I have always loved travelling, however I have never been to any real treks before. The idea of trekking always seemed exciting but never really materialized. One fine day, my husband and I decided to take the much needed break from our monotonous and draining schedule. It was finally the time for our first trek! Since we were beginners, we wanted to start with the simplest one.
After doing some search on the internet, we zeroed in on - Nag Tibba. As per some blogs, it was meant to be ‘Easy’-a ‘Beginners Trek' as they say. Nag Tibba or Serpent’s peak is the highest peak in the lower Himalayan region of Uttarakhand at an elevation of 3,022 metres.
We booked the trek from a travel website-Thrillophilia and took the Delhi to Delhi variant to keep things easier. We packed all the essentials mentioned on their website and the voucher, and were ready for the adventure.
The journey started on a late Friday night from Akshardhan Metro Station, Delhi, after we became dinner of a zillion mosquitoes in the metro station yard, in a tempo traveler with my husband and 15 strangers.
Next morning, we reached Pantwari after a bearing lot of stomach-churning hairpin bends, with some people puking and others trying their best to hold back from throwing up. I forgot to mention, I am blessed with motion sickness and fear of heights. I was trying my best to keep myself together- as both these sensations were high during this leg of the journey.
We reached Pantwari village at around 9:30 am in the morning, we were given 5-10 mins (we took 30-35mins) to freshen up in a small hotel and come down to have breakfast.
We had a heavy breakfast and then signed a sheet which had our names on, I rented a walking stick for Rs.20 only and within 5 minutes we started our ascend for the base camp. It was sunny with no breeze.
After walking for almost 1 km, I started feeling dizzy and sick. The sun was glaring. Most people from our group were already much ahead of us. Few locals were climbing down with grasses and one very elderly lady advised me to walk at my own pace and keep taking breaks and sipping water (it isn't a competition). Next, my husband took my bag and all I had to do now was to carry myself to the basecamp slowly and steadily. I took innumerable breaks, had lemonade and rhododendron juice made from the bright red flowers of the tree found locally and sold by the villagers on our way up.
Four of us from the group were the last to reach the base camp. However, all the exhaustion vanished once we reached the beautiful valley. Camps were lined up and we were served hot lunch made with locally grown and extremely fresh vegetables and beans.
In the evening we had a bonfire. By then, the group of strangers who started the trip together from Delhi had already become friends. We sat together under the moonlit sky with millions of stars, we chatted away, listened to songs, and had a wonderful time, something we city dwellers rarely get to experience in our chaotic and busy lifestyles.
We were supposed to wake up at 2:30 am in the night and start our trek from the basecamp towards Nag Tibba temple-our destination and for people who wanted to experience the beautiful sunrise, an extra kilometre of trek to the summit. We woke up on time, had some snacks before we started. We walked holding a flashlight in one hand and stick on another. Not surprisingly, the climb was difficult- it was night, the trail was through a dense forest, uneven with rocks and stones, which slipped every now and then.
Huffing and puffing we finally made our way to Nag Tibba at around 5:00am. Extremely cold winds were blowing and it was freezing. Four of us decided to stay back, others went up to the summit. We had a guide with us who suggested we sit near a campsite with some other people who were doing a bonfire and wait till its dawn, and then visit the temple.
On the crack of dawn, we walked towards the temple, there are two temples in the vicinity-one is Nag Tibba (the temple of serpent God or Nag Devta) and another temple dedicated to the Goddess near it.
After visiting the temple our guide took us to another end of the valley, which was elevated, from there we could see the beautiful Himalayan ranges. We sat there for some time and soaked in the beauty of the place. Once our eyes and mind were satisfied, we decided to climb down to the basecamp.
We came down to the basecamp in about an hour. Once everyone arrived, we had lunch and started the descent from our basecamp to Pantwari village, bidding adieu to the simple and beautiful hill folks we met.
The descent wasn’t easy for me, my fear of heights made it worse, whenever I was near the cliff and had to walk along narrow road full of rocks, my legs froze. Nevertheless, I was lucky enough to have the company of people who were extremely helpful.
Once we reached Pantwari village, we freshened up and had some snacks and started off for Delhi again. We carried back with us some beautiful memories, new experiences, sunburn, muscle pain and a wish in our hearts to come back again!
Things I learned from this trip which would be helpful for anyone planning a trek:
Try to keep the trip short. Instead of Delhi to Delhi, a Dehradun to Pantwari (for Nag Tibba trek) or whichever is the nearest city from your trek would have been less tiresome for us.
Do not start the trek immediately after having food. I made that mistake and was uneasy throughout.
Carry a trekking pole, if not, rent one, it helps distribute body weight during the trek.
Walk slowly and take occasional breaks.
Carry sun block and a pair of slippers; both are important and I had none! I got badly sunburned and also, no slippers meant that while I was at the basecamp, I couldn’t change to a comfortable footwear .
Keep yourself hydrated, fill your bottles during the trek from freshwater pipes, if any. The water on the hills are fresh and sweet, locals use the same water to cook, it is completely safe. In this trek, we came across many locals selling lemonade and rhododendron juice, would suggest you to take short breaks and drink these while you are on your way.
Do not make your backpack heavy unnecessarily.
If you fear heights like me, do not look sideways if you are walking beside a cliff, look in front and at the ground and walk slowly.
Wear a good pair of trekking shoes, they provide firm grip and prevent you from slipping.
Most importantly, never shy away from seeking help.
Happy Trekking!
Comments