Triund

Trip: McLeodganj > Triund

Our plan for next day was ambitious. We were supposed to wake up by  8 to start for one of the difficult treks of Triund  We woke up at 10 AM. Still we started for the ridge. Because we were little late we decided to cover the first two miles by hiring a car along the motor-able road.

Lower Dharamshala as visible midway on Triund trail

The initial climb was steep but we were fresh with a long night sleep - or so we thought. It was a 4 hour steep trek and within 15 minute we realized that  our lungs were all ready to burst out. Thankfully at one viewpoint we saw the whole McLeodganj / Dharamshala which was heartening for our hard work.

Triund ridge in the background

Soon the Triund ridge was visible. It was time to take rest and a few pictures. Settling at a small hut-shop we ordered Maggi and soft drinks. We had earned it. Slowly we started again and reached the top of the ridge all sweating.

Stony steps@Triund trail

At the top however the view was a fairy tale stuff. Green meadows were looking at white peaks. Lying down there relieved me of all the pain.

View atop Triund

We returned back quickly and were able to reach McLeodganj by 6.30 PM. I decided to leave as some urgent work at office wanted me to be there next day. I took a 7.30 PM bus for Delhi. It would have been a painful ride had I not taken with me a bottle of coke with vodka mixed in it.

Humayun's Tomb

Bhaiya was in Delhi. We had to go somewhere. We thought why not Humayun's Tomb. Its close. Its a popular heritage site. Most importantly, in our more than 10 years of stay in Delhi we never visited the place before. So I called upon my cousin Animesh and the three of us ventured on a short exploration.

Isa Khan's tomb

River Rafting, Rishikesh

• Camping next to Ganges has been stopped by NGT now. Still there are camping options nearby.
•  It is better to book the entire package with camping like food, rafting etc.
• Rishikesh is not walking distance, it makes sense to cover the city on return leg.

It was the first long drive from my car. I was excited. Piyush and Animesh agreed to share the risk and hence we started on the weekend of the Christmas of 2008. Disaster struck within 2 hours of our departure. Thanks to low visibility, my car was hit by a Santro and all of us were down - the fun was supposedly gone.

Sad me with first dent in my car

We reached Rishikesh by 1 and realized that the damage was not much. That somehow lifted our spirit. We booked for a riverside camp and ate our lunch there. By 4 we were flowing on a raft in the Ganges. 

Camp next to Ganges @ Shivpuri

There were several rapids and most of them were able to push us flat on the floor of the raft however we tried to balance ourselves. That was hair-raising fun.

Rafting team

We came back by 7 and dried ourselves in our respective camps. A bonfire was prepared at the centre of the camp and delicious snacks were being served. That it was a cold December made the arrangement perfect. Later we had a tasty dinner far superior to our expectations. We slept hard as the day was exhausting.

Morning view of Ganges, Shivpuri

Next morning we woke up in the middle of hills and a river. We left the camp by 8 and reached the Rishikesh city for breakfast by 9 AM. it was planned at the famous Chotiwala. The servings were average. We tried Gita Bhavan for some sweets and became instant admirers of the place. 

Ram Jhula

Post some photo-shoots on Ram Jhula we started back for Delhi and were back to our respective homes by 5 in the evening.