Day-1: June 12th, Bangalore to Delhi We all started our journey from Bangalore to Delhi by flight at 7.00 PM and were able to catch train to Haridwar at night 12.00 AM. As we got bookings in AC coach, we were able to sleep well which was important for our strenuous travel.
Day-2: June 13th, Haridwar to Rishikesh(~1300 ft) to Loharjung(~ 8600 ft) From Haridwar, we left to Rishikesh at around 5 AM by bus and from there we left for Loharjung with the help of two sumos. As we were 11 and the govt. rules don't allow more than 8 to 9 to travel in a single sumo, Hari and Aswin had to travel seperately. We had breakfast on the way to Devprayag and lunch at Karnaprayag. Along the way, to avoid boredom we either listening to songs or chit-chatted with each other. As the ghat road is good on the way to Loharjung, we didn't face nausea as in the previous trek. On the way, me and Murali made a bet with the freshers (Raju & Pavan) that they will get a treat in Leela Palace if they don't puke during the journey without using any medicines. Raju was in a josh that they would win the bet but Pavan played spoilsport by taking in medicines.
We traveled along the twists and turns of the ghat road and had glimpses of the beautiful valleys and mountain peaks that adorned the Garwal mandal of Uttarkhand state. Most of the roads here are carved out of the mountains by BRO(border roads organization) which is why they are still in good condition.
On the way, we had a glimpse of sangam of Alakananda and Bhagirathi rivers at Devprayag. Devprayag is one of the five sacred confluences of the tributaries of river Ganges in the hills while the other four prayags being Karnaprayag, Nandaprayag, Devprayag, Rudraprayag & Vishnuprayag. We can easily differentiate the waters of Alakananda & Bhagirathi rivers, as the waters of Alakananda are brown in color and Bhagirathi's one are in green. This may be because of the type of sediments they carry.
At NarayanBagad, Hari and Aswin joined us. From Debal we took another jeep to Loharjung. While we were very near to Loharjung guest house, it started raining dogs and cats and our backpacks were getting drenched on the top of the sumo. We had no way to get out and pick our backpacks as it was a hailstorm. We could see hails of the size of pearls hitting our sumo. I was awed at the driver skills as he was driving fast on the dangerous roads where the visibility was close to zero. Our driver asked Hari if he could see anything outside clearly to help him out. Hari couldn't see the path and got a bit confused as he was not able to see the road in front of the sumo clearly and he was thinking how he could help the driver in such a situation. At last, our driver said even he couldn't see anything visible outside but drove the sumo with his indigenous skills. When we were just 10 meters away from the guest house, we saw a steep climb of around 45 degrees. We thought it would be impossible to climb with 12 of us inside the sumo and it would be a mission-impossible kind of stunt if he does it. But our driver made it as though its usual to do such kind of driving here in the ghat section.
While it was still raining hailstorm, Raju was in a hurry to have his backpack brought down from the sumo top as it was not a waterproof one. We got help from our guide Mohan singh to have the backpacks removed while it was still raining. We got to know from our guide that the weather here changes dramatically and it can rain at any time. As we were getting afraid because of the unsuitable climate for trekking, he assured us that the sky will get cleared by next day morning.
I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw visually charming valleys and mountains in front of the guest house. If given a chance, everyone of us would like to have such picturesque landscapes greet us in the morning when we get up. It would be one of my most memorable moments and I would like to spend a big vacation in such guest houses without having to roam anywhere. The guest house had all the basic amenities one needed on a stay in such a nice location(even a MTNL WLL phone with which I called home to inform where I was).
Sometime in the evening, we met Arjun who talked to us about the intricate details of trekking to Roopkund. We got to know from him that the whether here changes dramatically and it can rain at any time. Even though we got a little bit afraid with his talk, we wanted to complete the trek with much more enthusiasm than before. He asked us to insist our guide to take us to Junargali peak as it has more breath taking views than Roopkund. He told about the localities, their culture and how they survive there. Through him we got to know that the place Loharjung got its name because of a 'jung' that happened here between two kings.
While we were talking to our guide about the rations, safety equipment and climate information, Raju was trying to ask the guide if you could rent an extra mule to carry his backpack. Even he got me involved in it by supporting him while Pavan was more eager to have an extra mule. Our captain commented that “a trek would not be a trek if you don't carry your rucksack and trek”. Anyway the guide assured Raju that he will allow his rucksack to be carried either by a mule or a porter.
At night we had a good dinner made of chappatis, curry, dal & rice. Whatever served to us was emptied in no time. The weather was cold but bearable. Our guide's words were correct about the local whether and the sky got cleared by night. We had a rare glimpse of the entire sky getting bejeweled with the infinite number of stars which is not a possibility in the cities because of light pollution. Even with our naked eye, we could see the path of milky way. We started to recognize some of the planets and constellations that draped the sky. I think the sky with the infinite number of colorful stars aroused curiosity in most of us and the curiosity even got more when we got to know of the astronomical distances and birth of the stars.
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