This post is part of Roopkund Trek - An unforgettable adventure!. The previous article in the series is Day 7: An attempt to reach Roopkund and down to Bedni Bugyal.
And, our prayers finally seem to be answered. We got up to realize that the rains had finally stopped after three days and the skies were clear. Not wanting to lose any time, we had a quick breakfast and began our descent to Wan. As mentioned earlier, our base camp, Lohajung was a 1-hour drive from Wan.
Having trekked in the rain for two consecutive days, the descent now felt pretty pleasant. The clear views of the mountains were a treat to the eyes compared to the fog that covered them during the past couple of days. We reached Wan after a few hours, where vehicles were readily waiting to take us to our base camp, Lohajung.
Upon reaching Lohajung, we got into our rooms and settled down. I realized that this was actually the first time after 7 days that I stepped into a concrete building.
Post dinner, we returned some of the things that Indiahikes had provided us and then had a quick debrief. All the trekkers shared their individual experiences and what their takeaways were from the trek. Our trek lead, Shivam, too shared his experiences. Among the many points he shared, three of them have definitely stuck in my mind.
The first thing he told us is that although none of us made it to Roopkund, the weather conditions under which we trekked was much more difficult compared to the ascent to Roopkund under normal weather conditions. He went on to say that the unexpected harsh weather was what made the trek so much more interesting and that the next time when we'd do a trek which is predictable, this element of adventure will be missed.
The second thing he told us is what another trek lead told us at Bhagwabhasa. Doing a trek with IndiaHikes is pretty comfortable but for a truly enriching experience, one must do a solo-trek. A solo-trek helps a person see life differently. When he said this, I sure decided to do a solo-trip, at least if not solo, maybe with a couple of friends and a personal guide.
And finally, he told us that for him, these treks were mainly about human connections. The greenery, the waterfalls and the mountains all become routine once you being to live in them but it is for the new connections that he finds his job as a trek lead so exciting!
That was indeed some good takeaways, something which I'll definitely remember. For me, the fact that we faced adverse conditions and were able to embrace and overcome it successfully defined the true human spirit!
Finally, as a memento, we were given a certificate and had the option of buying a shirt mentiong that we had been on the Roopkund high altitude trek.
Go on to the next article in the series: Day 9: Driving back to Kathgodam and heading for home.
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