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Day 1 – My knees were a bit shattered after I walked up nearly 5kms to Auli on my rest day as part of acclimatization. Thankfully the first day’s walk lasted only about an hour till we reached Ruing village. Population of about 50-75, I was enamoured by the sudden calm of the place. I played with a new born calf and chatted up with a middle-aged man there. They were all landowners (a man gets tied up to his land ...) and were employed in the hydel project below or had family members working as trekking guides in Joshimath. We opened our bags set up shop in the panchayat house. I was puzzled to learn that an abandoned building there was actually a medical centre and the guy who was playing cricket there was a local physician doing research on local herbs and medicinal plants.He was a paid government employee on duty. The ways of the mammary welfare state are indeed mysterious. I walked about a bit, thought profound things, ate a heavy meal and went to sleep. Woke in the dead of the night sweating like a pig and threw up my dinner. I was more irritated than worried because now my trek would become difficult as I was considerably weakened.

Day 2 - Decided to rest an extra day at Ruing to gather my strength.

Day 3- The world was at my feet again and off we went to Dronagiri village. The route was steep and green in the middle of thick forests (I always miss the trees for the wood), butterflies, waterfalls and landslides. Standard fare for a seasoned trekker but thankful of the fact. Reached the village after 4-5 hrs of climbing. Dronagiri is a beautiful village hundred’s of years old with a population of about 100. The teenaged kids here were very smartly dressed in jeans and t-shirt and designer shoes. This was clearly the influence of television and plains. The villages here migrate to near Chamoli during winter and all the distractions of the plains are picked up from there. There is no electricity/telephone from Dronagiri.The route to Nandi kund and Canary pass is visible from Dronagiri. See photos.

Day 4- I didn’t sleep that night probably because of the altitude and by morning I was feeling a bit dazed. This day the route to Bagini glacier was to be the longest and I didn’t feel really well when I started off at 9 in the morning. The route climbs over the pass to the left and comes steeply down to the river over which is a concrete bridge. The fury of the river was breathtaking and I spent many spell bound minutes by its bank. The vegetation quickly turned from meadows to boulder ridden rocky terrain. It started to rain by late morning and never let up the entire day. We had to cross the river by jumping over it and since it was getting to late afternoon the current was strong. I am chicken hearted when it comes to skipping over slippery stones, so at my request we undid our shoes and waded into the water. The sensation of near freezing water on your warm and dry feet is pleasurably painful. The pain comes once you leave the water and your feet stings for a few minutes. All the adrenaline rush drained me off whatever energy I had left and from there on it was a slow plod till I reached the camp site at 5 pm, a total walk time of 8 hrs.

What was most beautiful was the passage of mist from down below over you and beyond. It was a continuous cycle that would reveal peaks on either one direction. My raincoat came in handy as a kitchen tent, as it continued to pour well into the night.

Day 5- Still alive. The sky had cleared near Rishi Pahar and my guide said now was the only time to take pics. I still had to walk up a couple of kilometers to the glacial lake called Rishi Kund before Changbang, Kalhanka came into view. It was a slow and painful trudge right in the morning after a difficult day. I made it though and my guide said I was the first guy in his group who could come make it this far. I am sure the trek isn’t all that difficult, just that the altitude can play havoc with your body.

Just 2 years previously 2 Mexican climbers had perished climbing Changbang and my mind boggled at what they had tried to achieve. The immense massif of Changbang looked so remote and the peak unattainable.

Day 6- Rest day at Bagini glacier, went down to where the river vanished underneath the glacier, it emerges some 2 kms down. My 2 Chinese alkaline cells had run out and I couldn’t get many pictures this day. Strange, how a day passes by in the mountains with any sense of boredom.