Day2: Tuesday, 20th May, 2014
The day begin on a bright note. Clear sunshine all around by 0600 hrs is something that I'm not accustomed to. But yeah, the morning views are amazing. The night was good too. The sleeping bag was warm and the sleep was good, if a little intermittent. I must have slept soundly for most of the night, judging from the fact that I noticed the snores from the neighbouring tent only after waking up!
The chores for the day included the additional tasks of wrapping up the tents and the sleeping bags after breakfast. Breakfast was good - omelets, bread, jam, butter and porridge. We were given some stuff packed for the trek too - mangoes, chocolates, frooti and a banana.
Our destination for the day was the campsite of Srottu via Tilgun. We left Baggi by 1000hrs. The initial section of the trek was an extension of the last day's trail to Baggi. The gradient and views were similar till we
reached the meadow of Tilgun. On the way Budhi Singh showed us an area that seemed to have been ploughed recently - handiwork of a bear. Tilgun was another high altitude meadow similar to Baggi. However, this one was more of an uneven kind and littered with goat poop. The reason, we later found out, was that Tilgun was used by the local goatherds as a camping site.
By the time we reached Tilgun, the weather had turned from sunny to overcast. We took a break here as our horse-cargo-train powered on past us. There was a slight drizzle too. A group of students from Gujrat, in red ponchos, had trekked up to Tilgun from an alternate route. The had a few chants and then started their descent. The drizzle started again. We trekked up to a deodhar tree with a large enough canopy to shield our group from the drizzle. After the drizzle subsided, we started again. The route from here on had a steeper gradient and was very much exhausting. The tree cover thinned out drastically.
The initial stretch of the trek had me sweating causing the inner layers to stick. The drizzle and the cold wind meant that the cold hit me harder over the stuck layers. Addition of my warm jacket for protection against the wind further complicated things. The rains we encountered here were mostly of light to heavy drizzle type and nowhere as fierce as in the Sahyadris, but very cold. The rain-sheets that we had just about sufficed. A slight drawback was reduced mobility with one hand dedicated to holding the sheet - will need to find a workaround next time.
The trek continued in a similar fashion - steep stretches followed by breaks. On one such break I managed to doze off quite well. This break point was almost the end of the steep section and the tree line as well. A walk through boulders on a reduced gradient without any tree cover followed for some time. The tiredness had very well seeped in by then. It was almost 1430 hrs. The views of the beautiful mountains were also blocked by the overcast skies.
As we were trudging along, rounding of some nondescript bends and mounds, we were suddenly greeted by the sight of a campsite a little below our level. We quickened our steps only to realise that the tents were unfamiliar. The guides Nisha and Priya confirmed that they were of some other group and our campsite was further up. This was devastating to hear at that time. But then there was no alternative and the trudge continued.
A little ahead after five odd minutes a tent came into view to the right, some ten odd feet above the level of the path. Rudra Chand, the cook, came into view next and beckoned to join in the campsite. The joy then knew no bounds. I spent the next five minutes to ascend those ten feet - such was the exhaustion! It was almost 1615 hrs by the time we reached the campsite. All tents were thankfully pitched, partly in anticipation of rain and maybe partly due to our tiredness. Another great piece of news was that hot pakodas and tea was ready for us. A feast followed in the tents. Pakodas, mangoes and tea - very well acknowledged by a rumble in my stomach a short while later.
The campsite at Srottu was very small compared to the meadows of Baggi. Srottu is not a meadow, but a small section of level land on a steep slope. The campsite is shielded from winds by boulders surrounding it. The eastern and the western flanks have a stream each. The eastern one has a greater flow and is at a lower elevation - about 70 odd feet - than the campsite. The western one is quite thin and the usable part is about 70 feet above the campsite. Fetching water here would be a definite pain.
At Srottu, we were mostly indoors - or "intents", if the word exists - for most of the evening owing to the near persistent rain and a slight hail as well. We had a few card games before it was dark. We were off to bed early after dinner and hot tea at 2000 hrs. I did not eat much as my stomach was still rumbling.
A quick mid-sleep pee break at about 2200 hrs when the rains had subsided gave a breathtaking view of Manali city below. It was a good way to end an exhausting day.
- Kapil Pilankar
The day begin on a bright note. Clear sunshine all around by 0600 hrs is something that I'm not accustomed to. But yeah, the morning views are amazing. The night was good too. The sleeping bag was warm and the sleep was good, if a little intermittent. I must have slept soundly for most of the night, judging from the fact that I noticed the snores from the neighbouring tent only after waking up!
