It is not often that I, figuratively speaking, airdrop myself into a
group of nine people (of which I know only one person quite well) for a period
of five days and look back to realise that I have had the time of my life.
Because it is not often that I airdrop myself. Period.
In a more serious vein, I continue to walk the ridge between solo
travel and group travel (with strangers - some of who turn friends). Why, I
have only recently made the exception of traveling with a friend (and have had
company on my journey that began in late-March with Amritsar followed by
Makaibari and now Sandakphu)!
Walking this ridge, though, is a lot trickier than the ridge along the
Indo-Nepal border that led me 3636 meters/11,941 feet above sea level to
Sandakphu – West Bengal’s highest peak.
Somewhere at the start of the trek to Sandakphu | April 2016
Sandakphu
I first got acquainted with Sandakphu through a blog-post some time
ago. Back then, I had no idea that it is the highest peak in West Bengal. And
it wouldn’t be until a few days before the trek that I would also learn that it
is fêted for being the peak that offers a panoramic view to four of the five
highest peaks in the world!
Yes, Kanchenjunga and Everest are visible from Sandakphu.
And clearly, reading up on places I’m traveling to isn’t a preference
for me; so much for the element of surprise! And I was going to learn as much
as I could through my experience itself by joining a group.
Ours was a 5 day trek that commenced from Maneybhanjang – a place
where a message by your telecom provider welcoming you to Nepal flashes on your
screen; this is also more obviously known as ‘international roaming has now
been activated’.
Maneybhanjang is a rather lackadaisical town on the Indo-Nepal border
that boasts of a temple (that had devotional songs blaring through most of the
day as well as parts of the night) and a few guesthouses for eager-beaver
trekkers like yours truly. This was where I met the rest of the group I’d be
trekking with for the first time.
Chai pe charcha
Before we knew it and evolving our own template of a chai-pe-charcha,
we were seven of us animatedly exchanging travel anecdotes from different parts
of the country we’d set foot in – laughing cacophonically at both, the bizarre
and the dangerous. Though for reasons best known to members within the group,
it must be noted that ‘subconscious’ grooving to the devotional songs in the
background was observed among a few.
And that is how the ice between seven strangers had been broken. We
were still going strong with our stories – and some of these stopped being
travel related a while ago – when a lanky lad walked in and requested to join
in our conversations. Another round of introductions later, we were back to
being mild-mannered and talking about all things travel!
My gang of entertainers | Sandakphu - April 2016
Day 1 - Destination: Tumling
The next morning we were up early and swaddled up to begin our first
day on the trek. We were going to trek the first 13 kilometers towards
Sandakphu starting at Chitrey. But before that our group was going to have an
addition – the lanky lad from the previous evening decided to ditch his solo
hike and join us instead. He would soon realise that we were not as
mild-mannered as we’d posed to be the previous evening!
The Chitrey Monastery made for an excellent starting point – not only
because, well, there was a monastery but because thanks to the organizers, we were
spared the torturesome 3 kilometre uphill climb from Maneybhanjang to Chitrey.
Perhaps they were clairvoyant enough to realise that may be someone might
decide to turn back before even getting to Chitrey!
But after tossing coins and turning prayer wheels in a bid to attract divine providence for the days
that lay ahead of us, we finally began our trek.
Day 1: Take 1 - Right outside Chitrey Monastery | Sandakphu - April2016
One of many 'Po' moments during the trek, courtesy steps | Sandakphu April 2016
Trees so tall! | Sandakphu - April 2016
I was barely into my first kilometre when - what I call - the
‘ruptured lung syndrome’ kicked in. My lungs were gasping and in all
probability were holding on to my rib-cage for dear life! On the outside, I was
doing the exact same thing, but holding on to my wits instead. Neither was my
60 litre backpack making this any easier.
But I had lessons from my previous treks to remind myself of: Synchronise the rhythm of my step with the
rhythm of my breath; also known as surrendering to the idea of walking
slowly and trailing at the tail of the group.
An hour into the trek, my lungs seemed to have acclimatised not just
to my backpack and the altitude but also the terrain beneath my feet.
I was still huffing and panting.
I was still taking breaks every now and then.
I was still dreading steps.
But I was getting used to it. My laboured breathing and the ponderous
walking forced me to reckon with my present – and nothing else; no past, no
future - those would have to wait.
Rhododendrons in full bloom, dotting the background turned out to be
the best companions all along the route through the five days. And so were the tall
moss-laden trees that made the filtering of sunlight to the bed of the forest
almost impossible. Ditto for the avian
population – though they were impossible to click with their ADHD-like constant
flutterings!
Rhododendrons in full bloom | Sandakphu - April 2016
Rhododendrons | Sandakphu - April 2016
When rhododendrons had company | Sandakphu - April 2016
Prayer flags | Sandakphu - April 2016
Day one was turning out to be just fine. But the weather changed
rather dramatically after lunch; so where prior to lunch we were getting rid of
our layers of clothing, the wind slapping our faces later that afternoon had us
reach out for all the winter gear that we’d been trekking with. It didn’t
matter as long as it made the backpack lighter – even if by a few grams! This
dramatic change in the weather we gradually realised would continue to be the
norm for the rest of the trek too.
