Triund - The Crown Jewel of Dharamshala - Travel Blog (Incredible India #2)

After spending a day at Dharamkot, the next leg of our journey in Kangra Valley was the trek to Triund. (To reach up to Triund from Delhi, please read my previous blog).
https://steemit.com/travel/@ankursiddha/dharamkot-a-hippie-village-in-the-himalayas-travel-blog

The Old Monk played its role well and none woke up till 9 am. The trek which was scheduled to start at 8 am was nowhere close to commencing. It took us about two hours from here to pull ourselves out of beds, have tea and breakfast and finally begin walking towards Triund. We had earlier planned to trek up in the morning and be back by 3 pm or so before the sunset.

Details of trek:

a) Distance of Trek-
1. 6km from Gallu Devi temple
2. 8km from Dharamkot Main Square
3. 10km from Mcleodganj

b) Difficult Level – Easy to Moderate (Depending on weather)

c) Best Time – April, May or August to November

At 11 am we finally locked our rooms at the “Yellow House” and made our way through the woods (read shortcut) to catch up with the trek trail. Within 15 minutes I was out of my breath and embarrassed by my speed. The trail is a beautiful winding gravel path, well laid out at most parts.

Through most part of the trek, you get a wonderful view of Dharamshala and Mcleodganj. Some important landmarks to spot are the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium at Dharamshala and the Dalai Lama Temple at Mcleodganj. Its always good to carry binoculars. We reached the Gallu Devi Temple fairly quickly. It is the official starting point of the trek. A police check post is set up here to take information of trekkers heading up and to ask your intended duration of stay. We took another tea break here and started out.

It took us almost 4 hours to cover 6km.The trek is kind of scary at places where the trail becomes narrow and you have to hold dearly to the mountains to cross a few stones. But most of it is a fairly easy task. The last 1km is a steep climb on huge boulders. This being my first true trek experience showed me my physical capabilities on my face and I must admit I am ashamed now. I now know where all the pizza and burgers I ever had in life made a difference ☹ Thanks to my team we had hip-flask full of our dear Old Monk and some horrendous Punjabi music on Bluetooth loudspeakers being played throughout the journey. Finally, after 4 hours of walking and innumerable cigarette breaks we made it to Triund at 4 pm.

Triund is a vast open strip of pasture land on top of a hill. You are welcomed here, during season, by swarms of small tea shops and camping tents. It feels like a whole different kind of party is on here all the time. Music systems are playing Punjabi or trance at different places. Most people are high on all kind of substances and dancing to their own sweet tunes. Before I could absorb the whole scene, I dashed around to look for a restroom only to find out that such systems do not exist here. God save us urban animals!!! Looking for a restroom on top of a hill. I finally resigned to hunting for
a huge rock that would serve as a nice hideout to attend to my nature’s calls. And here we must

Note: No restrooms or water source at this place. Kindly carry your toilet papers.

As we hadn’t had lunch, each of us quickly had some Maggi from one of the tea shops and the men decided to accompany it with a few rounds of Rum, as the air around was already getting cold. We didn’t stay for the night at Triund as it would be expensive and extremely cold.

For those who intend to stay:

1. Camping tents cost about 400 bucks per person per night and are available on rent at tea shops.
2. You’ll have to bring your own blankets and sleeping bags though they can be rented for extra cost.
3. There are no restrooms. The best option is to find the right rocks that can hide you from the public view and do your thing. Have your own toilet paper.
4. Food and water are expensive here, so if you can, carry your food.
5. There is no electricity to keep you warm or your phones charged. It gets extremely cold at night even during summers and at one point even layers of blankets become useless. Hot Maggi or alcohol are your only friends.

We decided to head back to Dharamkot after rest of an hour. The sun was setting in front of our eyes and the view was something to behold. Me being the nature lover that I am, absorbed enough of it all through my way back. My mind bursting away with all the thoughts and memories dear to me. What wonders a date with nature can do to our mind

One mistake we did was that we literally trekked back in pitch darkness. Partially because we started late in the morning and other being our speed and laziness. The trek that was already risky at places proved riskier in the darkness. I almost slipped and lost balance at a couple of places and twisted my leg over a rock. A guide on the way scared us all with stories of wild animals. By the time we reached Dharamkot it was 8 pm. As we couldn’t take the shortcut through the woods, we had to make our way through the Main Square and it took us longer to reach. We decided to dine at Trek N Dine. Dinner consisted of roti, dal and egg curry and some steaming cups of masala chai. I opted for hot
chocolate.

Things to take care:
1. You can take your car or hire a car up to Gallu Devi temple. The road is in bad shape though. A ride from Dharamkot Main Square to Gallu Temple takes about 400 bucks for 4 Pax.
2. Do not carry heavy bags especially if you are a first-time trekker like me as it can be challenging for you.
3. Keep a few handfuls of dry fruits and carbs sources to keep your energy levels maintained.
4. Carry woollens, lot of them as it gets cold at night. Temperature drops well below zero degree.
5. There are a lot of waterfalls around this area which are all short treks one can undertake if they stay for an extended period. (I will try to cover a few of those in my next trips)