The chores for the day included the additional tasks of wrapping up the tents and the sleeping bags after breakfast. Breakfast was good - omelets, bread, jam, butter and porridge. We were given some stuff packed for the trek too - mangoes, chocolates, frooti and a banana.
Leaving Baggi
L-R: Raunak, Pritam, Chinmay, Anmol, Sarita, Mayank, Budhi Singh, Arpit, Sandhya
Sitting, L-R: me, Tejal, Krunal
Not pictured: Krunal's epic run after setting the timer
reached the meadow of Tilgun. On the way Budhi Singh showed us an area that seemed to have been ploughed recently - handiwork of a bear. Tilgun was another high altitude meadow similar to Baggi. However, this one was more of an uneven kind and littered with goat poop. The reason, we later found out, was that Tilgun was used by the local goatherds as a camping site.
A break at Tilgun
L-R: Mayank, Sarita, Sandhya, Arpit
Pic by: Krunal
By the time we reached Tilgun, the weather had turned from sunny to overcast. We took a break here as our horse-cargo-train powered on past us. There was a slight drizzle too. A group of students from Gujrat, in red ponchos, had trekked up to Tilgun from an alternate route. The had a few chants and then started their descent. The drizzle started again. We trekked up to a deodhar tree with a large enough canopy to shield our group from the drizzle. After the drizzle subsided, we started again. The route from here on had a steeper gradient and was very much exhausting. The tree cover thinned out drastically.
The Red Poncho Gang
Pic by: Krunal
The initial stretch of the trek had me sweating causing the inner layers to stick. The drizzle and the cold wind meant that the cold hit me harder over the stuck layers. Addition of my warm jacket for protection against the wind further complicated things. The rains we encountered here were mostly of light to heavy drizzle type and nowhere as fierce as in the Sahyadris, but very cold. The rain-sheets that we had just about sufficed. A slight drawback was reduced mobility with one hand dedicated to holding the sheet - will need to find a workaround next time.
The trek continued in a similar fashion - steep stretches followed by breaks. On one such break I managed to doze off quite well. This break point was almost the end of the steep section and the tree line as well. A walk through boulders on a reduced gradient without any tree cover followed for some time. The tiredness had very well seeped in by then. It was almost 1430 hrs. The views of the beautiful mountains were also blocked by the overcast skies.
Between Tilgun and Srottu
L-R: Arpit, Samdhya, me, Sarita, Mayank
Above: Tejal
Pic by: Krunal
As we were trudging along, rounding of some nondescript bends and mounds, we were suddenly greeted by the sight of a campsite a little below our level. We quickened our steps only to realise that the tents were unfamiliar. The guides Nisha and Priya confirmed that they were of some other group and our campsite was further up. This was devastating to hear at that time. But then there was no alternative and the trudge continued.
Boulders with Arpit and Sandhya
Pic by: Krunal
A little ahead after five odd minutes a tent came into view to the right, some ten odd feet above the level of the path. Rudra Chand, the cook, came into view next and beckoned to join in the campsite. The joy then knew no bounds. I spent the next five minutes to ascend those ten feet - such was the exhaustion! It was almost 1615 hrs by the time we reached the campsite. All tents were thankfully pitched, partly in anticipation of rain and maybe partly due to our tiredness. Another great piece of news was that hot pakodas and tea was ready for us. A feast followed in the tents. Pakodas, mangoes and tea - very well acknowledged by a rumble in my stomach a short while later.
The campsite at Srottu was very small compared to the meadows of Baggi. Srottu is not a meadow, but a small section of level land on a steep slope. The campsite is shielded from winds by boulders surrounding it. The eastern and the western flanks have a stream each. The eastern one has a greater flow and is at a lower elevation - about 70 odd feet - than the campsite. The western one is quite thin and the usable part is about 70 feet above the campsite. Fetching water here would be a definite pain.
At Srottu, we were mostly indoors - or "intents", if the word exists - for most of the evening owing to the near persistent rain and a slight hail as well. We had a few card games before it was dark. We were off to bed early after dinner and hot tea at 2000 hrs. I did not eat much as my stomach was still rumbling.
A bit of hail - captured by Krunal
A quick mid-sleep pee break at about 2200 hrs when the rains had subsided gave a breathtaking view of Manali city below. It was a good way to end an exhausting day.
- Kapil Pilankar
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