Mayali Pass

 

 

“I go for a Himalayan trek and return as a very different person - always”

 

 

I am back again with a story of new adventure in the Himalayas. Sandeep and I had been discussing about which trek to do this year since rains had caused quite some destruction in many parts of Himachal and Uttarakhand. We had been wanting to do the “Auden’s Col” for a long time, but finally we zeroed down on its younger sister, “Mayali pass”.  We decided to do it at the right time of the season which is the month of September.  Many of our regular trekking partners backed out  due to their personal commitments. I knew Brijesh and Sudhi will definitely join us. One fine Sunday when we visited Mohan after long time and I casually asked him if he could join the trek with us. It came as an extremely pleasant surprise when he said, he would be joining us.

 

 

 

 

Ghuttu a small village on the Bhilangana is the start point of the trek. We decided to stay a night at Rishikesh before commencing our journey to Ghuttu by road. Bangalore to Dheradun was a long flight, but not eventless. The scary turbulence along the way kept me awake throughout the flight. We met Brijesh at Dehradun airport who was joining us from Surat.  

We had a nice evening stroll in Rishikesh along the Ganga ghat at Ram Jhula and had our dinner at Chotiwala ( the other one  ).

In the evening when Brijesh was checking the distance from Rishikesh to Ghuttu, Google  flashed a “heavy to very heavy rain fall” warning around that area. I was little worried but I knew we would be  taking all the precautions before heading for the trek. Frankly, unseasonal rain and snow was the only thing I was really worried about. ( Along with how were we to cross the Bhilangana, but more on that later )

Rishikesh to Ghuttu was a nice drive. The roads were in good condition, possibly because of one of the G20 summits around this area. After Tehri, the drive is along the Bhilangana river and I knew we would be crossing the river during one of our trekking days. I kept praying that the crossing would be easy with a bridge available.

We reached Ghuttu at 1 PM and it is just another of those quaint Uttarakhand villages. We met Gyan bhai and our support staff in Ghuttu.  They had travelled all the way from Uttarkashi. Gyan bhai had made arrangement for the night stay at  a “marriage hall” in Ghuttu, which I should say was quite comfortable.

The evening was spent walking around upper Ghuttu in an area called Chakragaon.  The weather was holding up till now, but in the evening there were rain clouds in the skies, which was a concern.

 

 

 

 

In the evening, Gyan suggested that we should take a vehicle till Gangi ( around 18 kms from Ghuttu ), instead of walking it.  We were looking forward trekking to Reeh and Gangi but given the weather conditions, we liked what our guide had suggested and thought we could use the day that we saved, for any contingency.

 

The long walks in the muddy and murky forest

It was a couple of hours of drive till Gangi. Our trek started from Gangi. Today’s destination was Kalyani at 2642 mts. We started from the village of Gangi and initially it kept on descending, 

which was surprising. We were thinking the climb to the campsite would be tough in latter part of the hike.

 

 

The entire trail was muddy and slushy as it climbed up and down in the  forest of rhododendrons and oak. Halfway, we saw a giant squirrel foraging in the trees. Brijesh also collected a lot a spines from a porcupine which were lying on the forest floor. There is also a trail to Sahastra Taal which connects to Uttarkashi from Kalyani.  

 

We saw some temporary shepherd huts along the way, but there is no other civilization after Gangi. We setup camp at Kalyani for the day. 

 

 

Kalyani to Kharsoli is again a long walk through the forest with some elevation gain. The trail in the oak, rhododendron and some pine forest continued to be very slushy because of the recent rains.  The muddy trail reminded me of my Malnad Ultra run in 2019 and the lush green mountains were reminding of the western ghats. Despite this, the walk was very enjoyable with lots of wild flowers on the trail. 

 

 

We were on the true right of the Bhilangana all the while as the trail climbed up. The vegetation was almost similar as yesterday, but we were seeing more pine trees now. We were still below the tree line. 

As we neared the campsite, it started drizzling. By the times the tents were setup, it turned to a downpour, but we were well ensconced in the tents. The great part of these treks is that one has a lot of time in the day. Almost all the days, we spent the afternoons and late evenings, settling down in the bigger tent, playing cards mostly, but also chit chatting, gossiping and generally having a gala time doing absolutely nothing.

