Trek Himachal

Continued from Part 1

The next day began much better. It wasn't exactly bright and sunny but it was tolerable. White clouds with patches of blue sky and the sun peeping through at times, just as if to remind it existed. I had wanted this so badly, I did not need a cue. Before we had packed up, I was off, at a scorching pace too. Before Jango knew, I had reached Plachek. He had estimated it as a 4 hour walk, I did it in less than 2. By the time he reached, I had rested enough, ordered dal and rice and requested the wonderful tomato-garlic chutney I had the last time around and was getting ready to eat. The next stretch to Jhodi was quite steep but not much of an issue. I was having second thoughts about camping at Jhodi when a waterfall and an abundance of strawberries convinced me otherwise. Oh boy, if I ever took a right decision, this was it! I had tons of strawberries and we ogled at the waterfall for ages.

At Jhodi, I also had the second best meal of Kadhi and roti. The best was at Banni Mata a few months ago. If there is one thing I have learnt about cooking in the last 1 year, its that you can make kadhi in a thousand ways and I now know 3 of them. Instead of gram flour, this one had boiled, mashed-to-paste potatoes in it. The night was not very peaceful with a raucous group of drunk mule drivers making it difficult to sleep but therein lay the fun, reveling with them and sharing their celebrations.

The next day's walk was uneventful till Panhartoo except clicking a vulture from close range. Once I reached Panhartoo, things livened up. I met Digti Ram, a man of about 70, resident of Bada Bhangal. One thing led to another and I soon discovered this man and my dad are old friends. The chatting continued till Jango arrived and we had meals. By the time I left Panhartoo for Bhedpal, I was already feeling acquainted with the trail and the people. The chat with Digti Ram and other people made me feel part of Bada Bhangal and its trail. It was as if retracing in my dad's steps, I was going through the journey again. The walk to Bhedpal was in a trance, reliving what I had not lived earlier. It was strange and unexplainable but wonderful, as was the coloured meadow at Bhedpal.

It rained all through the night. While the water did not enter my tent, it did soak through the bags shaded under the rain fly. The start for the pass was delayed partly because of the rain and partly because the wet equipment. When we started, for the third day running, I had a rocket attached to my backside. I haven't still been to figure out why. Perhaps the urge to reach Bada Bhangal was strong, perhaps the mind was scared of weather ruining the trip. I clocked 1:45 to the pass, including a 40 minute circumnavigation of the Thamsar Lake. Others clocked 3:00 without the lake. For the third day running, I was cutting other's by more than half. Whatever it was, it was bliss. A 4747 metre pass felt like nothing. Once I was at the top, it felt like everything. The high Pir Panjals, the lake from high above and just the feeling of being at the top. Its another thing I discovered most of the photos I took there had to be deleted later.

Reaching the pass early meant I had tons of time to walk around the pass, observe the minute details of what all could be seen (like the tip of the Manimahesh Peak), celebrate by shouting out loud, a little bit of a dance juggle (all in the privacy of loneliness). After I had crossed the pass and I was sure we would not be turning back, the rockets were automatically switched off. The pace suddenly slacked, I was feeling lazy, as if going down was much tougher than climbing up. Which is as well, for I was living the dream I had for 25 years. I would reach Bada Bhangal the next day and I wanted to live the dream well, savour it slowly, let it sink in and have a blast.