Kumara Parvatha | South India’s Toughest Trek
Kumara Parvatha | South India’s Toughest Trek
Being a traveller and trek lover I always wanted to try Kumara Parvatha which is located in Subrahmanya, Karnataka, India. It’s called south India’s toughest trek. I’ve done Karnataka to Kashmir by a walk by road. But that was walking. But Trekking is different.
So after completing K2K by walk I got a DM from a trek team. They told me that they wanted to host the next Kumar Parvatha Trek. I was so down I cancelled all the other plans over that date and went for it. This is how it all started. It was around 150 km from Subrahmanya from my home. I still remember I didn’t know a single person in that group, by the way, it was 40 people’s batch that day.
I reached the starting point and the guide Jagadish Kulal who had done KP 6 times explained about the Kumara Parvatha Trek and water points and tips. So we started from the starting point like 2 pm and the first day it was around a 7 km trek.
We reached the first destination which is Bhattara Mane. Bhattara mane is the only place and house where he will give food and you can camp nearby for food he charges 150Rs per meal. This is where it gets interesting. There was a pooja at Kumar Parvatha so the previous day there were around 1500-2000 people were there at the pooja out of which some stayed and some left.
As I said that is the only place where food is available, imagine there are only 10-15 plates at that place and after completing the first day of trek everyone was hungry also I’ve seen people cry when they got their food.
Forgot to mention in this trek you will come to know about the food’s importance. This was about the first day
We stayed in Bhattara mane and there are camping sites also available. We got like 3hours of sleep and morning we woke up like 3 am and headed to the camping point
And after explaining about the day 2 trek we started at 4:30 am but there was a long line to the KP Trek.
There are fees for the trek it’s around 250-500 per person I don’t know exact and they take the plastic count over that place and according to that you have to pay some amount and when you head back you’ll get that money back. We wasted around 1-hour standing and plastic counting. We started our trek like 5:30 and it was a bit late but nothing can be done at that point.
On the way, we had a great talk and got to know about the team
And we reached KUMAR PARVATHA around 11:30 am and which was around again 7 km trek
The view from the there was amazing
As I said this was 40 people’s batch and only 20-25 people completed KP.
And we took around 30-45 min rest and had some snacks and we stared but its trek downtime. We reached Bhattara mane like 3 pm and had lunch and again continued towards the starting point
And it was a 28 km trek up and down on a single day we reached base around 6 pm
And oh boy this is the most difficult time!
You have to say goodbye to your trek partners
Who knows you might see them again or not
But the friendship which is made over there
They were there for you when it was hard and you for theirs
But finally, everyone was there
We said our final goodbye and started our ride home
But to be frank I’ve done like 10-15 different treks and this is one of my best and most memorable trek of all time
And i want to thank Jagadish Kulal, Bharath Beltangadi, Sowmya Stetty 🙏🏽❤️
Feeling Low? Go to the mountains! | Kheerganga Trek
Feeling Low? Go to the mountains! | Kheerganga Trek
After a weary workday, I got a call from my friend we were sharing glimpses and he came up with the Kasol tour plan. I wanted to escape from the routine so I didn’t check anything about it and without any hesitation, I said let’s go. And that’s how we ended up on this trek.
It was a companionless journey from Chennai to Delhi to join my friend at Delhi airport we were about to kiss goodbye to the bus that we booked. We could catch the bus at the last minute, met strangers on the bus who were planning to trek Kheerganga. After staying in Kasol for two days, on the pleasant morning of Day 3, we reached Bharshaini Dam to witness the beauty of nature.
I think there are certain moments which people will never forget, like All the firsts when the first tide touches your feet, first snowflake, first love, first kiss!! That’s how I felt after seeing the snow-capped mountains.
From there we started the 12Km trek, on the way we met a few students rushing to schools in the mountain terrain and walked through the villages to experience the completely unknown culture of Himachal on the way to reaching the base camp
After trekking for 7km we reached the base camp of Kheerganga trek called Rudranaag amidst the white-capped hills, where we saw the poster stating reward for finding the person who lost in the trek and realized it’s all fun and games until you lost and cease to exist.
We were a team of 7 members and accompanied by a local guide in Rudranaag not to miss the stray dogs, who stayed with us from start to end of the trek. From base camp, we crossed the Parvati valley to climb the mountains covered with slippery snow. Trekked almost 3 hrs to reach the kheerganga camp at 13000 ft above sea level, where one could embrace the mighty Himalayan ranges.
On top, we found one hot spring, At that moment I felt “God is a great artist but we are luckier than him to live on his finest art!!”
Barefoot we walked in the snow to reach the hot spring, the warmth given by the hot water, Oh, God!! That was heaven in real-time.
