Author infront of the bridge over Kalapani river at Bundhi (3323 metres)
The 4 k.m. trek from Lamari to Bundhi was completed by me in 2 hours and I reached Bundhi by 11 a.m.The slope is gentle but the path is rocky and uneven. I passed an iron bridge over the river, just before reaching Bundhi.. I was received by Havildar Johnson at the ITBP camp at Bundhi. I stayed at the PWD guest house, which offers a close-up view of the Annapoorna peak in Nepal. After a quick visit to Bundhi village, where I conducted ZeNLP meditation workshop for the villagers and ITBP commandos. I spent the day in vipassana, chanting and zen meditation. The temperature in mid-May rarely goes above 15 degrees centigrade and mornings are pleasant. It is extremely cold at nights and one needs thick cotton mattresses to keep out the cold.
After taking a well deserved overnight rest at Bundhi, I started early next day, to commence the toughest part of my trek. The distance between Bundhi and Chia Lekh is a mere 3 km. but the incline is a right angle and one has to climb 1000 metres in this 3 km. ascent. The most picturesque scences of my trek were revealed to me during this torturous climb. Every step of this climb is a victory. Against all odds, I completed this 3 km. crawl in 6 hours. I started from Bundhi at 6: a.m. and made it to Chia Lekh by 12 noon.
My inner line permit was checked by ITBP commandos at Chia Lekh and after a brief lecture to the commandos on "simple ways to manage stress", I had some refreshing black tea with wild mint and left for Garbiang at 3:00 p.m. Garbiang is a 4 km. walk from Chia Lekh. The lush green meadows, the grazing ponies, mountain goats and horses remind you of Switzerland. This is a straight trek through meadows, most of the time. I did stop at a mountain stream to drink pure mineral water. I reached the ITBP camp at Garbiang by 6:00 p.m., where I was received by Inspector Balbir Singh and sub-inspector Varghese who had arranged my stay at their officer's guest-room.
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