With my good fried Dyslexia.

This blog is work in progress, yet publishing it.

My mother knew from the day I held a pencil that something was not right.

Being a teacher herself, she could understand. 

It is her understanding and acceptance which lead me to never feel anything odd in myself. Ofcourse I struggled to do things and express myself in words. But that didn't stop me from doing what I wanted. 

She did try to assist me to decipher each word to understand the meaning. Maybe it helped me to some extent. 

I was always called lazy as people felt I didn't take effort to learn. 

I wish I could explain them, but then that was beyond me. 

I wish I could pick up new language as others do. I know I can but it goes through its own slow process. 

The school classified me as slow learner and they let me do whatever I enjoyed doing. There were teachers who understood me and there were teachers who ridiculed me.

In college some teachers would consider me vernacular due to my spelling errors. 

There are drawbacks being a dyslexic and unable to express myself. 

At the same time I feel I see world differently than others do. 

Fido dido - Normal is boring!

For those who are dyslexic like myself, Just know that you are perfectly imperfect!

Manali to Leh Cycling with YHAI - 2016

 

Stok Kangri trip 2014 with Bhole group.

In 2014, on the way to Stok Kangri trek we had taken Manali to Leh highway to reach Ladakh. That was my first time on this highway, which passes though beautiful and rugged landscape. I was spellbound. Then it took us two days by vehicle. That was not enough for me. I wanted to enjoy this highway in slow motion and decided one day I will ride bicycle and experience this landscape in my own pace. After reading and talking a lot with Ashish Agashe planning when and how to do it, came to know YHAI will be organizing Manali to Leh cycling expedition was thrilled and registered immediately with doubts in my mind if I really can do such a challenging expedition. Started preparing with regular cycling practice near home at Yeoor and was fortunate to be part of few outstation trips to Thamini Ghat arranged by Mahadik Kaka and with Vaishali, Prashant and Hiten some of whom had already done this route by cycle, got some useful tips from Hiten & one can never stop learning from Vaishali. It was peak summer then, mid day heat used to make me wonder if I really can manage Ladakh where day time temperatures can feel like 40 degree. Then next was Mahabaleshwar arranged by Vaishali and with Pallavi and Mugdha, got some tips from Mugdha. Here I got bit more confident, even though heat was there as it was April, still we all managed very well. Again in Monsoon I was blessed to be part of Chamba group preparation trip to Mahabaleshwar. Since weather was good and it rained we all enjoyed and in few days my dream trip was about to start. 

Day 1-3 (12th July – 14th July)

All packed, took flight to New Delhi along with Harshad. At Delhi we were to go to Himachal Bhawan to take HPTDC overnight bus to Manali. We met Sunit there. Morning around 8AM we reached 15 Mile campsite. Bus dropped us just opposite our campsite which is few kilometres before Manali, on Kullu-Manali highway. First day we did nothing, campsite is beside Beas river so we relaxed and settled. We had 3 days of acclimatization which means next two days we tried out cycle given by YHAI. Most of us got Trek 3700, which makes me happy. Test ride was towards Nagar Castle, after some fine tuning of my humsafer for next 10-11 days. Route itself was well planned with mostly uphill, it all went fine and we all were raring to start this journey.

Day 4 (15th July)

Trip of my life...Dream trip started with overcast sky, no sooner did we reach Manali it started drizzling and this light rain did not stop for next 2-3 days. We reached our first campsite Marhi which was all uphill. Most of the time I cycled along with Mugdha as we were in similar pace. She would say next turn it will be flat, we take the turn, it looks flat but were unable to change to higher gear, we coined this phenomena as ‘Himalayan Flat’. It took us 12 hour of cycling that day with umpteen breaks. Almost close to campsite we had traffic which was stuck so we had to walk in-between vehicles. Along with rain we had fog as well at some places. It was beautiful to ride. Campsite itself was on a grassland, but due to rain it looking more like a swimming pool, everything was damp from canvas tents to sleeping bags, I realized just my bags have not arrived. My fellow cyclists offered me cloths for the time being as our camp leaders had not arrived and they normally are the last to arrive with the last cyclist and by then it was 9:30PM and since it was late in the night we decided to search first thing in the morning. Our leader had told me it could be in our Ambulance van and to my relief it was and I was all set for next 9 days of riding coz without my warm cloths I could have not continued this trip. 

Day 5 (16th July)

Rothang Top Signboard with Poonam

Today we had to reach Sissu, on the way we had to cross the first psychological hurdle, the infamous Rothang La. Our first ‘La’ meaning Pass. These passes were part of ancient trading route. Rothang literally means ‘pile of corpses’, due to people dying in bad weather trying to cross this pass. Again it was raining and we had fog till we reached Rothang, in fact we did not realize we reached highest point of day due to poor visibility. It was a gradual climb, suddenly I and Poonam realized the road got flat and right then we saw sign board saying Rothang Top. I knew the actual Rothang la with prayer flags is bit ahead at the same time felt we might not be able to see it due to fog. So we decided to take pictures along with this sign board as we were already shivering with cold. Our fingers had become numb even though we had our gloves given by YHAI. In my mind I think I should have listened to Hiten who had advised me to carry a good full finger glove. We did not have patience, quickly few photos and we started cycling to keep ourselves warm, ahead we saw vehicles trying to park here and there, some trying to overtake, there was utter chaos, tourist, army vehicles, trucks, bikers and cyclists who won? We just walked in-between those vehicles, after the turn all was in order, except the road! Lo behold the dreaded Rothang downhill to Hell! It was all loose rocks slush and mud upon that our hands were numb, it was cold and it was raining, far away we could see Sun rays and dry roads, we badly wanted to reach there. We wanted Sun’s warmth, but for next one hour or so we would not get that. All we got was loose rocks, slushy roads with heavy vehicles all around us and so were the bikers. Mid way met few fellow cyclists who had lost gear wheel, some both brakes lost, I myself had lost rear brakes, but managed to reach Koksar, was hungry ordered for Magie at a Dhaba as our lunch box was cold. With hot Magie and hot tea I could feel my fingers again! With Rothang crossed I now knew I can do rest of this trip with no fear. Confidence was up. Road till Sissu was fantastic and enjoyed the ride singing. 

Day 6 (17th July)

At Jispa - Our hotel during our 2014 trip

Today we will be camping at Jispa. I remembered our 2014 trip with our Bhole Group and smiled. It was a pleasant ride with some uphill and fantastic downhill. On the way to our campsite saw this hotel we had stayed back in 2014 and took pictures of that. Today we were put up in guest house with attached bath. For a change we were happy to be sleeping on beds and no damp tents and sleeping bags. 

