Spectacular Himalayan Journey - Part 1

Have an hour to spare this afternoon, so here's the first part of the trek post. Hope you're not in a rush ;)

Day 1 (May 6th): Up at 6ish after a pretty sleepless night. Mosquitoes, tossing and turning, a little stressed about making sure we had thought through everything for the trek. Quick snack breakfast on our balcony with great view at Narayana Kunj, then grabbed our trek packs, bringing all extra luggage down to the basement in the Children of the Ganges classroom, where Swati kindly agreed to keep what we didn't need on the trek. Walked across the RamJula bridge to the tuk-tuk stand where we were meeting our guide, Rohit, and our driver (his father) at 8am. Yummy masala chai at a roadside stall while we waited. The four of us were on the road at 8:15, quickly moving up into the mountains. About ten hours later, around quarter past six, we were at our destination for that night. Long day of driving, with only a few short stops for gas, pics, pipi (in a roadside stall that not only didn't have a bowl, it didn't even have a hole in the ground; you just went in and added to the pile - just lovely), and lunch. Papa and I both felt a little carsick before lunch, but the food helped settle our stomachs. Saw our first snow-covered peaks in the distance mid-afternoon, and had to slow down along the way for the crossing of cows, horses and buffalo. Passed several gypsy camps, makeshift low black tents on the roadside, perched right on the edge of the mountain cliff. Lots of variety in the road condition: nice smooth asphalt, muddy earth, watery rocks, sandy ledge. Some pretty precarious road segments, held my breath a few times, such as when our van wheels were no more than a foot from the cliff's edge. Drove through several mountain villages that were much bigger and more populated than we expected for mountain towns. (There are, after all, over a billion people in this country.) Got cold and windy late aft as we approached Gangotri, the village we would sleep in before starting our hike the next morning. Cute guesthouse perched on a hill with fabulous views. Tea and biscuits were brought to our room as son as we arrived, while Negi explained trek details to us. (Rohit was our personal guide, but we were joining a group of 20 Indians from Pune, near Mumbai, for the trek. Negi was the experienced mountaineering guide who was the main organizer of this trek.) We then walked down to the temple for the evening Ganga Aarti (river worship as I had experienced in Haridwar), and returned to the guesthouse for an outdoor dinner with our full group (sweaters, fleece and tuque necessary). More tea was delivered to our room before bed, and alarm was set for 7am. Lights out around 10pm.

Day 2 (May 7th): Great sleep, comfy bed, warm blankets (it had been so long since I covered myself to sleep!). Awake around 5:40, up around 7. Papa went for a short morning walk to explore town, then outdoor breakfast with group again - gorgeous day, but cold in the morning. Packed and ready to go around 9am. We were about 40 people in all: 20 Indians from Pune with their guide; Rohit, my father and I; Negi with his crew - a dozen porters (for tents, sleeping bags, cooking equipment, kerosene...) and half a dozen helpers (cooks, dishwashers...). We were setting off from Gangotri village for the Gomuk-Tapovan trek (Gomuk is a glacier, Tapovan is a large, elevated mountain valley). This trek is a popular pilgrimage for Indians, and the places are very significant in their mythology (very interesting stories, but I'll save those details for the book). Stopped for lunch around 1pm, after finding a waterfall stream for mid-day hydration. Delicious, cold, fresh snow-melt water. (Around 10am, when we got to the park gates, I sat in tree sap, and at our lunch pit-stop, I leaned my elbow into animal poop on the rock behind me - clothes pretty dirty pretty quick.) Energy a little low by lunch time, and easily out of breath at this altitude (over 3000 feet). Warm afternoon walk, shorts and t-shirt sufficient. Passed some mules carrying provisions or people. Papa in awe of the hanging glaciers we could see up near the mountain peaks. Arrived at our first camp area around 3pm. Stunning views from the river, just a few minutes down from our tents. Weather gradually cooled as camp was being set up. I collapsed on the ground and rested while papa went down to the river again. Rohit brought tea and cookies to our tent around 5pm - warm and delicious! Did a few back stretches and applied cooling gel to papa's lower back which started bothering him this morning. Went back down to the river around 6:45, just missing the sunset. Soup and snacks at 7:15, outdoor dinner at 7:30 in the dark. Delicious rice pudding and hot chocolate for dessert (we were very well fed!). Settled in for bed at 9pm; too cold to change into PJs, slept in my day clothes with several added layers.     

Day 3 (May 8th): Up at 5:30, woke up many times during the night due to cold and discomfort. Morning tea delivered to our tent; tired, stomach pains. Took antibiotics right away - usually I would wait it out, but on the trek I wasn't taking any chances. Papa was on meds too. Packed up and left camp around 9, short pit-stop an hour later. Meds worked, feeling better mid-day. Stopped for more delicious fresh cold stream water, and crossed small river on wobbly logs. Scary walk at times - some signs for falling rocks, crumbling pathway, sandy ledge not much more than a foot wide (with the mountain face on one side and a cliff on the other). We were already at our campsite around 11 am, not much hiking today. Tiny village - a small ashram and a few small buildings for tentless trekkers to stay in. Gorgeous views (another beautiful day), as we set up camp. Took a short riverside doze while waiting for lunch. We were about an hour's walk from Gomuk, the glacier, which we would be passing by tomorrow, but since we had the afternoon free, we walked over with a few Indians from our group (who would be taking a holy dip... water way too icy for Papa and me) to spend a little time there rather than just pass by tomorrow. It was great to walk bagless that afternoon, just brought some water and the camera. Along the way, Rohit, our guide, told me all about the mythology behind these holy sites, and we talked about astrology, reincarnation and souls. Fascinating stuff. People used to be able to camp right at Gomuk, but because there is now concern about about ice breaking off the glacier due to higher temperatures, we can no longer sleep at the site. Back at camp by quarter to six, regular tea and cookie tent delivery. Filmed the sherpas (porters) playing barefoot shotput in the cold with large rocks. Of any human manifestation of strength I've ever seen, sherpas impress me the most. The shotput was quite something to watch, but I'm referring mainly to the loads they carry on their frail bodies - and how they carry them. It's unbelievable. And their footwear - I bought a pair of $250 Scarpa boots for this hike, which the salesperson told me were the Cadillac of hiking boots, and here were the sherpas, carrying loads way bigger than what I had on my back, walking through rock and mud in flip-flops that looked like they'd fall apart at any minute. These men (and boys - one was no more than 15!) are super-humans. We ate dinner in our tents that night, due to the rain, hail, wind and cold outside. Shared some cake with the Indian group, it was one of the guys' birthday. Bundled up for the night, every evening getting increasingly cold. At this point, with a backache and shivering body, papa is beginning to wonder what the heck we are doing here!

On Day 4, I'd be asking myself the very same question. For papa, the question was posed due to physical discomfort. For me, it would be due to terror... stay posted for Part 2.