13 kilometers and 8 hours after we’d begun that morning, we allowed
our feet and lungs some respite in what was the most unexpected oasis of
cosiness that we could have imagined. Our guesthouse at Tumling was the stuff
luxury is made of – rooms with a fireplace and a three course meal that left us
greedy for more dessert.
At this point, I would like to draw special attention to our two
guides – were it not for Yogen and Mingmaw – this oasis of cosiness and the
three course meals that I speak of would never have happened. All through the
day, they ensured we were snacking; and snacking healthily at it. They ensured
we stayed hydrated – which is crucial when you’re trekking especially at an
altitude! They did this and more throughout the length of the entire trek.
Fatigue couldn’t cast a shadow on our camaraderie as a group and we
resumed our banter which ranged from the inane (you would never imagine what a
giraffe and a refrigerator have in common) to the whacky (think: shisha. ‘Nuff
said).
Day 2 - Destination: Kalipokhri
A comfortably snug good night’s sleep and a wholesome breakfast later,
we resumed our trek from Tumling to Kalipokhri through the Singalila National
Park. Tumling is the first point in this journey where the mighty Kanchenjunga
range can be viewed from. In fact, the mountains resemble what is famously known as the sleeping Buddha. However, luck wasn’t in our favour as fog marred our
view not just the previous evening but even the next morning. We were somehow
hopeful that in two days, Sandakphu would compensate!
That's all I was meant to capture of the 'Sleeping Buddha' from Tumling } Sandakphu - April 2016
The entry into the Singalila National Park | Sandakphu - April 2016
Because chai | Sandakphu - April 2016
Even dogs live it up at Kalipokhri | Sandakphu - April 2016
What followed through that second day was some more gasping, panting
and trailing behind on my part. But Nature continued to leave me overawed.
Another 13 kilometers later, we were in Kalipokhri at another warm guesthouse
teeming with enthusiastic trekkers from different parts of the globe.
A hot cup of black tea later, I stood watching the Sun dive somewhere
deep behind the mountains even as the cold winds rasped at my ears.
Sandakphu’s summit was now closer than it had ever been. Tomorrow was
the day I was looking forward to. But before that, we had an evening of ghost
story shenanigans to partake in. Sadly, some stories never made it beyond the
‘to be continued’ mark – and let it be known that this was not due to the
story’s scary quotient!
Day 3 - Destination: Summit
On the morning of our third day, excitement could be detected almost
everywhere. Groups of people with their guides (and some luckier ones with
their mules) were readying to make it to the summit which was a mere 7
kilometers away.
I chanced upon an engaging conversation with two middle aged couples
from Australia on everything from travel blogging to the state of affairs
within the development sector to climate change and to things they could do in
Delhi!
I was feeling upbeat that morning. My body wasn’t achy-painy and it was
feeling stronger even under the weight of my backpack. We had ascended from
6600 feet at Maneybhanjang to 10196 feet at Kalipokhri in two days.
The summit was another 855 feet uphill.
But this seemingly tiny patch relative to the distance we had covered
so far was the most arduous part of the trek – for the final 3.5 kilometers
(starting at Bhikeybhanjang) is a steep ascent and it took us about 4 hours to scrambling
to the top sometimes even on my fours!
But to the top we finally did make it; albeit with me retaining my
position at the tail!
'Nuff said | Sandakphu - April 2016
"We've come too far to give up who we are..." | Sandakphu - April 2016
The summit was something of a disappointment though because
guesthouses have mushroomed right at the spot where the trek concludes. But that
couldn’t dampen the excitement of having successfully completed the trek having
walked that ridge between the borders of India and Nepal.
Coincidentally, that day – April 14th 2016, was also the
Nepali New Year and so festivities and celebrations were underway even at
11,941 feet above sea level. And we sure did partake in them ourselves a bit
too – some more than others!
It was also the day I got introduced to Tongba for the very first
time!
But viewing Kanchenjunga and Everest from Sandakphu was not meant to
be. All around us the visibility was reduced to no more than a few kilometres.
We were left to contend ourselves with the knowledge that climbing close 30
kilometers uphill in three days – the slick city dwellers from the plains that
were are – will remain our real highlight.
Day 4 - Destination: Rimbick
We began our downward descent from Sandakphu to Rimbick on the morning
of the fourth day of our trek. And this day remains as the highlight of my
entire trek.
Why?
Because running downhill like a mountain goat until your body reminds
you that you are anything but a mountain goat is one of those bittersweet
memories treks are made up of for me.
So by the time we covered 12 of the 21 kilometers and made a stopover
at Gurdum for lunch, my toes (squished inside my shoes due the pressure of
running downhill) and my knees (thrashed from all the jerks and thrusts) were
screaming for mercy.
An hour’s reprieve was all I could offer them both.
When mountain goat mode was activated | Sandakphu - April 2016
Bamboo Trails | Sandakphu - April 2016
Srikhola | Sandakphu - April 2016
But when we did resume, my paced has slowed. The downhill climb was
rough on everyone. But it was the views – watching mountains growing taller again,
dashing past bamboo forests and walking along bridges suspended over rivers (thank
you, Srikhola) that more than compensated for all the pain we were willingly
submitting ourselves towards.
That night after we reached Rimbick, we experienced thunderstorms.
Somewhere the clouds were de-misting the views and the skies would perhaps be
clearer for another group of eager-beaver trekkers like us!
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This is not a promotional post. The trek, however, was organized by Mapping Journeys
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