The Trek

                “ He who climbs the highest mountains laughs at all tragedies,

      real or imaginary "

       -Friedrich Neitszche.

Life and times have changed in truly revolutionary ways. Yet we seldom feel it, as we are also its integral part. Life has become so busy in metropolitan cities that we hardly have time to pause and think, least forget reflecting. It is like as if someone has pressed fast forward button and forgot to press it back and before we realise, there is a big  ‘THE END’ flashing on the television screen of life.

                   Not very long ago I developed immense love for travelling. Often my trips comprise of road trips to mountains(particularly Himalayas) which works as an escape route for me from city madness to wilderness. This time I chose rather little more adventurous escape route – trekking. Being a plane dweller , I was skeptical about my physical abilities for this climb and also a tiny part of me was also apprehensive of the unknown .After much search and contemplation I booked my trip with an agency operating in the field of Himalayan adventures. It was trek to NagTibba located 60 km from Mussoorie.

            We started our trek from a small village called Panthwari on bright Sunday morning. Our team had people from different parts of country. It was a group as some of them were highly motivated, some skeptical, others seasonal trekkers narrating stories of their previous treks. Over all it was a lively group of individuals of different age groups. The essence of this team was a common goal – The climb. The expert guides with us provided seamless experience of trek, they gave enough space to each one of us to climb at our own pace. Although from different walks of life, the essence of interaction lies in otherwise mundane ways like motivating each other, laughing and perching on rocks in between, appreciating the vastness of beauty around while climbing. These complicate our feelings of hate or prejudice, so much that it will make those feelings vanquish entirely. It allows us to be open, to trust, to breakdown cultural, religious, professional barriers and turn a once stranger into just another human being.

The beautiful sunset rays

                   It was 7km trek to base camp. I had been struggling to catch my breath all the way uphill but it was a lively feeling with sun warming my back and mountain cold wind caressing my face. After approximately 5hours, we reached base camp. It was almost sunset time. By the time we settled in our respective tents, it became dark outside. The vibrant colours of sunset were engulfed by stark darkness all around. I felt profound silence as the fellow trekkers snuggled up in their tents. As the night advanced distant sounds began to fade away. The sky above came alive , glittering vivaciously studded with dense stars accessorizing the panorama of shadows of trees on mountain peaks. I was totally enthralled by the profundity of the vision that lay before me, it trumped everything else I experienced before. I just looked and looked and looked at the spectacular 

glitterati spread above me. (After failed attempts of trying to capture it by camera, I decided to paint it when back home).

           My all senses came to a halt for an hour to capture the beauty in my mind’s eye. I was taken over by intense calmness and began to understand what being in present (mindfulness) actually mean. I spotted another group, trekkers with their headlights on making their way to camp. Their enthusiastic voices added to the background score as backing vocalists under the starry night.

The white around.

               Next morning, we headed to Nag-Tibba summit. The path now, was not very bumpy and steep, it was a circular trek through the forest area and the wind pelted snow chunks on us from the tree canopies. After walking for about an hour we found ourselves amidst the shimmering snow spread all over, lit by golden tint of sun. Trudging and catching up with the team, I finally spotted Shiva temple. Reaching at its door step, I could only thank Lord Shiva for bestowing me with the strength to climb.

The shiva temple covered with snow.

                               Each time when I come back home from these trips, not to mention this time from climb, there is always a new me, emerging out from an old moult. The moult which I left behind somewhere in the jungles of these magnificent Himalayas.