Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
All for Nature, Nature for all
|
A trip to Kaudiyala, 37 km from Rishikesh, is all about living in the lap of Nature
|
AWESOME! A view of Camp5 Elements.
For those who usually reach home late at night after long hours at work, getting up early in the morning for a trip to icy-cold Rishikesh, that too, in winter seems almost too challenging. But the car to take me to the waiting luxury bus is at my doorstep. I stuff my bag with woollens, sports shoes, sunglasses, torch and beach sandals.
A smiling crew from Leisure Hotel wait at the branch office at Kalkaji. Now, `me' becomes `we'. We start around 6.30 a.m. for Kaudiyala, a cold, sand-clad destination beside the Alaknanda river where Camp 5 Elements has been set up. Located in the foothills of the Himalayas, this place is 37 km from Rishikesh.
Our luxury bus dares Delhi's bumpy roads, reaches The Grand Cheetal Hotel, nestled amid flowers, lush greenery and countless colourful caged birds, some 100 km from Delhi.
Hardwar
After a light meal, singing and playing antakashri, we reach Haveli Hari Ganga at Hardwar, famous for its old temple and well with medicinal water. We are welcomed with a performance of Lord Shiva's Tandav dance.
In the evening, we land at Camp 5 Elements at Kaudiyala. It takes us a good climb across pitch-dark Himalayan foothills, partially lit by torch beams and lights from mobile phones. Looking at the vast sand stretch and huts lining it, we realise why it is called a camp. These huts with attached washrooms and running water are its USP. Each houses twin beds placed on sack-carpets. For light, we have to use lanterns! Leisure Hotels have constructed sandpit toilets near the tented huts, which reportedly do not disturb the ecosystem.
We wake on an icy-cold morning to the chirping of birds and the breathtaking sight of the magnificent Himalayas on one side, with green towering trees, and the vast blue-green Alaknanda on the other. The fragrance from the trees mixes with the aroma of food inside the tented dining room. A chill wind tingles your spine, the boats on the river invite you to cruise.
An early morning `Nature walk' through the camp may result in a rendezvous with leopards, `Cebet' cats (the smallest jungle cats and great climbers), wild boars, porcupines and much more.
After a light breakfast we head for a pure adventure trip — white water rafting on the Ganga from Marine Drive to Shivpuri. Braced with windcheaters, we venture barefoot till the river. The guide makes us wear lifejackets and helmets. He directs us how to sail when high tides, or rapids, attempt to throw us inside the icy cold water. As we step into the boat, the vastness of the river sends shivers down our spines. The navigator hands us oars, and here we go! The guide has named various tides according to their intensity — black money, three blind mice, crossfire, body surfing and double trouble! The moment he shouts, "high rise — three blind mice, down-down, up-up," braving the heavy, freezing water on the body, we sink inside the boat, sit back, sail fast and `cross' the rapid. "Well done, good sail," he prepares us for the next rise!
A few of us decide to swim. "Don't worry, you won't drown. Life jackets will keep you floating on the surface... " he encourages the adventurers. It takes us three hours to compete the stretch, braving 13 troubles, dense whirlpools, and competing with the other boats.
A group braves the icy cold rapids in a white water rafting expedition.
All drenched, we eat our lunch shivering on the beach, surrounded by smooth, silky sunlight competing with a gusty wind. A look at the whole stretch mesmerises you — shining white sand, black-brown mountains, blue-green water, lush green trees and pure blue sky.
Adventurous
We come back by early evening for one more adventurous session: rappelling. Strapped into lifejackets, we are to rappel down the rope, and jump into the river from 10 to 20 feet. The boatman is ready to pick us up and ferry us to the beach!
Dinner with a bonfire and a guitarist singing melodious old songs till late into the night... What more could one ask for?
A trip back to Delhi via Rajaji National Park and Chilla, along a beautiful canal-side road - no, not bad at all! Getting up early was worth it.
RANA SIDDIQUI
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
|
