Rupin Pass Trek … An Unforgettable Himalayan Adventure
Rupin ka thappad!
In my quest to turn this blog
from a purely food blog to a food and travel blog, this one is the first in my
series of travel and food adventures. And nothing better than dedicating it to
the Himalayas.
Believe it or not, the Himalayas have a
mysterious magnetic power that has been drawing people towards them for years.
These mighty snow clad mountains never fail to mesmerize you and offer you a
new experience every time you visit them. Needless to say I’m one of those who
have and will always be in love with the Himalayas and their beauty.
The Rupin Pass trek was another reason that
gave me an opportunity to challenge and rediscover myself in the lap of these
mystical mountains. Rupin pass is a high mountain pass in the Dhauladhar
mountain ranges in Himachal Pradesh, situated at 15400 Ft above the sea level
and offers unparalleled views of the Kinnaur Kailash Peak. The most challenging
thing about this trek is that it is a cross over trek that starts from Dhaula
in Uttarakhand and ends at Sangla in Himachal Pradesh, and after a point in the
course of the trek, you cannot turn back, even in case of an emergency. This is
because of the trek route which follows a path that is quite uneven and steep
and finishing the trek is the only choice you are left with!
Our high altitude trek team comprised of 20
hikers along with two trek leads and support staff for cooking and as decided
all of us, the anxious trekkers, met at the Dehradun railway station at 6:30am.
After 4 hours of waiting, we finally left for our first
basecamp at Dhaula, a very quaint village nestled at about 8000 ft. amidst tall
deodars. It took us about 8 hours to reach there and by then most of us had got
acquainted with each other. We got our first glimpse of the Rupin and Supin
rivers. For the rest of the 9 days, we were going to trek along the Rupin
river. We were formally given a briefing by our trek lead Suman about the trek
and a strict trek schedule that was supposed to followed. We had a simple meal
of roti-rajma and a special local dessert called Ghutya. That night as we retired to our sleeping bags in the homestay ,
all of us had the anxiety and the excitement of the very first trekking day
that lay ahead, while the rupin river made a gushing sound down the 100feet
valley that lay right next to us.
The first day was from Dhaula to Sewa
village which was about 5.5hours trek for about 8kms. Also the trek is so scenic that you feel like you are actually living in
a YashRaj Films movie!! The challenging part of this trek is that the trek gets
tougher by the day.
For
the next 5 days we kept climbing higher and higher, each day soaking in amazing
views of the snow clad peaks, the cute little Himachal kids, the mountain
goats, the little villages, the vast expanses of rhododendrons, the forests,
birds, valleys and walking on really narrow paths with a valleys going down
hundreds of feet below!
From Sewa, we walked to Bawta to Udhaknal
to lower Waterfall or Dhanteras Thatch to Upper Waterfall. From there on we crossed many snow
patches and slid from a few too! Must admit sliding on snow is much more fun
than I ever thought. On the night before the D-Day the sky was so clear that
the Milky Way looked brilliant and the shooting stars were even more amazing to
see. On the day of traversing the pass we got up as early as 3.30am and started
our trek to the final frontier even before the first rays of the sun came up.
This was the toughest climb I’ve ever done. The complete climb was completely
on snow and was almost at a 70° steep. By 8.30 we all had climbed the pass. The Kinnaur Kailash
mountain ranges looked like a stone’s throw away and all we could see around us
was the blinding whiteness of the snow. It took us another three hours trudging on soft snow (the
sun was up and the snow had started melting) to reach our final camp of Ronti
Gad. The next day, after out certificate distribution ceremony, we trekked to Sangla finally got
in touch with civilisation after a week without mobile, facebook and no contact
with family. From here we all hired cabs and drove to Shimla from where, we said our goodbyes and everyone went back to their respective
cities.
The fond memories of this trek will always
be etched in my mind because it taught me that life isn’t just about waking up,
going to work, coming back and getting tensed thinking about the next day… life
is about rediscovering yourself- through nature, through meeting people and
forming a bond, through challenging yourself to test your limits, to walking
towards the unknown and experiencing the Himalayas.
One fond memory was the food we had. Simple, nutritious and tasty, it was something we would look forward to after each day's trek. Here I want to end this blog by something sweet and spicy both.
Bhaang Ki Chutney
Rupin ka thappad!
In my quest to turn this blog from a purely food blog to a food and travel blog, this one is the first in my series of travel and food adventures. And nothing better than dedicating it to the Himalayas.
Believe it or not, the Himalayas have a
mysterious magnetic power that has been drawing people towards them for years.
These mighty snow clad mountains never fail to mesmerize you and offer you a
new experience every time you visit them. Needless to say I’m one of those who
have and will always be in love with the Himalayas and their beauty.
