The journey where I fell in love with mountains

I have always been an adventurer in heart ( someday I'll post on my after 6pm adventures in different cities). So, when opportunity came to visit mountains as form of 'Leadership Training' of TSAF; I jumped into enrolling my name. The trek and the program were for 10 days from 16th to 25th Nov’17, which included acclimatization, outdoor activities and trek for the summit.

It was like I won jackpot- getting to visit mountain, paid holiday, sponsored by company. Life couldn't better. I was not aware that the word "TREK" exists, and that it's not a VACATION ( got to know in camp site). I guess for this very reason my boss was confirming with me multiple times that whether I'm sure to participate.

The biggest challenge was to convince my parents. I started with pleading, then requesting finally taking my stand and finally they approved. well who can stop the destiny 😂 I along with 5 other colleagues ( two from Jamshedpur, 1 from Chennai and 1 from Bhiwadi of our company) packed our luggage and

reached Delhi.

😂😂😂 (To the person concerned, I hope you remember)

we reached Delhi at 10am, took metro to Delhi station. Our train was at 3.20pm. Me and Srinivas kept our luggage in clock room in PF1 ( the other two had reached earlier and were staying in nearby Hotel) and along with Subham, ventured out with google maps. It was already 12.20pm.

After some photo session near India gate, we took an auto to Red fort. we didn't dare to enter due to hunger pangs and also because we had a train to catch in a hour and half

we walked to chandini chawk (which we had heard most) and had our lunch. it was 2.45pm. as we were speaking with the shopkeeper, he got to know that we had a train to catch at 3.20pm and he almost rushed us outside saying we need to run, otherwise we won't get the train. THATs a GREAT LINE TO MAKE US SPRINT TOWARD THE MAIN ROAD. we tried online cabs, but it was showing a wait time 20 mins. somebody advised us to take metro. the auto driver was taking his own sweet time, seeing no other option, we got down from auto and jogged to the nearest metro.

Me and Srinivas were able to jump into the metro and as the door was closing to final inches, I saw Subham outside the door. he didn't make it. my heart almost dropped thinking he will miss the train. it was 3.01pm. meanwhile our other colleague, Daivik had reached the station with both his and Subham's luggage ( they were staying in Hotel) and had boarded the train.

As metro touched delhi station, both of us rushed out. It was almost 3.13pm. coming from a simple single line metro in Kolkata, I had no idea that metro can be this complicated. we asked few people around on which gate to take to reach new delhi station. Most of these people don't even stop to respond, few helped us with the route but as we exited the outside gate, we found ourself on some flyover. Subham called us saying that he has reached the station and has boarded the train. 3.18pm and we were literally running toward the station. It was 3.25pm,when we reached the station and guess what, well its no brainer, Train has left. This was first time when both of us has ever missed a train or flight.

Horrified. we stood for few mins on FOB to catch our breath and after the tension had drained. we slowly walked toward PF no1 to collect our luggage.

Outside, after few negotiation, we rented a vehicle for haridwar and both of us were back onto track

It was nearing 8pm, tired with ordeal and hungry ,driver made halt in this food joint. the food was smashing with white butter being the highlight. Do stop by and try yourself, Thank me later

We reached Hotel at around 9pm. now the funny part is that my two colleagues who had boarded the train and was suppose to reach hotel by 7pm were still on train 😂 (stuck in train amidst nowhere. Daivik, I do REMEMBER u guys leaving my baked rasgulla) and they reached Hotel after 1am,

Next day, 5 of us took off for Base Camp

These shots are from other teams.

Us, buying some fruits

Stopping on way to check Tehri Dam

Next, we stopped for lunch ( to taste local), much to the grudge of others 😁

Near our lunch spot

It was pitch dark when we reached here. though it's showing upward arrow( below pic), initially we saw nothing but huge dark hill with no visible path. We were in dilemma, phone was not working ( no network) and we were not sure whether we have reached the right place. we ran after the car asking him to stop with headlight on, incase we need to go somewhere else.

I forgot to mention, most of us (All 30, including me) had brought trolley to base camp. some of them had brought two trolleys. 😂 Hey! don't judge us. we didn't know it was TREK and that reaching base camp was another trek. If I'm not wrong, only Daivik had arrived with proper backpack and pole.

