Tripping in the mountains (part 1)

Namaste,

Just arrived back in Rishkesh after a epic 10 day adventure with a crew from the Ashram. Was a excellent trip that involved relaxing in hot springs, freezing glacier lake swimming, enjoying stunning mountain views, hiking to poppy villages, soaking up ashram vibes in a non-tourist chilled out town, climbing 4600m to a shangra-la paradise with ashrams and mystical wholy men and not to mention breath-stopping 360 deg views of peaks, glaciers and himalyan valleys.



First, it is damn hot and humid here in Rishikesh! The monsoon is fast approaching and the tourists have fled! Well the western ones anyway as this is full power Indian tourist season. Eg crossing the foot bridge over the ganga can take a very long time as u need to make your way through the crowds getting their photos taken on a bridge that is only 5 ft wide and also takes cows and motorcyles! Madness.. The ashram where we're staying was full last week but is now only a handful of us hardy souls staying there. Actually it's not so bad as usually storms every day now so cools things down nicely.

Can't believe how quickly my time in India is going! Anyway the trip...

Ashram life was going pretty well with regular evening star gazing and sessions on the roof known as 'Cesars Palace'. Cesar is a deambay playing night club tycoon from Spain who is semi-retired so is able to spend 6 months or so at a time in India...Nice one eh? Joining Cesar is Doralla the redhead events organiser from Holland, Avivit the chef from Israel, Tasha with magic hands (ie massage therapist) from the USA, Jan (Yan) the budding photographer from France who 'swapped' his french passport for a Colombian one and of course moir....Anyway we all decided that after 2 weeks it was time to leave the ashram life to escape the building heat and do some mountain tripping.

After a little deliberation the date was set and destination was agreed on. Sweet. We chartered our own jeep taxi to pick us up and take us to Uttakachi which is only 200ks but takes 6 hours! Chartering our own jeep was the bestest option as not only could we travel in relative comfort but included photo stops and chai stops at places in the middle of nowhere overlooking mountain valleys and rivers.


Uttakachi turned out to be a little gem of a place rather than the dusty hole that we had been told to expect. Actually its a little like a mini varanasi, is on the banks of the ganga and has ghats with pujas happening every nights and also has car free streets with. But unlike varanasi the throngs of western tourists were delightfully absent and so were the touts. It is also home to the impressive Nehru mountaineering institute that has a great museum and cafe that serves chicken! Hopefully without birdflu. Uttakashi also has the best lassi and sweet shops! Go the sugar fix! But don't touch the Indian imitation rum...blaaa...

We stayed there on the way up and on the way down. On the up we all stayed in the hotel amba in one room with 8 beds Indian dorm style. Way fun...Except for the 5am Indian wake up. All the tour buses stop there on the way to the pilgrim site of Gangtori and at 5am everyone gets up and starts yelling at each other (think Indians are slightly deaf from all the horn blowing traffic)and clearing their throats like...uuurrrrrgggggghhhhhh....huuuuccckkk...spit. Lucky thing i can't put sound on this site.

Being a holy city, Dorella was doing a little jig in public and promptly told by a old local wearing BIG glasses that she shouldn't dance and upon asking why she shouldn't dance she was told 'dancing leads to sex'..You have been warned people! Classic...That one ran for a long time and i think is still going...

Cesar and I also experienced an interesting situation in a local cafe. We were doing the digital camera gig - taking pictures of our fellow Indian patrons and showing them to the subjects. When we almost started a riot. An inquisitive family complete with super photogenic kids had come into the cafe when one of the boys got a little too excited and was reprimanded by the owner but mum wasn't too happy about this so she pushed a big pot sitting on the bench (that was luckily empty) sending it and a dozen cups crashing to the ground right in front of us. Shit...We were sitting between the two groups and our peaceful lunch was no more...It was getting very tense with verbal insults and shirts flying between the two groups. We both jumped up (actually Cesar first, maybe something to do with his years in nightclubs) and were able to cool the tensions a little so that no more flying missiles were launched. I've always felt uncomfortable prancing around with technology that would cost these people a years salary. Continued....

Tripping in the mountains (part 2)

....After Uttakashi it was back in a new chartered jeep (this one had air-cond ie canvas covered) and after some serious mountain scenery we arrived at Ganganani. What a great little place! It's no more than a collection of ramshackle guesthouses, restaurants and cafes all selling the same food but has great hot springs that run into pools that you can jump into, well slowly anyway as water must be about 40+ deg...The evenings were magic as the pools were deserted and we were could stargaze while cooking err soaking The mornings were a technicolour vision of saris and Indians taking a bath and getting puja...see pic. Unfortunately not only was this vision of serenity shattered by the usual traffic horn blowing but also by the twice daily (usually 6am and 7:30pm) earth shaking, heart stopping sub-sonic dynamiting of rock cliffs as part of the building of a new road across the river. Only in India of course.

