Kashmir

We had planned a shared jeep leaving Leh at 5pm and arriving in Srinigar at about 9am.  We arrived in Srinagar at around 2 the following afternoon after getting kicked out our taxi and put in another, vomiting and a 2 hour stop due to “road construction”.  It was an unforgettable experience, that I can now say I would do again but probably wouldn’t have at the time. Holly’s friend from Ladakh who was studying in Sringar met us at the Taxi stand then we all headed to Dal Lake to meet Sean, Josh and Ronik from Bhagsu and a friend of Josh’s from home. It worked out perfect that all eight of us could all share a lovely (and cheap) houseboat for our stay in Sringiar. Though we all were coming from different places we quickly became one big loving happy family. Our time together was far too short, but we truly shared something special together. In addition to just playing guitar, eating and hanging out in Srinigar we took at two night camping adventure in Pahalgam.

Once arriving, and telling the crowd of Kashmiri’s several times that we do not need a nice cheap guest house, we attempted to shop for what we made need for 8 people and two days of camping then headed up the mountain. We camped on the edge of a beautiful open field in a valley of snowy peaks. On one of the field were several chai shops to care for the needs of the hundreds of Indian tourists that took pony tours in the area, and the other end were several gypsy huts. We had a lovely dinner over the fire and then tried to sleep 8 people in one tent with 2 ½ sleeping bags (one was mummy style and couldn’t unzip) and no mats. We didn’t get much sleep, to say the very least. Though I was up with the sun, or possibly never slept it’s hard to tell, we still didn’t manage to leave the camp site until after 10 am for our hike to the glacier lake.

Even though none of us slept, it was the most amazing hike I have ever done. First off, I was surrounded by an eclectic group of people whom I love so much even though only Holly I had known for over a month. Secondly, it was unbelievably gorgeous. We hiked through tall forests, passing gypsy huts, wild horses, wild flowers until we reached paradise, a picture perfect valley. I was overcome with peace and love in my body as I laid down on the green grass by the river which flowed rapidly with cold glacier water. I was about to take a nap until Golzar announced that we were not actually at our destination, but the glacier lake was just a 20 minutes hike up. I really didn’t want to keep hiking, my boots were already off and everything, but I figured I could squeeze another 20 minutes out of me. So after about two hours and 20 minutes of hiking up the snow I found myself yet again in paradise. And this time I really had to work for it. Though it was defiantly a very challenging hike, I can’t really complain because it least I had hiking boots. Sean and Josh on the other hand were barefoot. It wasn’t anything new, they are usually barefoot for most hikes, but then again we usually aren’t hiking glaciers. Golzar mentioned it would probably be a good idea to wear shoes, but he didn’t mention why. They ended taking the ‘road less traveled’ and hiked/climbed on their hands and knees along the edge of the glacier, running across the snow only when necessary. I couldn’t believe we all made it, and I know it is a moment none of us will ever forget. Going down the glacier was much easier and quiet entertaining, I can still picture Josh running/slidding down the snow full force with a stick in each hand. Thalassa and I gave up our socks in hopes to give Sean and Josh at least a little bit of protection.

We got back to our lunch spot at about 5 pm, and back to our campsite at about 8pm, just as it started thunder storming. We most certainly did not have a waterproof tent, or enough food for dinner (or any way to cook it) so we decided to grab the rest of our stuff and the tent and head for the village. After getting some much needed food we all snuggled up in a cheap hotel for some rest.

We had two more lovely nights together back on our houseboat on Dal Lake before Holly, Thalassa and I headed to Delhi for our departure from India. On our final evening together we all snuggled in the living space together, playing guitar and talking until we couldn’t keep our eyes open anymore.

Chanting the call to prayer

Dal Lake