Solo Trail Trekking for High Winds

I had good respect for but he didn’t knew me as we had chat only on Facebook

By mid night inside the tent, I was feeling that this time too I will not be able to trace the trek and have to go back just like that!
I was up by 05:00 am started packing my sleeping bag and checked outside, the sky was all clear…so my curiosity to retry the trail tracing got stronger and as I packed my sleeping bag and stepped out of the tent, the North West sky started sending clouds towards North East.
These were not coming from South West, so probably were not monsoon clouds! I kept staring at the sky and the clouds and then there was sunrise.
The clouds kept coming from the same direction heading to East. Then after tea still kept staring at the sky and there the clouds passed over the high Mountains and now only traces of clouds were left!
So had a hasty roasted porridge breakfast and closed the tent zipper and picked camera bag and headed towards the half traced trail.
After some steep climb, free style rock climbing and saddling over the edgy glacier patch arrived at the half tracked trail (that we had found by hit and try method) and started my climb and trail tracing. This time I was again physically solo but not alone at all.
You are never Alone, Alone may be in the form of flash but are never alone.
Any kind of relationship that is not built with a good foundation of faith will eventually not succeed or just break.
.
It was around 2014 or like that and I made a real contact with one of my social media friends. We were to go out for High Mountain trail trekking and then camping on the mountain pass of high winds.
Generally we (I) prefer “Solo Trekking” and camping that is not to “show-off” but is the way we like the most.
But then there are some trails that go through dense forests which further are the home of Black Bears and the elusive king in mountainous forests, the Leopard.

And once you are even planning for trekking through such dense forest treks, your mind plays with your heart and emotions in many ways.
Like a night before the trek, the environment of dark night in the room makes you feel, the fear of solo night camping and the animals that may pop out on the trek. Then comes the factor of weather, plus many other minor things.
Because while solo trekking it is only you who is to carry all of the load like camping, cooking and other stuff all by yourself.
All these fear factors and things force the “Solo Trekker” that is inside you to either cancel the solo trekking and camping or postpone it, which eventually remain on the trek of postpone.
Then I just let the sleep take over and say, let’s see how the mind feels in the morning.
There sure is some magic in the darkness of the night and the darkness of the early mornings, that’s what we feel. In both situations the mind has different experience and feeling which further draft rough plans for the day.
I had packed my regular college backpack with a three liter cooker plus, two men tent from Quechua, 3 days ration and the sleeping bag.
By 09:30 AM was in the meeting point and there I met my first Facebook friend in real.
After formal handshake and greetings, we started our walk on steep but under construction road.
The Sun was shining to the full, the weather over Dhauladhar Mountains was perfect. As we left the under construction road and hit the steep trail, I was already sweating profusely and it was just the beginning of the trek.
My new friends were not climbing but running, while I was trailing them! At one point I even felt, why I am here? But kept on walking and at one place of worship, we stopped for refreshment and there met another seasoned shepherd, who was also going to the same point of our interest.
The seasoned shepherd had his own concern and fear of the Black Bears so our company was a plus point for him and his company was a plus point for us as the deep forest trail was not known to us.
This was my second climb with all stuff on my regular college backpack, first was when I’d recently bought camping stuff like Tent, Sleeping bag but no good backpack.
Back then I had hit the trail for the Shakti Peeth Aadi Himani Chamunda Devi and was even carrying a 5 liter water can!
You may call it a chance, but that day I got down from the bus in wrong stop! I was to get down in Jia bypass but got down in Gopalpur and there was no much time to wait for another bus.
So that day my trek for the temple of Aadi Himani Chamunda Devi started from Gopalpur, the Sun was strong! After 30 minutes arrived at Jia bypass and from there continued for Badsar village.
Once I was in Badsar village filled up my 5 liter water can and started the climb.

At that time, I had no experience of how to pack your backpack and moreover my backpack was just another college backpack. So there was no weight balancing and carrying 5 liter water can on hand was another big mistake.
Then I also lacked the knowledge of shortcut on those treks that go steep and round by round. As I was going up, started emptying the can slowly and slowly to get the strength so that could manage all mismanaged college backpack.
By the time I covered ¼ part of the trek, I was like a person who probably had been on war zone for about a week without food!
I noticed that, I’d emptied that 5 liter water can to keep on going and now there was no water in the can. Now I had only 250ml of water in my 500 ml water bottle and there was another long steep trail without any source of water.
After some more climb, noticed some seasonal huts and the clock time was around 1-2 pm and the trail covered was just ¼!
I was dehydrated and there was no energy left in me, so some how managed to step inside one of the good looking stone hut. I knew, I have to spend the night in that hut and think of the remaining trek next day.
After some rest brought out the sickle and cut some thorn bush to put on the entrance of the stone hut and for the night camp fire and after that lay on a big boulder facing the Sun!
Then heard some voices coming from uphill and someone was calling me “who is that “hero””!
Myself was out there, without energy and water and people were judging me as a “hero”.
Kept my eyes closed and as them people arrived near, was disappointed to see that among them was a person, for whom I had good respect for but he didn’t knew me as we had chat only on Facebook!
To be continued….

[hurrytimer id=”6021″]