There is something about the mountains that never fail to fascinates me. Been born and brought up in Uttarakhand, I have always found my soul at peace when i am closer to the hills.
I got the taste of trekking last year with the beautiful Valley of flowers Trek, Chamoli. The whole experience was so beautiful that I was constantly looking to grab another opportunity to be near the mountains.
On looking for suitable treks in Google, I came across the pictures of Kedarkantha trek which looked straight out of a fairy tale. On reading about it further, got to know that this is a beginners trek and comes under easy - moderate category. Excited by this piece of information, it was decided that it will be a Kedarkantha winter trek for us. We saw many groups that organized this trek and finally decided to go with Himalayan High.
Day 1 and 2 - Delhi - Dehradun - Sankri
We got into an overnight bus from Delhi to Dehradun. On reaching Dehradun at 5.30 am, headed straight to Mussorie bus station and took a bus to Purola. The bus ride from Dehradun to Sankri was completely mesmerizing and we had our share of entertainment from the locals who were gossiping and playing local tunes. One has to change the bus at Purola and take another bus to Sankri.
On reaching Sankri, we were too excited to go to the guest house directly and instead decided to walk a little around in the local market. There are so many cafes and food joints in Sankri where one can relish yummy Maggi and Momos in the cold evening.
On reaching the guest house that was assigned to us by Himalayan High, we were greeted by hot chai and a plate full of pakodas. All of us met our trek organizer and interacted with other trek mates.
Day 3 - Sankri(6450 ft) to Juda Ka Talab(9150 ft)
After a much needed sleep, we woke up in the morning and had a delicious breakfast, packed our bags and left for the trek with our guide. All of us were having a good time enjoying the trail. We took short Chai Maggi breaks in the local dhabas as well. In the last fifteen minutes or got to see some scattered patches of ice. On reaching the campsite everybody started playing and clicking pictures in the snow.
Meanwhile, our organizing team was busy in setting up the tent and getting the meals ready. In the evening, our guide Mr Praveen took us few meters ahead to the famous lake(juda ka talab). The lake was half frozen and we could see thin sheet of ice at some places.
It was an absolute delight to watch people posing and clicking pictures. With the sunset, it was getting very cold so we rushed to have dinner and went off to sleep.
Day 4 - Juda ka talab(9150 ft) to Kedarkantha Base Camp(11250 ft)
Since there was not a lot of walking on this day, we all started late from Juda camp site. Enjoyed the sun, played with the snow and clicked so many pictures before starting the trek. No words will be able to describe the true beauty of this place. Cool air, whistling leaves, snow dropping from the trees, water stream gushing, wooden logs covered with snow - It was getting hard to believe that whatever we were seeing was real and not a still from Disney movie. After taking few good long breaks we managed to reach the campsite in just 2 hrs.
On reaching the campsite, we all got busy chilling out in the snow and soaking in the view. After having our lunch we went inside our tents to take some rest and gear up for the next day. Later in the evening, Mr Praveen checked our Oxygen and Bp levels which we all got very excited about. Serioulsy, it felt nothing less than passing an exam. Post dinner, the trek leader briefed us about our next day plan and we collected our gaiters, crampons and tuck for the next day.
Day 5- KK Base Camp(11250 ft) - KK Summit(12500 ft) - KK Base Camp(11250 ft) - Sankri(6450 ft)
After waking up at 2.30 am in the morning, we sat down for our breakfast and started the trek by 3.30 am. We layered ourselves with warmest clothes, put on the crampons + gaiters and started walking.
Our trek leader asked us to return back to the base camp, in case if someone feels sick or uncomfortable. Our group started crawling in the snow braving the chill air.
It was pitch dark and we could only spot a distant string of lights in the snow trail.
The climb to the summit is not an easy one, especially in the snow. Walking in a narrow trail in the snow requires a great deal of effort, especially in an early winter morning.
In the middle of all this, we caught a glimpse of an animal's paw prints in the snow. We reached the summit by 6:45 am and saw the sun rising in front of us. After taking few pictures in the summit, our guide distributed sweets that he had carried all the way with him.
Few people were excitedly locating network on their phones and trying to connect to their family and friends. After spending some time in the summit, we started descending.
On reaching the camp, we had Rajma Chawal for lunch and went off to take some rest. It was then decided by our group to head straight to Sankri instead of spending the night at Hargaon. We trekked through dense forest, came across beautiful sights and reached Sankri by evening.
On reaching Sankri, it was time again for us to head to the local market to enquire about the bus for the next day. We came back, had our dinner and went off to sleep.
Day 6 - Sankri - Dehradun - Delhi
There is a direct bus which we took at 8.30 am from Sankri that dropped us at 6:30 pm in Dehradun. Again, caught another bus to Delhi and left the Dehradun station with a heavy heart reminiscing about the beautiful memories that will be with us forever. One should do this trek in order to set yourself free and to get a different perspective of being in the nature with minimum assistance.