 

 

 

Short climbs, mountain views and crossing the Bhilangana

Most of the trekking groups would go to Chowki directly from Kharsoli. This is perfectly ok as the distance is very much doable in a day. However there is a catch. In order to reach Chowki, we needed to cross the Bhilangana river. Sometimes the resident shepherds construct a temporary bridge but due rain these kind of bridges are mostly washed away. In the absence of the bridge, one needs to trek till the snout of the Khatling glacier (called Zero point ) and cross the river there where the span of the river would allow for a crossing. To check if the bridge was available or not, someone would have to go all the way and check

 Our guide suggested we stay at Tambakund between the Chowki and Kharsoli and cross the river the next day, either over the bridge or from Zero point.  If we get the bridge, it would mean a very short hike till Chowki. We were ok with this plan. 

 

As we started from Kharsoli, we had to descend down and the initial couple of kilometres were along the river bank. After that we climbed a ridge which was totally broken and then entered into other beautiful oak forest. After crossing multiple small streams, the final climb to the campsite was little tough but I didn’t mind getting my heart rate little pumped up.  This was the first real climb on the trek in the last few days.  

 

 

Tambakund which is at around 3400 mts and above the treek line. It is a very small camping ground along the trail and I think only three to four tents can be pitched here. As we settled down, there was a lot of sunshine, but as always in the evening, fog and mist blanketed the entire campsite in a few hours. This was the campsite where we started to get some cold weather accompanied by slight wind as well. It rained a lot during the night, but by morning the weather had cleared up. As we got up, we could glimpse amazing snow peaks to the north near the Zero point.

I have read a lot about the beautiful campsite of Chowki and I was excited to get there, but between me and Chowki was the  Bhilangana river. When we started for Chowki, I kept on thinking about the bridge and was hoping that we would get a bridge. I am not very fond of river crossings after my experience on the Dhumdar Kandi trek where I had a fall in icy waters while crossing the river. But still I was mentally prepared either to climb till the glacier snout or even for the wading into the ice cold waters for crossing the river.

From Tambakund, we were climbing gradually on a well-marked trail. The pattern was climb up the ridge, for crossing the smaller stream climb down, cross the stream and climb up the ridge again. We could see the snow capped peaks in the front. I was sure this was the Thalaysagar range and beyond it was Kedartal, but there were other peaks which I could not guess. Coming back home and checking the maps, I think I did see Bhartekunta and Kirti Stambh. The Kedarnath peak was still not visible from here. 

After a while we reached a point where couple of the staff members descended well to the river bed to check whether the bridge was available or not. After few minutes we got the signal that there was indeed a functional bridge. The descent to the river bed was slightly treacherous , but we negotiated it with the help of our guide. We all went till the river bed to cross the bridge.

 

 The bridge on the river Bhilangana below was nothing but two makeshift logs and some wooden stumps strewn across. It was swaying perilously over the roaring stream below.  Gyan bhai decided to take precaution and few members decided to hold ropes and we used rope harnesses to cross over. All of us were able to cross over without any incidences. This was indeed a highlight of the trek for me.

From the river bed, it was a steep but a short climb to the campsite. We left the Bhilangana river and followed the trail. It was steady climb amongst really lovely wild flowers and some  plants having leaves like tea leaves. I felt I was walking in a tea garden, although these were very small bushes.

 

 

We reached Chowki which at around 3600 mts relatively early in the day. Chowki is a flat ground and very beautiful campsite with many flowers in the surroundings. Although, it was really very windy compared to the earlier days. All of us were relaxed and enjoying the day which almost felt like a rest day. All of us went strolling around the campsite. There was a small pond just across and spent some time there. Our staff members too found jadi bootis (herbs) like  “Atish” and “Chouri” which they collected from around the camp. 

 

 

We could see the Khatling galecier which needs to negotiated during the Auden’s col trek towards the North West and right in the North was the massif of Mt. Thalaysagar.

 

 

As usual after a while the whole sky was overcast as the mist and fog came up the valley. It had also started getting very windy and cold. We huddled in one of the tents and whiled away the time doing the most important things folks should do on a trek – “nothing”.

 

 

Grasslands and boulders enroute Masar Tal

 

Chowki to Masar Tal is a climb of around 800 mts climb and we knew that today’s day was going to be relatively tougher. The initial walk was along the ridges and crossing multiple streams. We were gaining altitude slowly. Our guide made us a climb one such ridge to get the awesome view of  “Khatling Glacier” which was right opposite us towards the northern direction and also Mt. Thalaysagar was clearly visible.