After a long trek, we camped at Kheerganga that night, amidst the Himalayas and clear night sky showing its beauty, next day we started our return journey. Trekking downhill on a slippery surface is not an easy task. I would personally say the return journey was difficult and one should be mentally ready to face the fear because while trekking uphill we will be facing the mountain but in the case of downhill, it is the valley. With the help of a veteran guide, we made it back to Rudranaag.
The trek hasn’t only given us adventure but shown us the culture of Himachal. You may not remember their names, you may not meet them again but you will always remember their quick laughs, quiet smiles, small chats, and great gestures, you will cherish them forever.
Some people say that unplanned trips are the best, I don’t know how far it’s true but the Kheerganga trek was unplanned, which will stay as a core memory in my life.
P.S: Find all information about Kheerganga Trek here.
A Photowalk to Kedarkantha Trek
I recently went to Kedarkantha Trek. To say the trek was magical is a small word. Being on this trek has helped me realise that the saying ” Be the change you wish to see in the world” is true,
Juda Ka Talab – Kedarkantha Trek
A skill that I learned was how to pack your backpack, and how to handle the trek poles.
I also was observing how the guides almost like gazelles just glided through the paths when I was struggling to understand where to place a step, I realised the whole body posture helps in playing a role
Taking part in GreenTrails was a beautiful experience. It reminded me that in spite of the beauty and majesty, the mountain ecosystem is still fragile. We need to be much much much more careful with how much of a footprint we’re leaving behind.
The climb, the views, the freezing weather.. it was all worth it once we got to see the peaks in all their glory from the top.
The skies were clear and we got to spend a quiet 60 minutes on the summit after a long day of trekking.
One word, PRICELESS. We also got to experience snowfall on our last day and it was amazing to see how everything around us felt surreal!!
With that, this is Vaani on Kedarkantha Trek ! Keep Hiking! Live your life.
Never Ending Voyage – Lessons learned from Trekking
Blue, green and brown were my most used pastel colors all through my childhood not knowing that these colors will forever leave firm imprints on my life. I am a total hill person. I love anything and everything about mountains, clear blue skies, vast green meadows and dense forests. I don’t remember what kick started this love but it’s there now for a while and one thing that I am sure of is that it will last till my legs give away. Mountains have given more than have taken from me. Here are my life lessons or things I learned from my trekking experiences –
You can’t succeed if you don’t try. You could only fail if you didn’t try .
I have been a soft corner for nature since childhood and was automatically drawn towards mountains and their beauty. Often times reading several adventure series and travel books made me wonder if I could also embark on such journeys! What would it be like treading difficult paths like these amazing men did? I used to underestimate myself thinking I can never scale such heights till I made up my mind one day to give it a shot and there hasn’t been any stopping since then. My first trek to Kedarkanta was not only strenuous but also painful.
My body did not expect hardships that I suddenly hurled on it and neither was I mentally prepared to hike more and more. But more I trekked along, pushed myself ahead, ignoring the pains and sickness, the easier it got for me to walk ahead. I slowly began to see things differently beyond the hardships and discomforts that nature bestowed upon me. I started to observe more, feel more and see the beauty of things around. That was the first time I realized how many other things I was capable of doing if only I tried. There is no point in letting the fear of failure hold you back from doing something you want to do or capable of doing. Just start with venturing out, see how far you get, improve your abilities and keep going!
Rise above yourself, there is a bigger world ahead that awaits you.
We are so engrossed in our own world, with our own little problems that we have lost all our capability to look beyond ourselves. It’s only when we are exposed to rough terrains wherein we are cut off from civilization and see local tribes with bare minimum necessities to live on, yet never complaining and living in harmony and complete submission with nature, that we wonder whether the Glass is half full or half empty? Mountain life is tedious and difficult. Hill people live in wooden houses with basic amenities and in areas that are always prone to natural calamities, bear tremendous cold weather, walk for miles to fetch water or woods from the forests. Kids with cracked red cheeks that hurt all the time, often walk for hours to attend school yet you will always find the locals hospitable with whatever little they have, ever smiling at you when met enroute. Sometimes they lend a helping hand or just pass a good luck smile and move on. In contrast, we the urban city life dwellers always live a life of tension and stress – we have loans to repay, our salaries are always too less, loved ones who never reciprocate, we love foods which we can’t intake as we have the growing obesity issues seeping in to our lives. We are constantly put under the scanner of society with people analyzing our every step. But if you manage to break free of this cluttered city life every once in a while you will come across people who care, and who bond with strangers with no high expectations.
A trek develops a sense of gratitude to things and people around.
Trekking makes you ponder over how many people and things came together to make your success possible. You instantly feel thankful about it. A monsoon trek to Deomali helped me realize “how many things” and “how many people” have contributed to our well-being.
Trekking gives us time for reflection, which promotes clarity. Clarity significantly improves decision making abilities.
