud snorers. That combined with good sleep in the afternoon, probably kept me awake till 1 am or so. I even checked with Sandeep once after getting frustrated at not being able to sleep. Fortunately, I somehow dozed off at around 1:30 am or so after trying out a lot of solutions such as playing music, reading a kindle book etc.

With a quick breakfast and pep talk by Sandeep on how to use trek poles and the itinerary for the day, we set out on our journey to Buran Pass. Eccentric Negi ji at the front and calm headed Rajesh ji were the assigned guides for our group. The trail was initially a hilly one through the village. Most of the residents there were surprised seeing so many people and came out to see us since this is a new trail where not many trekkers pass. Slowly we transitioned into the hilly meadows with short green grass throughout spread out to us like a carpet. Through the trail I also got to know more folks including Ankur, Kriti (alias Kirti) and Kelkar the man. Kelkar and Kriti were from Mumbai and Ankur was from Delhi. On the way we crossed a few streams and some very beautiful scenic locations. I had not expected the views to be so scenic on the first day itself. The weather was sunny and everyone made sure that they were protected by spf 40+ sunscreen. As we moved ahead, we passed a number of streams and a pine forest. Suddenly, the trail led us onto a vast beautiful field which was the meadows of Daraya. There were green hills to the left and tall snow patched mountains to the right. That was where our campsite was located too. As we unloaded our backpacks, Sandeep asked us to start stretching to ensure that we do not get cramped. He started showing off his flexibility especially with an exercise where you had to bend back and touch the your leg using the opposite hand - something like a ultra flexible SRK pose converted to an exercise. There was a shoulder and back massage session too. With everyone completely stretched in all directions, we had our oxymeter readings checked followed by lunch. Sandeep told us that we get Airtel signal on a hill which was about 300 m or so from our camp. Few of us set out there since it was also a good way to acclimatize ourselves climbing higher and it offered an amazing panoramic view of the whole place. A huge rock formed our view point which offered a 360 degree view of the green hills and the mountains. Airtel signal was flaky and Bhavesh and Purva even ran up with enthusiasm to try and find better spots for calling. After spending some time there, we returned back to our camp and decided to play some games. With a beautiful weather and scenery around us, we sat on the lush green grass outside our camp. As a lot of folks did not know mafia, it took some time to educate everyone about it. We got to know more about our honeymoon couple from Russia, Alex and Tanya (who "incidentally" already knew Mafia). She even caught her husband as part of mafia group in one of the games. It took some more time for everyone to get the hang of it and by then it was time for snacks. Few of us then ventured out to enjoy the golden hour of the sunset. By dinner time, the cooks informed us that India were about to lose the Champions trophy finals in a very shameful manner which made us feel good that we missed it. As I finished dinner and came out hoping for a clear sky, I was disappointed to see clouds covering the stars. That wouldn't be the night for my first long exposure shot of the sky.

Clouds covering a white snow capped peak with the sun trying to break through the clouds with its rays filtering through them and a damp green ground with the fog just starting to clear. That's the scenery I got up looking at. As I got ready for breakfast, a cow started grazing in the field with the same background as before giving me a spectacular shot. With the sleeping bags rolled, the group was ready for a relatively easy day of trekking. We were gaining just about 750 ft and reaching Litham, our next campsite. There were a few streams on the way and a continuous view of the snow capped peaks of the Dhauladhar range and Gunas pass. The weather was pretty good initially and we even had a long photo session at one of our resting sites. But as we started nearing the camp, it started raining lightly. Just near the camp, there was a perennial stream which we were supposed to cross. We had to walk up a hill to a point where there was a hard ice passing over the stream since it was dangerous to cross the stream due to its force. Just beyond the hard ice patch was our camp and the camp sure was unique. It was located just beside a stream and surrounded by mountains. It started raining heavily as we reached the camp which prompted us to quickly pitch our tents. After lunch, we again resorted back to games which included a number game (you clap for every multiple of 3 or any number with 3 in it while reciting the rest) and mafia again. Mafia was more fun this time with a larger set of people playing with us. There were some very interesting games with Kriti playing a very cunning game in one to lead the Mafia to victory. In another game Kushagra being a detective spoke only to Pulak who was part of the Mafia in making decisions and got screwed. I had almost fooled people into believing that I was a detective in another but unfortunately Akanksha being new made a small error which gave us away as mafia. It was great fun and after a while it was time to come out of the tents. As the weather cleared, Negi ji brought us some spring onion leaves to try out leaving everyone who tried it out in tears (no one initially knew what it was). As the folks were deciding how to spend the evening, a few of the cooks got a bat made out of wood to play cricket. Who doesn't like a game of cricket at 12000 ft with green grass all around 😊 ? Joining hands with another trek group, a high altitude cricket match was arranged with about 20 folks participating in it. While most of us were breathing heavily by just running doubles or bowling an over, Sandeep and the trek organizing team were prancing around as though oxygen was overrated. All of us contributed in a nail biting contest and even though the other team tried to cheat their way to a win, we finally emerged victorious. Rahul was our star bowler which Negi ji could not fathom after picking on him daily for being slow during the trek. Soumya was our most enthusiastic cheerleader with great vocal support. As the sun went below the mountains, we had our dinner discussing the day's activities. As I came out to wash my plate, I was overjoyed to see the sparkling stars in the sky with no cloud in sight. Though I had read a few articles on how to capture the night sky, I initially struggled to focus the sky. Ankit helped me out with that and we got some good shots. I, Kushal, Pulak and Kushagra tried out light painting too with Pulak struggling to spell his name backwards. By then, Sandeep wanted us to go to bed. We were on a high and wanted to capture more shots but had to finally give in as he started emotionally blackmailing us saying none of us listen to him and so on.

