5^th June 2011 -

Reached Hotel Samrat in sector 22D opposite Kisan Bhawan on Dakshin Marg at 1:30 p.m. & after room serviced lunch, went by car to see Rock Garden & Sukhna Lake. The 1.5 days in Chandigarh was not part of the GHNP trip, but our own extended stay.

Waterfall in Rock Garden

6^th June 2011 –

Planned to go to Pinjore Gardens around 4 p.m. but dropped later, so almost full day of rest & sleep, recovering on the aches of the descent from Shilt. In the evening explored a bit of the market area sector 17, tried out food at ‘Sindhi Sweets’.

7^th June 2011 –

Settled out at the hotel Samrat & reached airport by 10:05 a.m. only to find out flight was delayed by nearly 2 hours (Chandigarh didn’t seem to want to leave us so easily!). Back to base Mumbai home at 5 p.m.

 Chandigarh Impressions:

Almost all roads throughout the areas we saw upto sector 1 and airport were wide and beautifully lined with trees – what a contrast to Mumbai roads which are forever in the state of dig-up and construction. I suppose even Le Corbusier would have been helpless & in a quandary if Bombay was to be planned…

Unfortunately we were in Chandigarh during the least good time i.e. deep summer with temperatures of 39-40 degrees C. To top that we went sightseeing on the Sunday after coming back from the cool forests of GHNP!

The Rock Garden is worth watching & one cannot but admire Mr. Nek Chand’s patience and perseverance. It almost feels like a game of memory to remember all the ‘waste, broken’ material that he has used to make his creations.

Nek Chand Innovations and Creations – Rock Garden officially inaugurated in 1958. 

I spotted in one place a piece of ceramic with “Bengal Potteries Ltd., Made in India, 1959” imprinted on it. Later I found out that Bengal Potteries had to close down in the late seventies after a long successful run during the 10’s to 60’s. But Nek Chand’s innovative creation has kept it alive for a long time to come in the future!

(Writeup on Bengal Potteries at http://www.potteryindia.com/GlazedPottery/bengal.html)

Great big vines, creepers, tree roots??

:) Nah -- a Nek Chand creation with cement & rods!

Sukhna Lake was like a mela with almost entire Chandigarh there – or so it seemed to us – as it was a Sunday . Boating in the lake was in full force as well as some reality competition near the food stalls. We peeped into the so-called Chandigarh Emporium there & found all the modern knick-knacks probably were ‘made in china’ too. We made our escape from this place at the earliest and went back to the quiet of our hotel room.

Sukhna Lake

The elderly Sardarji driver who took us to the Rock Garden & Sukhna Lake in his taxi was quite cool in his attitude – he had shops in Kullu and travel business based out ofChandigarh. He mentioned that his family liked to visit Bangalore, Ooty, etc. . He spoke of the relaxed lifestyle in Chandigarh–10 a.m. to offices & 5-6 p.m. free again.

On 6^th June, Monday after an afternoon’s rest we stepped out to see the sector 17C/E market and came across ‘Sindhi Sweets’ which was on the recommended eateries list on the net somewhere. So there we were ordering the chats of different types… but we from Mumbai were really disappointed – all had almost the same taste which was overpowered by the curd in all of them. When we asked about the curd, the waiter said that chats without curd was not known there and would have to be specially told to skip. But then we had Rasmalai & Kulfi which were really nice.

But yes the ‘Proanthas’ we had at Gurbax Dhaba near our hotel (on the recommendation of Mr. taxi-driver Sardarji) were quite yummy.

While coming back from sector 17C on 6^th June, we took a ride on the cycle rickshaw – we don’t remember when we last had a ride on one such. The rickshaw-puller mentioned that he had recently bought his rickshaw costing about 10000/- on loan & was trying to pay off and make it his own soon. We wished him well and the next day bid goodbye to Chandigarh – the well-planned city.

28^th May 2011 –

Journey began from Mumbai by flight to Delhi. From Delhi (majnu ka tilla) took the overnight Volvo bus to Aut (near Manali).

29^th May 2011 –

Reached Aut early morning around 6 a.m.; picked up around 7 a.m. by SUV type vehicle and taken to Sai Ropa (Nagni village) & place of stay i.e. the TroutValley hotel. Aut to Nagni was about 40-45 minutes drive. After breakfast, went on an ‘initiation’ trek to a nearby waterfall, back for lunch and night spent at Nagni.

