WATERFALL CAFE TREK: A HIDDEN AND UNKNOWN TREK IN MCLEODGANJ

THE PLANS

It is true that there is no friend in your life like your school friends. And when they have the same traveller’s soul, nothing could be better. Therefore, when we got a long weekend off from our stressful daily life, we just could not miss the opportunity to reach the high Himalayan peaks. And being short on time, the first option was to travel to Mcleodganj and then trek up to the Triund peak, along with an overnight camping at Triund.

Although I have been to Mcleodganj earlier but the aura is such that it calls me towards it and gets me mesmerized with its beauty. The place is like paradise to me. This was the third time I was visiting Mcleodganj but the first time I was to trek to Triund. However, it was destined that we could never go as per our plans. We did trek but it was not to Triund.

We hired a self-drive car and started our journey from Delhi at the afternoon. First we got our car 2 hours late than the given time, which made us reach Mcleodganj at about 2 at night. Although it was quite late, still we found ourselves sipping hot cups of coffee, eating steaming bowls of maggi and laughing till our stomach hurt at the centre of the town.

After our little meal, we headed to our hotel, which apparently we got standing right there by a guy who was strolling nearby. Because it was peak season we got rooms on the pricier side. The next day we strolled around the local market to look for camping equipments. By the time we got into a cab with our tents and sleeping bags and headed for the starting point of the Triund trek, it was afternoon and we had to complete the route before sunset.

FINDING THE HIDDEN TRAIL

The road was in a really bad condition but it worked for us because the escalated thrill pumped up our energy. We drove through thick coniferous forests and up to a temple (I forgot the name) at the highest point of the Dhauladhar Mountains. This was the starting point of our trek which we never did.

My friends have a habit of being spontaneous and impulsive at the same time. And this time too they did not fall behind at the spontaneity meter. As we were about to start our trek, one of my friends noticed a rickety wooden board that had “Way to Waterfall” written over it and an arrow showing the direction. One by one my entire group started agreeing to go towards the route not taken. A shop owner told us that the trek would be hardly an hour or so. So, after a lot of agreeing and disagreeing, we all headed towards the waterfall, thinking that we would see the waterfall first and then trek to Triund.

THE TREK

This trek was not something we had planned nor had we heard about it before. We did not know what was lying ahead of us. The trail was a narrow path of stones, pebbles and at some places covered with leaves and twigs. The hike was quiet and calm, with just the sound of our footsteps and the crunching of leaves.

This was something I had never experienced before. There was not even a soul around us to tell us the right directions but as we moved ahead, we met two solo travelers and a couple. But other than them there was no one around.

To stay on the right track we followed a pipeline which actually supplied water to the Dharamkot village. Keeping the pipeline to our left we were moving ahead through a canopy of forest that seemed never-ending. I had never in my life been so close to nature. I could hear my own breath along with the soft wind blowing my hair, every now and then. The birds chirping and the leaves rustling, we made our way on the mysterious path.

After covering some distance which was not too tiring for us, the gradient being gradual, we came across one rockslide. It seemed difficult but we crossed it easily, stopping in the middle to click some mandatory pictures. The view from the rockslide was so beautiful that I just stopped on my tracks to absorb the ultimate beauty of nature at its purest form. I could the complete expanse of the Dhauladhar ranges and only one word came out of my mouth: “Wow!”

Going ahead, we crossed another rockslide and entered an undulated trail that almost vanished after sometime, leaving behind the pipeline to guide us and a rocky path that was so narrow that it could accommodate only one person at a time.

After a point we were literally climbing mountains, not leaving the pipeline at any point. Along the way we saw some Tibetan prayer flags strung across mountains.

When we were about to reach the final point we heard the soft gushing of the waterfall and our faces sparkled up with joy. The happiness I got when I completed the trek was incomparable because this kind of happiness cannot be found in anything or anywhere. But there was a lot more left to the story.

When the trek terminated there was also a small café, which was unfortunately closed by the time we reached it. As I looked at the end of the waterfall, it was perfectly blue colored and so clear that I could see the waterbed. It was just too amazing. We climbed down to the waterfall and it was quite slippery, I fell down twice and got a few scratches but it was okay.

We spent some time at the waterfall which is actually surrounded by two mountains, taking in the pure beauty of nature. The sound of the water mixed with the wonderful wind that was teasing us and the orange glow of the setting sun made it a sight to behold. The weather was getting colder but the cold was pleasurable.

The slight tingling feeling I was getting was just too good. The time I spent there, clicking pictures and being with myself for that span of time was very different and soothing. I did not want to go back, I just wanted to stay there looking at the sunset and hearing the music of nature.

We did not get to trek to Triund but we did hike up to a place that not many people go to. When I reached home I searched a lot regarding this waterfall trek and got know that it is called the “Waterfall Café Trek”. It is yet to be discovered by the boisterous lot and I am afraid that the beauty will be lost when it gets exploited by people who do not respect nature.

I would recommend this trek to those who want to have quality over quantity. It is an easy trek but you need to take it if you want to communicate with nature one on one. The serenity of the whole route and the destination will not make you regret this decision.

Distance: About 2.5 kms

Duration: 1.5 hours

Name: Waterfall café trek

Difficulty: Low