The itinerary for the next day was an excursion to Chandranahan lake and back to the same campsite. Chandranahan was supposed to be the fifth lake among a set of 7 lakes in that region. The sixth was supposed to be further up and difficult to reach while the seventh had supposedly vanished some years ago and no one had seen it of late. Though it was easier without any trekking bag that day, the route wasn't that easy. After crossing the hard ice patch over the stream, we had to climb a steep slope of about 60-70 degrees which forced us on our fours. I and Ankur then raced our way ahead slowly but steadily climbing up the mountain where the lake was present. The best way to be fast in the mountains is not to run but keep your pace without taking too many breaks. Once you form a rhythm it just takes you ahead. As we reached the flat at the top, we spent time there enjoying the view and the strong wind. Negi ji forced camera shy Sidhi to pose by giving her his cap with a flower on it. The final lake was about another hour ahead with us intercepting the rest of the lakes. Each of them grew in size and were grander than the previous one. The final path to Chandranahan was a completely rocky terrain and as we moved ahead, it slowly started to rain. Sandeep kept a water dip hungry Kushal out of the lake with his threats though he let her go near the lake and drink some water from it. Sandeep and our guides along with Pulak and a few others performed a puja at the Chandranahan lake since it is considered religious. Shubha on the other hand decided to reach the other side of the lake after spotting a pretty setting of the lake with a vast flower bed. After a long enjoyable rest, we started back to Litham. The walk back was more tough because of the rain. The stones were wet and slippery and folks were finding it difficult with the trek poles also slipping on the rocks. I personally hate carrying the trek pole on rocks and had thankfully not carried it that day. After the first lake at the flat of the mountain, Sandeep took a few of us to a view point of the waterfall. It was breathtaking to see the rush of the waterfall so close. The descent was more grueling but after a few slips and falls, everyone made it down fine and back to the camp. The DGP of police of that area had come for a trek there and joined us at the camp. He was very excited to play cricket and thus, started another session. The first match was a disaster where our team got knocked out for 1 run against the 20 runs the other team had made. With renewed vigour we won the next match to settle the score. Post that most of us stopped playing but Sandeep and Pulak wanted to stop with a win of series. They started reducing the over to such an extent that at the end 2 over matches were being played. With series win out of question after a few horrible matches, finally they stopped when they won a match through sheer luck. By then they had played at least 10-15 matches on the trot and lost at least three-fourths of them. Everyone else had fun teasing them throughout the set of matches. Just before dinner we had a small session of dance where Ankur and Sidhi showed off their salsa skills and Negi gi his vocal skills with a folk song. That night I decided to off load my backpack since I was finding it difficult to balance that and my camera which itself was 3-4 kgs and put the weight on one part of my shoulder.

