A Day Hike Around Kareri Village

For me walking is therapy, it almost always works to clear the cobwebs in my head. I guess there is something soothing about shutting everything out and just deciding where to keep the next step for a few hours! Or you can take the other view that my guide Sohan Singh ji is fond of propagating, that trekkers drop a screw from their brain and they keep going back again and again searching for it. For me there is truth in both the views! So a day hike around Kareri Village sounded ideal to me, as it was anyway not possible to do a proper trek due to snow.

Of the four days that I stayed at Kareri I was too lazy to venture out on the day after I arrived, the other two days, the weather ensured that I stayed in.

Three of us, Ravi (the eldest son of our hosts), Sohan ji and I ventured out after breakfast on a clear day. The plan was to take a circular route which would touch three villages Langa, Chattri Mua and Nohli. The population of the villages are 300, 150 and 250 people respectively. Kareri has a populations of about 750 people. When I asked Ravi how could he know 750 people plus almost everyone in the other three neighboring villages, he just laughed and said, he just knows!

When we started there were flaky white clouds in the sky making the whole scene even prettier. After walking for a while, the thick jacket came out, I was getting hot under the collar. However, the mind still kept wandering. Now there is a real risk involved in that. I am not used to walking on mountain routes, particularly if they are full of stones. It takes all my attention to keep my feet on the track and not to fall. A wandering mind is not good at all on a stone ridden trail, I am worse when going downhill. Thankfully I managed to keep walking without twisting my ankle or knee.

The villages were pretty with their neat houses clustered together. Ravi would greet someone every few meters. I would admire the mustard flowers in bloom and wonder why can’t I make the picture look as pretty as the scene. My SLR was with Sohan ji as he was busy shooting birds! I was content with my Lumia1020 which is a pretty decent phone for photography.

We eventually arrived at Nohli which is not very far away from Kareri. But we took two tea breaks in this village as Ravi’s uncle and aunt lived there. It was refreshing to have tea after walking for a few hours.

I was wondering if my going to the gym would make any difference to my trekking? I am not sure what to conclude on the basis of this day hike. I guess I was too preoccupied, the cobwebs were getting more tangled as I walked and I did tire easily.

However, after the tea break I certainly concentrated better on the path and found the going easy. We reached back to Kareri at about 3.00 pm to a late lunch. This hike was puzzling for me as I have never been absent minded on a trek! I guess I need to go trekking again and this time for a few days at a stretch to test out if working out is helping or not!