Morning I reached the Dharamsala and the gates were locked. With 2 backpacks weighing me down, the wait was endless. Luckily my co-trekker Niraj showed up :-). He called up the director and the watchman showed up - eyed us suspiciously and opened the gates after we convinced him that we are not thieves :-).
Earlier, the night before more people joined the group. Originally the batch for 22nd just had 15 people. Like myself, others from later groups (23rd and 24th) added and we were 21 people that morning.
So when we reached Dharamsala, hot breakfast was ready. Oily pooris were a bit too much for me and hence I had a large quote of hot hot Dalia. It was simple, yet wonderful food. With breakfast sorted out, packed some pooris and bhendi in my box for lunch. Slowly rest of the group started streaming in for breakfast, welcoming each other.
By that time, we also realised that the 5:30 estimated departure may not happen. There was still some confusion about the bus and the final confirmation came for 7:00am departure. Since we had some time, Madam Gopi, one of the Volunteer camp leaders and an avid trekker from Karnataka got us together for an informal briefing and intro. At last, I got to know the gang for this trek. It was a mix of all ages starting from 3 kids around 13 yrs to 3 senior citizens. Madam Gopi took us through the dos and donts in these treks and safety tips. We all streamed towards the bus, myself and another guy got to the top and piled all our backpacks. The helper tied them down with a tarpaulin sheet and we were all set.
Officially, the trek started on the morning of 23rd May with a bus ride to the base camp @ Sankri. Close to 175 KMs from Dehradun to Sankri. Being a local bus and we were only 21 people, the bus stopped almost every 2 KMs to pick up or drop-off the locals. Winding roads, some 10+ mountains to cross, the total journey took 10 hours! Added to this, for someone tall like me, the seats are very uncomfortable. The bus stopped for breakfast, lunch and few times for tea on the way. The last hour, the trekkers were the only ones in the bus. After a quick stop @ the forest check post for entry fees, we finally arrived at our destination @ Base Camp Sankri - time was 5:30 PM Sunday, May 23rd !
The evening went in formalities, collecting our sleeping bags and other essentials. Mr. Shravan Kumar Sharma - Field Director, YHAI Kedarkanth trek, briefed on the schedule and we dispersed to our tents. One thing was common in this trek, that's the schedule. 5:00 AM Wake up, 5:30 tea, 7:00 AM breakfast, then proceed to the activities. If at the camp, 1-2pm lunch, 5:30 PM tea, 6:30 Soup, 7:30 PM dinner and by 10:00 PM lights out. This schedule was religiously followed (and enforced). Looking back, I feel this strict schedule helped us accomplish all the challenges thrown at us during this trek.
After a hot soup, I went to the Sankri village (half km by walk) to buy sandals and poncho. I needed a size 10 and the last available size was 7 - shops stock for the locals and it was rare for them to need a larger size. Left with no choice, I picked up the size 7.
Came back for dinner and we all gathered for a formal introduction. The instructors, office staff, field director and the trekking group got to know about each other. Campfire (just a basket with lights) is a ritual, lighted by our group leader and the trek was officially kicked off :-)! 10:00 PM lights out!
Photos here @
Base camp @ Sankri photos
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