THIS IS A DIARY OF EVENT OF THE TREK ORGANISED BY BHRAMANTI FOR CELEBRATING 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF FIRST ASCENT OF NANDADEVI. IT'S 3RD SUCH HIMALAYAN TREK OF BHRAMANTI. THE ENTIRE TEAM WAS APURVA VARMA(TREK COORDINATOR), PUNEET KUMAR, V. M KULKARNI, P. SOLANKI, P. KAREKAR, BHASKAR GANGAL(PRESIDENT OF "BHRAMANTI MOUNTAINEERS").

16TH SEPT: AS SCHEDULED ALL THE 7 TREKKERS OF BHRAMANTI MET ON PLATFORM NO 3 OF DELHI STATION AT 2200HRS TO BOARD THE DELHI-KATHGODAM TRAIN. TRAIN DEPARTED OLD DELHI STATION AT 2245 HRS.

17TH SEPT: DUE TO OUR TRAIN ENGINE PROBLEM AT VALLABHGARH, WE BOARDED ANOTHER TRAIN(DEHRADUN-KATHGODAM) AND ARRIVED KATHGODAM AT 0830HRS. WE BOARDED SUMO AND LEFT FOR ALMORA.NEAR KAINCHI TEMPLE WE HAD OUR BREAKFAST AND THEN WE REACHED ALMORA AT 1230HRS. MR MOHIT GUPTA,OUR GROUP LEADER/GUIDE GAVE US A SMALL SPEECH IN THE EVENING ABOUT THE TREK. ALL PREPARATION FOR THE TREK WAS COMPLETED IN THE NIGHT AND WE DEPOSITED EXCESS LUGGAGE.

18TH SEPT: WE WOKE UP AT 0330HRS AND CAME TO ALMORA BUS STAND AND WE CAME TO KNOW THAT THE BUS FROM DELHI TO MUNSIYARI GOT CANCELLED.AT 0630HRS, SO WE BOARDED A BUS FOR THAL, WHERE WE REACHED AT 1230HRS. WE HAD LUNCH HERE AND THEN BOARDED ANOTHER BUS FOR MUNSIYARI AND ARRIVED THERE AT 1830HRS. IT IS A SMALL VILLAGE WHERE THE TREK BEGINS.

19TH SEPT. WE GOT PERMIT FROM SDM AND ITBP AND STARTED OUR TREK AT 0925HRS. THE TREK WAS A COMPLETE DESCENT AND AFTER TWO HRS WE ARRIVED AT SELAPANI. THERE WAS A ROUTE MAP OF OUR TREK. WE SPENT SOME TIME HERE AND STARTED TREKKING ALONGSIDE GORI GANGA RIVER. WE CAME ACROSS TWO BEAUTIFUL WATER FALLS. WE REACHED JIMIGHAT AT 1330 HRS. OUR CAMPSITE WAS LOCATED ON THE BANK OF RIVER. THE WEATHER WAS EXCELLENT. TENTS WERE SET UP QUICKLY. LUNCH WAS PREPARED BY THE COOK AND WE HAD OUR LUNCH AT 1500HRS. WE ALL ENJOYED THE EVENING. THE WEATHER CHANGED SUDDENLY IN THE NIGHT AND IT STARTED RAINING HEAVILY WITH THUNDER AND LIGHTENING.

20TH SEPT: THE WEATHER IN THE MORNING WAS EXCELLENT. THE CRYSTAL CLEAR WATER TURNED TO MUDDY WATER RIVER DUE TO HEAVY RAIN PREVIOUS NIGHT. WE STARTED THE TREK AND AFTER ONE HOUR WE CROSSED LILAM VILLAGE. WE SAW TWO WATER FALLS. WE CAME TO A HUGE WATER FALL, WHICH WAS VERY DIFFICULT TO CROSS. DUE TO LAST NIGHT RAIN, THE WATER WAS POURING HEAVILY. AT NOON WE ARRIVED AT RUPSYBAGAR, A SMALL TEA STALL. WE HAD LUNCH HERE AND STARTED TREKKING AGAIN ALONG GORIGANGA RIVER. THE TREK WAS LITTLE DIFFICULT. VIA RAILGADI, SHIVANI WE ARRIVED BUGDIYAR IN THE EVENING. IT STARTED RAINING. TWO TREKKERS WERE NOT ABLE TO PROCEED FURTHER DUE TO HEALTH PROBLEMS. THEY DECIDED TO GO BACK TO MUSIYARI THE NEXT DAY.

21ST SEPT: WE LEFT BUGDIYAR AT 0825 HRS. AFTER AN HOUR TREK WE LOST OUR WAY FOR A WHILE IN CONFUSION. WE CROSSED A DANGEROUS ROUE AND ARRIVED AT MAPANG. WE HAD TEA AND STARTED TREKKING AND REACHED RAILCOT AT 1500HRS. AFTER HAVING TEA WE STARTED AGAIN. WE SAW TOLA VILLAGE ENROUTE AND ARRIVED AT BEAUTIFULLY LOCATED MARTOLI VILLAGE, A DESERTED VILLAGE WITH ABANDONED HOUSES. MOST OF THE VILLAGERS HAD MIGRATED ALREADY TO THE PLAINS OR TO MUNSIYARI. FROM THIS VILLAGE MANY PEAKS COULD BE SEEN. THE WEATHER WAS GOOD. WE TOOK LOTS OF PHOTOGRAPHS. WE DECIDED TO SPEND THE NIGHT IN A STONE HOUSE INSTEAD OF TENT.

22ND SEPT: AS NEXT CAMP WAS VERY NEAR, WE LEFT MARTOLI AT 1140HRS AFTER HAVING RAJMA AND RICE. WE HAD TEA ENROTE AND WE REACHED GANGHAR VILLAGE AT 1430 HRS. THE OTHER SIDE OF PANCHU NALLAH IS THE PANCHU VILLAGE. WE CAN COULD SEE THE TIP OF NANDADEVI EAST MOUNTAIN FROM HERE. WE COULD ALSO SEE THE BURFU AND MILAM VILLAGES.

23RD SEPT: AT 0630HRS WE LEFT GANGHAR VILLAGE FOR NANDADEVI EAST BASE CAMP. IT WAS A CONTINUOUS ASCENT AND AT 1000HRS ALL TREKKERS REACHED NANDADEVI EAST BASE CAMP TIRED, BUT AFTER SEEING THE NANDADEVI MOUNTAIN ALL TREKKERS JUMPED WITH JOY AND THERE WAS NO END TO IT. WE TOOK MANY PHOTOGRAPTHS AND RETURNED TO GANGHAR AND TOOK REST THE WHOLE DAY.

OUR RETURN JOURNEY:
24TH SEPT WE STAYED AT RAILKOT. 25TH SEPT WE STAYED AT BUGDIYAR. 26TH WE ARRIVED AT MUNSIYARI WITH GREAT JOY OF SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF NANDADEVI EAST BASE CAMP. TWO PEOPLE FROM OUR GROUP HAD KNEE AND ANKLE PAINS BUT THEY HAD SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED THE TREK. GREAT. THE GREENERY, WATER FALLS, CRYSTAL CLEAR WATERS, SEVERAL NALLAHS AND RIVERS, SNOW CLAD MOUNTAIN PEAKS, AND A PERFECT-SIZED GROUP MADE THIS WONDERFUL TREK WORTH REMEMBERING THROUGHOUT OUR LIFE.

Photo link: Click Here by Puneet Kumar

Written By: Venkatesh Kulkarni