There are many things about trekking that simply make you think. It could be the alone time, the view, the scale of the mountains, anything. But it promotes thinking and often gives you clarity. Walking alone in mountains is a great experience. Trails cut between mountains and run by the riverside. I get this opportunity mostly in my Himalayan treks. There are miles and miles of mountains in front of us and miles behind us. I feel minuscule among the mighty mountains. It is here I start wondering about the purpose of our existence. Have we found it yet? Do we even know that we need to find it? What are our primary and secondary duties in life? What are the factors derailing us from our duties?
These questions are not tricky ones. Sometimes on a trek, we get answers that are extraordinarily impactful on our lives.
Trekking helps you realize that true happiness is not a product of amassing things.
On the Bramhatal trek in the December of 2021, we walked past some beautiful forest and mountain passes. In my opinion, they were the the best seven days I have ever spent. Now let us look at it the other way. We were walking with a backpack, eating simple food and having “the best time”? How can someone be having the “best time” when they are deprived of basic necessities of a comfortable bed, car and sophisticated restrooms? What does happiness depend upon then? “What” and “how much of it” do we need to possess to be happy? How much mental baggage do we absolutely need? What I have said afore is by no means a complete cover of my experiences, but it gives you an idea of my biggest learnings. 
While some of my learnings are universal, learnings from a trek is also a subjective experience.
Kareri Lake – A Solo Adventure
The weather outside was clear. The evening breeze was cold and my brain was thinking, “it’s almost winter… So what next ?”. I wear a personality that longs to be in the wild but COVID and lockdowns had played their part in being a spoilsport. So when winter 2021 came and the world moved from “revenge travel” to “plain old travel”, I was the first one to get on the wagon and decided to go on a solo adventure.
I was longing for a sight of the mountains and Kareri lake was on my mind because it was the easiest to reach in terms of transportation. Booked bus tickets and ran off to Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh from Delhi. Took a taxi to the quaint Kareri village early morning. Nothing could give you more peace than being in a traditional pahadi homestay, talking to the locals who are yet to see destruction through commercialization. I had the whole day and also left my work laptop at home, so I decided to do some exploring on my own around the village. And ended up descending down a kilometre from the village and found a quiet stream to sit by, soak up the sun and just be present.
Day 2 was trek day. Since I did not get my own camping gear, I had decided to complete the trek in one single day, although I don’t recommend this because I did not have that much time to enjoy the path. Woke up early and when I got out of my room, I was welcomed by cloudy and cold weather with negligible visibility. I was recommended not to go by my Pahadi host, but, you know what they say, when the longing is strong enough, even God comes looking for you. So there I was, started walking from my homestay in Kareri village. My phone showed a biting 3-degree temperature, a weather warning highlighted in red, time was 8:32 am, my hands aching from the chill but my legs feeling strong ready to go all the way.
It took me around an hour through the village to reach “Nauli ka pul” as the locals’ state from where the trek starts. There are 2-3 shops around the bridge and you need to go along the ascending path just beside the bridge. The trek here was covered with overhanging pine, rhododendron and oak trees. I lost my way here twice because of fallen trees obscuring the path. But the beautiful forest kept me going. All the while I was walking alongside the stream which ended up being with me for the whole trek.
At around 10 am, I crossed the stream by jumping around some boulders and entered into a much more dense forest. There were wooden bridges but they were all in a dilapidated condition. The forest pushed me into a small meadow after a short while and the path was pretty much clear after this. It was like walking, all the while the stream brushing off of your trek path. The trail was pretty much defined except the fact that while ascending you may not be able to see it clearly due to huge boulders & stones. By 11:30 am I entered into territory where the temperature dropped steeply and I could see that even the stream was frozen in places where the sunlight couldn’t reach. I became reassured of my path when I came across a few closed dhabas and a Shiva temple. I could see the problems with going solo.
The last part of 4.5 km of the trail was the most difficult because the path was covered in snow and even though my trekking shoes were helping me, I had to tread carefully. I did not want to slip and injure myself since I hadn’t seen another soul along the way. At around 1:06 pm, I reached the top where I could see all of Dhauladhar, Pir Panjal and parts of Kangra valley just melting together into Kareri lake, which was starting to freeze. It started snowing lightly, but the biting cold wind gushing around, made me decide to immediately head down the mountain.
All the shacks and dhabas were closed & there was nobody around. Just me standing at Kareri temple, which is dedicated to Shiva and Shakti. I just automatically bowed down to the temple and the mountains. Thanked them for showing me how minuscule I was.
Just as I started to head down, from nowhere a stray dog joined me along and started following me, and as if it was god sent, the dog, unlike any I have come across, followed me all the way back to base which was around 10 km of descending. 4 hours of descending just flew by. Exceptional Dog, an exceptional day and an exceptional view etched in my memory forever.
