Which trek should I choose? When do I go? How do I prepare? These are some of the questions that will arise once you decide to go on a trekking holiday. The kind of hike you end up doing will depend on your level of physical fitness, time constraints and your budget. A person with no trekking experience should not begin with a hike in Ladakh, no matter how attractive it seems. You will be starting at a high altitude and will definitely have a problem acc-limatising. Far from your holiday being fun, it could end up being torturous. Hiking is a sport that can last a lifetime. Plan well and enjoy yourself, so that you can enjoy a new and more challenging trail the next time around.
Choose an area you think you would like to explore. Go to that section in this book and read through all the treks carefully. Look at the ideal season for each trek. If you want to see alpine flowers, for instance, don’t take leave from the office in October, you will be disappointed even if you go to the Valley of Flowers.
Check the level of each trek. Although we have taken pains to include many entry level or mod-erate treks, some are tougher than the others. Be realistic, and not ambitious. It’s better to choose one that will suit your level of fitness and does not make you suffer.
If you have children, ensure that the trek has pony or porter support, or is easy enough for your 10-year-old to walk. Look at the number of trekking days involved and the number of days it will take you to get to and from your starting point. In the Himalayas, getting to the beginning of the trek can be an adventure in itself. If you are a first-time hiker in the Himalayas and are going with family, it may be a good idea to go to Mussoorie or Shimla, spend a couple of days doing gentle walks and day hikes so that your body gets used to walking four to five hours a day and then do one of the overnight or two-day treks.
Finally, the nature of your trek will depend upon your budget.
CAMPING SAHIB-STYLE
During the British Raj, English civil servants, merchants and adven-turers regularly fled the heat of the plains for the hills on fishing or shooting expeditions. The ‘band-obast’ for these trips was phenome-nal: shikaris to track animals, skinners, gun bearers, a couple of khansamas to prepare the mulli-gatawny soups, pot roasts and puddings, bearers to serve, porters, mules and muleteers, sleeping tents, dining tents, camp cots, books and painting material, chairs and tables. The holiday-maker’s personal trunk consisted of nec-essities that ranged from silver shaving kits, cases of wine and cigars to dinner jackets.
Believe it or not, it is possible to replicate the experience – for a price, of course. If you decide to go on a trek sahib-style, just pick your destination, call a trekking agency and let them tailor-make a trip to suit you. It can be an all-frills attached trip – in which case, you just need to pack your toothbrush, camera and cheque book; Or it could be one where you have a cook-cum-guide and a couple of ponies and pony-wallahs.
Costs of camping sahib-style
An organised trek can cost anywhere between ₹1,500– ₹10,000 per person per day. Your trekking agent will take care of all the little details, but if you want to know why you are paying so much, below is a list of factors your agent will consider when quoting a price:
Location of trek How far from civilisation is the trek? The more remote, the more expensive it is. If you are trekking in remote Aruna-chal Pradesh or Ladakh, petrol and diesel are much more expensive in those parts, so transporting food, equipment and hired hands to the starting point
of the trek and back will be that much more expensive.
Size of the group A trekking group of four to eight people works best in terms of cost-effectiveness. You will need a guide and a cook and at least two to three ponies or mules on the trek, even if you are one or two people. So, if you can increase your group’s number to four, the cost per person comes down and the trek becomes effectively cheaper.
Backpack or daypack People travelling sahib-style don’t carry their backpacks, which can weigh upto 20kg. If you are travelling this way, a porter or a pony/ mule will carry your luggage. The more luggage you take, the number of porters or ponies will increase.
Ponies or porters Where possible, opt for ponies to carry supplies. They are able to carry more weight than porters and you don’t have to share your rations with them. The more porters you have, the more share of food and supplies will have to be carried.
Ponies and mules are turned out loose in the late afternoons to graze. In some parts of Ladakh, especially if the winter snows have been less than normal, the grass may be of poor quality and extra ponies may be needed to carry fodder, making your trip more expensive. If you are travelling with children, ensure you have an extra riding pony for each child. When they get tired of walking they can simply hop on.
Hired hands Ponies and porters can cost ₹500–800 per porter/ pony per day, depending on your location. Guides and cooks can cost ₹400–500 per day plus food. You also need to factor in costs of transporting them to the start of your trek and back to their town/ village. Don’t forget to tip them at the end of the trek.
Food If you want hot, freshly cooked food for every meal, your expenses will go up. Discuss the menu with your trekking agent.
Equipment Do you have your own tents, sleeping bags and mats or is the agency providing them? Costs will also depend on the extra equipment such as dining tents, camp chairs and stools. Try and figure whether they’re essential and how much extra you’re being char-ged for it all to be carried on the trek. Cut costs where possible.
SLOGGING IT ALPINE-STYLE
If you’re doing a trek alpine-style, it means you are carrying all your equipment and food yourself with-out the aid of porters. Don’t be wistful about your tight budget and inability to travel sahib-style.
If you decide to do the trek alpine-style, your planning must be meticulous, down to the last detail. If there are four of you, discuss what each one will be carrying. Try and minimise the number of clothes, iPods and cameras that each person is carrying. Is it possible to have one camera between the four of you? Ensure that the food and equipment is distributed equally so that one person doesn’t end up carrying a heavier load than the others.
The secret of having a wonderful alpine-style trek is to travel light. Check out the route carefully. Is it possible to stay in temples, forest rest houses or village schools en route and avoid carrying a tent? Is it possible to eat at dhabas and not carry a stove? Even if you have to carry a stove, can you plan your meals so that you’re not overloaded with unnecessary food?
Planning your Meals
Figure out the menu for each day with your trekking buddies and carry food accordingly. Snacks can be extras that each person carries. Breakfast could be tea/ coffee with porridge (easy to carry and prepare). Lunch could be Maggi or some khichdi or parathas made early in the morning that you carry and eat cold with pickle. Dinner should be a substantial meal and can be khichdi with some ready-to-eat vegetable that you just need to heat (pre-cooked vacuum-packed dals and vegetables are available). Try and pack soups that need hot water added rather than those that need to be cooked. You can save not only time, but also kerosene that way, lightening your overall load.
Check if you can get the guesthouse or hotel you stay in the night before you start the trek to pack parathas or boiled eggs that you can carry for lunch on the first day. Don’t bank on dhabas en route for meals as most chai shops in remote areas stock just tea and biscuits and not much more, unless it’s on a pilgrimage route.
Costs of trekking alpine-style Get four friends together and this could be the cheapest holiday of your life where the biggest expense would be the fare to get to the starting point of the trek. Then, if you have a tent, stove and sleeping bag, factor in the amount you want to spend on food and kerosene and buying supplies for your first-aid kit and everything else is free! Excluding your journey to the starting point and back, you can easily do a trek spending less than ₹300 per person per day including food. If you get a guide, add more for daily fees, and a healthy tip.
Getting fit Whether you are trekking alpine or sahib-style, preparing your body for the trek is essential. Try and walk every day in the month before your trek to build up stamina. Start with walking an hour and build up to walking for at least two hours. Alternate with running for 20 minutes to half an hour every other day. If you live or work in a multi-storied building, don’t take the elevator but run up and down instead. Strengthen your abdominal muscles by doing sit-ups. Your butt muscles and quadriceps should be built up with squats and leg extensions. The fitter you are, the more you will enjoy your holiday.