A slip and fall weekend trek to Naag Tibba

Day 1 : We reached Dehradun at around 7 AM from where we were picked up by the representative in tempo traveler . Our journey started at around 8:00 AM from ISBT and from there our next stop was for breakfast near Mussorie at around 10:30 AM . After breakfast and few clicks we started for Pantwari village from where the trek will commence . The ride was picturesque with mountains ranges and cold winter air and we could see snow in few places along the way .

We reached Pantwari around 12:30 PM . Here we were given our packed lunch for the first part of the trek and you will also get trek shoes and walking sticks for rent here in case you forget to pack . From Pantwari to Base it is around 5 km trek which takes around 3 hours for the whole group to reach together . The scenery around is stunning , houses , fields , shepherd and his trip of goats and Himalayas . Along the way till the base we encountered almost all weather condition it was hot and then cold and all of sudden it started raining and as it was winter the rain turned to snow in some time . We took few stops for lunch , tea and snacks . When we were about to reach Goat village where the base was set it started to snow . The scenery completely changed from green to white and we started to slip in the mud pile from the rain and snow . At 5 PM we reached our base where our tents was already set . We had our evening tea while watching the sun set . By the way the food prepared here is delicious so never skip a meal . Dinner was around 7:30 PM and after that everyone went to their respective tents .

It was freaking cold at night , i was not able to sleep properly the whole night despite the layers of clothing and sleeping bag . I got up so many times to check if i my sleeping bag is wet due to snow , but the reason was my feet never got to normal temperature and my sleeping bag was double my size . I learned few things that day

1. After snowfall it is unbearably cold

2. Never forget to pack torch

3. Do not allow snow to settle in your tent.

4. It is advisable to check if the trekking group can provide sleeping bag in different sizes

Day 2 : Next day we started our day early as we had to trek till the summit and then come down to Pantwari village . After breakfast we started with our trek . It was my first trek in snow , so i was not mentally prepared how the trek will be a day after it had snowed . Our trek leader advised us to walk carefully as the snow has started melting and it can be slippery . Even after being careful i slipped at the after few meters , but after that i was extra careful of where i stepped . My brother is a pro in trekking , so he was way ahead of me and was guiding the rest of the group as well as our trek leader was at last so that no one is left behind . We were following the designated path to reach the summit but two three people who were in front of me including my brother took a short cut by mistake . It was easy for them and the time to climb up was reduced , for me the whole stretch was OK but at one point i had to climb on all my limbs . We reached our first assembly point for the whole group and it was around 1 km from the summit . Even thought we were not able to go till the summit as it had snowed heavily the day before , the view from where we were standing was surreal , white and shimmering . We will played there in snow for some time and started as descend for the base . This time we took the correct path as trekking downhill after snowfall is even more dangerous and chances of falling are more . So everyone in the group was extra careful to avoid injuries . We reached the base at around 11:30 AM and rested for sometime before lunch .

After Lunch we started our downhill journey for Pantwari , which we completed in around 1 hour as we were now aware of the surroundings . It took half an hour for whole group to assemble for our return journey to Dehradun. When i started the trek i expected it will be easy for me but snowfall made it more fun .