The hardest day was on its way as it started drizzling from almost the start of our trek. That also was my worst day since I almost fell into a stream thanks to a loose stone while crossing. Though I did not fall in completely, both my legs went in till my knee resulting in squishy shoes. No amount of squeezing the water helped since it was raining and the conditions were damp. Though I was initially scared as to what would happen on trekking with a wet shoe, Sandeep assured me that it was fine to do so. As we moved ahead, the rain became worse and almost everyone's shoes were wet by the time we crossed our second stream. Our next uphill task was right ahead of us and quite literally we had to go up a hill of about 60 degrees. With it raining cats and dogs and the mule path being extremely muddy and slippery, it wasn't an easy climb. But as they say "when the going gets tough, the tough gets going" and everyone braved it up with desperation to reach the tents. For a while, Kelkar, Kriti and Sandeep were stuck below as the visibility had reduced considerably due to the heavy rains. Finally, we reached the Dhunda campsite (13300 ft) and got into the dinner tent, shivering. Ankur Choudhary though showing his true trekker's spirit by helping the cooks set up all the other tents in the crazy rain. When the rain eased a little, we got into our tent where we ate our packed lunch. Kelkar spread all the powder he could gets his hands on everywhere in our tent. By evening we were able to get out a bit and enjoy the scenery. White snow capped peaks surrounded us completely and we could clearly see the Buran pass from our campsite which looked majestic and intimidating. At sunset time, there was a brilliant golden and pink hue above the white mountains. The technical team who were to supervise us for the rappelling portion of our descent the next day gave us the details as to how they would proceed the next day. They were clear on the fact that we would not go up if the rain did not stop before 9 am. The snow would be slippery and it would be risky to cross the pass. We would only pass the pass (pun intended) if the weather was clear. They also told us about the batch which had braved it late post 11 am but had finally reached the camp at 1 am in the night and they did not intend to repeat that at any cost. They gave us the microspikes for better grip on the snow and the harness-belt which would be used for rappelling. Everyone was excited yet worried that it the weather would play spoilsport. With prayers all of us slept that day hoping for some luck to come our way.

"Wow. We can see the Milky way so clearly. Jupiter is looking as big as a football". These were the shouts for which I got up the next day. As I went out, I saw a milky white band and a huge bright dot in the sky. I just stayed there for a while enjoying the view turning around in all directions. It was frustrating since I did not have time to get my camera out and try getting a few shots. As the sky became blue, we set out along with Enosh who had joined us the previous day. He was a solo trekker from Shimla who was carrying everything on his own. The sun had answered our prayers and shone bright on us for the whole of our climb. The climb was challenging and unique thanks to the snow in between. I, Ankur and Bhavesh were going at the pace of technical folks since they wanted a few of us to reach the top early. At a rocky stretch, Bhavesh's gloves slipped and went slightly down the slope while he was removing them. He was about to go and get that without microspikes which I asked him not to since the snow is super slippery and if one skids and starts going down, it would be difficult to stop. In the meanwhile, Ankur had gone ahead following the technical folks. I tried following their footsteps but after a point had to find my own way up. I had removed the microspikes and so mostly took the rocky route. While according to the technical folks, the best time had been 2:30 hrs, I made it in around 2:00 hrs and Ankur about 10-15 minutes earlier. At the top, it was a sight to behold with slides of snow on both sides. We even had Airtel network there and I called my parents to let them know I am at 15000 ft. As we enjoyed our photo sessions rejoicing at our success, we could see the technical folks setting up the rappelling equipment. As I kept seeing them setting it up, if Sandeep had measured my pulse it would surely have been beating at more than 140 beats/min. I was thrilled and scared at the same time looking at the steep descent below. As Negi ji gave us a demo, Ankur H went first, followed by me. The initial few steps as I went down were super scary but as I leaned out and started getting the feel of rappelling, it became much easier. As I reached the platform where we were supposed to start our slide from, my heart was thumping again. I had previously never gotten the hang of sliding on snow and was again worried how I would fare. As I started sliding down, the snow completely splattered over my glasses and I turned around in all kinds of angles in all axes. After that, I stabilized and had to veer sideways twice when I saw small rocks jutting out of the snow. As I slowed to a halt, I felt exhilarated. The thrill, the adrenaline rush and the adventure was what all of us were here for and it sure did not disappoint. Slowly one by one rest of the folks started coming down including our ever shivering zombie (Sidhi) whom we could easily identify from very far. Tanya had bumped over a small stone and had a slight wound though not serious. As only two folks could rappel down at a time, we waited for the rest. Where there is snow, there has to be a snow fight. Thus, started the snowball throws which I escaped most of the time thanks to my camera (though Kriti alias Kirti did try once). Alex and Tanya even built a snow-woman. Throughout the trek, Aakriti, Ankit, Bhavesh and Purva had mostly spent time among themselves with two cameras full of photo sessions. To break them a bit, everyone had made plans to pelt them with snowballs as soon as they came. But as always each one of them waited for the other for more than half an hour and spent another half an hour taking photos near the sliding area itself. As a result, Rahul who was the next person to arrive near us got pelted royally. Even Sandeep who came down last reached us much earlier and again got pelted.

