Friday, May 4, 2012

Tungnath - Where the mist meets the mountain

Day 6

It was Monday and time to turn back. Not so, out went the text message and off goes the phone. My plan was to head to Tungnath, the highest of the panchkedars at 3680Mts.The spirited recommendation of the lodge-owner had done the trick. The downhill journey of 40Kms till Kund took only 2 Hours with some minor ascents.The road bifurcates from here, one towards Rudraprayag and the other towards Chopta  and beyond. The Ascent is vertical, from 950Mts to 2700 Mts in a matter of 32 Kms.


Heading Back


The Pilgrims Progress

The One that sheltered me 2 days back

It was very hot and penitrating  sun overhead when I crossed Ukhimath. I Had my lunch at a roadside Dhaba and rested lying on my back on oneof their wooden benches. The shop-owner understood and did not disturb. Chopta was 27Kms from there and it was 4Pm when I started. From there I do not remember any downhill, whatsoever, to comfort me. It ensured that I rode on bottom gears throughout. I would ride on seat for a while, then would lift my torso and swing  to apply more thrust and then would walk for a while to rest my jaded quadriceps muscles. The sun was going down and the chilly wind laden with moisture swept the entire valley. The nature of the dense forest in that range is quite unrepresentative of the ones found elsewhere in uttaranchal, it looks like a tropical rainforest. The vehicles were very few and far between. I was constantly refreshed by the cool breeze and super-cool chirping of monal and warbler birds.

Wet forests of chopta

I clicked my fear away
It showers almost everyday. It was  dark at 8pm and I was 10 Kms short of my destination when the downpour started. There was no place to shelter as the trees were dripping more profusely. I had no idea whether I’am going to get any habitation before chopta or not. In the winding mountain roads the length of vision is only upto the next curve. I heard the howling of jackals and had a very strong reason to encounter one as these animals come out in open roads when it rains. A passing car ( The only one to pass in more than an hour) stopped and a middle aged man lowered his window glass, he thought I ran into some sort of trouble and offered to help. He told me that the next habitation is just 5mins distance. Comforted, I started to paddle with renewed vigor.15-20Mins past and I am still accompanied by the incessant murmuring sound of insects and pitch darkness broken only by my headlight. Then it dawned on me that 5mins is the time he might have taken on car on downhill road.

I saw lights of a ramshackle dhaba on one turn.

Adjacent to it was a modest resort which he offered me to stay at 200/ only. Wringing-wet I went in, I could feel lactic acid in my legs while climbing stairs. The dinner that night was literally taken in the heart of wilderness.

Day’s summary – 68 Kms. Lost altitude from 2100 Mts to 1000,than gained to 2700 Mts.


Magic Mountains

A contrast of sorts - Mini Switzerland


The most enchanting trek route


Day – 7

After half an hour of riding I reached chopta. I had to take a room to keep my bike as above that riding was out of question. Tungnath is located at 3700Mts elevation, some 1000Mts of climb inside 4kms distance. The trek passes through lush green meadows filled with early  bloom. It was an ethereal walk amidst the alpine forest where the mist tumbles down the big ranges into the valley and makes walking a blissful experience.
Tungnath is a small seasonal settlement based solely on ‘Temple Economy’.For seven months of year it is blanketed with snow and is completely abandoned. The deity, however, is moved to a lower altitude, a custom followed at all high-altitude temples.
I was greeted there by Bill, a U.S anthropology student , doing his one year  research in India.  He was traveling on foot for last 2 months, and currently on his last leg of journey .We had an instant connect and we talked a great deal on travel and films. We got introduced to an amusing sadhu, Baba Kadakbum,  who has been living there for many years and illuminated us with the his knowledge of herbs found at remote places which can cure AIDS. He told us that he had seen Lord shiva in human form roaming in the ranges. When we had enough and about to leave he asked us to buy him cigarettes and dinner; we humbly obliged.
The striking point of the night stay was its cost, which is equal to dinner – 100 bucks.
The photogenic sadhu - Baba Kadakbum




Day 8 – It was by far my coldest night. Bill and me parted ways as he had to follow a short-cut to Mandal , whereas  I had to go the same way down to fetch my bike. The road from Chopta to Mandal is a thorough downhill road for 18 Kms, a cyclist dream ride. The only concern was the godforsaken condition of the roads where negotiating between patches was like playing Chinese checkers on raod. Shortly after mandal I met Bill, with two young sadhus, his new-found companions for his concluding destination ‘Valley of flowers’.
I dropped 1500Mts in less than 2hours.The change in vegetation and climate was palpable. The mid-summer sun was strong enough to make me stop in shade for couple of hours. The evening halt was at GMVN Guesthouse at Karanprayag, situated at the confluence of pindari and Alaknanda. The stay was dull and uneventful.



Day’s summary – 85Kms .Lost altitude from 3800Mts To 750 Mts.

Day 9

 Got up to a hot and sultry morning. I was feeling weary in mind and body, over that the hot sun at 7Am sniffed out the remaining inspiration. In a flash it was gone, as it came. I picked my bike and rode to the bus-stop, hauled it over the next bus to Haridwar. Way back, the same mountains , rivers ,trees were not the same, all seemed less beautiful. The novelty of that all on day one was the perspective of a city-dweller’s mind,who needed a solitary break. I knew I relished it and now that its over,I am ready to join back with renewed vigor.
The ride from Haridwar bus-stand to home was the toughest of all. Back at home,I spent the evening watching Nadal routing soderling in a fiercely contested baseline game in the quarter finals of Wimbledon.