30^th May 2011 –

Our group of 9 + a dozen odd porters & guides started from the hotel to Gushaini (1-2 kms) at about 8:30 a.m. by car. Gushaini was the starting point of our trek and at about 1500m height. Started from near the Gaada Durga temple at Gushaini for Rolla at 9:15 a.m. and reached Rolla at 3:35 p.m. covering a distance of nearly 11 kms and reaching a height of 2100m.

On the way passed Ropa, the last village where one could buy essentials & have tea / snacks; Kharongcha where we had our packed lunch at 1 pm and crossed over into the national park’s boundary beyond the ecozone area to reach the campsite at Rolla by the side of the Tirthan river. Stayed for the first time in a mobile/collapsible tent & slept in a sleeping bag.

End of Ecozone & start of the National Park

31^st May 2011 –

This day started very early having begun the trek to Shilt at 7:30 a.m. and reaching there around 12:10 p.m. after walking for 4.5 hrs covering about 6 kms on an uphill terrain to reach a height of about 3100m (~10,000 feet). Night stay was at Shilt in tents.

1^st June 2011 –

If not for the continuous rain the previous afternoon & this morning, the plan was to go to Rakhundi top. So stayed put in our tents to stay warm & dry.

While in the thought of attempting the Rakhundi top trek the next day, another trekkers group of 4, also from Mumbai, returned from an unsuccessful attempt to reach Rakhundi & beyond due to snow and rain. Trek to Rakhundi top was to be about 7 kms one way and was to be a day trek. Rakhundi top trek was then dropped after the other group’s experience & decision made to return to Rolla the next day by all including the 4.

2^nd June 2011 –

Slow trekkers like me reached Rolla around 1:20 p.m. after a slightly grueling trek down, but almost everyone having experienced some kind of fall on the way . Night spent at Rolla nursing aching legs, but good to be beside the Tirthan again.

3^rd June 2011 –

3 members of our group returned to Gushaini, but rest of us stayed. Some of us planned a trip to Tirath starting point – Chalocha, but could not do it due to broken bridges. So, just went about a km & came back by afternoon. Everyone relaxed for rest of the day playing cards, chatting & of course eating.

4^th June 2011 –

Trekked back to base Gushaini from Rolla, reaching Gushaini at about 2:50 p.m.; taken to TroutValley hotel by vehicle for a relaxing bath and rest. Almost everyone from our entire group had started dispersing by the evening.

5^th June 2011 –

Early morning started by Toyota Qualis to Chandigarh. We 3 extended our trip by staying in Chandigarh for 2 days & returning to Mumbai on 7^th afternoon.

Experiences along the Way:

On 28^th May traveled by 5 modes of transport :) – by car from home to Mumbai airport, by flight from Mumbai to Delhi, by red bus from Delhi T1 terminal to T3 terminal, by airport express metro (started newly in Feb 2011) to New Delhi station, by yellow line local metro to Kashmere Gate, by auto rickshaw to majnu ka tilla & finally by Volvo bus to Aut.

All along our trek we were continuously kept company by the various little birds and butterflies. And whether we were able to capture them in our electronic boxes or not, the birds definitely captured our attention by their incessant chirping calls of varying pitch & tunes. And the butterflies flitted around & very near to us, teasing us.

A few birds which we spotted & whose identity was told to us by our dear guide Sesram were – plumbeus water redstart, red-billed blue magpie, brown dipper, red-throated fly catcher, tit, warbler, thrush, swift, bulbul, and so on.

At 1-2 places we saw nature in fight for survival – a butterfly caught & struggling desperately in a spider’s web & a centipede trying to overcome a tossing-turning larva attempting to save itself from becoming the centipede’s meal. But we just observed from afar & let nature decide the winner – without ourselves trying to be referees in the survival game.

Whether right beside the Tirthan or up & away from it, we could hear its crystal clear waters flowing and bubbling along the boulders, stones and rocks in its path.

With more porters & helpers than our trip members – food was in abundance & we were truly pampered I would say – morning tea around 6 a.m., breakfast at around7 – 8 a.m., lunch at 12:30 – 1 p.m., tea & snacks again at around 5 p.m., soup at 7:15 p.m. & then dinner around 8 p.m. which was at times around the bonfire!

Food menu except for eggs for breakfast was mostly vegetarian, but the range was awesome for a national park trek trip :) – parathas, cornflakes, bread, jam, butter, porridge for breakfast, rice, rajma, chapati, sabji, sweets for dinner, hot chocolate after dinner, bhajia, French fries, maggi for evening snacks!!!

And when it rained, the food was served at the individual tents.

They took so much trouble to keep us warm, dry and cosy! – At Shilt away from Tirthan, water was a problem as they had to get it in buckets from somewhere down below, but they never made us feel wanting for it.