 

 

 

 The last climb to the campsite was tough. There is no proper trail and it is indeed very steep. We were making steady progress and walking few steps, taking a short rest and continuing. Enroute we had lovely meadows ( or bugyals as they are called in Garhwal ) strewn with flowers of all colours. It was indeed a very beautiful sight to behold. 

 

 

 

We decided to take a short break and have our packed lunch at one such lovely meadow before making the final push to the campsite which was still a long way up.

 

At higher altitude when the campsites are decided it is important to make sure the water sources are around. Masar Tal actually has a couple of campsites and we decided to put the tents just before Masar Tal on a flat camping ground where the water source was close by.

After we pitched the tents and were relaxing, our guide pointed out towards a small hill up in the distance where we could see a bloom of whitish yellow flowers.  These were the esoteric Brhama Kamals ( the state flower of Uttarkhand ) which bloom for a short period after the rains and before the first snow arrives. Mohan and Sandeep decided to hike up and check those flower. The guide reminded them not to pluck the flowers as the locals believe plucking them before the full bloom brings bad weather along with bad luck. 

 

 

There was a steep climb going from the campsite towards the Taal which we had to do the next day. Mohan and Sandeep decided to climb up to check if they could Masar Taal from the top and went for a further short hike after checking out the flowers.

 

We decided to hit the sack early because the next day was going to be long day.  We were also at a decent enough altitude even by Himalayan standards. There were some apprehensions of headaches, initial signs of altitude sickness, but thankfully all of us were in good spirits and we did not have any such issues.

 

 Crossing the Mayali Pass and the serene Vasuki Tal

 

The most exciting day of the trek is definitely the day of the pass crossing. There are a lot of unknowns and apprehensions about the climb, the terrain, the weather and what not. These kind of days always remind me to be humble and that’s what keeps me to work hard during the rest of the year, just so that I can fully enjoy the climbs and the hardships that come with the it.

 

 

When we got up in the morning, we could see the valley below through which we had climbed, was full of clouds. It looked beautiful but scary at the same time.  The weather otherwise was perfect to start the climb. The mountains around were alive and there was fresh snow on the peaks what with last nights rains.

We had a quick breakfast and started the day coule of hours early than our regular schedule.

It was a steady climb towards Masar Tal which took us most part of the hour. Finally we were at Masar Tal which itself is a snow fed lake. 

 

 

 

We thought the climb to the Masar Tal was tough but once we looked at the route from Masar Tal towards Masar Top, all of us mentally upgraded the  definition of “tough”immediately.

 

The climb to Masar Tal was indeed the toughest during the trek. The boulder zone starts from here in the true sense. The entire climb was over big and small boulders and rocks, most of which were loose and slippery. There was no trail and we were gaining altitude at a very fast rate. When I was climbing Masar Top, I had decided that I needed to be friends with the boulders otherwise it is going be difficult day. It was a slow, steady climb but a damn steep climb and I remember I was thinking I wish I had a heart of a horse or mule. It was the terrain which made it difficult but we were encouraging each other and that made the job easy. 

 

 

After reaching Masar Top , I though most of the job is done but I was so wrong. From Masar Top one cannot see the pass. There is glacial lake which is formed due to a receding glacier and around the lake there is the moraine of the an older glacier. It was strewn with rocks, some of them with pointed edges. Really difficult to walk over those. 

 

 

One of the staff members told me that the lake is relatively new. Earlier that entire lake bed was the glacier and it was relatively easier to cross over the snow rather than zig-zagging our way over the boulders and rocks. So much for climate change.

We had to negotiate the boulders and loose rock for almost an hour before we reached the beginning of a large snow field. 

 

By this time, I was feeling famished. The breakfast I had in the morning was long gone and the titbits that I was carrying were not enough. I would have generally planned carrying some heavy snack, but for some reason I did not expect I would feel hungry so soon. It was probably the long steep climb which was seeping away all the energy. 

 

 

The initial walk on the snowfield was on the hard ice and since there are hardly any crevices, it was safe to walk on the glacier.  The snowfield slowly climbs up and after a while we could the see the rocky pass. It was another three quarters of an hour or possibly even an hour to climb up to the pass after negotiating some slippery sections. 

