Bhutan : The Land of Happiness Part 6

Senagers (sixty plus teenagers) can be very cautious in planning and even more cautious in execution. Our preparations for Taktsang trek was no less than what goes into planning for the final assault on the summit on a mountaineering expedition . The entire team was totally involved in the choice of rig and kit for the summiteers ie Vandana and yours truly. A number of options were considered and rejected before homing on to a bag of just the right size, weight , capacity and ease of carrying .

Every item that had to go into that bag was carefully deliberated upon. Of course everything revolved around protective clothing, food, drink and medicines.

On hindsight, it appears absolutely natural that with a physician and a nutritionist in the group, one could never be overstocked with food and medicines. Let’s not forget that two of us were moms. There were energy giving peppermints that also kept your mouth from drying. We actually carried ORS. With likely rains and cool temperature, there was little chance of dehydration on a 3-4 hour climb. We knew it, but why take a chance ?

On sage advice from the nutrition expert and fellow summiteer, I had to discard my favourite , ultra-lightweight, windcheater for a heavier , waterproof jacket .

With the kind of situations we were anticipating and catering for, I began to doubt if we would even take off; after all , guest rooms and shopping malls were definitely safer than valleys and hills.

By five in the morning , I was fully awake. A cursory look at the sky indicated a rainy day; I could see dark clouds hovering around. Well, the weather in the mountains is always difficult to predict. By seven, the weather god started smiling, and it started clearing up. We started around 7 :30 for the base of the monastery which was about a half an hour drive. The place was bustling with activity. A photograph of the entire expedition team was in order.

A look at the top was definitely intimidating;

It’s always so. But as an infantryman used to measuring the world with his own foot steps, I was well aware that the simple formula to reach any place is “put one foot ahead of the other, and keep doing it till you reach where-ever you have to reach“ . One step is not difficult. I was humming along the tune “जो राह चुनी तुने, उसी राह पे राही चलते जाना रे“

These days there’s much talk of last mile connectivity for metro trains in Delhi and NCR. What last mile connectivity !? The govt just needs to provide a walk-able path to the Train Stations. Improvement in health, no need to spend time and money on Gym, less pollution, easy on domestic budget and easy on Govt fiscal deficit; It is one idea that kills too many birds with one stone. You just need to invest in a pair of walking shoes and may be an umbrella , and yes, a bag large enough to carry a pair of formal shoes.

That’s gross digression!

When you are on a steep climb, it is difficult to talk or to sing , but mind wanders all over, effortlessly , even while a part of the mind is tuned to the rhythm of your breath. A tip for casual trekkers; whether you go faster or slower does not matter, try to keep your breathing even . It is uneven breathing that really tires you.

I looked around the fellow climbers; there were very young and very old among them. There was a little girl merrily counting the steps as she went along. It looked like she was feeling more elated with her ability to count than in running up the slope effortlessly.

We reached the half way mark, the Cafeteria, after about an hour’s climb. This is the place where half the people are tempted to turn around and the other half get the confidence to reach the top. We were among the second half. Looking back at the distance we had covered, reaching the top definitely looked doable.

An hour and a half climb left: Photos: Vandana

After another hour or so , we reached a place from where there was sheer drop followed by a steep climb ; a V shaped course with steps constructed on the rocky mountain. It also turned out to be full of selfie spots and people moved along rather slowly.

By about 11 , ie in two and a half hours we reached the shrine. We produced our entry tickets and after making the necessary entries, got a locker to keep our bags.

There was a guide, who took us around. As most of the monasteries are, the place is full of idols of Bodhisattva dressed in colorful clothes and the walls are covered with paintings of images depicting various aspects of Vajrayana Buddhism. The main cave is entered through a narrow passage. The dark cave houses a dozen images of Bodhisattva and butter lamps flicker in front of these idols. An elegant image of Chenrezig(Avalokitesvara) is also deified here.

We commenced our trek back around 12. The return journey starts with a sheer drop and a stiff climb and later it is all downhill.

Here we could get the network to talk to Viji. Our support team from IMTRAT were worried and was all set to send a rescue party. They were pleasantly surprised to learn that we were ahead of schedule and were already on our way back.

The way back was relaxed. Vandana was in full spirits singing away to glory. It brought a lot of smiles on the climbers on their way to the monastery and one of them even stopped to record a video. A couple stopped for a selfie with us .
Sure, she motivated a lot of young people to reach the top.

A cup of coffee on the way back . Selfie by Vandana

At the half way mark, cafeteria, we stopped for a cup of coffee. It was a longish break . While climbing down one just needs to be careful not to slip or sprain a knee or ankle. At the base our vehicle was waiting and the driver was there to welcome us with drinking water and fruit juice.

So, as I had mentioned earlier in Part 1, the whole universe conspired to make this trip of ours fruitful. A trek that almost became as a non starter turned out to be an easy , pleasant and a memorable event.

Bhutan is a unique country that gives importance to Health and Happiness over Money and Development, at least, that is the official stance.

Any write up about Bhutan would be incomplete without a discussion on Happiness. That’s the topic for the next post