Stok Kangri - July 2012

Hello Gangpoche – @ 14550 ft – 18^th July

The day began with the routine of finding a place to take a dump. Fortunately for me, I always enjoyed 1^st mover’s advantage throughout the trek as I used to get up early. We did the routine of warm-up exercises and then had our cup of chai, breakfast and cleared the tent.

At the time of clearing the tent I had a chat with Kamal. Kamal asked me if I had some trouble as well as I was always the last one to arrive. Therefore, the general assumption was that I was slow. It would be dihonest to say that this remark did not bother me. I told him that I remained at the end as everybody was rushing ahead and Hari was always left alone as even the IH staff didn’t wait for him. But nonetheless, it was “the DCH moment” – “Usne tere khuddari ko lalkara hai yaar. Kya kar raha hai? Mard ban….be a Man…!” J

So I decided to be ahead this time around and Kamal said that he would be with Hari and he would see what’s the problem with him.

Just before we started, Sridhar took on a Yak. Not literally but he was trying to feed some biscuits to the animal when it charged a little and took the complete pack including the packaging material (BOPP/BOPP laminate….. there I go some packaging gyaaan)…. J

And so we started. Yes, it was initially quite demanding to keep pace with the group. But soon, got used to it and slowly inched my way ahead. I was soon walking with Angchuk, our trek expert. We took intermittent breaks. The views were amazing as always. But the biggest advantage was I could take some really good snaps of the entire group walking along. It was a sight indeed….!

Sons of the Mountain

Tracing back to where we came from

In line we walk....

Slow but steady.... we keep walking like Johny Walker :-)

We reached Gangpoche campsite in about 2.5 hrs. Gangpoche camp site was good, spread out plateau. We booked our tent locations, completed the routine of cool-dwon exercises, our tents arrived by then, set it up and then it was time to chill out.

The Campsite @ Gangpoche

Raghav narrated a funny incident. @ Matho camp, Hari started talking in sleep. And with every sentence his voice started increasing. Raghav tried ignoring at first but then he had had enough, Raghav asked Hari to stop talking and go to sleep. Then he pushed Hari so that Hari got up to realize that he was talking in sleep. J Raghav was so irritated he said that he would have punched Hari if he had not stopped…. J J The way Raghav narrated the whole incident was absolutely hilarious to say the least. J J J

It was time again for the acclimatization climb. Raghav, Hrishikesh & I started climbing the hillock behind the campsite. We took a longer & winding route. But soon realized that it was going nowhere. Climbing straight up would have been easier (relatively of course)  but was looking scary. We saw that Deshmukh, Jagan & Subhash had already done that and were at the top. Raghav & Hrishikesh continued trekking diagonally & joined them while I climbed down to the base and went climbing straight up again. It was tough but managed somehow. Soon, the girls gang too came up. Vani, Archana & Neelima….. I must admit these were the most spirited girls I have come across. I really admired their tenacity and willingness to take on the challenge.

The view from the top was unbelievable. We could see 3 mountain ranges upto the Chang La (my guess)…… It was a sight…. One barren but colourful mountain range right in front, followed by another studded with different rock shapes and followed by the 3^rd with more than half the range covered in snow. The majestic colour of evening’s sun light was spread over the complete range. Unfortunately, camera batteries got exhausted at that point and so couldn’t take any snap. But it was certainly the most mesmerizing memory I continue to carry…..

We climbed down by sun set, had a cup of chai. It was becoming chilly again and it wasn’t time yet for dinner. So we camped in one tent. The girls, Hrishikesh & I. We shared aour traveling experiences and it was fun to know and even great to be in company of such widely traveled people.

We then had our dinner. I didn’t eat much, 1 roti, dal and some chawal, thts it. Had a nice hot cup of bournvita again and it was time then to say good night…..

Stok Kangri - July 2012

Welcome to Matho Doksa – @ 14550 ft – 17^th July

As the day broke, I came out and I was numbed by the chill…. It was freezing cold outside….. managed to take a dump….. people were not willing to come out…. Everybody was waiting for the sun to come out….. It was that day again…. The day of realization…. Why our ancestors believed Sun to be GOD…. The radiating energy brings not just light to remove darkness but the vital energy brings life into every being….!!! @ 14000 + ft you start becoming a believer……

All in line....