Standing in front of car headlight with our trolleys, the fittest amongst us took the dark path which seemed like road (of gravels). there was not other board or signs showing which direction to follow. Subham went first with his mobile torch, getting no response from him we got bit concerned. ( we hollered but was met with silence) so Daivik, went next. He must have gone halfway when we heard shout from Subham saying he has found the camp. Three of us standing below breathed relief. Thanking driver for staying with us,

we dragged our trolleys uphill and reached the camp

Here we are gathering our backpack, sleeping mat, Kiwi bag to store the rubbish and tiffin box from office for tomorrow's start. boys went to their designated tents and I took my backpack and trolley to tent for girls, which was empty. I was so disappointed to find no other girl in the camp. After dumping my stuff in one corner, I headed outside. everywhere outside was pitch black with dim light from TSAF office. Stars above seemed to be blinking in symphony with the orchestra of nocturnal insects.

somebody from office saw me moving listlessly, asked Annapurna ma'am to join me. She was sweet enough to stay with me, listening to my chatter. we were discussing on some topic when we heard some noise in distance. the last batch had arrived and were in similar situation as we were few hours earlier. I heard female voices and my mood uplifted. I almost high fived Annapurna ma'am and rushed toward my tent to reserve my spot. First comer advantage 😂

two ladies enter the tent and we introduced ourselves, took our dinner in common room and went to sleep in sleeping bags

Camp Day 1

Next day morning, we heard whistle at 6am to wake up and have tea.

after having tea I took stroll outside the camp, seeing the rugged path which we had cursed yesterday evening. It was beautiful place. you can hear the gurgling of nearby river 'Assi Ganga'. our leisure ended there with next whistle at 7am; guess what

we had to RUN

and Run ( don't go with the smiling faces, it was just for camera) 😂

Upon returning, we were divided into teams. there were 4 teams (do correct me if its wrong)

and we were given something to read on rules. Just look at the level of concentration below, I bet none of us had studied with this amount of concentration earlier 😂

Left corner is Rana sir. our mentor and team lead for whole 10 days from TSAF. other 3 teams had their own mentor.

In total there were 31 guys who reported ranging from 49+year-old to 25 year- old range.

So, in Day 1, The reporting for morning tea was at 6am followed by morning exercise at 7am , in chilly morning of November. The morning stretching, running and jogging on the mountain road near the river helped us to warm up. ( same on all days)

Post exercise we had breakfast of ‘poori and aloo subji’ with boiled eggs and tea.

During the day we had several activities/games for breaking the ice and team building among the participants.

The winning team 🎉

We also had a session where we were taught on how to do pack rucksack/backpack, to ‘take care of the feet’

Before dinner we were gathered in common room to watch the movie ‘1984 Mount Everest Expedition’ of Bachendri Pal and the clips on daredevil mentality of Anurima Sinha and few shots of Premlata Agrawal. I was awestruck, with these revolutionaries. to people who are reading this and are not aware of them, do check them out in you tube.

The day ended with a dinner of daal, roti, rice, ghobi-aloo and custard.

Day 2, other then the usual

on way to rock climbing

Briefing

Vedji in action

‘Rappelling’ and ‘ Flying fox’.😅

understanding bitcoins and blockchains

while we were immersed in our own prep, suddenly somebody whispered that Bachendri Ma'am is here. we dropped everything and turned our razor vision 360 degree to find her standing and watching us. on first glance she looked like a doll! ( I hope she won't come across this ) and then started the selfie session. Most of us were beside her to have her in a frame. I was too starstuck to utter or be near her, I was always watching from far.

She had been watching us for some time and voiced her opinion to change our attitude.

After this blast, I was both scared and star stuck to reach her 🙈 and ironically Srinivas had put me in frame while recording ma'am's speech.

Lunch time!

Camp Day 3:

Jungle camp! where the main idea was to get familiarized with the camping in a jungle and preparing own food, this included a trek of around 4 kms uphill (5200 ft). Before all that the center of attraction of our team

Daku ( Abhirup) and his antics

Above is the rugged path to reach the camp. which we were trying to find with car headlights

Wait!! Watch the last hatchling!

some exercises 😪😅

with no instructor nearby- Mid way Bhangra

😂No comments

Suddenly it turned cloudy and we started Navigation Games of finding hidden landmarks with magnetic compass

( in hills, orange tree in someone's courtyard, inside tree truck, beneath boulders 😅 and others)

Final touchdown.

Boys checking the stove ( we have to cook ourselves and carry all the necessary material within our team)

We were taught how to make/ fix tent because we have to fix tent ourselves in jungle in evening

Pitching tent

Practicing the knots

After successfully pitching our tent, we packed our backpack to spend night in jungle with four sturdy dogs vying to protect us against tigers and bears

Sneha, taking break?

All set!

After reaching the camping spot in jungle, Bahubali ( Sreenivasa ) doing chores

Serious discussion on menu between Chief and assistant chefs

Putting our morning lesson into practice

The wonder tent in backdrop with beautiful curtains belong to Anmol, sitting beside the red mug. Anmol had the curtains ( 4 bedsheets) imported from home 😃 All the instructors, Rajendra sir and Bachendri ma'am were pleasantly surprised with his level of preparation.

Chefs of all team in action

The only time I've been near outdoor kitchen. I had the best team😍

Initially our mentor/ Instructor was apprehensive about our khichdi dinner but in the end it turned out to be the best!! Kudos to chef Gaurav and team

our pressure cooker was the last to whistle and when it did, we celebrated as if Messi has scored a goal

Our group

after dinner, we joined for antakshari and indoor games

Camp Day 4:

We were to return base camp and proceeded for River crossing

Next morning

wrap up

Group pics

Back to base camp.

