My First Ever Winter Trekking & Camping Experience In India

By Author: Shewta
Total Articles: 21
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I am an avid traveller and fortunately get enough leaves from work to take 2 vacations a year. I wanted to end my 2019 well and be able to tell a story walking into 2020. I live in humid Mumbai so I usually take one vacation to a place to experience the winters. I had the chance to experience snow in Switzerland in 2018 but I never had the chance to experience it in India. I expressed this wish of mine to my husband and he suggested that we should go on the Kedarkantha trek.

This was our first ever winter trek and we were ready to make it as the best end of the decade. At a height of 12,500 ft, we witnessed breath-taking views of a range of 13 other mountain peaks from the best Himalayan trek mountain range. We explored the web to find the cost of an effective package which was light on our pockets. Once we narrowed down on that we were briefed by the travel company that the trek was a moderately easy one but we should be physically fit so as to not cause any health problems for ourselves.

Trekking gear and tents were provided by them, but apart from that, we were briefed to come prepared with winter clothes ...
... and a backpack. The trek captain was expected to meet us at the base camp village, Sankri. We started our 5-day trek with a flight from Mumbai to Dehradun. A local car was arranged for our trip from Dehradun Airport to Sankri, which was a 7 hour journey. As we got closer to the mountains, I couldn’t wait to start the trek. We stayed overnight at a hotel in Sankri which was comfortable and we were all staying for the journey ahead.

The next day we began our trek with a quick briefing from our trek captain. We got introduced to other fellow trekkers who had also decided to enjoy the Kedarkantha trek and start their new year with beautiful scenic views. The briefing included some basic dos and don'ts of the trek. Within 4 hours we reached Juda-ka-Talab. The lake is known to have ice on one side and water on the other. The experience was thrilling, I was excited and scared in a good way to step on the frozen ice. We camped by the lake, after which I proceeded to make a snowman which I think I did a pretty decent job off and of course my husband and I took a number of pictures.

We were up at 4 am the next day to begin our trek to the base camp. This was my first experience trekking in Uttarakhand and halfway through I could safely say I was loving it. In a couple of hours, we made it to the base camp and the view was majestic. My husband and I just stood there taking it all in and making sure we didn’t miss even a single detail. With a bit of excitement and a bit of energy, we were all set to begin the early morning trek at 4 am again today. It’s a different world at the top of the mountain, it gives you a sense of time standing still.

To experience the first ray of sunlight across the mountains on the second day in a row brought a rare and spectacular view. We had finally reached the Kedarkantha peak summit. Standing up there with my husband starting the new year was an amazing experience and by far the best vacation we had taken. I felt like I was at the top of the world. We felt alive and happy, we were at peace. We enjoyed our limited time at the mountain peak and began our descent back.

It was a natural adventure ride through dense forests of pine, maple and rhododendrons with patches of lush meadows en route. Our first experience trekking in Uttarakhand was one we would never forget. As we trekked back to the start point I was sad that the trek was ending but I appreciated the time I spent there. As I was experiencing snow for the first time in India I realised that we didn’t need to travel abroad to witness beautiful sceneries. We had our own little Switzerland right here.

Shewta and her husband decided to end 2019 and the decade with a snowy Kedarkantha trek. This is their story of a romantic adventure with trekking in Uttarakhand.