It was sub zero temperature. It was 9 pm and we were in our tent. The thin tent was worsening it honestly speaking. It was not the Himalayan tent that was used for hard core treks. The sleeping bags were good for camping in an Indian summer. Added to that were the others, and by the others I don’t mean our group but the rest of the crowd camping in Dzukou.
Loud music completely destroying the sanctity of the moment. How else would it be when there were 200 of them camping that night? Bhim and I were freezing and I mean hard cold freezing. At one point I thought my toes had frostbite and it would come off any moment. Yup it was that bad.

No matter we had 3 layers of clothing but the thin sad mat on the hard ground was not helping and neither the sleeping bag. Was anybody in our group sleeping? We could hear some snoring and wondered how the hell are they doing this? And why are we shivering our asses off?? I mean Bhim endured -20 degrees temperature on a trek in Sikkim and I had my fair share of freezing temperature of -11 degrees this January while trekking in India/Nepal border but this was something else!
After trekking for almost 4 hours that was a steep ascent, with weather that moved from freezing cold to harsh sunlight, we needed some respite for our tired bodies. And it was not happening. No respite at all.

What we would know later, here’s the worst part, was that everyone in the group were given atleast a blanket to cover themselves over the sleeping bag and we didn’t get one. With the crowd, it was highly possible someone could have taken it from the tent.
Why am I writing all this? Because I need you to know that it takes hell of a lot out of your body and mind to get to where you want to be.

All you see is the end product. Breathtaking landscapes, scenic pictures and nature at its beautiful. And with it comes this too. Nature is raw, Nature is wild, Nature is brutal and Nature is unforgiving and shows you your worth in every way.

It shows you are nothing, that you are a zilch, a zero, the importance that you give to yourself, to your family, to your loved ones means squat when it comes to the universe. And every single time Bhim and I have experienced that, which is why maybe we did what we did and continue doing it. No, am not glorifying anything here. It is what it is.

Let me go back to how this trek started.. To be continued..