During the treks, they carried such large backpacks of all the provisions, our luggage and so on (20–40 kgs), and they started from the campsites after us but always reached the next destination before us!

In Rolla, on 3^rd June night, by the bonfire the idea of barbecued potatoes was implemented successfully

In our tent of me, my mother and my sister-in-law, the day began at about4:45 – 5:15 a.m.with us stirring leisurely to the sound of chirping birds, the whistling thrush, etc. And with giggles as we got out of our sleeping bags looking like caterpillars and emerging as though out of a cocoon

You might be wondering – if we stayed in tents & slept in sleeping bags with hardly any space to even keep our things, what did we do for our nature’s calls & bath. So we did exactly that – nature in its open beauty called & we responded !! Basically, went back to basics… As for bath, the icy-cold waters were a deterrent to it & we were happy with just face and hand washes

But on the day when we came back from Shilt – 2^nd June afternoon – all of us without exception did have a dip in the Tirthan’s cold waters and refreshed ourselves thoroughly.

After what seemed like ages, we even went off to sleep one day at8 p.m.! which is unimaginable in our city of Mumbai.

Some anxiety was in the air on the day the other group of 4 returned half-way from their trek with only their guide because their 6 porters had gone ahead of them & did not return on the 1^st June with them. The next day evening they reached Rolla in the evening – exhausted after their trek from Rakhundi to Shilt to Rolla in one day ~13 kms! We were all relieved to see them back safe.

Amongst various other smells and sounds as we entered the forest, there was the smell of the pine trees – fresh and wonderful. Especially when we were on the numerous bridges over the Tirthan River at different points, the scenic beauty around was breathtaking.

Our mobile phones are no use once you cross a little distance from Gushaini till you are back. So in Rolla, Shilt you are absolutely free from ringing mobiles :) – no network, no telecom and I for one was sort of happy about it.

We even had a self-taught guitarist in our company of porters and guides – a young chap called Sahil who was himself a first-time trekker and a friend of Mr. Panki. So there was music and singing by the bonfire in Rolla and at Shilt after the rains had cleared.

Logistics of the trip:

We went on this trip with Jayesh Morvankar of Odati Adventures, Mumbai (www.odati.com) handling the stay, travel & other matters fromDelhi back toDelhi /Chandigarh. (We had already done a previous trip with Jayesh to Ladakh in Aug 2009). Jayesh himself being an explorer and adventurer appreciated nature very much and made the entire trip unhurried and leisurely – we actually had the time to “stand and stare”.

For this trip to GHNP, 28^th May – 5^th June, we were 9 of us including Jayesh aged between 11 years to 67 years – 3 of us (mother Pushpa, me and sis-in-law Tejaswini), 1 other uncle by himself Mr. Ashutosh, another family of 3 (daughter Nitya of 11 years and her parents) + Jayesh’s nephew Konark.

The porters and guides were about 11-12 in all.

The trail was from Sai Ropa/Gushaini – Kharongcha / Rolla – Shilt – Rolla – Gushaini/Sai Ropa. Region was the Great Himalayan National Park, Kullu, HP.

Overall expenses including return flight tickets, tips to porters, etc. were about 32,000/- per person (not including the 1.5-2 days in Chandigarh)

The arrangements in GHNP were made in coordination with Mr. Panki Sood of the Sunshine Himalayan Adventure group and his team. Mr. Panki is on his way to get his masters in Eco-tourism.

His team consisted of able, knowledgeable and very friendly members and guides like Sesram who gave us the gyan on birds and was my support throughout the descent from Shilt to Rolla, Pratapchand who had the uncanny knack of being a great subject for photography sitting or standing in super poses, the cook Roshanlal who made the sumptuous food throughout our trip, Bhopal bhaiyya who was ever willing to do the needful whether sun or rain and no sign of irritation ever, TC or Tarachand who had model-like looks, and Dilip the cook of the other group. There were many others whose names I am not familiar with but were around at all times – gathering firewood, water, making / dismantling tents as required and so on.

Some Info on GHNP:

The GHNP is of about 750 sq. kms in area and the ecozone of about 250 sq. kms. Ecozone is the area where there is habitat, villages and people. Inside the national park, now there are restrictions on cattle grazing, herb-collecting and residence. The forest is to be allowed to grow on its own. The GHNP has 4 valleys – Tirthan, Sainj, Parvati and Jiwa. TirthanValley as of now has no dams and hydro projects across its river and so is conserved thanks to the efforts of the local people. After the restrictions placed on the national park entry, the village inhabitants were organized into groups by the NGO there to earn living through tourism, handicrafts & other means. Each house is almost self-sufficient through its wheat, jau fields, potato and garlic products and orchards – apple, apricot, peach, pear, plum, etc. Soon the GHNP is supposed to attain UNESCO’s World Heritage status.