Day 7 (18th July)

Deepak Tal

Zing zing Bar Sign Board

Started for ZingZing Bar. Again rolling ride, with up’s and down’s. Few water crossings, stopped at Deepak Tal, there was a dhaba had quick bite. Met a Army personnel who was walking from Dhaba to his camp, He was asking me why am I cycling here, told him this is a beautiful place, but he insisted why all this trouble, I could just ride by car, told him I had done so once before by car but wanted to do so by cycle. He could not understand. All this while he was walking and I was riding cycle and both our pace was same! After many winding uphill turns. Saw sign board ZingZing Bar, we were told our camp is bit ahead. Okay so started cycling uphill and winding roads, with every turn we would either get head wind or tail wind, an hour past still could not find our campsite. Still more uphill I started to wonder will I ever reach today, soon enough after about 2 hours from where I saw the sign board our camp was at upper ZingZing Bar. This was the coldest campsite so far, few had AMS symptoms and had difficulty reaching campsite. I decided to take it easy at the camp and was outside trying to acclimatize even though as of now I had no uncomfortable feeling. 

Day 8 (19th July)

Vishal Tal

Today’s destination was Sarchu. On the way we passed Suraj Tal aka Vishal Tal. Crossed Baralacha La and officially crossed states Himachal Pradesh state ends here. Ladakh region of Jammu & Kashmir state starts here. Manali – Leh Highway is constructed and maintained by Boarder Road Organization (BRO) Manali to Sarchu is called Project DEEPAK and from Sarchu to Leh is called Project HIMANK. Just as we entered Sarchu, landscape dramatically changed with canyon and unique wind-carved rock formations all over.  

Day 9 (20th July)

Gata Loops Start & End

Singh Uncle Taking photo of Nakeela

Started for Wiskey Nalla, To start with we had few kilometres of Sarchu Plains and enjoyed the ride, then we came across GATA Loops starts sign board and we took some pictures and started our journey, they are 21 Hairpin bends. Initially I was counting but heat was killing every cell in my brain slowly lost the count. Slowly with many breaks and looking around admiring this beauty, I came to a mid way point where others were already resting and contemplating having lunch, it might not even be 12 noon. So I joined in had half of my lunch box and saved the rest for later. Saw few young cyclists from our group taking short cuts to reach up, there are many such short cuts. But I was always told by Sanjiv our trekking friend ‘never take short cuts’ and saw these guys doing. Later also saw the result of them taking short cuts, they were more exhausted and needed more time to recover. Saw a car coming down from a steep short cut, he rolled in fine, a biker group also came down from a different short cut, one of them lost balance, lost control and fell, others from his group went to help him. Nothing happened to the rider or the bike. Soon I reached the top of GATA Loops and took pictures and enjoyed the view from top. Wait! This was not the top of the day. There was more, uphill never seem to end. We had to continue uphill ride to Nakee La. I had thought after Gata Loops I might get a bit of downhill to enjoy and recover. I was mentally unprepared for the uphill to come. It was gradual, entire highway is gradual still I was continuously in 1X1 aka ‘granny gear’! Mid afternoon heat, my mind was off, then came the news that our support vehicles has run out of drinking water. Another blow to the already difficult day with Sun blazing in full force. Even though I had extra water in my bag behind tied to the carrier with bungee cord, at this hour I had no energy or interest to unhook bungee cord and get the water can and redo the entire process every time. My half litre can had ORS which was handy in bottle cage, but that day I seem to have made it concentrated, after a while I disliked to even take a sip from it. I was cycling with others who seem to also struggling with water. It was so hot, nothing tasted better than water, which unfortunately was in short supply. Then we started stopping tourist vehicles, army vehicles and bikers asking for water, of course all gave us and wished us well. Still Nakee La never came, in spite of reassurance from everyone that its is at the next bend, it never came. At one point I knew few cyclist were just ahead of me but I could not see, I knew there were few behind me but still could not see them, this happened at every turn. I would wait for long time to see if anyone be visible, but no. I was cycling alone at this point. But they were there, just that the twist and turns were such it made me feel. I stopped at one point, thinking today Nakee La will not come and I am going nowhere. Opened my lunch box had remaining food and it tasted so good. Mood was up and Singh Uncle came along and said he can’t go any further as he is not feeling good. Told him to have something and take rest. He kept on saying he is not feeling good. Offered him ORS which he refused, soon other cyclists came, told them to wait with him till Ambulance reached for Singh uncle. He got on to Ambulance and we moved on. Again after several bends still Nakee la was out of sight. A biker stopped for me, I guess I was not looking good. He did not know English and looked like a foreigner, with hand gesture he offered me water and I took it, wished me well and moved on. Soon our bike support came around, by now they had refilled water and were distributing to all. By this time I had almost given up, He said two more long bends and you will be there. I told him, this is what I have been hearing from past many hours. He said trust me you are almost there. I stayed strong, got back on saddle and started riding and sure enough this time after two bends Nakee La really came! I could not enjoy that moment, normally all passes have chill wind but this place was too much to handle, quickly took picture, got windcheater on and started downhill decent. Today was the most difficult day. Heat and relentless uphill ride was over for the day. By now due to extreme weather from rain, dust, heat and chill wind my body had taken a beating. After reaching the camp at Whiskey Nalla, I had bit of fever, so said fellow cyclist and Doctor Manisha. Took tablet and rested for a while. She said fever could be due to exhaustion. After half hour I was feeling fine and decided to be outside of tent and did some gargling as my throat was aching. 

Day 10 (21st July)

Much needed Himalayan Spa at Pang – That bucket had steaming hot water with Eucalyptus.

Today was an easy ride. Had to pass Lachung La then downhill to Pang. Breathtaking landscape with rock formation, some looked like rhino’s horns and others like temple structures, one was like a gateway. It was heavenly. Took many breaks and just sat and soaked in the beauty. Pure Bliss! This day I was struggling with cold, but happy I was able to cycle. Day time used to be hot and dry. Several of us were down with cold and congestion, looking at us YHAI leaders arranged mass steam inhalation in our tents. I really appreciate this gesture. Next day I was feeling better. Slept well dreaming about next day. ☺ 

Day 11 (22nd July)

Morey Plains – Feels like flying.

Tso Kar

Next day arrived. I was feeling better after steam inhalation and my mood was upbeat as today I will be cycling on Morey Plains. To reach there we had to take 6Kms of uphill. All the while I was emotional, I could not believe that my dream has come true. I am actually, really... cycling on Morey plains, it’s around 30-35 Kms of high altitude plains with very little vegetation and mountains on both sides. BRO has kept this road in very good condition but yes in-between they do get bad. But overall its a beautiful place to pedal. I reached the top of that days climb and saw wide expense of open land. Started cycling, soon I went hands free, next legs free, there were no vehicular movement, just we cyclists. Rolled on the road, slept and gazed at the sky. Sat with friends and talked for a long time. We were in top gear. Soon I remembered from one of the blog read that head wind is an issue at such places. After enjoying everything, decided to head to the campsite before mid-day head wind which would spoil the fun. I was about to reach campsite when head wind started, had to lower my gear just managed to reach campsite Debring at 12noon. Here the wind blowing was from single direction our campsite was on a sand ground so for a long time we were in a sand world, sand everywhere, inside our tents, cloths, bags and we ate food with sand wind blowing. There was a dhaba, had hot lunch. Later our ambulance van came and they asked if anyone interested to visit Tso Kar, it’s a salt lake(Tso meaning Lake) nearby around 45mins drive. Those interested should quickly start as day light was fading. I along with others quickly got ready and we were all excited. Reached the lake in 45mins of off road ride sitting inside our ambulance van, a tempo traveller was converted into an ambulance with last two seats removed to make space for a mattress. Few of us sat on the mattress and others adjusted on the remaining seats. Our ambulance was loaded with enthusiastic cyclists for a change. On the way we saw a lone Wild Ass. Lake itself was vast and we could see salt sediments surrounding the lake. Took pictures, enjoyed the view for some time and it was time for us to head back to camp. Next day was a big day!

