Hampta Pass: Hike Mountains, Run Through Meadows, Cross Rivers and Breathe the Wild Air

This is in continuation of my previous articles, visit the Homepage below for links in the order of our journey.

Hampta Pass

The next morning we reached the meeting point on time. Everyone was full of enthusiasm and their attitude showed it. We need to drive to Jobra before starting our trek. The drive with 40+ hairpin bends is extremely picturesque. We had our breakfast at Jobra and started trekking along River Rani who introduces the surroundings of big rocky hills and grasslands in absolute splendour. As these mountains unfold, the sunlight paints many shades of green across the huge landscape. We passed through deciduous forest of pine and maple trees, before entering into the open grasslands.

After trekking for around 2 hours we took a break. It’s time for lunch, sitting on a rock and eating lunch in a lush green valley, surrounded by mountains with rocks scattered across the landscape made life so blissful. We finished off our lunch and started back to our camp site. We reached the camp site Jwara around 2 P.M. and pitched our tents.

The climate started changing, from clear and sunny skies to complete overcast. There was a dip in temperature, and it started raining all of a sudden. Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add colour to my sunset sky. It rained hardly for 15 min leaving us some time to go around the campsite. We had our evening snacks and hot tea ready. I got my cup and sat on a rock with a beautiful view of the mountains. With every sip I take, I was losing myself in the nature.

Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better. –Albert Einstein

Those words by Einstein seem to make so much of sense at that point of time. We had our dinner early and retired to our tents by 8 P.M.

The next day was more of an acclimatization trek. After sleeping like a log, our trek leader’s morning whistle woke me up to a beautiful morning. Everyday we used to start the day with a small morning brief followed by some basic exercise. Soon we started our journey, walking through foggy mountain slopes, surrounded by layers of colourful wild flowers below and majestic mountains above.

After some time we came across a river and we need to cross it on foot. I was pretty excited about it. After all where do you get to cross a river nowadays on foot? I have crossed a few streams on my Manali-Leh journey, but that was on a bike. Here we need to remove our shoes and then cross the river which was freezing cold. By the time I was on the other side, my legs were all but paralyzed. The good thing about the crossing was the fact that rocks were not slippery and now looking back, it was a fantastic experience which I would love to do again.

We continued after the water crossing until we finally reached our camping spot for the day at Balu ka Gera. This was a better camping site then Jwara, we had huge mountains on three sides, a large enough glacier flowing beside. The sun rays were kissing the grass and the shadows of the mountains were a treat to watch. In midst of them our horses were grazing lazily. Far away the snow covered peaks shone brightly against the blue sky.

Suddenly at that moment you realize in the wilds out from civilization for a couple of days now. It is time to talk to your inner self. For most of us, our life is full of outside influences. We have parents telling us to work hard and find good jobs. We have teachers telling us to study hard and get good grades. We have bosses directing our careers. We have girlfriends/boyfriends swaying our decisions. We have society creating a mould and constantly pressuring us to fit into it. With all these voices in our head, our decisions are so heavily influenced that it’s impossible to figure out what we truly want. So I feel like travelling gives you a chance to decide what you want from life because it’s the only place where people will shut the fuck up long enough for you to think.

“The best day of your life is the one on which you decide your life is your own. No apologies or excuses. No one to lean on, rely on, or blame. The gift is yours – it is an amazing journey – and you alone are responsible for the quality of it. This is the day your life really begins.” –Bob Moawad

I was completely lost in my thoughts, before being interrupted by one of my trek mate. We had our dinner and went to sleep early. Sleeping in tents, crossing ice cold rivers and navigating through the dense forests were just the beginning of the adventure that lay ahead.