We did our normal routine of warm up and had a nice breakfast. We cleared the tents and got ready for the day’s trek. It was going to be a tough grind… And so off we went…. In the groups to start with… but very soon we all got mixed… evry trekker has his own pace with which he/she is comfortable. And it turned out that Angchuk, our trek expert, was a brilliant pace setter. Till we stopped for our first break he managed to keep us all together.

Need some rest folks

It was lovely out there…. Some green patches and the yaks were grazing merrily. We met with pretty clear blue sky most of the time. So it was quite hot. And there was calmness all around. We were so far off from the hectic life that we lead. Always behind schedule, trying to play catch up with Father Time and thereby getting into more frenetic pace…….! When was the last time I experienced such peace around me… perhaps it was on Raigad fort about 8 months back…. Sitting in the courtyard of the Jagdishwar temple…. or may be before that… I don’t remember….…. !! Sweeper’s job is funny. As you are shepherding the tail all you have to do is to ensure that the laggards don’t lose morale…. A bit of encouragement, and a sense of comradeship…. Someone is with me…. That’s all you really need to provide. Besides there is a big advantage as you get enough time to catch your breath, take rest and to reflect….. on this mysterious thing called life….!!!

We soon approached the Shang Fu La pass…. @ 16700 ft. In the distance I could see the trekkers… exhausted….walking one step at a time…. It was hot, and the gain in altitude was killing…. Hari was in trouble. Its not that he couldn’t do it…. But the poor guy wanted breaks more often…which was not advisable though. More breaks break your momentum…. And climbing is all about momentum. You lose it and you are in trouble. Doc, Brahma & I kept walking with Hari, then both of them went a bit ahead. We could see trekkers reaching the pass and taking a good long break there. Soon, the mules too were in the vicinity, and after a tiring trek Hari & I reached atop the pass. 16700 ft… wow….!!!

Approaching the pass - can you see it in the distance?

Hari.... almost there @ Shang Fu La - 16700 ft

Yours truly @ Shang Fu La - 16700 ft

We had to descend another 2000 ft again….. I started ahead and was watching Hari following me. I thought the staff with the mules would bring him up. And so I continued slowly, clicking merrily. There were so many pics to click, shadows, snow capped peaks, barren mountains….. the vista was just too good. I soon came to where Sridhar was sitting. I asked him if there was any problem. The guy was furious…. “the buggers don’t want to enjoy this beauty…. Just keep running….we’ll reach the camp…where else we go… but if you have come here all the way…you might as well enjoy this majestic landscape. Everybody is in a hurry”, said Sridhar. So true he was….!!! I really liked the way he expressed it..... just loved his attitude.....!!

The descent....

The shadows....

We waited for a while. Mules and the staff passed us by. Hari was not in sight. I was worried. But then he appeared. I didn’t like the way IH staff handled this. Everybody thought that the last man would bring Hari along with him. And so everyone went ahead and Hari was left alone. The camp was not far and by the time we reached, the tents were up and the hot meal was being served. Maggi……!!!! Whoever invented it is a genius….!!!!

It was time again to catch up with fellow trekkers. It was fun lazying around in the sun and discussing random topics…. Especially after such excruciating trek…. There was a learning for the day as I knew the real meaning of “ Tashreef rakhna”…. Thnx to Abhishek & Archana. In fact that was one of the most memorable afternoon I had spent in a while.…. thnx to Abhishek, Archana, Vani, Neelima, the 2 Saurabhs & Hrishikesh.

Matho Doksa Camp View - From Acclimatization Climb....