Ganaganani is the first place that i've seen topless Indian women, not that i'm some sort of perv, honest. Generally indian women bath in pretty much fully dressed but u can imagine my surprise when i walked past the mens (there are separate male and female thermal pools) pool only to see naked indian breasts! My gawd am i still in India i thought...ahh India the land of contradictions as for a western women to do that would cause a riot.

Around Ganaganani, there were some great photogenic villages to hike to surrounded by dope and poppy fields. Makes for great pics. Not too mention heaps of crazy monkey village kids running around asking for 'photo sir'.

After a couple of days of relaxing in the pools and opium fields, it was time for the gang to move up the mountain to Gangortri - which is revered hindu holy place at alt 3000m high on the banks of the mother ganga with a great temple and hords of indian pilgrims and associated tourist stuff. Actually when i say the gang it was now down to 4, Cesar opted for an extended stay in Gangannni and Jan had already gone solo to Gangortri ..



For the next part of the trip we opted for the local bus, always guarranteed to be interesting. Apart from a couple of minor breakdowns we also got to witness the extreme driving skills of the driver as he was able maneuver the bus inches from the edge of the road that dropped off a couple of hundred meteres to the roaring ganga below whenever we had to pass another oncoming vehicle which was every 2 mins! Adrenaline pumping stuff. I was happy not to have the window seat on this trip even though the scenery was nothing short of spectacular with towering cliffs, deep gorges and impressive waterfalls. We were now getting really high...

Gangortri is a magical place surrounded by mountain peaks and pine forests and as mentioned is a important pilgrimage site so was 'buzzing' with Indian tourists and a handful of foreigners. While visiting the temple during puja we were invited in to sit with the singing and drumming priests during the evening puja which was magic. We also adopted a new group member, Samuel a Swiss cyclist who had cycled from Switzerland to India via turkey, Iran, Pakistan etc..very impresive and insipiring. This guy cyled up to a 3000m and then the next day came walking with us!

From Gangortri our new crew began our trek up to Gamukh where the ganga flows out of the glacier. Unfortunately Avvivit picked up a dodgy stomach thing so she opted out. The trek was quite easy as follows a well used path along the ganga and is dotted with chai and parntha (kinda fried bread with veges and spices - yum) stalls. The views of the surrounding peaks and valleys were stunning and just kept getting better as we got higher. The path was quite busy with pilgrims mainly on ponies and the odd dandy, which is a wooden platform carried by 4 porters and used to carry affluent Indians. Personally i wouldn't be seen dead on one and it was a most bizarre thing to see these platforms coming along with some large Indian sitting on the top like royalty!

We spent a acclimatization stop in Bhjopasa (alt 3900m) 6 hours walking from the start, which is the only time we used the bulky (read heavy) tent we rented from Uttakashi. I realize now we should have spent a little more time acclimitising as i had trouble sleeping due to the altitude here and further up. From Bhjopasa it was only a hour to the impressive Gamukh Glacier where the ganga begins its journey. Unfortunately Doralla wasn't feeling up to the walk over the Glacier and hike up to Tapovan so she went back solo to Gangotri. The rest of us were up for it although i went off the first being a bit over the slow group pace and Samuel and Tasha hooked up with some Israelis also coming up.




The path over the glacier was relatively straight forward and i'd be given rough directions by a fellow hiker who had been up before. We meet a lot of guides on the way up telling us how dangerous it was to go without a guide but obviously they had a slightly vested interest! Not saying glaciers are not dangerous. Besides the path was all on stable (well relatively) rock and not ice.




After the glacier it was a 500m tough climb straight up beside a waterfall to the plateu and then.....paradise...a true shang-ra-la. I was a unforgettable sight up the top, moutain streams, cave man looking ashrams, rolling meadows, huge boulders, glaciers all surronded by huge peaks including the 6500m Shivlinga peak that looks like a ice-cream cone..it was a place like no where i'd ever been before..very prehistoric and surreal..hard to describe in words..just go!


The name Tapovan comes from 'Tappas' which basically means to spend months/years in meditation/contemplation. We all ended up staying in the Shimla Baba Ashram. Shimla Baba's guru and built the ashram after spending some 35 years living up there. It was totally unforgettable with 14 of us at one stage enjoying the Shimla Baba's hospitatily and great cooking! Nights were really cold so we didn't mind all sitting in the Baba's kitchen/dining room enjoying the fire and of course chillim (pot). I even meet a Damon Baba - was really his name..See pic. This guy was a classic and all that he mainly carried was 2kg of pot (chakras) for 5 days!...


