The initial pre-trek and Day 1 story are here in Part 1. Carrying on from there…
T minus 7 Hours
The night at Gulling campsite was freezing cold, and when we lay down on the ground inside our tent – albeit over a mat – our backs froze. The sleeping bags itself came with a layer of warm material plus we had on our inner thermals, tee shirt and fleece jacket. We also had on our socks and gloves. Despite this, it felt cold. To give ourselves that final warmth, we had brought body warmer patches which we attached to our back and the backs of our legs. This helped a lot, and we could catch a few hours of sleep.
I have never done camping so this feeling of sleeping under the open sky with utter silence surrounding me and hug of nature from all around felt exciting and a bit unnerving and, despite the cold, quite fun!
The Final Ascent
Our day started at an ungodly hour of 4.30AM. Hot tea and biscuits was given to us in the tent which awakened us. We freshened up with wipes and a tinny amount of our warm drinking water and then put on our trekking gear – layers, boots, hats, gloves and headlamps. After packing up our sleeping bags and organizing the one we were going to carry, we had a quick breakfast of toast and porridge standing in the kitchen tent. A quick check of equipment later, we were ready to start.
Day 2
The 2nd day of our trek started officially at 6AM. We set off walking in dark with our headlamps on and our walking sticks for aid, over slippery, frozen ground. The guides showed us the route but told us that we should all go at our own pace, stop when needed and pick up pace if we felt like it.
Over the rocky, mountain terrain we walked on, through trees, up boulders, across frozen streams as day gradually dawned around us. We stopped when we were totally out of breath, had water and sweets for sustenance and carried on. It was enervating and such a rush!
As we climbed, we started to encounter snow on the ground, a little scattered here and there on the sides and then ultimately the whole ground was snow covered. Breathing became harder as we moved to the rare air of higher altitudes. We had to pace ourselves.
We traveled via Khullara and reached Khullara Top mid-morning at around 9AM. Here we had a small rest, refreshed ourselves and put on our shoe protectors because we were about to start serious tramping through snow after this. Till now, we were going up a gradual ascent but from hereon started a pretty steep ascent over snow to our final destination.
Walking through snow over steep slopes, S-curved ridges, brambles etc. was hard. The snow was deep so we always had to test the ground by poking our stick and checking that it was solid enough for us to walk on and only then should we step forward. Once we were through the trees and on higher elevation, the entire mountain landscape opened up behind us – the dazzling peaks and a slightly clouded sky.
Never, not one part, not at any point did it ever feel boring or monotonous. Each step was a challenge, each foot forward was a risk taken towards our ultimate goal. Ofcourse we stopped for photos, water, small rest to catch our breaths. And so it went on till we reached our peak – Kuari Pass at an altitude of 12500ft.
We summitted at 10:30AM in the morning. And may I say, I was the first one to reach the top – yay me! I soaked in the feeling of having reached the top, that sense of achievement, that absolute joy and finally the utter wonderment of having that sheer natural beauty in front of me.
A Panorama Unlike Any Other
It was unbelievably windy and cold at the top. But that all faded when we beheld the view in front of us. The valley stretched out between the ranges and the mountain peaks right up in our faces, all separated by the pass we stood on – Kuari Pass.
Unfortunately, the weather had turned quite cloudy by this time and we were able to witness only a few peaks. Mainly, the Dronagiri behind us, to our left the Pangarchulla peak and mostly hidden behind the clouds – the Neel Kanth. Despite this, the panoramic view was something to be remembered forever, it was a view unlike any ever seen.
The Descent
Having spent a half an hour or thereabouts on the pass, it was time to start our descent to the other side to our day’s camp. After walking a couple of minutes, we found some boulders shielded from the extreme wind and we sat to have our packed lunch.
The descent was via a ridge to our Tali camp. This was the most adventurous part of our trek where it always felt one slip and down we would go. As we started our walk over the ridge – sharp drops on each side of us – it started to rain. We had to walk carefully on the path because it soon became slippery. The danger added a level of exhilaration and excitement to this part of the trek. Hearts beating fast, heads bent against the rain, we forged on ahead.
After some-time the rain converted to snow and with the wind blowing sideways it struck our faces, settled on our clothes and bags. It was fascinating to see the various shapes and sizes of the snowflakes as they floated by. But we had to concentrate on the path, on not slipping and sticking to the trail.
Finally, at around 2PM in the afternoon, we made it to Tali Forest, where our camp for was setup among the trees for the day.
Day 2 Summary:
From/To: Gulling to Tali via Kuari Paas
Distance: 13 kms.
Altitude: 9000ft. to 12500ft and back to 11000ft
Walking Time: 8 hours
Peaks: Dronagiri, Pangarchulla
Final part of the trek coming up in Part 3.
This post was written as part of Blogchatter’s Cause A Chatter campaign – “Nature Talks”; how I was at the heart of nature and one with it.
Stunning pictures and descriptions are something extra ordinary.
Enjoy your trekking!