It was time again for acclimatization climb of the day. Raghav was too tired by that day’s excursion and so I went alone on the hillock behind our campsite. There were many “Marmots” around and they ran helter skelter as they feared for their life. I decided to return to the camp to have a cup of chai. As the sun set, it became cold again. I was still braving the cold but it was becoming increasingly difficult. After dinner we were served a hot glass of Bournvita…… wow….. to savour the taste of Bournvita after all those years I had to come up to 14000 ft….. tht’s life….!!! J

Stok Kangri - July 2012

Shang Fu – Here We come – @ 14250 ft – 16^th July

The day broke early and we got up…. It was cold outside….. Raghav & I went out first… although in different directions…. looking for a good position…. This was to be an important routine for the coming days…. Finding a good place to do the morning job….. J

We came back, having enjoyed first mover’s advantage…. J others were now scrambling for space…. After a while…. Brahma took us all out… made us to stand in one circle and to our utmost surprise made us do some warm up exercise….. @ 12000 ft doing warm up is not an easy task and half the energy was spent in those 30 minutes. We then had our breakfast, cleared the tent and got ready for the day’s trek.

We got ourselves divided in 3 groups. Each group was to have one leader who would set pace for the group and one sweeper who was to ensure that no one from the group was left behind. I became the sweeper of our “Golden 30’s” group (Kamal, Hrishikesh, Hari, Deshmukh, Jagan, Subhash & yours truly). Kamal was the leader. And thus we started our ascent to Shang Fu village. We were to climb about 2250 ft today.

The Curious boy from Shang village

We passed through Shang village, a few villagers were looking at us disbelievingly. They were perhaps used to watching foreigners treading there, us… Indians seldom get into doing silly things like trekking in Ladakh….. and that’s why they were amused.

Walking on this terrain is mesmerizing to say the least. Its so colourful, the barren mountains with different shapes and a few green patches….. Soon I realized that I was sweeping 2 groups as Hari & Nani were finding it a bit tough. Although the ascent was steady it was surprisingly quite hot and the wind had just vanished. Slowly we reached a small hamlet. There was a small temple with a walled compound. And it was surrounded by the Yak horns. I didn't know the logic behind keeping these horns…. Perhaps it suggested that we needed to take the bulls (the mountain, the ascent and the altitude) by the horns (i.e. patience)…..

Colours

The whole path was through riverbed and thus it was a bit difficult. The group had already gone ahead and I was shepherding the tail. Hari & Nani were exhausted but both just kept walking “Johnie Walker” style…. J We soon reached the camp site…. tired, hungry & thirsty….. Our tents and other stuff still had not reached so we just sat there catching our breath. We understood later that this is also a common camping point in another trek i.e Markha valley trek however on that day we were the only group camping there.

Walking through the riverbed

To take the bull by the horns....

Raghav - Starting the acclimatization climb

We did some cooling down exercises (Brahma at it again….) had our lunch, took a quick nap, and generally spent time lazying around out in the sun….. It was time again to catch up with new friends and getting to know more about them. The gujju gang started playing cards and we just kept discussing random topics. Around 4 pm it was time again to go for an acclimatization climb. So Raghav & I started climbing the ledge of the hillock beside our camping site. It was a steady ascent again and all of a sudden we found a few yaks descending in our direction….. we forgot about taking them by the horns and just got out of the way. We went ahead & Raghav was so enthu he wanted to climb the next hillock as well… I had to keep a tab on him and we returned just in time to have hot chai and some pop corns… Btw, corns help acclimatization.

As usual, the wind started and it became pretty cold as the sun was about to set. I was still on my solitary T shirt, getting used to the cold while others were comfortably wrapped up. After dinner, we took our sleeping bags, into the tents and off we went. I don’t know about others but I was quite tired by the day’s excursion and I was dead asleep in the next 2 minutes.

The campsite @ Shang Fu - View from Top

Stok Kangri - July 2012

Reporting from Shang @ 12000ft

We started from the Shanti Guest House after a nice breakfast and another briefing by Brahma. There are 2 routes to go to Stok Kangri. One via Stok Village which is shorter one and the other via Shang village which is longer one. IndiaHikes had chosen this longer route  so that it would help us acclimatize better and of course, show us some beauty of Ladakh’s landscape.

We took the Manali highway and went upto Karu (abt 35 kms from Leh). Road bifurcates here or trifurcate if that is a correct word. You take left and it goes to Chang La, the 3^rd highest motorable pass and then to Pangong Tso & China border, you go straight and you reach Tanglang La the 2^nd highest motorable pass and then onwards to Manali, you take right and the road goes to Hemis monastery. We chose the right one (literally too J) and went further. Here too there is a bifurcation, the left road goes to Hemis and the right one takes you to Shang village. We got down about 2.5 kms earlier and started our walk towards the campsite.

