Is there anything that compares to the sheer immensity and magnificence of the Himalayas?
Each year we spend about a week away from 'civilisation' pondering over this question. A week away from internet / mobile connections, roads, toilets and home comforts. This summer it was a trek to Laam Dal and Baleni Pass in the Dhauladhar Mountains of Himachal Pradesh.
On the maps it did not seem like a difficult trail - the pass was at a height of less than 4000m, the terrain seemed quite all right, and Google Earth told us that in this season we would encounter some snow, mainly on the ridges and mountain peaks. However unseasonal, heavy rains - and snowfall in the mountains - turned this 'easy' trek into a tough one. We had planned to cross from the Bharmour-Chamba region, across the Dhauladhar Range, to the Kangra Valley. Ultimately we had to turn back from Baleni Pass and retrace our steps because the snow-covered, steep valleys of Kangra were deemed to be too dangerous.
It has been raining all over North India for the past two weeks, and by the time we assembled at Chamba the chances of the trek getting called off seemed like a distinct possibility. Somehow the weather cleared up a bit when we reached our staging point off highway 154A - Brehi Village.
A few hour of trudging through forests and clambering over boulders and streams brought us to a Forest Rest House in Drakund. Here it was bright and sunny - a wide range of birds could be seen: the stunning blue Asian Fairy Bluebirds (Irena puella), golden orioles, yellow-billed blue magpies and parakeets. In the evening it was windy but the sound of distant thunder did not disturb us in our tents.
The next day too was sunny but thanks to the heavy snowfall over the past week we started seeing snow much earlier than expected. We had to cross about seven small glaciers to reach our next camping site at Dugga Goth, a rocky valley studded with massive boulders and ringing with the sound of streams emerging from under one vast glacier that spread from the camping site all the way to the snow-capped mountain peaks that surrounded us.
This area was well above 2500m and home to the strikingly beautiful Monal pheasants. They have the habit of singing while flying so it was quite easy to spot them flying past in the valleys below, singly or in pairs. There were lots of smaller birds too - redstarts that hopped boldly from one boulder to another, bushchats and flocks of numerous other unidentified birds. The ground here was riddled with holes which turned out to be a vast network of condos belonging to the cute, shy, and elusive Himalayan Marmots!
With our camp at Dugga Goth as the base, we set off the next way to see the lakes. About four hours of climbing through snow brought us to a vast bowl shaped valley at 3395m. There was no sign of any lakes here - just a vast expanse of undulating snow that turned into a sea of blinding white under the afternoon sun. High on the horizon, beautiful cumulus clouds emerged from the far side of the Dhauladhar snow-peaks and drifted past the cobalt blue skies. On the opposite side dark rain-clouds could be seen coming in from the Pir Panjal range.
Mercifully we faced only a small hailstorm on our way back to camp. Tiny pearl-shaped beads bounced off our raincoats as we slid down the snow slopes. While walking on the glacier the snow had loosened up and the guides kept cautioning us to be extra careful - large cracks could be seen in some areas and the areas near boulders and underground streams were particularly vulnerable to collapsing under your weight.
The next day we started early, hoping to cross Baleni Pass before the sun got too hot -- up at 04:00, a quick breakfast by the campfire and tents packed and ready to move by 05:30. The same snow that had buckled to your ankles (and, at times, knees) yesterday evening, was now hard as rock. As the climb got steeper kept urging us to dig our toes to get a better grip. An outcrop of rocks at Chid-Point provided a resting point where scores of crag-martins circled overhead.
It was 09:55 by the time we zig-zagged our way to the Baleni Pass ridge. What a different vista lay in front of us here! - unlike the snow-covered slopes we had just crossed on the Chamba side, a vast brown Kangra valley lay below us, with a river winding through it and disappearing into the haze. We were struggled to stand in the face of strong winds when the head-guide delivered his verdict - it was too dangerous to climb down the slopes leading to Kangra at this time. We had to turn back.
Climbing up had been a struggle and the very thought of having to go down the same route, at a time when the snow had softened under the sun, was rather disheartening. On the way down the guides urged us to follow their foot prints, digging in our heels first ("hill maro!"). Once the steep gradient had eased we all slid down the snow-slopes and soon we were back on the main glacier with not only our shoes soaking wet but wet bums as well!
It was a long trek back to Kathaid Valley, our last camping site below the snow-line, on the banks of Ravi river. It was 18:30 when we reached here - a welcome end a day of trekking for nearly 12 hours. Over here, our daily ritual of drying our shoes and clothes next to a bonfire, with a hot mug of chai in hand, was cut short by heavy rains. All of us slept well that night - cocooned in our warm, dry sleeping bags while incessant rains slapped the tent all night.
The downpour continued next morning so we had to pack out tents and move out in full rain-gear. Three hours of careful walking down slippery trails brought us back to Brehi. It was bright and sunny now but the guys at the tea-shop refused to believe (until pics were shown), that we had gone all the way up to Baleni Pass in this weather.
Coming to think of it, climbing up those steep slopes without snow-shoes and crampons, would have been quite impossible if not for the skill and confidence of our amazing guides!
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REFERENCES & LINKS
* https://himtrailadventures.com/baleni-pass-lamdal-lake-trek/
* https://www.trekkinginindia.com/trekking-in-himachal/baleni-pass-trek.html
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