Atul Goyal

Tag: snowfall

  • 2016 – My 100 days in the Himalayas, Part-1

    I’m feeling thirsty as I make my way on a narrow path, towards the destination I’m aiming to reach today. There is fresh snow as far as eyes go. It’s onset of Spring here in Annapurna region of the Nepal Himalayas. What an amazing time to be here.

    At one place a few feet away, there are footsteps of some animal, clearly visible on the snow. Very likely, it walked across just the same morning. They don’t look like that of snow leopard, though. I’m still optimistic. I keep looking. One sight of that elusive creature will make my day!

    My dry throat draws my thoughts back to the thirst. I get reminded of this line from Samuel Taylor’s ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’

    Water, water, everywhere,
    Nor any drop to drink.

    I turn back. Down to see the Machapuchare base camp (MBC) checking if anyone else is coming. I could use help with some water. There is none. The Machapuchare – literally meaning “fish tail” owing to its resemblance to the tail of a fish – stands tall back there. The near vertical slopes can’t hold any snow so it’s standing there with most of the top edges naked. It is a sacred mountain. Climbing it is not permitted. What a view from where I stand. Coming back to reality, I have considered the worst case scenario of walking back to MBC, in case I don’t seem to make it to the Base camp of Annapurna (called ABC, in short).

    I look into the side pocket of my camera bag, only to find the wrapper of last chocolate I ate somewhere before MBC. Could use some instant energy. I find some dry fruits stashed in a corner of the backpack. Munch a few cashew nuts. Having had this rest for a few minutes, I gain some strength and start walking again. The clouds have started gathering up. Just like past several days. I know it’ll start snowing anytime. This has been happening every day for last so many days. Which is a signal that I have to make it to the ABC without losing any time!

    I’m able to see base camp far from where I stand but it’s been tough few hours and I still seem to be getting nowhere close. I am counting 10 steps. Followed by stopping to catch my breath. The process keeps going on. Whenever I see a bit less steep walk ahead, I try counting to 20 steps but anything more makes breathing difficult. I’ve been hiking for more than last 20 days now – around the full Annapurna circuit – but today feels different. I tell myself that it’s a marathon, not a sprint…

    As the base camp looks within reach, the snow has started falling. And it’s getting windy. The snow is not too heavy yet, but I can’t waste any more minute now. Survival instinct. Gives you energy you didn’t know you had. I guess, this is something hard-coded in the DNA of all life in the world. I can’t have any complaints, because it works.

    Finally, at the end of the “marathon”, the jaw-dropping south face of Annapurna reveals itself.

     

    Annapurna - south face

     

    [Photo from the next morning] The incredible view with the morning sun hitting the south face of Annapurna I – an eight-thousander, the highest peak of the Annapurna massif – makes it all worth it. It stands there in all its grandeur. Massive. Beautiful. Inspiring.

     

     

     

    This is just one of those 100 days from my journeys in the mountains this year. Every other day brings new adventures up here.

    Nepal, Ladakh, Spiti and Sikkim. Places on the map of my solo trip in the mountains in 2016.

    Himalayas. This is my home away from home. This is where I truly feel alive. All these journeys have been full of new learnings every day. Meeting new people every day, from diverse backgrounds and varied cultures, and having conversations on different topics with them, is an enlightening experience for me. Shatters a number of pre-conceived notions we all have about other places and the people living there. Then there is nothing like the amazing views you get to see. Getting completely undisturbed long stretches of time, whether that’s in amazing stays such as Zostel Spiti or remote homestays of Markha valley or Annapurna circuit, provides a great time to catch up with my reading. Far away from the hectic city life, there is something about the disconnect here. It helps to make a better connect with myself.

     

    This brings part-1 to an end. Hope you liked it. I’m still trying to improve my storytelling, so love your feedback. Will continue with the other highlights of the journey in Nepal and from the rest of the Himalayas in subsequent posts.

    So friends, what are your travel plans, in 2017? Let me know in the comments below. Cheers to a new year, to another year full of adventures!

  • Barot valley – a gem in Himachal

    Last weekend, visited Barot valley in Himachal Pradesh. Barot is a small town away from the hustle bustle of other touristy “hill stations” in Himachal. There isn’t much mention of this place over the internet and based on the handful of posts I could find about this, it was clear that this was a place to spend the weekend at.

    On sharing my weekend plan with the colleagues in office, the trip which was originally supposed to be a solo trip quickly turned into a group trip and we decided to just rent a taxi instead of using public transport owing to no direct bus connectivity between Delhi and Barot.

    To reach Barot valley, one can follow Delhi-Manali route till Mandi. From Mandi take the road to Joginder Nagar. About 20 kms before JoginderNagar there is a place called Ghatasani where you turn right to Barot. Barot itself is part of the Mandi district. It took us 14-15 hours to reach Barot from Delhi/NCR but some of the delay during the night was because of the dense fog we encountered at several places, the densest being near Ambala.

    Nestled between the Dhauladhar ranges, along the river Uhl, Barot valley is a picturesque one.  

    Barot valley

    Lamba dug which is a tributary of the river Uhl, joins Uhl at Barot. This makes Barot a good base for trekking activities around. Following Uhl upstream takes you to Kothi Kohr and Badgarm. There is a good road till Badgarm. After Badgarm there is a trekking route which takes you to Thamsar glacier. This route, after crossing thamsar glacier takes you to Bada bhangal. In the other side of the valley from Barot, moving along lamba dug one can trek to Luhardi and further up.

    Depending on the time of year you visit Barot, the weather could vary a lot. On the first day of our two day visit (the time was first week of Feb), the weather was pleasant. Sunny during the day, getting chilly at night. First day we just relaxed walking through the town, sitting on the boulders at river bank and collecting local info to plan next day.

    On the second day, it started raining in Barot. This was expected as per the weather report and we weren’t sure whether Barot would receive any snowfall. We talked to the locals and looked like our best bet was to take the car (Innova) to Bada gram which is at much higher elevation. As we started gaining height the rain magically started falling slower and slower. The transition from rain to snowfall as you gain height is so gradual that if you haven’t seen this before it would definitely surprise you in a good way 🙂

    As the snow layer on road started getting thicker we parked the car at a safe place on that narrow road. Beyond this point we started trekking to badgarm. We went higher and the snow flakes became bigger. It was a dream come true for all of us. I had previously seen such a rain to snow transition while riding bike from Manali to Rohtang, and had trekked in a thick layer of snow at Chopta-Chandrashila, but this – trekking in snowfall – was a different experience altogether.

    The whole place was covered in a thick layer of snow. We saw a tea stall on the road side at Kothi Kohr and sipped hot tea which was much-needed after the long walks. We had stocked dozens of chocolates which being a good source of quick energy, replenished some of our lost energy.

    Snow cover in Barot valley

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    Snowed out river bank, Barot valley

    After Barot, Kothi Kohr is where you’re again at the river level and the snow cover had made the views surreal. Spending sometime idling at the river bank, playing with snow, we started getting a bit tired and taking into consideration that we wanted to move out of the Barot valley before sunset (the road is really narrow in the valley and we could notice the driver being uncomfortable at times here), we walked back to where we had the car parked. Reached Barot, had a sumptuous meal and it was time to bid goodbye to the mountains for now, and head back home.