AN UNCOMMON ENCOUNTER... ----------------------------------------------- This anecdote takes me back to 1992, when I was in command. 15 Mech was a friendly, competitive Unit and co-posted with my Unit. We two COs were good friends and chose to go on a hike with about 10 officers and 50 other ranks in the Himalyan region. We planned a ten day trek of around 200 kilometres with everyone CO downwards on back pack, carrying all we needed for sustenance. The general area was Narkanda-Baghi-Sungri (Baghi has the best apples in India, equal to Kashmiri ones; even better)-Rohru-Sutlej River-Basleo Pass- across from Shimla to Kulu District- Back to Shimla District through another Pass-Rampur Bushair-Sarahan-Back to Kufri-Patiala. Trekking up to the 10,000 feet high Basleo Pass was a great experience. The last patch was a Ceder lined steep slope with total forest cover because the Ceders (Dyaar) grew tall, straight for over a 100 feet and were tightly packed, making it a proper forest. We were walking on humous that was several inches deep; felt like a plush carpet. There was alertness, though, because this was Black Bear territory and they can be aggressive and nasty, can be carnivores if pushed and Mother Bears attack without provocation. In that dense, thick, silent forest where no sun could pierce and we were climbing steadily, I was surprised to see a lone trekker coming over from the Kulu side. He was a young, handsome Brit, trekking fearlessly and traveling lightly, as I found out. All he had besides the usual sleeping bag, was a Bowie Knife, three books of poetry, his sleeping bag and basic jean-tee outlook and some tinned foodstuff. We spoke of London, of Edward Marlowe, Tennyson, Keats and Yeats...I think we spoke of Robert Burns too and Dickens tantalising breakfast at wayside inns and his coach journey descriptions...He was fascinated with India and we with his amazing sabbatical taking a year off from University study all by himself. Bears?! No, he laughed, seen them from far, planned which tree to climb if attacked but Ive been lucky...You leave them alone and they dont bother you he said as he waved bye, on his way down to the great, tormented Sutlej River and the famous Rampur Bushair Mela along the Sutlej which is so famous... We went on, reaching a small, lantern illuminated rest house at Sarahan, that was out of the world...The men camped around, and we got into the wooden rest house, surrounded by a small valley crowded in by steep, thickly forest clad hills with an ancient Deodar (Cedar) temple at one edge ...That campfire with no soul, light or any urban or rural distraction in sight other than us and the silent, star lit steep mountains rising above our heads, took us back to primeval India of millions of years ago with just the stars, forests, shuffling bears at some distance looking for moss under huge river stones and gurgling water around us and yes, an oil lamp of the care taker...The valley is at about 8000 feet and is really remote, with the climb up being back-breaking... Great experience. -------------------------------- No effort at humour here...Just sharing experiences in the Shimla Hills
Posted on: Thu, 26 Jun 2014 04:39:34 +0000
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