When you go to GHNP, visit, observe, see and explore BUT be sure to conserve – DO NOT leave plastics & other wastes there. Bring back with you the wonderful memories to last a long time.

Rules and regulations (copy pasted):
So here’s how the tag goes…
1. Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog. – Done
2. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself. – Wait till you reach the end of the rules – Done
3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs. - To be done yet… 
4. Let each person know that they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog. – 3 not done, so 4 NA

Here are the seven weird facts about me:

1. I know several people in the real world and probably have much more than 7 close friends, but in the blog world I know less than 7 people – which is the reason I was delayed in responding to this tag. (I am therefore unable to complete steps 3 & 4 of the tag rules).

2. My seeming small handbag, when I go to office, is filled with 5-7 small & medium ‘dabbas’ containing the food for the day – from 2 types of fruits to salad to chapattis & sabzi to snacks as well & I religiously eat every 2/3 hrs even while I work quite seriously ;)

3. I have not yet read any ‘chicken soup’ stuff, and I say that I don’t like it even without trying…

4. I have the habit of storing dried flowers, gift wrap ribbons, greeting cards, shells, even old lot of visiting cards, etc thinking I will make something nice & creative out of it; but its just lying there – my creative senses do not seem to exist or are too dormant… – more possibly I am too lazy…

5. I am definite to make spelling mistakes if the ‘spell- check’ option is ‘ON’.

6. During my school and college days, I used to study walking about the house – could never study sitting in 1 place.

7. In Volvo buses, I like the first row seats which gives the full view of the road ahead – especially on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway!

My understanding was and is that one would fear God if one has done something wrong, something against the conscious of own’s mind. So does it mean that when we are asked to be “god-fearing” we are actually being told that ‘do something inappropriate / contrary to the principles of justice or law’…

 Can’t we for God’s sake be “god-loving” instead?

For as long as I can remember into my childhood, every summer this Mayflower tree with its flaming red-orange blooms welcomed me to my native place ancestral home. As soon as annual exams were over & we were ready to make our trip to Mangalore, my mind’s eye used to be filled with the vision of this tree, its beautiful blooms – all vibrant and swaying to the summer breeze, blooms on the ground everywhere around the tree. It was like an indication of happy times ahead, past the gates where it stood, reunion with lots of cousins, laughter and fun times. To the left of the gate near the tree used to be the cowshed. There used to be some place on the thick walls of the cowshed compound where we could sit and gaze inside to all the cows there or outside to the tree and the rest of flora, greenery around. While the elders slept or relaxed in the afternoons, we cousins used to specd time here near the mayflower tree and the gate. The cowshed had one cow which used to almost urge you to continue caressing its neck… once you touched it.

A short drive-way past the gates brought into view this ancestral home which holds so many of my childhood memories. So many rooms, so many people, so much space (compared to Bombay) – all uncles, aunts, grandmother and cousins being together. I remember 1-2 corner rooms which used to be filled with books and where I could be found on some of the afternoons curled up with a book – could even be a non-detailed English text book (it contained stories) of one of my uncles! I have also been in this home for 4-5 weddings & then the place would wear such a lively look with all the people bustling about…and the fragrance of flowers and food everywhere!

But you must be thinking what am I going on about? I have been writing flowery statements about the Mayflower tree and all I show you is a ‘stump’. But thats what it has got reduced to now… the tree grew old and hollow and broken - to bec0me this sad-looking stump, bereft of its glorious colours… And somehow unfortunately this hollowness of the tree seems to be reflected in the home as well now. People have moved away, grown and flown away in search of their futures, to newer destinations.

When I now visit this place, roam through the various empty rooms in the house, walk through the almost empty cowshed and gaze at the stump of my beloved Mayflower – I can only relive those wonderous memories.

How I wish my Mayflower tree would bloom once more….

But now in these days of fast-paced IT life one who doesn’t change his / her job within 2-3 years is made out to be less than competent or complacent. Nobody thinks that you can like your work and so stick on at one place…

It feels quite funny. Never a person to put down thoughts into words on paper, least of all digitally; being more of a one-to-one, face-to-face chat person.

Well I hope I am able to get around in this world enough to be able to share my few thoughts and get through to at least a few readers. And I hope I don’t walk through this world like I do in the physical world my friends would know what I mean…

So here I come…