The Rupin Pass trek was another reason that
gave me an opportunity to challenge and rediscover myself in the lap of these
mystical mountains. Rupin pass is a high mountain pass in the Dhauladhar
mountain ranges in Himachal Pradesh, situated at 15400 Ft above the sea level
and offers unparalleled views of the Kinnaur Kailash Peak. The most challenging
thing about this trek is that it is a cross over trek that starts from Dhaula
in Uttarakhand and ends at Sangla in Himachal Pradesh, and after a point in the
course of the trek, you cannot turn back, even in case of an emergency. This is
because of the trek route which follows a path that is quite uneven and steep
and finishing the trek is the only choice you are left with!
Our high altitude trek team comprised of 20
hikers along with two trek leads and support staff for cooking and as decided
all of us, the anxious trekkers, met at the Dehradun railway station at 6:30am.
After 4 hours of waiting, we finally left for our first
basecamp at Dhaula, a very quaint village nestled at about 8000 ft. amidst tall
deodars. It took us about 8 hours to reach there and by then most of us had got
acquainted with each other. We got our first glimpse of the Rupin and Supin
rivers. For the rest of the 9 days, we were going to trek along the Rupin
river. We were formally given a briefing by our trek lead Suman about the trek
and a strict trek schedule that was supposed to followed. We had a simple meal
of roti-rajma and a special local dessert called Ghutya. That night as we retired to our sleeping bags in the homestay ,
all of us had the anxiety and the excitement of the very first trekking day
that lay ahead, while the rupin river made a gushing sound down the 100feet
valley that lay right next to us.
The first day was from Dhaula to Sewa
village which was about 5.5hours trek for about 8kms. Also the trek is so scenic that you feel like you are actually living in
a YashRaj Films movie!! The challenging part of this trek is that the trek gets
tougher by the day.
For
the next 5 days we kept climbing higher and higher, each day soaking in amazing
views of the snow clad peaks, the cute little Himachal kids, the mountain
goats, the little villages, the vast expanses of rhododendrons, the forests,
birds, valleys and walking on really narrow paths with a valleys going down
hundreds of feet below!
From Sewa, we walked to Bawta to Udhaknal
to lower Waterfall or Dhanteras Thatch to Upper Waterfall. From there on we crossed many snow
patches and slid from a few too! Must admit sliding on snow is much more fun
than I ever thought. On the night before the D-Day the sky was so clear that
the Milky Way looked brilliant and the shooting stars were even more amazing to
see. On the day of traversing the pass we got up as early as 3.30am and started
our trek to the final frontier even before the first rays of the sun came up.
This was the toughest climb I’ve ever done. The complete climb was completely
on snow and was almost at a 70° steep. By 8.30 we all had climbed the pass. The Kinnaur Kailash
mountain ranges looked like a stone’s throw away and all we could see around us
was the blinding whiteness of the snow. It took us another three hours trudging on soft snow (the
sun was up and the snow had started melting) to reach our final camp of Ronti
Gad. The next day, after out certificate distribution ceremony, we trekked to Sangla finally got
in touch with civilisation after a week without mobile, facebook and no contact
with family. From here we all hired cabs and drove to Shimla from where, we said our goodbyes and everyone went back to their respective
cities.
The fond memories of this trek will always
be etched in my mind because it taught me that life isn’t just about waking up,
going to work, coming back and getting tensed thinking about the next day… life
is about rediscovering yourself- through nature, through meeting people and
forming a bond, through challenging yourself to test your limits, to walking
towards the unknown and experiencing the Himalayas.
One fond memory was the food we had. Simple, nutritious and tasty, it was something we would look forward to after each day's trek. Here I want to end this blog by something sweet and spicy both.
Bhaang Ki Chutney
One fond memory was the food we had. Simple, nutritious and tasty, it was something we would look forward to after each day's trek. Here I want to end this blog by something sweet and spicy both.
Bhaang Ki Chutney
Do not get alarmed by the name of the dish as this will not get you intoxicated. This recipe is unique to Uttarakhand and food-lovers just can’t stop savouring this tangy chutney.
Bhaang (hemp seeds) - 1/2 cup
Lemon (pahadi nimbu) - juice of 3 small sized lemons
Red Chilli dried red - 2-3 nos
Salt - to taste
Roast the bhaang seeds in a kadhai.
Cool the seeds and add the lemon juice, dried red chillies, and salt to it.
Grind all the ingredients to a fine paste.
Adjust seasoning if required.
This chutney can be eaten with paranthas or can be served as a part of the main course.
Bhaang (hemp seeds) - 1/2 cup
Lemon (pahadi nimbu) - juice of 3 small sized lemons
Red Chilli dried red - 2-3 nos
Salt - to taste
Roast the bhaang seeds in a kadhai.
Cool the seeds and add the lemon juice, dried red chillies, and salt to it.
Grind all the ingredients to a fine paste.
Adjust seasoning if required.
This chutney can be eaten with paranthas or can be served as a part of the main course.
Lemon (pahadi nimbu) - juice of 3 small sized lemons
Red Chilli dried red - 2-3 nos
Salt - to taste
Roast the bhaang seeds in a kadhai.
Cool the seeds and add the lemon juice, dried red chillies, and salt to it.
Grind all the ingredients to a fine paste.
Adjust seasoning if required.
This chutney can be eaten with paranthas or can be served as a part of the main course.
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