And so the circle closes… When I was still working as a volunteer in Delhi, I made my first trek with a friend and my father during the summer holidays exactly four years ago.
I always enjoyed hiking and during our summer holidays we did many day trips, but I had never done a multi-day trek before. All the more I was now full of excitement, should my first trek (The Indrahar Pass Trek from Mcleod Ganj to the Chamba Valley) for 5 days lead me for 5 days through the Himalayas and over a 4300 m high pass!
The trek exceeded all my expectations in many ways. What I enjoyed most was the community between us and our trekking companions: a guide and two porters who simultaneously acted as cooks and helpers. I liked that we spent the days together in the mighty mountain world with hiking, cooking, eating and sleeping together. We had a lot of time to relax and to enjoy the massive mountain landscape, while we lay in the mountain sun, drinking chai and chatting. Up here in the mountains, there is no pressure from outside: no appointments, no phone, no hustle and bustle!
Crossing the 4370-metre-high Indrahar Pass was a sporting challenge that enriched the trek. The mix of exercise, fresh mountain air and good, home-cooked Indian food was perfect!
But it wasn’t until after the trekking tour that I really realised how much I liked trekking. I was suddenly so sad, when we left the mountains and missed our new Indian friends immediately after the farewell!
These are all old memories that are still clearly anchored in my memory! It is all the more beautiful that I can now live out my passion in the Himalayas with trekking as a part of my profession.
It’s a bit weird though, that Now Ashok, the porter and cook of my first trek, is now working for me!
With him I took my first steps through the mountains, hardly spoke Hindi and was grateful for the experienced accompaniment during the trek!
Now I am his “boss”, organize the trek myself, guide the customers through the mountains and have the responsibility for him and his colleagues and the well-being of our guests. This feels good at the same time, but also a bit strange!
I really appreciate Ashok and am pleased that we will now have many treks together in the future!
Our trek 4 years ago:
Our Trek 2 days ago