 

 

We had climbed up steadily and had taken up around four and a half hours to reach the rocky pass.  The weather was holding up nicely and we could see the majestic Kedarnath peak (and possibly Bharte Kunta) very close by. We did the customary pooja and our guide also put up Buddhist prayer flags. We also performed the ritualistic “Garba” on the pass (we have been doing for a few years when we reach the pass) .

 

 

The weather had suddenly turned sour and it became misty and windy all of a sudden. We still had a long way to go so we decided to wind up and start our descent towards our camp.

 

 

The climbing down from the pass is always difficult because most of the energy is spent while climbing up. So as always, climbing down requires one to be more careful and vigilant. The initial descend was on big boulders and then on loose rocky stones. I was hopping from one  boulder to another with my day pack dangling on my shoulders and realised I won’t trip or fall once I get into the rhythm of descending. I was still very careful and not taking any chances. The descending was knee breaking indeed, but we were not hurrying up since the weather, even though was still bad, there were no signs of rain or snow.  

 

 

As we reached towards the river bed ( an unknown stream ), the descending became relatively easy. We had our packed lunch near the stream on the way to campsite. The last couple of kilometres were easy as we ambled along easily on flat green meadows. 

 

 

The Vasuki Tal campsite is another beautiful campsite. Typically folks don’t camp near the lake as it is considered sacred. So the campsites are around a kilometer or two before the lake.  As we setup camp, I could sense that the mood amongst everyone was relaxed and overall happy. We had done the hard part without any untoward incidences and I too was very relaxed knowing that. 

 

 

To Kedarnath – Har Har Mahadev.

When we started , we thought we had to descend considerably to reach Kedarnath but we were wrong. Kedarnath itself is at a high altitude and the campsite of Vasuki Tal was at around 4300 mts. As we started from our campsite, the terrain was mostly easy, undulating for a couple of kilometeres as we reached the actual Vasuki Tal. 

 

 

The lake is absoulely surreal. It was larger than what I had imagined and is surrouned by jagged peaks rising up in the skies. 

 

 

After last days climbs, I thought we had done with all climbing on the trek. But from Vasuki Tal we had to again climb up what I think is possibly some 200mts towards Vasuki top. It was again a short but a very steep climb up to the top where we saw some one had hoisted the Tricolor. Jai Hind. From Vasuki top, it was now all down the valley towards Kedarnath. 

 

 

The other side of the valley was packed with clouds and there was still a lot of fog, so nothing was visible. We realized we are now on the pilgrim trail as the descent was on a well-marked path which made it easier going down. 

 

After a while we could hear helicopters and we could see the helipad where many of them were landing and taking off. After a while we could also hear the temple bells and that’s when we realized we are now close to civilization.  

After a long descent, we could finally see the Kedarnath town and that’s when I realized with a heavy heart that I was at the end of my trek.

 

Looking Back  

Mayali pass has been our list from 2010. We were all ready to do the Auden’s and Mayali trek in 2012, but due to unavoidable circumstances we could not do that. But I am glad we could do the trek finally. September is a very good time to do some high-altitude treks and we were lucky to have clear weather and avoid rain and snow on all the days. This trek is easy in the beginning but there are some very hard days after Chowki so it is definitely not for the first timers. 

 

I love being in the mountains because I find the experience very enriching. People ask me why do you do it year after year and really I have not been able to explain. It is simply that I love the mountains.  

 

During this trek I had an amazing company of friends who made the tougher days looked easy and easy days very enjoyable.  There was not a single dull moment during the trek and I looked forward to both being on the trail and reaching the campsite.  

 

I am so proud of Sudhi who did this trek very comfortably with us. I am very happy that Mohan could join us on a trek after such a long time and I really enjoyed his company on the trek. I am also  glad that Brijesh who has been our companion on all the treks since the last few years was again with us during this time. He is an awesome companion and always helpful. Thanks to Gyan and his team as well. As always it was the company of these friends and the team which made this wonderful trip possible.

Also special thanks to my friend Kanishka who introduced us to our guide Gyan. This has opened up many trekking options for us in Uttarakhand. 

 

Next year it will be Sandeep and mine 20^th year of hiking in the Himalayas. Watch out this space for a special adventure trip which will soon be planned. 

 

For more pictures see this Mayali Pass Photos