Day 12 (23rd July)

View on the way to Tangang La

Hurray!

Today we will be on worlds 2nd highest motorable road - Tangang La, We started it was a gradual accent, I was in good fitness, cold & congestion had reduced to a large extent. Here I remembered Swapnil’s advice to keep your own pace and never try to match anyone. I had mostly done that and it worked for the entire trip. After many a twist and turns, few turns we had head wind and few we had tail wind. At one such turn when I was almost near the top, the head wind got so bad that even walking with the cycle was difficult but I did walk along with my cycle till the next turn where tail wind gave me company. When we were just near the top, it got cold and got to experience bit of snow fall, it was more like melted snow (neither rain nor snow). Reached the top and few of them had already reached, wished all of them and we went inside dhaba there. Had some hot Magie and tea. Then we were waiting for Mohit to arrive as it was his birthday. We celebrated his birthday, dhaba had small cake. I must have spent almost an hour at Tangang La. It was getting cold so decided to go downhill, as one is not supposed to stay long time at such altitude. Mugdha told me to be careful on the downhill as there are sharp turns. I took her advice and carefully enjoyed the downhill ride, one of the best downhill. Beautiful done road by BRO and beautiful landscape, enjoyed every moment of it. Reached campsite-Rumtse, which was the best of all the campsite. This campsite had water stream running inside, the sound of running water was very pleasing, it also had cultivation land behind, which was all green. After all had reached the camp we went to a nearby shop and made phone calls to our families. All these days we were out of network. Had some hot food on the way back with the birthday boy!

Day 13 (24th July)

Taking in the beauty

Puncture Stop

Manali – Leh cycling was coming to an end! Today we will be riding mostly downhill to Leh around 80Kms. We were told at Upshi there will be diversion, right goes to Leh and we were told to regroup there. Most of us reached Upshi and were waiting for the rest of the group to arrive, we had bit of mid-day snacks there. While cycling we are hungry at all times. So any opportunity to eat should not be missed. So for a long time rest of the group was not to be seen. We saw the sign board and asked people, left goes to Leh. So we decided to take left. I along with Mugdha and Poonam started. Suddenly we realized we are the only once from our group cycling. These roads are so long and mostly rolling with bit of uphill and downhill. We could not make out who is ahead of us or who is behind. We kept on cycling and cycling. It was a Sunday so shops were closed. We came to Karu realizing we are on right track. Stopped at army restaurant, it was almost 12noon had readymade pizza from the counter and after many days on the road we got good clean and luxurious bathroom with mirror. We saw ourselves first time after 10-12 days! Started again, slowly saw cultivation, electricity poles, irrigation canals and lots of people gathered around. There was some Islamic festival near a mosque. City like atmosphere started with few shops. Still we had not reached Leh. On the way somewhere in the middle we had stopped for a chikki brake when I was about to start again, realized my cycle front tyre was punctured. The same day I had given my puncture kit to someone else. So I was without puncture kit. Mugdha, Poonam and Mohit were with me. Our mechanic was not reachable. So Mugdha said there is a petrol pump nearby we could get some help there. She stopped a vehicle which happened to be a defence vehicle. We loaded the vehicle behind and I went along with the driver. Driver was from Tamil Nadu working for Indian Army, he was on his way to Leh Airport to pick up some official. He offered to drop me till Leh, which was just 7Kms. I refused his offer, he dropped me at petrol pump. On the way to petrol pump we stopped at a mechanic shop but shutters were half closed and no one came out when I called out. So I waited for others to reach petrol pump. They reached and so did others who had my puncture kit. But unfortunately they had forgotten to pick it up or they don’t remember what happened to my kit. At the same time we saw one of the YHAI staff cycling. We requested him to wait for the mechanic to arrive and in the mean time I took his cycle and reached Leh along with Mugdha and Poonam. It was mid afternoon and just before Leh we had all uphill, Poonam and Mugdha were down due to heat. Since they had given me company while my cycle was down, I gave them what little I could, motivated them, encouraged them to cycle on and that’s how we reached Leh!  Tired but fully elated. 

YHAI had extended the expedition to Kardung La which is the highest motorable road for the next day. It was optional. So those who wanted to go Kardung La were supposed to rest at the camp site. So I decided to rest in preparation for Kardung La.

Day 14 (25th July)

Stok Kangri in the backdrop on the way to Kardungla

Last point of my Trip - South Pullu on the way to Kardungla.

Could not sleep well last night, might have slept for 2-3 hours. At 4AM we were to start for Kardung La. We got all support from YHAI and we were ready to start around 17 of us. Our leader Anurag took us to the start point till then we were all together. Later on it is just one road leading to the K TOP. So we cycled in our own pace. I enjoyed the ride, it was cold in the morning I had some 5 layers on, slowly as the day progressed just with one layer was enough and a jacket. All the way I could see Stok Kangri, first rays of the sun falling on Stok Kangri, it was shining beautiful, took some pictures. Slowly steadily I was cycling and I was in good spirit with Snehil and Kishor. All the way Swapnil’s advice was echoing in my mind, ‘Don’t change your pace for anyone, go at your own pace’, Mahajan kaka’s advice for Kardungla was “Attempt as a summit climb, don’t wait for anyone”. We reached South Pullu by around 11:45AM and our turnaround time from K TOP was 3PM. From South Pullu, K TOP is 14Kms, so with 3Kms per hour I should be able to make it and I was feeling good. But heat was too much to take and I realized next 10Kms road condition was horrible. Considering all that, I became bit complacent and lazy. I decided to end my trip at South Pullu, content in my efforts. Snehil and Kishor were determined to reach the top so they went ahead. Determination and motivation was running low at my end. There were around 2-3 of them at South Pullu before we reached, they were having AMS. So I sat with them at a dhaba and I was famished, had hot Magie, double omelette and tea. Mugdha and Shradha we heard from support staff that they were having difficulty to climb and that they might return. Later bike support came and told us they are on the way. So we decided to wait for them, for a long time they did not turn up, so we thought they might not be coming and might have turned back. We were just out of dhaba and we saw Anurag, followed by Mugdha and Shradha. They took bit of rest at dhaba and ate some. They had decided not to continue to K TOP. So for some time we spoke with other tourist and army personal who had stopped at the dhaba. Then decided to start back, downhill ride was fun! I would say best downhill ever! Hand a wide grin all along. Loved every minute of it, both uphill and downhill. Reached Leh camp at around 2:30PM. Next day was our check out. If I had completed K Top, I was planning to dedicate it to Mahajan Kaka and my Step Mother for getting me cycling jersey which was very useful in this trip.  