Now everyone was in high spirits and kept going forward at a pretty good pace. Sandeep as always kept showing off sliding off random slopes of snow. To make us more jealous, the porters too were sliding with the heavy bags with such ease. The route was pretty long (not tough) and was supposed to take around 10 hours. We stopped for lunch near a stream where we got some sweets and prasad from Sandeep. After such a bleak day the previous day, everyone was very happy to enjoy the scenery and take their time. The weather stayed for most of the time except for a small drizzle. We reached the river campsite by 1 pm or so which was about 3 hours early. The team there were shocked and had not prepared any welcome drink yet. Sandeep used that time wisely to wash his clothes in the stream. Bhavesh and Purva got so lost in photography that they had almost crossed two hills ahead of us. But thankfully they realized that they had missed the camp and came back. Most of us then spent the time in the dinner tent making small talk. We even got wood for the bonfire at night by going near a forest-like area (We did not cut trees but just picked up fallen ones which were relatively dry). In the evening, we were given our certificates and Ankur C and Rahul received their very deserved spirit of trekking awards. Sandeep warmed our hearts by writing custom praises for each one of us based on his observations behind our certificates. At night we had bonfire and it was a very clear sky. So, this time with a night photography experience of a day, I got much better results in capturing the Milky Way. Bhavesh and Ankit also tried it out and got some great results. Overjoyed with the results, we retired for the night.

Everyone loves souvenirs to remember and show off and Indiahikes have a tshirt just for you to do that. These are custom t-shirts for each trek with the text on it saying "Been there, done that" and "I completed Buran Ghati". Lot of folks collected these the next day from Sandeep by paying him the Tshirt cost. All of us also gave extra tips to the porters and the cooks and the guides who had done a tremendous job in getting us through the trek safely. The way to Barua village was pretty boring. Aakriti had a blister on her foot after all the days of strenuous trek but still managed to trek at a good pace. Uncle for some reason was trying run down to the final point at times even trying to commandeer our guides. We reached the taxi point pretty early and took photos with everyone. 3 cabs then left to Shimla. Akanksha, Ankur H, Alok, Rahul, Saumya, Sandeep and I were in one of the cabs. Post a lot of chit chat, coke studio songs, Sandeep's favourite songs and Rahul's dance moves we arrived in Shimla at around 7 30 pm. The next part of reaching Chandigarh was a total mess and was pretty irritating for everyone. But we finally reached Chandigarh in the wee hours the next day and booked ourselves into an Oyo hotel. We reached the airport in the morning and got back to Hyderabad by evening.

Well what can I say ? Himalayas and Indiahikes continue to dazzle me. Everytime I go I think this might get boring since I have already gone for that other trek. But that never happens. Every trek has its charm and every trek is a new adventure with amazing new friends. This time I was fortunate to be with a dynamic and super enthusiastic about to be orthopedic surgeon, a Russian couple on their honeymoon having the time of their life (and criticizing cricket that the game is so funny :P), a strong willed solo trekker from Bangalore, a young engineer taking a wild ride before going back to studies, a silent and focused CA aspirant with her dad, an inspiring selfless trekker, a spirited couple with a never say die attitude, a group of 4 closely knit friends who love clicking photos, 3 silent (one of them shivering too) kannadiga girls who steadily trekked with ease, a state level cricketer who did not break a sweat, a silent guy with a beard competing with Hashim Amla, two talkative girls who completed the trek carrying their backpacks, a talkative guy who mostly used to talk himself into being targeted for jokes and used lots of powder apart from being a very determined and passionate trekker who wore at least 7 layers of clothes (:P), a super fit marathon runner, a trek lead with a store of endless energy and two fun and very helpful guides (apart from the amazing cooks and porters). The trek being pretty new and less commercialized offered great scenic views and breathtaking locations without any pollution of any kind. The meadows, mountains, forests, streams all offer a unique experience but to top them all the rappelling and slide down the pass is unparalleled. If anyone has any doubts as to whether to go for this trek, do not think twice. Totally worth it.

It is a totally different feeling to be in such places away from the din of the city and the stress of the workplace. With no electronics, there is nothing disturbing you and you tend to enjoy the other things instead of checking the phone every few seconds for a new Fb post or an Instagram post or an email. It also teaches to not to be fussy about small things and adjust when you see people living in such difficult locations with no access to a host of facilities. You just lose yourself to the world and enjoy everything you are fortunate to experience. I guess its a bit too much of philosophy but that's how I feel 😊

Last but not the least, I love the undertaking of Indiahikes in the name of Green Trails which tries to ensure that people do not litter such places and clean them up. If each trekker just minds his/her own mess, then the mountains would stay clean. I hope others follow suit and ensure they keep all such locations clean. Cheers.

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Photos

Light paining
Pulak writing his name

4th Lake
Among the set of lakes on the way to Chandranahan

Fire in the hole
Pulak and Shata taking on Kriti

Rahul's pelting
Sorry the site doesn't load gifs properly but nonetheless its fun to watch :)

Comments

[Sudhir bisht]

Nice article
Nice article