Our First Expedition Together - Mt. Deo Tibba, June 2022, by Meghna Kushalappa & Gautam Thapliyal

Himachal Pradesh became our Home after the COVID-19 pandemic hit. We chose Kullu Valley because of its proximity to high altitude treks and peaks to climb. In the first year, we worked hard to get our bodies ready for tough climbs. But then, Meghna got sick during the second wave, and we had to pause our plans. She always dreamt of climbing Deo Tibba peak (6001m), but we didn't know when we could try.

The June 2021 speed hike to Hampta Pass got us back on track. In August, Meghna led a group to Norbu peak, which shares a basecamp with Deo Tibba. Sadly, they couldn't summit the peak because of bad weather. But she came back even more determined to climb Deo Tibba.

In December 2021, we got married and focused on our home for a while. Then, in the summer of 2022, as the snow melted and treks opened up, Meghna suggested trying Deo Tibba peak. We started training and planning. We did long runs and endurance training. Our goal was to do an Alpine expedition. Meghna’s friend who climbed Deo Tibba the previous year, agreed to join us, along with his friend. We rented climbing gear and bought supplies for the expedition. We were well trained and planned to finish the expedition in 5 days.

On June 10, 2022, we began our journey. We took a taxi to the roadhead. We had a lot to carry - climbing equipment, tents and ration. We took some time to re-pack our bags before hiking to our first camp at Chikka. We set up the camp and started cooking dinner. We both had taken up the responsibility of cooking, while the other two took up cleaning. Doing everything ourselves was a new experience and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

The next day, we hiked to Seri. The route to Seri is beautiful but long and challenging. We had to cross streams at multiple places. All of sudden the weather went from being bright and sunny to cloudy and rainy. We took shelter under a huge rock just to save our equipment from getting drenched. We resumed the hike when the rain stopped but we reached the campsite quite late. Without wasting time we set up our camp and cooked dinner.

On the third day, we hiked to Upper Tainta which is the basecamp of Deo Tibba and Norbu peaks, and Mt. Indrasan. The trail was very steep and challenging and climbing with a 22kilos rucksack made it worse. The views of Deo Tibba and the Duhangan Col kept our spirits high and pushed us forward (Col refers to the lowest point on a ridge between two peaks). Puffing and panting we finally reached the campsite and saw that there was a group of climbers from Bengal attempting Deo Tibba and Mt. Indrasan who were guided by Sherpas from Nepal. We later acquainted ourselves with them and learned that there were a few record holding climbers in the team.

We decided to stay and acclimate at Tainta the next day. We spent the day resting, hydrating and eating. We explored the campsite and also spent some time with Bengal climbers. It was a great honour to meet Sherpas from Nepal who lead expeditions to Mt. Everest, Makalu, Lohtse and more. We were invited to attend a Pooja ceremony conducted by them. It was a ceremony where the climbers and the guides prayed to the Mountain Gods for safe passage and back. The evening was beautiful, with clear skies and a stunning sunset. After an early dinner and packing for Camp 1, we called it a night.

The Duhangan Col climb was tough, with steep sections and deep snow. We were very grateful for the Sherpa team for fixing ropes on the Col and giving us permission to use it. We started our climb as early as 6:00AM. The weather was not as we expected it to be. It was snowing and windy. That slowed us down. We reached Camp 1 at about 11:00 Am and set up our camp. We spent the rest of the day resting and preparing for the summit climb.

As planned, we woke up at 11:00PM and ate our dinner. The sky was so clear that we could see a million stars and that was a sign of clear weather. It was freezing outside but we had to gear up for our summit climb. We mustered all the courage and came out of the tent and wore our harness, helmet and climbing boots. The excitement was high. 30 minutes into the climb Meghna's boots started causing problems. The plastic Scarpa started brushing against her Tibia and scraped off a bit of her skin. It became impossible for her to walk. With no other option and a heavy heart she had to turn back to camp. It was hard emotionally, but she encouraged Gautam to keep going.

The temperature made the already hard climb harder. But Gautam’s only goal was to summit the peak for both Meghna and Himself. After a long climb he finally summited around 8:00 am. He spent some time up there, clicked pictures, paid his respects and started descending. The descent was challenging, but he made it back to camp safely.

We hugged each other, happy for Gautam's success but sad we couldn't be together at the top. We packed up and headed back down, reaching the roadhead by noon.

This expedition taught us a lot. We learned about our strengths and weaknesses, and how to do expeditions better. We plan to do more treks together in the future, growing and learning as a couple. For us, the Mountains are a place of peace and growth.