Day 15 – 18 (26th July – 29th July)

Some were going to Pangong Tso, some left to their home. My flight was on 29th July. We were around 7 of us, we decided to do Leh monastery. I had seen most of them and they all look the same for me. I had initially declined to not to join them, but then I had nothing else to do. Our plan to go to Tso Mariri was not working out. So joined in this group. Went to Stok Palace, Hemis monastery etc..., did few minutes of meditation at Hemis monastery and enjoyed the company. It was a relaxed sightseeing day with new found friends. I think it was a day well spent. Next two days just did nothing, eat sleep, repeat! Due to free wifi connectivity from hotels and restaurants spent time online sharing pictures with family and friends. 

View of Himalaya from my Flight window

It was my first time flying out of Leh, Harshad was with me on this journey. We both wanted window seat and so we took different seats. On the way out got to see the famous Karakoram Range of Himalaya – The Great Earth Fold! 

Chandratal to Baralachla Trek - Sep 2024

YouTube link :

 https://youtu.be/zBIqXtAfyJM?si=46Hg4mdYB-7FYzhH

We choose this trek for Jayant Bhai to assess his knees strength. 

It ticked off our requirement for a trail which is not popular and hence not many venture. 

Even though not many people walk on these trails other than Shepard's, few who do usually follow Chandra river down stream. 

We choose to do upstream, which is comfortable for Jayant Bhai knees. 

We found little information online. Most recommended itinerary is 2 camps & 3 days. We stuck to this itinerary while planning & decided to add 2 more days of trek nearby Sarchu. As going so far just for 3 days trek doesn't make sense.

Since we were at Sarchu, we thought why not add few more days and visit Tso Morriri & take flight back from Leh. 

So that's how we had a plan of totally 10 days including travel and acclimatization day. 

For Himachal Pradesh we don't have to think twice as to who our trek organiser would be. It's always Khemji Thakur & Co. 

We started early from Chandigarh around 9 AM and on the way stopped every now and then to savor hot panjabi food. We reached around 6 PM. Settled down with our rooms at Hotel Iceland, had our dinner and after long day out travelling we closed our eyes for the day. 

Morning we were delighted seeing Friendship peak from our hotel room. Post breakfast we decided to walk towards Anjani Mahadev temple to get our legs used to walking these hills & streams. 

Evening we wanted to walk towards Patalusu village but due to overcast sky & light rain we decided against going there but instead went till beas river just behind the hotel. 

Before sleeping we arranged our bags for the upcoming camping days. 

We knew this trek starts from 14000ft and hence it will need acclimatization but thought it wouldn't be a hard trek. 

16th September 

We started towards Chandratal around 9 AM via Atal Tunnel. At the tunnel security personnel stopped us for regular checks, all cleared. 

We took the road towards Kaza & at Chatru we remembered our 2016 Hampta Pass trek which ends at Chatru. On the way we could see road widening work being done. We had to wait till they cleared few boulders. We stopped at Batal at Chacha Chachi Dhabha for tea. By 3 PM we reached Chandratal Camping ground. Our team prepared hot lunch. Ended the day just getting used to dry cold air little under 14000ft. 

17th September 

Acclimatization day! 

We need to walk around to get used to this rarified atmosphere. Post breakfast we walked towards Chandratal which took us 1 & half hours around 3 kms. Sun was bright it wasn't easy walking suddenly at 14000ft. We were surrounded by Chandra Bhaga mountains. We could see Samudra Tapu glacier melt lake. We then walked few meters down to reach Chandratal. It was as we had seen back in 2016. We spent some time here & came back to camping ground by 1 PM. Some of us felt different degrees of AMS (Headache / appetite loss) today post the walk in scorching sun. We decided to take it easy for the rest of the day. 

18th September 

All of us were feeling good & as per plan started our walk towards our first camp site which is Topko Gongma either before river crossing or after river crossing depending on the river flow.

It was overcast sky today.

Terrain is tree less with few patches of grass & mostly loose rocks with regular dip & up the slope. It felt like a long march and campsite nowhere in sight. We realised around 2 PM or so that our first campsite Topko Gongma is 22 kms from the lake! This we were not aware hence not mentally or physically prepared. We informed our guide to arrange to stop for the day by 5 PM wherever we find water source. So without much height gain & after walking 18 kms (10 hours) we called it a day at 6:20 PM, 14160ft. As we approached this campsite it started raining. 

19th September 

It rained all night last night. Hoping the rain might stop we waited till 9:30 AM to start our journey, it was drizzling when we started and slowly wind & rain picked up. We wore our rain gear to keep ourselves dry & warm. None of us had major AMS except Mahesh who was showing 65% O2 and with appetite loss. It's miserable to walk in rain with no views. We found a large boulder to take shelter to have our lunch & crossed Topko Gongma river which was ankle length deep. On the way we saw Topko Gongma campsite. After walking 5 hours, 8 Kms & at 14400ft we called it a day. 

20th September 

We got up to see clear sky. All of us energised by sun shine. We started around 8:30 AM. Terrain is typically black slate & loose rocks up & down slope. By around 12 noon we were walking around huge wind carved structures. It was unbelievable! I had seen them from far off during Manali to Leh cycling trip in 2016 between Sarchu to Pang. Now I was able to walk just beside them. 

 Couldn't hold back tears of joy taking in the view. Crossed several bolder sections on the way. We crossed Topko Yongma river which was just ankle deep. Had our lunch beside the river & had to climb steep up before reaching Topko Yongma Camp site which was like a meadow. Sun was still bright at 2:30PM. We walked for 6 hours, 9kms & at 15200ft. We enjoyed this beautiful campsite.

21st September 

With clear sky giving us company. One of our guide decided to go ahead of us & see if a vehicle can be arranged for pickup at Baralachla today as we were one day late by now & our planned vehicle might not be available. 

With that in the background & Sun shining behind us we started our journey towards Baralachla. Initial green meadow camp with brook gave way to barran landscape of boulders. We were walking around 16000ft at a plateau we could see 360 degrees of snow capped mountains. 

We could see KoaRang mountains & glacier. CB mountains behind us. Around 200ft up hill we were at Paralatse La South at 16200ft. There are Cairn marked at this pass and on the way towards it. From here we could see Manali to Leh highway with trucks movement. Still we couldn't find our guide who had gone before us. By 1 PM we decided we should camp here as Mahesh was unable to walk any further. Our guide was trying to find water source to camp. Till then we had our light lunch. Mahesh took ORS as he wasn't eating well. By then we were told to walk ahead & on the way we saw our trek organiser Khemji himself walking towards us. All of us got spring in our legs! He had come with pick up truck yesterday itself but since we didn't turn up, he was contemplating next move to arrange rescue mission if required. To his relief we walked on our own & he drove us towards Baralachla on dry river bed. BRO has constructed new road below old one. 

Took our photos near the pass. Headed straight to Sarchu. On the way our mobile network got connected after 5-6 days. We camped beside the highway at Sarchu. 

