Have you ever been camping?
“There’s no Wi-fi in the mountains, but you’ll find no better connection”
Anonymous
April 2012, Everest Base Camp. The credit for this trip goes to my BIL. He decided to celebrate in the mountains, and I just tagged along for the ride. And what a ride that was!
The preparation for this trek started a year earlier for everyone else. But I chose to opt out of the trek and held off from April 2011, when it was announced, and the planning and fitness prep started. I walked up and down ‘Linking Road’ helping the younger sibling pick up thermals and woolen clothes in peak tropical summer. Picking woolens meant trying them on, and we were in the tiniest changing cubicle ever seen by humans. To be fair, it was a sports shop that sold swimwear for children, so the room or space was just about right for kids, for adults it was a squeeze and we wanted to pick the right fit for the thermals. The crazy thing about fleece-lined pants is that they start to prick and poke like tiny needles are woven into the yarn if you are in the heat. But feel cozy and warm and comfortable in the cold. So, the trials were pull on pull right off without hitting your elbows or knees on the doors or the mirror. I did not envy her the trek. I was just accompanying her, and I was sweating like a pig, Thank God, I did not have to do the trials. I found the tiny stool that passed off as a substitute ladder in the store, placed it under the tiny fan, and waited while she tried. The walking up and down, the purchases, and the trials were added towards the step count for the fitness she required to get in. For me, it was just time pass, spending ‘quality’ time with the sibling. This went on right until December when we decided to get her trekking boots, so she could wear them and break them in. Wildcraft was a sparsely stocked store at the junction of Linking Road and SV Road, Bandra. This is like the beginning of the ‘shopping’ street in Mumbai, so I was expecting the store to have tons and tons of gear. Seeing just the bare minimum inside, I only wondered how they even made rent for the prime location they had rented out.
Anyway, the store was Air Conditioned, so it was pleasant to be indoors. And since it was so sparsely stocked, there were a lot of places for me to hang around and sit. Her ‘trekking shoe’ ended up being a ‘trekking boot’ and if there is one thing, I am blindly partial to, they are boots. I was tempted. That evening, I asked the spouse if I could join the trek, and then spoke to the siblings and my BIL to see if they could still accommodate me at this last minute. My spouse said ok, the siblings said ok and to be honest, I would’ve been heartbroken if they had refused, but it was an ‘okay’. Now, it was my turn to go and pick up the random thermals from that store. But I had an advantage, I just tried on the ones the sibling had purchased earlier and picked up based on those sizes. But I did try on the boots at the Wildcraft store. I found out, that there were 15 people on this trek and all of them were friends of my sister and BIL. I was just going because the siblings were there. And of course, the boots! I started my fitness preparations later than the entire team did. I joined an aerobics class conducted by a neighbor in the apartment complex and I started attending it in every slot she conducted the classes. I had three months, to get as fit as the rest of them had over 8 months, and while everyone was aware that was impossible, they were ignoring the elephant in the room. Mum and Amma were roped in to help with the kids. My spouse filled in the gaps where I would be required and joined the aerobics classes for the evening slots, so I would be encouraged to exercise some more. The classes were trauma, especially the Card-io sessions that she conducted using playing cards as a prop.
The trek was a 14-day trek where we spent a lot of time, going up, almost 11 days, and spent the last couple of days coming down. It’s got something to do with the lack of oxygen and acclimatization. The first couple of days, were the longer treks, from Lukla to Phakding and then onto Namche Bazaar. I flew like the wind, and then slowed like a tortoise and then flew again. I was all over the place and that’s where I learned about pacing. Our first rest stop was at Phakding. I was exhausted, so when my BIL enquired about hot water facilities, I shamelessly eavesdropped while they mentioned that as it had been a sunny day the water would be warm, as the solar heaters would have worked. I quickly went to the room and told the younger sibling about it. She wasn’t too keen to shower first, so I unpacked my clothes, jumped in, and turned on the shower.
Let me tell you right off, shower is a misnomer for the contraption sticking out of the wall. And the definition of ‘hot water’ is not the same around the world. In my world, hot water is defined as nearly scalding water at a minimum 60-degree temperature. But ‘hot water’ in Phakding is defined as water that is not frozen and is flowing out of the pipes. I came out shivering. My younger sibling who was sitting there waiting for me, decided that a bath or shower was given way more importance than was required and opted to just change her clothes. I pulled out all the warm clothes I could find and wore them on and headed out to give the rest-house in charge an earful. As soon as I walked into the lounge, where everyone was gathered, wearing every piece of clothing I owned, I realised that I was the entertainment for the evening. My older sibling seated me next to her and encouraged me to remove the layers, insisting that if I were to wear them all so early on the trek, I may not be able to manage the temperatures at the higher stops. Wise words. And Thank God I listened to her. I slowly got off the layers and smiled at the jovial ribbing I received that evening.
Every day of the trek had us going up the mountainside and then coming down a few meters after acclimatization. Watching me stumble through ‘pacing’ my older sibling offered to ‘pace’ me for the rest of the trek, and I spent a happy 14 days, following her gently swaying hips up and down the mountain. I learned to ‘pee’ on the mountainside, much like most of the other trekkers did. I learned to not look down the hole when I got to a rest stop and wanted to use the ‘facilities’ roughly constructed on stilts sitting over a flowing river. I learned to like their version of ginger tea, which was a few shavings of ginger in a hot water flask with a tea bag inserted for good measure. I learned that midnight was the best time to use the loo because everyone else was asleep then. I learned that the rumbles we heard at rhythmic intervals were really avalanches on one of the many neighboring peaks. I also learned, that if the guide who was with us during this trek said, it was a 4-hour trek, then it would take us an extra couple of hours easily as we were trailing at the end of the group.
“Camping isn’t really a vacation, but it sure makes for good memories”
Julie Kiera’s
Those 15 days were some of the most interesting times I have spent as an adult with my siblings. Four of us at a location that was not one of our homes, so we were all equally in discomfort. This trek was my first outing with my siblings and some parts of this trek made for some of the most harrowing memories for me, especially towards the end as we neared Base Camp. But I got there. I got back. Just a little more humble. And a little less heavy. And that much more in awe of the mountains. Did you know that Yak turds on the route were in the shape of 🥐 s?! Anyway! Reminded of the trek every time we walk into the bakery.
“The hardest mountain to climb is the one within”
J Lynn
Hiking, trekking, camping, avoiding Yak turds, miles and miles of flags gently dancing in the wind, and teahouses have never been something I would consider a vacation. But with every mile I covered above the tree line, I appreciated the beauty of the majestic range of mountains surrounding us. And the only change I would make if I got a do-over would be to ensure my spouse was on it as well.
“Hiking isn’t for everyone. Notice the wilderness is mostly empty.”
Sonja Yoerg
Just a little more 