This was more of an acclimatization walk. And it was badly needed. But I don’t know why, everybody was in a rush and were walking faster. Nobody stopped to click any photographs and soon I was the last guy walking, stopping in between and clicking merrily. But then I started wondering whether I was that slow. Anyhow, the walk was for about 30 min or so and we reached a stream where on the other bank was our camp. I crossed the stream barefoot and OMG….. the water was chilled….!!

On our way to Shang village

Door Gagan ki chhaon mein

The camp was located at a lovely place. We had beautiful, yellow “Sarso” field right in front. It was looking majestic on that barren background. And to the left, on the mountain was Shang monastery in the distance. 

The ideal setting..... light should have been better though....

After our lunch, Daal-Roti & Chawal, we took a quiet nap and then set off for our acclimatization climb. The Monsatery looked good and Kamal & gang had already started. Raghav, Hrishikesh & I followed them, crossed the stream and slowly we climbed the hillock. From the top, the view was amazing. It was so quiet there. No wonder all these monasteries are located at such isolated places. The calmness there makes the mind stay still.

The Shang Monastery

Our Camp site - View from the top

Returning back, we decided to walk through the river bed. We walked a while and then realized that the stream was quite wide and the flow was faster than when we crossed it first. So we had to abandon that way, we did not want to exert on the very 1^st day. We came back, had a nice cup of tea and then whiled away our time getting to know more about our new acquaintances. We also had a formal intro session with the IndiaHikes staff as well as among us once again.

As soon as the sun set, the temperature began to dip and it was pretty cold out there. But Brahma was to issue our sleeping bags only after dinner. Brahma had also advised us not to wear warm clothes as far as possible so that we get used to the cold. So we stayed out, getting used to the cold. That was a good idea and I found that out later on the summit day.

So there we were, hale & hearty…… having dinner…… later we had a brief session for the day after’s climb and it was time to go to bed.

Stok Kangri - July 2012

Reporting from Leh – 14^th July 2012

Day breaks really early here. Woke up @ 5:30 am. We were just tidying up the bags when we received a knock on the door and in came our trek mate Kamal. Athletic guy…. We soon got talking and came to know ‘bhaisaab Marathon daudate hai…..’ (now I know why he looks athletic….). This quintessential marketing & sales guy had also written a novel. That’s what really inspired me to write this blog. He made a very pertinent comment….. says Kamal, “yaar I thought I would meet interesting people if I come here…. In today’s world if someone is ready to spend 40K (the approx cost of our trek including air fare) then the destinations would be Bangkok, Pattaya, Singapore, Dubai…. So it would be really a character who would choose to come here in the mountains to climb 20000 ft” . The two characters listening to him nodded in unison. J

We then went for an acclimatization climb to Shanti Stupa which was close to our guest house. We met 3 more trek mates there. You get to see a really good view of Leh from Shanti Stupa. If the sky is clear then in fact one can also see Stok Kangri, our ‘Lakshya’. We were not lucky though as it was cloudy. 

Shanti Stupa - The acclimatization climb

The Stupa

View of Leh from Shanti Stupa & the clouds covering Stok Kangri in the distance

We returned to the guest house and went to the market. Bumped into Hari there. Another athletic guy and I started wondering then that perhaps 8.5 kgs I had lost before wasn’t good enough. J

We had lunch @ the guest house. By this time almost everyone from the IndiaHikes trek group had assembled. So, spent some time introducing ourselves. It was, of course, gonna take some time before we remembered each other’s names and trades. So the communication was in universal language….. i.e ‘esmile’ J

We finally met the “Brahma”, our trek leader, at around 5 pm when he came to collect our medical certificates & declarations in order to ensure that he had permit for all of us. He said that he would be back in a while to brief us on the trek and next day’s action plan. Thus we broke. Some guys went shopping and Hrishikesh & I went to Jeevan Café to have a cup of tea.  Its another good eating joint located on the Karzu Officers Mess – Shanti Stupa road (now you know how vague I can get so don’t ask me again…ok?) J

That ‘a while’ of Brahma was after 5 hours…. (when I was a kid they told us that one day is like one second in Lord Brahma’s watch….. our Brahma was definitely faster then….what say?..... J jus kidding….) by that time everyone was done with dinner and almost in bed, after all… most of them had flown to Leh that day and were really tired, so….you know, you don’t expect to have a briefing @ 10:30 pm….