Re-planned our itinerary as we took additional day to complete this trek, we had to abandon our second trek starting from Sarchu & preponed our Tso Morriri trip. Today we walked 5 hours, 10 kms & at 16000ft. 

This trek tested our stamina & we had to give one additional day to complete the trek. It was harsh and rugged terrain with mesmerizing view's which took our breath away (literally and figuratively). 

Totally 45 kms of walking from Chandratal parking lot.

Not much height gain but the trek itself starts at 14000ft hence would recommend acclimatization before reaching Chandratal lake itself. Be it a walk at Rohtang La or at Chatru.

It's important to note even though there isn't much height gain on day 1, the designated first campsite is 22 kms from Chandratal lake. 

Due to low snow fall in the winter this year, glacier melt river flow was low too. 

Review of CTR Rub 50 ankle length shoe worked well even on rainy day. 

Also Jayant Bhai could walk pain free with functional knee support band. This has given him confidence to plan next trek. 

Des mera rang rez yeh babu

Into the wild: Tadoba - Andhari Tiger Reserve Maharashtra & Pench National Park Madhya Pradesh (Dec 2010)

It was a last minute decision to take year end leave & we remembered one of our friend telling us about 2 years back that Tadoba is a good place to sight Tigers, which we both had never seen. We had also never been there earlier and the place had been in news as a number of tiger cubs had been born there in the past 12 months. Since we had around 10 days of leave we decided instead of just visiting Tadoba, we can also combine Pench which is 90 kms from Nagpur. It was year end rush every where so we could not find accommodation in both the place. With the help of some of our friends we got 3 days accommodation in MTDC Moharli - Tadoba , but had to manage on our own for 1 night i.e. christmas night on 25Dec. We also managed to get 2 nights accommodation at Baghira Retreat at Pench MP. We quickly booked our train ticket to Chandrapur which is 45 kms from Moharli Gate - Tadoba. We decided to do 5 safaris in Tadoba, which has to be booked 1 week in advance & 2 safaris in Pench MP.

All set, we boarded the train from Thane station in the afternoon and next day by around 10AM we reached Chandrapur, a small station and we had asked Shalik Jogwe, who had arranged everything for us, to send a pick up vehicle at Chandrapur. Praveen, a safari driver picked us up. A pleasant 45 mins open air jeep ride & we reached the small village of Moharli. Just before the Gate to the Tiger reserve we had to take right turn and a small road led us to MTDC Moharli which is one of the best place to stay here as most of the rooms have balcony facing the lake where one can watch lot of bird life. Tadoba - Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) is Maharashtra's oldest National Park located in the Chandrapur district, about 155 KM from the Nagpur International Airport. TATR is home to about 43 Royal Bengal Tigers. A Southern Tropical Dry Deciduous Forest, it is largely a flatland with 40 per cent of its area covered with bamboo trees, which gives it a unique appearance. Compared to other popular tiger reserves in India, TATR is relatively under-explored and under-photographed. The place has only of late been attracting tourists and is slowly coming up on the Indian wildlife circuit. At the moment, however, people from the Nagpur - Chandrapur belt comprise bulk of the tourists.

Day 1: We reached MTDC at around 12noon & they follow strict check in - check out schedules. Check in time is 1.30PM so we put our backpack in the dinning area and ordered for our lunch as you need to give an hours notice for food.We had to take our 1st safari at 2PM. We checked in at around 1.00 PM, freshened up and had lunch and were ready to kick start our Safari. At Tadoba all private vehicles are allowed with an Entrance Fee of around 150/-, Guide fee of 100/- and camera cost of 5/-. We had opted for the open gypsy safari. We could not find anyone to share the safari with us, so it was just 2 of us in an open air gypsy. We loved the exclusivity. Shravan was to be our guide for all our safaris here. At Tadoba the rules change at a drop of a hat. Just the day we arrived they had allowed vehicles to move from one zone to another. Earlier they used to allow vehicles from one Gate to be in the same zone. So it was good for us as we would have better sightings. Today we just roamed almost entire forest. Saw the usual Sambhar deer, spotted deer and some birds. At the end of our trip when we were returning from Tadoba Gate, Just near the Gate, a Tiger came out of the woods and was about to cross the main road. He stopped and looked at us ferociously. By then we had stopped to give him the right of way. This tiger is known to attack Safari Vehicles and hence he is known as Yeda Anna. Since we had kept our distance he crossed the road and went into the woods. He had a beautiful coat like burning fire. We were so excited seeing our 1st Tiger that we were unable to capture a good picture( camera shake-excitement!) as it all happened so fast. Our guide told us he will come out of the wood and cross the other small road behind so our driver zoomed off & waited at a place we thought he would come out. By then other 2 vehicles came to know we sighted Tiger and so they tagged along. On the other side we saw villagers walking on the road and they seem to be least afraid of the Tigers. Villagers were chattering and so the Tiger did not come out; As soon as they passed he emerged out of the wood and again crossed the road and just melted into the woods. Since it was late evening we had to head back to Gate. Yes we did it! on our very 1st safari we saw a huge male tiger we were thrilled and had to tell some one, so back in the hotel we called few of our relatives/friends and shared our joy.



Day 2: Early morning at 6.45AM Park Gates are open & we are allowed to be inside the forest till 11AM. We had asked for a packed breakfast which was kept ready. Weather was very chill and drive into the wild on an open gypsy was a torture till about 9.00 AM when the sun started warming up. Telia Dam looked mystic and beautiful. Nothing much happened today in both the safari that's worth a mention.




Day 3: Our 4th Safari as soon as we entered the Park early in the morning we saw 2 wild dogs hopping and jumping towards us. They were quite bold and walked past our jeep. Later saw Brown Fish owl and a Crested Serpent Eagle. Then saw a Crocodile basking in the sun at Telia Dam. On our way back saw Indian Cobra on the main road. It lifted its hood to make itself look big and soon after that it vanished into the woods, missed getting a click! Our 5th and last Safari at Tadoba for the year. Our guide Shravan and Driver Santosh had weighed the possibility of sighting a Tiger near Telia Dam; so we decided to wait near the Dam, which we did and far away we saw jeeps zooming with lot of dust which only means one thing. So Santosh zoomed in and we reached the spot where already 5 jeeps had arrived. They said a Tigress was basking in the shallow water which we could not see as rocks and tall grass covered her. We waited patiently for her to emerge, and emerge she did, we were all awestruck by its beauty. She decided to sit and again we lost her in the tall grass. After about 10-15 mins she seemed disturbed by flies and walked into the bush. We were exhilarated and excited to see this magnificent creature on our last safari at Tadoba.