A few points to remember :
I stayed at Maan Homestay in Kareri Village. Everyone knows the host Maan Singh so just take a cab and ask around the village.
I did not take any vehicle to the starting point. Just took the beaten path just shooting off of the roadhead in the village. Had to walk 1-2kms extra due to this.
The very definition of adventure for me is to be alone and just be crazy in whatever you do. However, I do not recommend going solo especially if you have zero experience of hiking in the Himalayas or you are physically unfit.
How trekking to “Triund” helped me build a long lasting relationship with treks ?
Starting my own blog was on my bucket list for quite a long time and what’s best than starting with almost every trekking enthusiast’s (at least most I know) first trek “Triund”.
Although Triund is a day hike and most people who are older into the trekking game won’t consider this as a proper trek still it is the best trek to enjoy and build a long-lasting relationship with treks if you are a newbie in Trekking and want to test something easy before bringing your game. Before we go further let me take you through my experience of the Triund trek.
Triund Trek is a beginner trek and one of the famous day hike around Dharamshala. Also it is famous among anyone coming to Mecleodganj or Bhagshu Nag.
Well, it was October 2014 when a friend called for the trek. I was working in Chandigarh and reaching Dharamshala was just a night’s journey. There was not much Volvo/Deluxe service available. I and my friend boarded an overnight Dehradun Depot bus from Chandigarh and reached early in morning at Dharamshala bus stand.
If you have to reach Dharamshala there are multiple options available these days. There are overnight bus service available from Delhi/Chandigarh or you can board a direct flight to Dharamshala. Alternatively you can come by train till Pathankot from where you can board a bus/cab till Dharamshala. It’s 4 hour journey by bus from Pathankot.
So in the morning, we were accompanied by my school friends, Sharad (master g), Gopal and Ranju. We were meeting after a long time (precisely 9 years). There was this excitement of meeting good old friend and also going on the first trek.
We sat together for some time and headed to Mcleodganj from where we collected our camping gears.
If you want to go for Triund trek you can reach Macleodganj from where you can hire a guide/porter or you can also book a complete package from any agency. There are multiple agencies operating at Macleodganj which can help you for this trek.
Finally, we started our hike to Triund. To be honest the moment we started the hike I was filled with a different energy. Also, the idea of going on a hike with my school friends added joy to it. On the way, we talked about our hostel days which we spent together.
On the way to Triund, you will see a lot of porters, mules and group treks being organized by different agencies. One this which is very good about this trek is the landscapes you will see on the trek. You can see the entire Dharamshala (Kangra Valley) from the trek and also from Triund top. If you are someone who loves to trek in peace and don’t enjoy much company this is just not the kind of trek you should take. If you want to hike in peace you may have to stretch a bit beyond Triund to Ilaka cave or Indrahar pass.
So after a walk of 30 mins, we took our first halt. Since most of us were not into treks we got a bit exhausted at the moment. So we thought of taking a quick break. Another 45 minutes onto the trek we took our second halt.
Enjoying the views on Triund Trek | Oct’14
We started hiking again and after hiking for approx 2 hours we finally reached Triund top. The trek is gradually inclined except for the last stretch which is bit steep and a bit challenging. We were a bit exhausted by the time we reached Triund but after reaching there we almost forgot all the tiredness.
If you go to Triund on a weekend you will find it just like another picnic spot. Since it was also Dussehra there were a lot of groups gathered at Triund. After we set up our camp we enjoyed the company of a lot of people. Sunsets at Triund are an absolute delight and something which you should never miss. People were enjoying themselves throughout the night. Entire Kangra valley is visible from Triund at night and it looks like flashing stars on the ground. It’s just like watching the lights from an aeroplane.
As far as I know, camping is not allowed on Triund top when I am writing this blog so do check before you’re planning to hike and camp at Triund. Night at Triund are bit chilly and night temperature falls drastically so don’t forget to carry warm layers.
The other best part which I liked about Triund is the morning at Triund. If you are there don’t miss watching the sunrise. It is just a delight to watch. You can see the sun rising from just another peak and then illuminating the entire valley. Sunrises in hills are a bit early so do set an alarm before you go to sleep.
Just before sunrise, we decided to climb a bit to see the Triund top and below is the picture which we captured.
Morning view at Triund
After sunrise Triund turned into a happening place. There was a lot happening with people doing yoga, chilling cuddling and a lot. We enjoyed the morning tea and let our camp dry a bit. After that, we clicked a few pictures and headed back to Macleodganj.
Mornings at Triund
If you may ask me it’s the journey and feeling of being there which filled me with love for trails and after that, I decided to explore different trails. I am still on the quest to visit as many as trails I can visit.
So planning for Triund hike? Do comment/message in case you have any queries. Do let me know your thoughts about this trek.
If you have been there don’t forget to share your own experience.