North India Trekking Trip 北印度行山之旅 (23 Aug - 11 Sep 2002)

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Water front property.

(30 Aug 2002, 200mm, F2.8 A-mode)

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Calm morning at the lake.

(30 Aug 2002, 85mm, F1.4 A-mode)

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Chill out on a small hill next to Chandra Taal lake.

That day was a rest day which means no hiking. We ended up playing bridge, washing clothing, etc.

(30 Aug 2002, 28mm, F2.8 A-mode)

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Sunny day of resting at Chandra Taal lake.

(30 Aug 2002, 28mm, F2.8 A-mode)

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As soon as we arrived at Chandra Taal the previous day, our crew managed to purchase a baby goat. The goat was slaughtered the next day. The head of the goat, pictured here, was the last part to be processed.

We had goat for dinner the next 3 or 4 meals.

(30 Aug 2002, 85mm, F1.4 A-mode)

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After performing the duty of cutting up the goat meat in smaller pieces, Emmy was rewarded a large piece of the goat.

(30 Aug 2002, 85mm, F1.4 A-mode)

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Perhaps the toughest and most dangerous day of the whole trip.

In the previous days, I wore thin quick-dry undergarment inside, short-sleeve Gore Wind-Stopper middle layer, and Gore-Tex jacket outside. I also had fleece cap and gloves. So I repeated the same configuration today, without bringing the fleece jacket with me.

Big mistake. It was cold, windy and exhausting. At one point I felt really sleepy and had problem keeping my eyes open for long, all while I was walking and jumping between big rocks. I guess my body was trying to shut down due to the cold and exhaustion.

In addition, we were pushing hoping to cross a river at the end of the day's hiking. When we arrived at the river, not only the river was too high to cross, we also found that the drinking water source there dried out. The river water was not drinkable.

At the suggestion of the horsemen, we walked another 30 minutes to the closest water source.

Pictured here, the underground water source was gathered in a small (maybe one square meter) pool built by horsemen. On one end of the pool was installed with the top half of a plastic bottle for easy collection of water. All of us (10 group members + 3 guides + 3 horsemen + 3 cooks + 16 horses) fed from this tiny water hole.

This small pool saved our day.

(31 Aug 2002, 85mm, F1.4 A-mode)

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Today we needed to cross a river in the morning when the river level was not too high. The current was strong and water ice cold. In the previous night, we can heard the rolling stones on the river bed being washed down by the current.

Harsh was the first to cross to setup the fix-rope. Negi was holding the safety rope that was Harsh's lifeline at that moment.

(1 Sep 2002, 85mm, F1.4 A-mode)

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One day away from Baralacha Pass, the landscape was really barren. Only small plants and occasionally the calling of Marmots.

(1 Sep 2002, 28mm, F2.8 A-mode)

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Many, many glaciers can be seen in the last two days trekking. These two are near Baralacha Pass.

(2 Sep 2002, 200mm, F2.8 A-mode)