A quick briefing (which lasted for an hour) and we were fast asleep…. Maan….was really excited to start the trek the day after…….

Stok Kangri - July 2012

Reporting from  - Leh 13^th July 2012

On 12^th July night we reached Delhi and then spent the night on T3 as our flight to Leh was @ 6:30 in the morning the next day. T3 is a huge terminal for sure and certainly the best in the country and at par with better terminals in other countries. It remains to be seen however how much international traffic it can attract. I hope it will.

At the time of boarding the flight to Leh I felt as though I was travelling abroad. 80 % of the flight consisted of foreign nationals. It was good to see, as the region attracts so much attention globally and sad to see as well that in spite of being part of our country so few Indians travel there. Perhaps the cost of air travel is prohibitive and that is the reason….! However, it was certainly one of the best routes to fly on and you get a bird’s eyeview of fascinating Ladakhi terrain, barren mountains interspersed with snow capped peaks. It’s said that this terrain is part of Central Asian landscape. It’s a cold desert and then you see a distinct green patch in this barren landscape and that is the oasis called Leh. 

The Oasis - Leh

We landed at Leh's Kushok Bakula Rinpoche airport. This is an air base @ Air Force station and so passenger flights are permitted only in the morning. Now that tourist influx is quite high so the airport is in real need of expansion. That is what I sincerely feel.

We took the cab and went to Shanti Guest House @ Chanspa road near Shanti Stupa. This is where IndiaHikes had made our arrangements for the 14^th. We reached a day early and decided to take a chance. Apparently rooms were available for 13^th & the lady too was quite co-operative so we didn’t have any problems. In fact we got a welcome drink too. We got the 1^st test of altitude as we huffed & puffed to reach our room on the 2^nd floor. I was really tired by now as we didn’t get to sleep @ Delhi airport the earlier night. So I just dozed off in the next 10 min. 

We went to the market in the evening. It was kind of acclimatization walk cum trip down memory lane. Went to the same café near Axis Bank ATM where we had been before (during our bike ride trip in 2010) and had adrakwali chai. Did some window shopping in the market and then while coming back we stopped by @ World Peace Café and had some really well made, hot, chicken momos. I couldn’t resist the temptation to sms my friends and tell them that – ‘cool, pleasant weather, garam garam chai, and delicious, hot, chicken momos….. this was “life”….!’ In short I was high on life then. Needless to say I received quite a few interesting retorts…!! J

On my part though I’ll recommend this place as one of the good eateries in Leh. You get quite a variety here and the quality of food is good. If you are walking from the market towards Chanspa area, its located at a corner where you take a left turn to go to Karzu Officer’s Mess and then to Shanti Stupa. [guess that is as vague as one can get…. J]

Stok Kangri - July 2012

Stok Kangri (July 2012) – Idea & Preparation

We did Dzongri trek (Sikkim) in November 2011. Climbing upto 14000 ft was something. Then in Jan 2012 Hrishikesh said’ “ let’s do Stok Kangri”. Naam bhi kabhi suna nahi hai….ye hai kidhar bhai..... That was the 1^st reaction. Then I realized that its located near Leh in Ladakh and we had perhaps a glimpse of it during our bike ride through Leh in 2010. It’s a 6 thousander i.e. more than 20000 ft. Definitely daunting. 

The thought remained a thought almost till April and then we finally decided to book the air tickets. 1^st step, I told my boss about the plan and the dates on which I was planning to trek. Once I got the green signal, we booked the tickets. Booking the air tickets was a guarantee that we would definitely go to Leh.

Once the tickets were booked and then started the real preparation.

We bought 60 ltr back pack, head torch, trekking pole & other required stuff. I also ate Arjun’s head over whether “Action Trekking”, the brand of shoe we are so accustomed to wearing in Sahyadris will be good enough for this Trek to Stok. Finally I bought “Head” shoes (Quechua equivalent) which is considered fit for High Altitude trekking. Borrowed glares from Uday and a crepe bandage, few medicines and a mug from Sudeep.

