Mandini Trek.
DAY II. The next day morning i was up by around six and venturing to the
roof of the house i glanced around at the Garhwal countryside or mountainside (i
am not sure which term would be more appropriate) scrubbed clean and pretty draped
in all of green and mist. The mighty mountain ranges had garlands of heavy mist
that was a living thing in itself moving up and down. The mountain slopes were
all green and dense and numerous waterfalls had sprung high up and they were
crashing down hundreds of meter with a huge force and vitality which was a
sight to see. For an hour i stood and soaked in the landscape spread in front
of me while all around me the village came to life and temple bells began to
ring with prayers to almighty. The school children were soon on their way to
the school, so either thy climbed up to their school or they descended down as
the case might be depending on the location of their homes which were spread
all over the slopes of the nearby hills. Raasi has two schools one caters to
the tiny tots or primary while the other was till metric. After a long time i
saw the school assembly and seeing the primary school kids organizing
themselves into measured lines and then reciting the school prayer followed by
the National Anthem was a most pleasant experience indeed.
8. Soon it was time to
prepare for the day and in an hour the team had assembled and after a quick breakfast
we were on the way. The destination today was Sandera which was a small bugyal(plateau) on the hill top where
the slope flattened a bit. It was around five kms of uphill trekking and by
uphill it meant from the moment one left the house he just had to climb, climb
and climb with no respite even for 10 metres. The entire five kms was a steep
climb remorseless and brutal. The first day of the trek and the acclimatisation
and fitness level spoke; soon after around 30 min i was gasping and struggling.
The numerous breaks in between increased but there was no other way for it was
up n up all the way. The sun was out in full force and the sweat was draining
the salt away at a rapid pace; by the time around 3 hrs had elapsed and i was
in a pretty bad shape with my progress being 25 mts of walking and 10 min of rest,
struggling in every step and repeatedly asking the porter walking with me as to
how much further though i already knew the answer. After close to 4.5 hrs we
reached sandera. It was a small bugyal in the midst of the forest but it had a
running stream which was the most important factor. The clock read close to
1330 hrs and i just sat down to recover from my ordeal .. eventually after a
bit of hot Maggi and sweetened tea i felt better and soon the tents were up.
9. There was no
major activity lined up for the day and while the team chatted amongst
themselves i decided to indulge in some photographic activity in the surrounding
hills and stream and thats how the afternoon and evening was spent. In the
gathering dusk while the dinner was being prepared had a deeply engrossed
discussion with my guide who was caught in the 2013 uttarakhand calamity while
on a trek. Post an early dinner turned in for the night and soon the skies
opened up as the rains started pouring but i was snug warm and dry ..what more
can a man want, to be contd …….
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