Day 4: We had no reservation at the hotel or safari booked for this day. Shalik Jogwe offered us to stay at his place in Moharli Village, which was just walking distance from Moharli Gate. Post lunch we shifted to his "Camp House" and since shalik had to meet his friends in Nagpur, he pushed off with his family. Shalik Jogwe is a wildlife photographer & conservationist from Chandrapur. We got an opportunity to see village life. Moharli is a typical Indian village with around 10-15 houses. Kids were happy and playing with there domesticated goats, hens & cows. In the evening we could see so many stars that we never get to see in Cities. We had told the tea shop fellow to arrange dinner for us. By around 8PM we got hot yummy home made food at his shop. We relished it as from past 3 days we were sick of eating MTDC food which was no good. Tomorrow we were to leave for Pench MP. We had found out Khawasa is the nearest village and from there we had arranged a pick up. But to reach there we had done no arrangement. We thought we will hop buses as we had no safari arranged for next day and we just had to reach the hotel before dark.



Day 5: We had to take the first morning bus from Moharli village to Chandrapur at around 7 AM. Got up early and waited at the bus stop and the bus came at around 7.30AM and since it was Sunday it was full of villagers who had come to set up shop at Moharli Sunday Market. Anyway some how we managed to get in and got a seat. Reached Chandrapur by around 8.30AM. Outside the bus stop we saw a Poha stall & we gorged ourselves on it. We then hopped into a bus at 9AM to Nagpur(155kms). This driver was very slow and regulars in the bus had started complaining. On our way we saw the real travelers; the Indian lambadis with there camels , carts and colorful dress. When we travel with the general public we get to see so many colors of our great country that we never see if we go in our private vehicle. We got down before Nagpur Bus Stop as we had to take next bus from MP Tourism Bus Stop which is near Nagpur Railway Station. It was Lunch time and we inquired at the Bus Stop and found one bus which was ready to leave, so we quickly bought some vada pav and hopped into a bus to Khawasa(90Kms). For 1 hour we were roaming in Nagpur so it was a nice Nagpur Darshan for me as I had never seen this place. After that we entered forest area. We reached around 4PM at Khawasa, a small little village on the Nagpur Jabalpur National Highway 7 and here we had got a contact by name Jaiswal who had done all our arrangements. He sent us a pick up vehicle and about 12kms from Khawasa is Pench. We checked into Baghira Retreat, Since this is a Private Resort we got good service and food. We enjoyed bonfire in the night. At Pench, we had booked just 2 safaris on 27th Dec Afternoon & 28th Dec Morning.

Day 6: First half we relaxed in the hotel campus where they had badminton court we played for a while; then relaxed under a tree enjoyed birds chirping as the hotel was empty. Its a new property so not many know about this resort. Kitchen in-charge showed us 2 tortoises that he had kept as pet. After a sumptuous lunch, we left for the afternoon safari in an open Gypsy. We were ready and waiting at the Turia Gate of Pench National Park. Here it is much more organized as its a popular tourist destination for people in Nagpur and also famous as a documentary was shot here about Tigers called "Spy in the Jungle". They check each and every person in the jeep with their ID cards .At Tadoba only 20-30 vehicle are allowed at Moharli Gate and around 7 from Tadoba Gate. Here since the forest is vast they allow 50 vehicles and before entering the gate we have to tell them which route we will be taking and we cannot change our route. It is good in a way. Retired army officers are kept to Guard the forest and manage the tourist .I guess that's why safari rates are so high here. We entered the forest along with a forest guide Vinod. Pench is a beautiful forest. According to our guide this park has around 33 tigers, 30 leopards, 20,000 deers, 100+ species of birds among other animals. We observed Sambhar and other deer looked much more bigger and well built than what we saw in Tadoba and hence the Tigers are also much bigger here. Just as we were speaking to our Guide we felt some jeeps were huddled together and so we rushed there to see a Tiger walking inside the woods, but we could not get the full profile view; People ahead saw that Tiger crossing the road so we missed it by few mins. I know why people are obsessed to see Tigers, its just majestic to watch it walk. Now that I have seen a Tiger at Tadoba, I still want to see more, I am addicted to it, but I also just enjoy being in the forest. Its been almost 15 years now that I have been reading, watching and talking about Tigers and how important it is to save it for our own good. Its not only a top predator of our forest, it safeguards our forest with its trees the rivers and looks beautiful too so there is no reason why we should not protect this animal. From my childhood I have been visiting forests around my home town Bangalore, had seen the usual, Sambar Deer, Spotted deer, Barking Deer, porcupines, my favorite Elephants and many more birds and animals but never had gone in search of Tiger. Now that I have seen it in this trip I am happy to have seen them in the wild.

Day 7: We got our packed breakfast for our early morning Safari. Enjoyed our last Safari for the year. Came back to room had our lunch and had to check out and catch 8PM train to Mumbai. This time we hired a car & reached Nagpur at around 4PM. Took Duronto non-stop express back to Mumbai.

I just love the colors or verity that we have in our great county, where else will you find so many languages, food, Culture, Religion & Races. This is the county where two top predators of the forest call home, The Lions & Tigers. We have deserts, beaches, mountains and verity of forests. What more can I ask for.

I would like to thank Adwait Keole who told us about Tadoba when we met him at ARRS. Kaustub Upadhye of Jungle lore (www.junglelore.net) who helped us get crucial contacts at both Tadoba and Pench. Shalik Jogwe was very helpful at Tadoba, he even offered us to stay at his place when we had no accommodation. You can check out Shalik's blog at http://tadoba-tiger.blogspot.com/. We loved Shravan & Santosh, our Guide and Driver at Tadoba. Naresh Jaswal helped us get accommodation & arranged our safari at Pench.

Loved Tadoba for its rustic beauty will definitely visit again.

I'm free, I'm free fallin - Malshej Ghat Rappelling 1200ft - 2009

Before booking for this camp I was not sure if I will be able to do it. Almost every day was asking our friend & relatives who had participated in the same camp whether this is doable. they kept saying its very easy and that I can do it with out much trouble. Just got to over come fear of heights.

27th Nov : The day. We were to be picked up at Teen Haath Naka at around 11PM. We got into the bus which was already full and hence had to occupy last seats which are on top of wheels. It was a small bus and our back pack was bulky. We quickly closed our eyes and tried to sleep.

28th Nov : By around 3AM we reached Khubi village. It was cold outside so they gave us option to either sleep in the bus or get out and sleep outside village school. I and Mahesh decided to spread our legs and sleep in the corridor of the village school. At 5AM we got up to answer our nature call out in the open before sunrise. Volunteers of Camp Fire India handed us Rappelling Gears that consisted of 4 Gloves, a helmet, a harness with descender. We were told we need to trek to the Rappelling point which could take an hour, but its a easy 20mnt walk on the way we met Guru of Rappelling and owner of Camp Fire India Mr Arun Sawant, he was picking up twigs and asked us to do the same for a cup of tea at the rappelling point. We were around 5-8 of us walking behind Mr Sawant the leader. Rest around 35 of them were not to be seen behind us. We soon reached Malshej Water fall start point. We put twigs and bags down and waited for that hot tea and some breakfast. After breakfast they gave us some instructions and how to tie harness. They said keep you legs as wide as possible and watch your step and keep your hands away from descender as during free fall it gets hot and may burn skin. They set up the 1st Patch. Day one we will be Rappelling 2 Patch 1st one 350ft and second around 300ft. On day two we will be doing 3 patches. Myself and Mahesh were ready and we were one of the 1st to rappel and 1st few steps was very scary after around 10-15ft rest was just free fall. They had told us how to feed rope and how to stop the speed of our descent. My stomach was in my mouth! every now and then I used to break my speed scared of falling down, the fact is that we are controlled by a guy who is down. But still could not trust the guy below. We were rappelling beside the water fall so while free falling tried to enjoy the view. 1st Patch had 4 ropes beside each other so that more people can rappel. While free falling we are not in control and so we start rotating out of control. But soon I found my grip and within minutes I was down and since the rock was wet and slippery and I was just come out of my 1st rappelling I could not stand for a while, I tried standing and down I fall. Carefully came and sat beside Mahesh who was sitting and enjoying me free falling.

