At the heart of Himachal Pradesh lies a congregation of snow-bound peaks that sleep quietly in the midnight chill. As the sun peaks above the horizon, the snowy mountains are lit aglow with ethereality, their white vertiginous slopes bathed by yellow-orange light. Standing proudly like tall spires, they beckon the climber in with their beauty, masking the dangers faced by those who once dared to climb them. Welcome to the Himalayas!
Rocks, rocks, and more rocks…
From the very start of the expedition, my rucksack became something extremely essential- a portable necessity, stuffed to the rim with cotton-clad armour to battle the harsh winter weather. It contained several pairs of thermals, balaclavas, caps, gloves, down jackets, and my most trustworthy ammunition: a handful of chocolate bars. Accompanied by 5 experienced guides and 12 of my fellow teammates, I started my journey from McLeod Ganj’s basecamp towards Triund: a beautiful meadow situated at 9,350ft amidst nature’s wilderness!
With a trekking pole tightly clutched in one hand, I traversed amidst hilly terrains, tall pine trees and bushes filled with verdant foliage. The trail was strewn with rocks, arranged haphazardly like a twisted maze waiting to be solved. Some were as big as boulders, while others were small, sharp and jagged. After a 6-hour-long arduous ascent, we stopped in front of a panoramic mountain landscape to warm our cold hands with steaming plates of delicious Maggie.
Let’s get Eco-friendly!
Living in the mountains meant sacrificing my warm, cushioned bed for a small, waterproof, alpine tent. I remember how humbled I was when I first reached the Triund campsite. That night, I lay slanted, cocooned by a sleeping bag, while my tent balanced precariously over the edge of a mountain. Over the next few days, my survival soon became entrusted to 4 tightly (or not so tightly) latched pegs. And when the fate of your life rests on 10-centimetre, alloyed metal sticks, forget about getting beauty sleep. I’d much rather wake up with eye bags and dark circles as opposed to falling off a cliff.
Apart from sleep deprivation, mountain life also entails a scarcity of water resources and washrooms. So, there’s nothing more terrifying and amusing than running to a tent at 12 am in the morning with frozen fingers and a barely functional head torch to do your business in a dug-up muddy hole. Let’s just say that the most convenient substitute to a flush is a heap of dried mud that lies on the side. Truly eco-friendly indeed.
Plot twist…
On our third day of the expedition, we reached Snowline, with an elevation of 10,000ft. We had lunch while basking in the sun and sang songs together in the tent that night. However, the once joyous atmosphere soon transformed into something more sullen. During a team meeting, one of our seniors spoke: “We have to descend back to Triund”- words I never expected to hear from the very people who had been our guiding force throughout the trip. They cited sub-zero temperature, lost confidence, high technicality, casualties, mortality and lack of resources as major limiting factors, but did so in a superficial manner without adequate explanation.
Fuelled by shared disbelief and dissatisfaction, my fellow teammates and I stood outside our seniors’ tent at 1 am in the morning, desperate to solve our predicament. After several heated conversations, we finally convinced our guides and team leaders to continue our journey uphill as a bold act of defiance against nature’s harshness. While standing amidst the spine-chilling wintery breeze, we realised that nothing could come in the way of our relentless pursuit to the summit.
Girl Power!
On the night of 31st December, I was roused by the urgent voices of our guides. “Wake up! Breakfast ready hai!”. With a dehydrated system, sore muscles, and bandaged feet, I relished the black tea, poha, and dalia given to us as an early breakfast, in hopes of rejuvenating my fatigued and sleep-deprived self.
At around 2 in the morning, the cold weather ate into my head torch’s battery at a speed faster than usual. With little to no visibility, I was tasked to navigate dangerous, steep routes and widely spaced boulders, silently praying that I don’t meet my demise with every waking step. At the crack of dawn, our team hit 13,000 ft, a point that marked the beginning of something far riskier than I could ever have imagined. During this time, many of my teammates who encountered bad injuries, dizziness, and excruciatingly painful headaches were forced to descend back to the campsite.
Eventually, 5 of us remained, ready to take on whatever the mountains had to offer. With the city lights winking up at us from far below, the path ahead of me was an unprecedented mix of rocky terrains, soft murren, snow, and hard slats of ice where each surface required a different level of grip, balance, and adaptability. As I gained more elevation, I felt the weight of my rucksack almost double and press down on me. Gravity grinned at me with menace and gleefully laughed at the heavy breathing that accompanied my every step uphill. Fortunately, I was grateful to have a supportive team beside me, whose confidence and motivation never seemed to dwindle, even during the toughest of times.
At around 10 am, we finally summited Indrahar Pass, one of the highest in the Dhauladhar range, standing at an astounding 14,245 ft. During the expedition, a fellow teammate of mine had said, “The more beautiful the view, the harder you need to work for it.” Those words struck me as my eyes were met with several snow-dotted mountain valleys; a view that instantly silenced my aching muscles and frazzled mind. After reaching the top, part of me felt proud to be the only female in the team to reach the summit.
During the trip, days commenced with golden sunrises and steaming mugs of morning chai while nights were warmed by bonfires, shared songs, and horror stories that brought the team close together (quite literally).In the end, the Indrahar Pass expedition became more than just a trek through snow and misty mountains. It became a testament to my resilience, while transforming even the tiniest moments into something intense, alive, and truly unforgettable.