                                                                                        

I was weighing a healthy 82 Kgs then (on 2^nd May to be precise). Having trekked fair bit in Sahyadris (Western Ghats) I knew what it was to carry extra weight while climbing. So I set myself 1^st target and that was to reduce 10 Kgs in 10 weeks. Kaydese ye commitment facebook status bana diya so that I could stay motivated to accomplish it.

Next 10 weeks, I religiously did cardio exercises @ Talwalkar’s (running on treadmill, stationery cycle, stepper & cross trainer). Target was to burn minimum of 600 calories every day. We also did Plus Valley trek & Rajgad-Torna trek. Besides almost all other Sundays (at least 6) went to Sinhgad (close to Pune) with 12-14 kgs back pack and on one Sunday climbed it twice with the backpack on. On 2 other Saturdays I went to BMCC ground in Pune and ran 12 laps (close to 5.5 kms).

I declared that I would not drink until I summit and followed that resolution firmly without giving in. I also followed a daily routine (controlled diet) –

8:30 am –     Breakfast – idli sambar (3 idlis) & chai,

11:30 am –   Biscuits & chai,

1:30 pm –     Lunch – 1 Roti, Legumes & Dal,

4:30 pm –     Biscuits & chai,

6:30 pm –     Evening snacks ( as available in the company canteen including vada-pao),

8:30 pm –     Dinner – 1.5 Rotis, vegetable

Company canteen prepares sweets on Mondays, Thursdays & Saturdays, so ate those sweets. Also went to McD and Pizza Hut. But overall I ensured that I did not overeat. As a result, on 12^th July when I boarded the plane to Delhi I had lost 8.5 kgs. Couldn’t achieve the target of 10 Kgs but still it was no mean achievement. I was fitter, slimmer and hungry to climb Stok Kangri...

Mexican Taco

Well, I wrote my 1st blog about 3 years ago and thereafter there is only 1 more post. I penned down many more thoughts, none of them complete though, and thus never got posted. Why? The simple & only reason being – laziness!

So why am I writing now? To post or not to post is not a question anymore. I’m in Guatemala, it’s a weekend, it’s been raining outside and honestly I can’t pass hours and hours on “facebook”.

I was in Mexico City the other day, for a machine trial at a potential customer’s plant. 6:30 am….. Never in my life had I been to work so early in the morning! Just got talking to the packaging Engineer, Manolo. He was very happy that I knew Spanish (actually it was he, who was trying hard to understand what I wanted to say) when I told him that Mexican food is quite popular in India. My favorites were “Nachos” & “Tacos”. Pat came reply, “that’s great! Do you want to try some? Outside the plant there is a lady (who stands with her van) who prepares amazing Tacos”.

Khane ki cheez hai aur main na bolu?.....Sawaal hi paida nahi hota.... Yes, the Tacos were really good.

Later, Manolo took me to meet the factory manager, Illagel Perez. Apart from work, he told Illagel that I liked Tacos and I also ate at the outside vendor’s place. Illagel was flabbergasted….looked at me in astonishment as if I was some weird guy. He asked me, “Are you alright? Is your stomach still ok?” Illagel then said, “no, I’ve met a lot of ‘Gringos’ (that is how American tourists are referred to in entire Latin America), they are very fussy about what to eat and where to eat and still they always complain of stomach upset.” I just said, “It’s all in the mind you know.” And we all had a hearty laugh.

Well, I didn’t tell him that I was a trekker (was?? No, no I still am) and was proud that I could eat anything anywhere. I was not a crazy American (or a similar sophisticated Desi version), overly (and unnecessarily if I may add) worried about hygiene and stuff! (You see, there comes the arrogance…!)

But guys, I must tell you, I had eaten Tacos earlier in India as well as in Colombia & Costa Rica. But maan, you must eat it in Mexico. They make it so well… (Obviously… if they don’t then who will??….look at me… so dumb I am!) And whenever you’ll have that chance please have it with their “salsa picante”…. Wow…I’m feeling hungry again!!!