It had been more than two years since Covid-19 scuttled my annual treks into the Himalayas. So when a friend set up a new WA group titled, "Ab-ki-baar-Indrahar" (This time, Indrahar), the first thing I did was to look up the place on Google Maps.
At an altitude of 4342m it did not seem like a big deal. After all, our last trek was to Kugti Pass on the Pir Panjal Range at 5050m. Indrahar Jot is further south within the Dhauladhar range, the first snowbound mountain ranges that you see as you approach the Himalayas from the Punjab plains. I had imagined this to be be an easy trek. It was not.
This trek was a reminder - if any were needed - that each mountain range has its own personality and quirks. The most striking thing about this trail is that despite being located in an area that receives good rainfall, there are no natural streams along the entire route. Water is available for free at only one point near the snow-line, and that too from a PVC pipe carrying glacier meltwater!
Our trail started from Gallu Temple, just a few kilometres away from Mcleodganj, the home of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government-in-exile. A few hours of walking through forest trails carpeted with rhododendron leaves brought us to the barren Triund ridge. Until this point you could see plenty of casual touristy visitors dressed in summer clothes, many accompanied by children, and a few with their jarring bluetooth speakers in full blast.
At this time of the year, mornings are nice and bright in Triund but the weather turns foul in the afternoon. Mountain peaks that are clearly visible in the morning light get enveloped in heavy clouds by noon. We did not know that the weather would change so suddenly, and so ended up losing half-a-day on this ridge, huddled in a stone cottage, sheltering from howling winds, hailstones and stinging raindrops sweeping down from the slopes of the Dhauladhar mountains.
One important thing to remember on this trail, apart from the dearth of spring-water, is that the climbing window here is rather small. We missed half a day stuck at Triund, so even though we started before 0600 and pitched our tents at Snowline by 0730 it was already past 0830 when we started the final leg. This was about three hours too late because by the time we reached close to the pass it was already past 1330 and heavy clouds were blocking the path ahead. Not wanting to get stuck in blinding fog and rain, we had to turn back about 500m away from the ridge.
Perhaps the most memorable thing about treks like these are the amazing people you get to meet along the way. On our way to Triund we met Mr. A who was climbing on a prosthetic leg; At Snowline there were two cheerful 65+ year's old German ladies, both avid trekkers on their way back home to Auroville after spending a week in the mountains. Then there was Nitin Vashisht a sprightly young fellow from Dharamsala who cheerfully sped past us at Snowline, climbed up alone to the top of Indrahar, right through the cloud cover, and met us a few hours later on his way back when we were still resting at Lehesh Cave!
The most unexpected meeting was with Santosh Babu, a Tamilian working as a government Revenue Inspector in Chennai who also served as a part-time instructor with the Bharat Scouts and Guides. A compulsive mountaineer, he had trained himself at the IISM Gulmarg and set aside two months every year to climb mountains. He had already crossed the Hanta Pass and Keliheni Pass. This year, Babu has set his sights on the Moonpeak (4750m), the highest point up the Indrahar Jot ridge. In 2023 he planned to scale the Manaslu in Nepal, and then hoped to get a sponsorship of about INR 3,000,000 required to climb Mt. Everest!
It is hard to believe that just a few days ago I was trudging across a Himalayan glacier, sweating from the strain, struggling to catch my breath...and here I am now, back on the hot, sultry plains, sitting in an apartment in Noida, and sweating profusely without doing anything!
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REFERENCES / LINKS
* India Hikes - Indrahar Pass Trek - https://indiahikes.com/documented-trek/indrahar-pass-trek
* Wiki page - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indrahar_Pass
