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 On
our last day of training at Gangotri, we had to undergo the
qualifying test. The test required that we reach Gomukh, which is
about 14 miles from Gangotri, in six hours. We were to start at 6
a.m. and had to to trek along the River Ganga, reach Gomukh and
start our return trek from Gomukh before noon. The qualifying factor
was to make it to Gomukh before the given time. Those who did not
reach there before noon were to return without going further.
Those days, the path to Gomukh was only a goat
trail, which was strewn with ditches, rocks and boulders at many
places. Nothing existed between Gangotri and Gomukh. There were no
pilgrims either, since the pilgrim season was nearly over due to the
onset of winter. There was no pilgrim shelter or a tea shop, or
anything on the route; xcept the river, pebbles, boulders, rocks,
glaciers, and bright sun rays breaking into all the colours of the
rainbow as they fell on glaciers.
On the morning of the Gomukh ‘test-trek’ I was very nervous. I
was afraid of failure. I mentioned it to Tinu Barara and Kesar, and
two trainee officers. The four of them made a pact with me that I
would not be left behind. They promised to keep pace with me.
Wherever I was in difficulty, they would give me a hand, and if I
could not move, they would give me a push. If I was tired they would
wait for me to get my breath back. Fortified by these assurances I
set out with this group.
We were five. One of us was always ahead checking the route. I
was walking between the second and third person. If needed the
second person would give me a hand and the third would give me a
push!. On my account, they had to walk slower, but on the whole, the
group was doing fine. We had our breakfast of boiled eggs, delicious
poori and potato which our cook had affectionately packed for us,
under a shady grove by the river. We stretched our backs and legs
for a while. Inspite of the cold September Himalayan weather, we
were sweating with exertion. We bathed twice in the icy cold river
to feel refreshed. Amazing marvels of nature were unfolding before
us. Enroute, we also came across a beautiful hot sulphur spring and
we had a refreshing medicinal bath. All the fatigue was gone. These
hot and cold baths are etched in my memory forever.
As we were nearing Gomukh cold winds started blowing. It is said
that snowy blizzards can occur there afternoon and it can be very
dangerous at times. The scenery all along and at Gomukh was
breathtaking. We mustered some courage and got on the top of some of
glaciers and saw the small, yet gorgeous origin of the Ganga, the
mother of the Gangetic plain and the cradle of great cities like
Allahabad and Varanasi. We could linger at Gomukh only for
half-an-hour till the clock struck noon, and the winds became
colder.
We started on our trek back to Gangotri at a pace much slower and
more relaxed, the goal having been already reached. We took more
time to watch the beauty and grace of nature, and listened to the
only sound, the sound of the river. Of the 16 boys who went for the
course only 7 passed the test and of the four girls only two made
it. One was Kiran Bedi who was really a good mountaineer and the
other was myself who owed it entirely to good friends.
(to be continued next week)
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