After around 20 people had descended they started 2nd patch again we were the 1st few who started. This one had 3 ropes together. But the rappelling point was in such a place where one the way there were lose rocks and if we miss our step we will just fall 300ft down. I carefully reached the point and they one was 20ft of rappelling and rest free fall. This one I enjoyed, I had courage to see down from top and enjoy just free falling. Mahesh was already down taking a bath in the water fall. I was hungry so i started eating my Lunch which they had asked us to pack from home it was 1PM. This huge patch of bolder will be our home for the night. We soon found a flat enough place where we could spread our legs and sleep for the night. Volunteers arranged for change room for girls with huge plastic cover. By around 4PM all of us were down and were waiting for a cup of tea which came in. We socialized and soon it was dark and they started Camp Fire and we sang songs and clicked some snaps. Had simple yet Delicious dinner made fresh on location open air. The day ended with star gazing and snoring.

29th Nov : Got up before sunrise, Know why? Well got ready had breakfast and around 9AM we started Rappelling 3rd Patch which was more of rappelling and no free falling so it was hard for the hands and we had to feed rope through the 8 shape descender. So was 4th patch which was very close to water fall and could not enjoy the water splash as was already tired of waiting for my turn to rappel as there were just 2 ropes and this time I was not the 1st to start. I barely managed to avoid falling into the water fall pool. Then by the time I was at 5th patch, Mahesh was down and was screaming to take off my rain jacket and shoes as 5th patch no matter how much we try to avoid the water pool, volunteers who control our rope will make sure we get a dip. I took off my rain jacket and shoes and started rappelling with just socks and few steps down I started slipping so I came back up allowed the person behind me to rappel and I decided to ware shoes and rappel even if it gets wet. It was short rappel but since I was tired as it was mid afternoon was slow and soon was down and they took off my back pack and dipped me into the water and they had a good laugh and I had a cold dip and was refreshing. changed dress and around 5-8 of us started walking to Thidabi village to Mr Sable Mama's house for lunch. This was long walk of around an hour. We followed water path and then we saw arrow marks leading to the village. They collected the gear that they had given us. By around 3PM all of them had come to the Village and we had lunch and started back to Mumbai by around 5PM. On the way they stopped for Tea break where we exchanged our email Ids with new found friends. At 9PM We were safe HOME!

African Safari - Dream Trip to Kenya

Jambo!

Day 1 (8th Aug 2009): After months of planning and negotiating, we were finally on our way to Nairobi, which is the gateway to one of the top 3 wildlife safaris in the world..the legendary Masai Mara. We had planned the trip to coincide with the dramatic wildebeest migration that happens annually.

As we got off the Plane at 6:30 am, we were so excited and nervous at the same time to finally be in the country we were waiting to get to. The on-arrival visa process was smooth. The Kenyan visa officer even spoke some Hindi words, thanks to all the Indians migrating to Kenya. As we got outside the airport we met our Travel agent, Meshak, who guided us to our Van. As we looked outside the sky was grey and it was drizzling, the traffic was hectic just like in any Indian city! They first took us to our Travel Agent Manager’s house for a quick Breakfast, which we thought was a warm and welcoming gesture. We were introduced to a Chinese couple who would be joining us in the Van (they had just returned from Tanzania after trekking Kilamanjaro which is the highest peak in Africa). Then we went to the city-mall to change our money into the national currency which is Kenyan shillings (1 USD = 75 SHILLINGS). Then we headed off to Masai Mara, which was a 7 hour drive. On the way we stopped to click pictures of The Great Rift Valley, which is said to be the longest Valley in the world. The sight was beautiful. We finally reached Masai Mara at around 4.00 PM. We quickly checked into our campsite venue, Big Time Camp which is right outside Oloolaimutia Gate (eastern most border of Masai Mara). Masai Mara is the northern part of the Serengeti eco-system and has an amazing concentration of wildlife spread across 1600 square kilometers of Savannah Grasslands. Considered the best of Kenya's parks, it is on the pathway of the yearly wildebeest migration, which comes north from Tanzania about the end of July-Aug and returns to Tanzania around the end of Nov-Dec. The Mara sustains all of the Big Five i.e. Lion, elephant, leopard, rhinoceros and buffalo-and many other animals as well. After a quick tea, we embarked on our very first game drive at around 5 PM. We saw Thomson's Gazelle, Impala, Masai Giraffes (with a star like pattern), Buffalo, Zebra, Wildebeest, a hungry lioness feasting on a Masai Cow. All this on our very first game drive. The abundance of wildlife was just mind boggling and was a refreshing change from some of our previous safaris in India, where sighting a single deer after a whole day's safari was considered an achievement. We returned to our campsite by 6.30 PM. After a whole day of driving, we were tired. Our tent had an attached bathroom with hot shower, so we took a much needed shower & proceeded for a nice dinner where we were introduced to our driver guide, James Bond (yes Bond as in 007) who was going to be with us for the entire trip. Bond told us that we will have a full day safari the next day with a picnic lunch right in the middle of the Mara. We retired to bed early with great anticipation for things to come.



Day 2 (9th Aug 2009) Saw another Lion pride with many cubs. They were dragging a wildebeest kill and were very playful as their tummies were full. This was one of the highlights of the trip as we saw a lot of lionesses and cubs at very close quarter. Clicked a lot of pics and shot some video too. We then went to the Kenya - Tanzania boarder along which flows the Mara River. It was unusually dry this year due to drought and we saw same Zebras and Wildebeest at the edge of the river waiting to cross, which they never did while we were around. We were told that the animals from Tanzania were able to cross the river easily this year as they just had to walk across the sand with out the usual crocs waiting to gulp them down. James found a nice place for the Picnic lunch under an acacia tree, where baboons had just finished their lunch of sausage fruit. After lunch, we went walking with a ranger to see hippos and crocodiles lazing near the river bank (there was a small section of the river that actually had some water). On our way back, we saw a family of Elephants, who were sleeping under the shade of an acacia tree, while they were standing. We were exhausted by the time we came to our campsite. We relaxed for some time and it was time for dinner (which is always beef). We sat around a camp fire and spoke to fellow travelers from across the world. Bond had arranged for an early morning Game Drive at 6.30 AM the next day.




