Well the plan is that, there is no plan! And such was my trek to this place called Guna Mata. It is situated at about 8kms from Dal lake near Mcleodganj and the only possible way to reach there is by trekking up to that place.
I had came to my friend's house in Baijnath, Himachal Pradesh all the way from Delhi because I just wanted to explore HP more. We then had a short trip planned to Bhagsu Nath and Mcleodganj. Originally we were supposed to return to our homes on this day i.e 4th may.
With this thing in our minds we first decided to reach Dharamshala (9kms) by foot from Mcleodganj. From there we could have easily got a bus to Baijnath. But then on our way back home, our minds changed.
We first saw a board somewhere indicating that Dal lake is about 2kms from where we were standing. The minute next, we changed the original plan and started walking to Dal. Within half an hour we reached the sacred Dal lake, which is as pure as Manimahesh lake on the day of Dal carnival.
With nothing in our minds we decided that we should trek a bit more and reach an isolated and a peaceful place. Upon inquiring other people we got to know that there was this place called Guna Mata for which we'll have to trek about 5-6kms. The prospect of trekking and then reaching a temple somewhere between the mountains was enough to get me excited for it.
The trek was a beautiful thing to take part in. We could breathe fresh air, smell the fragrance of forests (as it was raining also), encountered a river, climbed uncountable stairs and picked up all the wrappers we could on our way. And then of course, all the nature was the backdrop and we were its models!
After two and a half hours of trek we reached Guna Mata. And damn! that place is so beautiful! We meditated for a short time inside the temple. It was so peaceful that I could hear my heartbeats. It was a beautiful experience.
We then had to reach Dharamshala, as we were warned by the parents of my friend that we should reach back home the same day itself. We hurried our way down and it was already 7pm when we reached Dharamshala. Now, something happened, we weren't prepared for. We booked a bus for Baijnath and kept all our luggage and jackets inside the bus (including our phones which were inside the jackets) and came out to have some tea. The moment we were finished we realized that our bus was gone. The only thing I was left back with was my wallet for which I was really thankful to god! At first we couldn't figure out our next step but then we started asking other conductors to contact that bus to keep our luggage safe. Now even that person wasn't picking up their phones. But eventually we were able to contact him and he was told to keep our luggage safe. But then there was no direct bus to Baijnath from that place. Basically we were stuck. We then boarded a bus to a place from where we could get buses to Baijnath. The place where we were supposed to wait for buses to Baijnath was on the national highway and it was raining very heavily. No buses were coming and we started asking for lift. But then who stops a car at night on a highway to give a lift to complete strangers. We were freezing with cold and my friend exclaimed "Today we have came from the shrine of Mata, so nothing can go wrong". Seconds afterwards, a car stopped right in front of us and asked us that where we wanted to go. Guess where he dropped us? Right at the entrance of our home even though his own house was around 14-15kms behind that place. So shall we say? God helps all?