We (there was 14 of us at one stage including a nice group of Israelis) ended up spending two nights up there and it was truly a magic experience. By day we explored the many lakes and streams and check out views of the Gamukh Glacier that goes for some 30ks. One lake we hiked up to was this blue glacier fed lake. Being a warmish sunny day we all decided to go for a swim! Not surprisingly it was freezing but worth it.. To top it off Uvan, who'd i'd meet in Sikkim, bought up his stove and made chai and arabic coffee...as a non-coffee drinker it tasted pretty damn good.

I was getting pretty exhausted after two days of not so great sleeping so was both relieved and sad to head back down..ohh forget to mention the travelers cheque. I had been trying to change a travelers cheque since Uttakashi without much luck when i happened to mention this to Shimala Baba who asked me the how much it was worth and too my amazement said 'sure i can change it!'..Unbelievable..Changing travelers cheques on a plateau at 4600m! Only in India! There is a saying in Hindi over here 'Sub Keuch Melga' - anything is possible, is such a great attitude to life..So back down i went and made it to Gangananni that day - and gawd those hot thermal pools were so good and sleep plentiful even with explosions and traffic.. Also meet up with Doralla, Cesar and Avvivit which was a great bonus...

I spent some more time in Uttakashi on the way back and found this laid back Ashram with sunflower gardens on the banks of the Ganga. It was hard to leave but think i will def go back to Uttakashi and Tapovan some day...

Yeap so now in humid and rainy rishikesh and getting my western fix - internet and great food..Tomorrow am off on yet another 5 day hiking trip, in the mountains north of here to the Kurati pass. We're camping out for the first 3 nights and then staying in villages along the way. Should be magic, well maybe not the 10 hour bus ride...Feels like i've packed several trips into one! I've extended my ticket yet again..Now flying to Greece on the 20th of June so will get a good taste of monsoon!

Challow (sort of means I/we go)
Nb would have liked to add more pics but am on a really slooooowwww connection

Life in a Ashram...

Greetings from the Phool Chatti Ashram. Have been in the ashram for almost a week now and am feeling absolutely content staying there with no desire to leave. Which is nice after being on the move for several weeks. There is even a communal bike that i can use to make the 6k trip into town to indulge in internet sessions and treats such as ice-cream!




My day begins with a meditation and yoga session in a garden overlooking the river. Then its a quick dip before breaky. All meals are communal with porridge and bannas for breakky and Thali dishes for lunch and dinner. There is a nightly puja ceremony which is where we all come together for tabla and drum playing in the court yard. Everyone gets involved with tangerine's and chanting. As I'm writing this i realise its prob sounding like i've joined a cult...yes well have renounced all worldly possessions and this will be my last email...only joshing. It costs all of $6 a day including meals...Incredible value for paradise.

There is a quite a few of us staying at the ashram now. It's not strictly a 'true' ashram as operates as a bit of a guest house with mainly foreigners staying there on yoga retreats. At the moment there is over 50 staying there including a group of very serious ashtanga yoga practicing Russians direct from Moscow. The first day they arrived it felt like the KGB were moving in..all very serious and being the friendly Aussie i asked the the guy sittting next to me if he spoke English and the reply was 'Yes. What do you want?'..to which i replied with urr umm 'how are you finding India?'. Classic.

Not really else much to report on..Not sure how much longer i will stay in the Ashram. Am due to fly out to Greece on the 15th from Delhi. May look at doing some hiking in the Himalaya mountains north of here but as mentioned really don't feel in much of a hurry to leave the ashram even though it is getting incredibly hot during the day - 40+ deg but it always cools down during the nights and the mornings are magic..

Back again to finish this post off. Still at the Ashram although a few of us are feeling a bit restless and are looking at going north to the mountains to the mouth of the Ganges at a place called Gangtori. Will be very nice to escape the heat and it has just started to get really humid. Though will miss the nights on the ashram roof chatting and hanging out with friends.

Hired a motorbike the other day with a friend and went cruising around the mountains. Was great and found some great spots in the mountains. The roads were pretty challenging with pot holes, rocks etc to dodge as well as the crazy Indian drivers. The give way order in India is 1) cows, 2) trucks 3) Buses 4) Motorbikes 5) cycles 6) pedestrians!

That's about it for now. Gotta get back on the bike and be home in time for lunch...
Have attached some pics of the ashram and surrounds.

Ciao,
D.