River crossing! urf Bath day ( esp for boys) after 4 days.

well settled. I didn't move from that rock for many hours

Vedji Practicing for coming election

Goofing around 😁

too long a post isn't it? good news is that it will go longer 😝 have some🍟

Camp Day 5:

We traveled to a village school to spend time, share our experiences with students; loved it.

Visited the local shops on way and bought things

Sir was explaining us the ongoing situation in the schools

I wanted to connect with the mother in background, she seemed such an eager and optimistic lady. If possible, to help her daughter to continue education; somehow it didn't happen. its truly said, pictures suck you back to moments where you relive those powerful emotions. I sincerely hope and pray that she and her daughter has a bright future.

Rest points

we were making plans to crash the wedding feast but our mentors drove us toward our base camp 😪

on returning base camp

Camp Day 6:

On day 6 we started the trek for our summit (Siyari Top 11862 feet)

Crowding this make shift restaurant for Maggi and omelets

Packed lunch ‘Poori and Chana’

we walked almost 6 Kms to Kohari camp site in Siladuni(7800 feet), reached the camp site at around 3 pm.

Around midnight we heard ruckus from boys tent; I went outside our tent to hear that khachhar had entered their tent and was gobbling the Maggi ( some talent to chew with plastic wrapper on; I hope he didn't have tummy ache the next day) and Bun. That was half of our team breakfast for next morning. I'm not sure whether daku and bahu had wrestled with the khachhar, daku do have a bell from our khachhar' s neck. till date, he has kept in working condition.

It was chilly outside and I had lost my voice 😃due to cold.

As I gazed upward, I was stuck with the serenity, stars and falling stars. the grass coated with dews were frozen. It was surreal.

Camp day 7

Trek to the second camp site which was at 9500 feet (Lower Chaithathar), with weight of tents, water, food supplies and cloths. we were fiercely discouraged from offloading our loads and to litter the environment.

Girl's tent

Bhaskar finally breaking his somber look

the plastics which you are seeing in front, we took them with us

We reached lower chaithathar at around 11:30 am, there we pitched the tents, had a stretching exercise

Bhaskar's chopping skills

Rajesh ji and his sunglass 😎

Camp Day 8:

Summit day, 11862 feet, Siyari top. We started at 7 am from the camp site

what can I say! They love me 😂

Every time I see this pic, I feel apologetic to Bahu, the way he's staring longingly and helplessly at the peak 🙂😁

Daku and his Bhalu

Lunch- Gur chana

with celebrities

whole geography in one and half min👆

Amit and Shakuntala 🤣

Our team with Bachendri Ma'am and rocking instructors 💚

"Bass karo. Biscuit bhi nahi hai pocket mei. Isiliye bulaya mujhe?"

And returned to second camp site. Day 9 and Day 10 comprised of the trek down to the base camp

Maggi lunch ( Daku had the luxury of spoon. Bahu was eating with freshly snapped twigs, I was with veg cutting knife and our chef , you can see that in pic)

Carefree moments

chai pe charcha

Report card

In line for final exercise and stretching

We were awake till 12.30am playing songs. yes, some of my voice had returned. we wanted to play more when Santosh ji threw us, no, actually kicked us outside 😃

Camp day 10

we started downward and reached base camp at around 9 am,

after returning the camping items and saying and hugging byes, we started for the journey home.

we need to put some music for driver in below pic to rap 😂

Few sightseeing along the way

We halted loads of time while returning to Haridwar. ( to concerned people, Do I need to reveal?) 🤪

After reaching hotel, all of us must have scrubbed themself clean😂. I went to sleep at around 1am. we had to leave hotel at 5.30 am (Subham and Daivik) to catch train at 6.30 am. my train was at 6.52am.

Suddenly, I awoke to persistent knocks and bells on door. on opening I found 4 guys ready with suitcase. Both sides were shocked. Me, that its already 5.15am and I didn't wake with my alarm and they, on how am I going to wrap up within 15 mins and leave. well, I did leave within 15 mins record straight. Thankfully, I had packed my trolley yesterday.

Me and Srinivas boarded our train and found few of our trek fellows also travelling in same train.

All of us in this pic had DDLJ moment with Gaurav 😃

And without any major complication, I finally reached Home. carrying with me lines " take that much which you can carry" and "always carry your own load". we used to start the day with cursing and used to end it with feeling grateful for the experience. It taught me to know and see nature in different way and it created in me, the addiction of mountains which keeps growing every year.

Note: To my trek team, if you feel I should add any of your pic, do send me; will do the same.

Pic credits: Srinivas, Abhirup, Subham, Saket and Team ( text me your names, will post it here) who might have clicked.

Proof check credits: Subham

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