The Sleeping Trinity - Gaurav's Sikkim Trip : Part 5

Next morning we woke to what was the best view till then. On one side were the snow-capped peaks led by beautiful Mt. Pandim, while on the opposite were valleys and ranges of lesser height, barren and brown in general, white occasionally, hinting of a recent snowfall. N and I finished our morning chores as P struggled for it. Nevertheless, we were all ready for the breakfast that was set under the sky amidst a beautiful landscape and a lot of puddle from last night’s rain, about a meter away.

Before setting off for our last camping point, Dzongri (4050 mts), we stretched ourselves, did a small hike on a side trail for a better view of the looming peaks and then embarked upon the tedious main trail. The vegetation was clearly getting stunted. Deodars were giving way to pines, which too, were eventually disappearing, as the snow and ice started to appear on the sides of the muddy trail. The air was getting thinner and the three of us were stopping every ten minutes to catch our breath. The sight of snow and ice near the trail lifted our spirits and we stopped often to click away to glory. By late afternoon, we reached the camping grounds and trekkers’ huts at Dzongri. We had our lunch and set out on a trail into the Dzongri valley and pastures in search of beautiful views.

Tired of waiting for clouds and mist to clear off, we simply lay flat on the slopes and slept under the sky. It was clearly evident that the body was in a confused state of shock, whether it was because of lack of sleep, exhaustion from walking or just high altitude, was not known. After an hour of eagerly lapped up sleep, N woke up with a start, mortally scared of being sun-burnt (and terrified of being unable to present the perfect profile for a snap ? – Ed). We were therefore summarily ordered to get back to the camp.

The next day was going to be the day we reached the summit but the climb was known to be considerably steep. We were supposed to wake up at 3 in the morning and climb up to the top so as to enjoy clear breathtaking views (depending upon the availability of air) of the Kanchenjunga range. We prepared ourselves for the morning, discussed at lengths the layering we were going to employ to beat the coldest time of the day at the Dzongri Top, and then slept for a few hours hoping for a clear day ahead.

By,
Gaurav Jain