Day 3 (10th Aug 2009): Early Morning Game Drive. It was cold with a chill breeze. This time of the year is winter in Africa and considered the best time to visit. We saw the African Sunrise, a huge orange ball of fire. We saw two orphan Lion cubs whose mother had died recently. We knew that these cubs will inevitably die too. They looked so vulnerable that we realized that it’s not always the Lions that have it their way. We saw a Jackal’s den with its cute cub. We came back to the campsite around 9.30 AM and had our breakfast (we gorged on some yummy omlette). The evening game drive was planned at around 4.00 PM; so we had some time to kill. We decided to visit an authentic Masai village which was close to the camp. The village had around 10-15 huts and primarily consisted of one huge family of around 300 plus masai. The men and women performed a welcome dance and showed us around inside their huts. The best take away from the village was the local souvenir market where bargaining is the order of the day. Sumit and Sonali enjoyed the bargaining there and we bought some Masai Masks. On the evening Game Drive we saw a family of Elephants, Antilopes, & buffalos close up. We were disappointed at not seeing anything exciting on our last game drive at Masai Mara. Just then, the wireless radio crackled with excitement. We all knew some major sighting was being reported but we could not follow the Swahili. James whirled the Van into top gear overtaking a bunch of vans like a hollywood car chase. Then we saw from a distance, with James still speeding to reach the best vantage spot, The elusive Leopard!!! out in the open with its smart & healthy yellow coat. We were the second Van to get there, so got a good sight. It was amazing. This was our last game drive in Masai Mara and we had already seen four of the Big Five. This was easily the moment of the trip so far.



Day 4 (11th Aug 2009): Bid farewell to Masai Mara and left for Nakuru at 6.30 AM in the morning. Arrived at Nakuru for Lunch. We were put up at Hotel Genevieve which is out side Lake Nakuru National Park. After 3 days of relaxing tent stay out in the Jungle, we felt claustrophobic inside the four walled room. We entered Lake Nakuru National Park which is managed by a Private Group unlike Masai Mara. Lake Nakuru is known for flamingos; both lesser i.e. pink and greater i.e. white flamingos, Sacred Abbes, Pelicans, Marabou Stork, African Spoonbills, Egyptian Geese and a whole variety of big birds. We walked very close to flamingos. They were just too many of them and they made the lake look pink. At Baboon Cliff view point, we could see Lake Nakuru far and wide and we clicked some pictures there. On our way back to the Hotel we finally saw a few White Rhinos which completed our BIG FIVE hunt. Incidentally, White Rhinos are not native to Kenya. They are imported from South Africa. We also saw a Lion relaxing, perched on a tree; which was a rare and picturesque sight (pic of the trip).



Day 5 (12th Aug 2009): We were supposed to visit Amboseli National Park for the next 2 days. Our driver James suggested we visit Samburu National Park instead, which is North of Nairobi as we may see more animals than Amboseli; where the only highlight was elephants and the sight of Kilamanjaro peak. On the way to Samburu we saw Thomsons water fall, Mt. Kenya, passed the Equator & had our Lunch at Nanyuki town. Arrived at Samburu National Park at 4 PM & proceeded straight on our Game Drive since the public campsite here was inside the forest with very basic pitch in tents for 2. On our way we saw Gravy Zebras (thinner stripes), Reticulated Giraffes (the usual ones we all know. The giraffes at Masai are unique in their design pattern). We saw a Lion pride feasting on a kill; two young lions indulged in a tug of war over a big piece of the kill untill the meat broke into two pieces. We also saw one of the bigger antelope called Oryx and a strange species of deer called gerenuk, which in african means giraffe like neck. Gerenuk actually look like bonsai giraffes and stand upright on their hind legs to eat leaves from tall bushes. We finally reached our campsite, which was setup on a river bank with few pitch in tents. We immediately fell in love with the place. This was the kind of camping we always wanted to do. No electricity, No attached bath rooms, no distractions. Just us and stars in the night & the occasional animal calls. Samburu unlike Masai Mara was hot; but the nights were pleasant.




Day 6 (13th Aug 2009): Morning Game drive was early as it gets hot here soon. We saw a family of Leopards on a hill. It’s hard to spot them as these animals just blend into the surroundings. Once a while we could see 2 Leopard cubs playing and we could spot the Mother Leopard slowly coming down the hill towards us. But she was hesitating to approach with so many vans around. James suggested we will go around the park and come back to see if she comes out in the open later. We proceeded to see some elephants, a crocodile and a pride of lions feasting on gravy zebra. We came back to the same spot and saw the leopard down hill behind a bush. Suddenly she was out in the open and again as soon as more vans joined us she went back inside another bush. Then again she came out and out of nowhere she started dragging an impala carcass that we had not noticed. All this while she was trying to carry her kill to the cubs on the hill and we were all blocking her way. This was one of the prices the animals have to pay with all the tourists breathing down their neck; but again the whole ecosystem is surviving because of the tourism. We could see her climbing uphill with her heavy kill. It was an amazing and rare sight as we got to see her at a distance of just 10-15 feet. Just like in Masai Mara, a Leopard appeared before us on our Last Day and we were left amazed. Afternoon was hot and we could not sleep inside the tents so all guests(not many) sat outside under the shade and just relaxed while chatting. This is how a holiday should be. Felt extremely relaxed and refreshed. On the evening game drive, we did not see much. Maybe we had seen it all and were not excited enough this time.




Day 7 (14th Aug 2009): We drove back to Nairobi to catch our 5.45 PM flight to Mumbai. On our way posted a picture post card to Basanthi in the US; hope it reaches her. Our flight was delayed by 7hrs as the employees had chosen to go on strike on the same day. We finally took off at 3.00 AM on 15th Aug 2009 and landed at Mumbai at around 10.00 AM, thus ending one of our most memorable trips.

Kenya is a beautiful country with warm and welcoming people. Africa was our dream destination and we are happy to have stepped on this amazing continent.

Click URL to see some of the unforgettable moments we photographed during the trip.

Asante Kenya!

Travel Tips:
1)Masai Mara has many gates to enter the National Park.
2)If possible book for accommodation inside park well in advance during peak season. Say 4-5months in advance.
3)It is very dry and dusty during August, so carry some moisturizing cream.
4)Carry Mosquito repellent cream(Odomos worked for us)along with regular dose of prescribed Doxycycline tab for malaria prevention.
6)Drinking water is very expensive in Kenya and more so near tourist location like safari Parks.
7)yellow Fever Vaccination is done at Mumbai International Airport, below the flyover. Weekend and Monday its hard to get appointment as lot of outstation people book in advance. So try on weekdays like Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Early morning go and write your name in the sheet that is hanging on the door and come back at around 2PM for the vaccination. They take around 40-50 people a day. One vial is used for 10 people so if you happen to be 32nd in the list and that particular day no other person comes after you, you have to come back next day.
8)In Kenya they don't accept USD Currency printed before a particular year. (find out)
9)Review - Big Time Camp - budget,self contained tents(attached bathroom),very well maintained surroundings,mostly non-veg food. www.bigtimeholidays.com
10)Visit Masai tribes as it help in sustainable tourism. Most impotently the souvenirs they sell are not factory made and are less expensive. Bargaining is a must and it is appreciated.