I work for the Railways in middle management, as a civil engineer. The current responsibilities were to be factored in the scheme of things which meant I had to be away for a month. Although my bosses (and at times me too) had reservations about such a long period of absence but my immediate boss, the Divisional Railway Manager, Delhi, was very supportive and was instrumental in putting all others involved in the decision making, at ease. The second factor was my family. We are a family of 6, me and my 2 daughters (11 and 8 yrs), my parents and my lifeline, my wife who has always been the major part of my support system. She had voluntarily left her job to look after the kids and also to cope with my frequent transfers, often to far off small towns. As I broke the news and my decision to her, she took it with equanimity and also comforted my parents who took the news with some disquiet.
So I had sanctioned leave, a confirmed slot in the Basic Mountaineering Course (BMC) number 202, at Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM), Uttarkashi, starting from 24th April 2008. The first step was to look up the list of essentials we were supposed to bring with us to NIM. After some search on the net for likely places which stocked the required gear, I zeroed down on Adventure 18, Satya Niketan, Near Venketeshwara College. This was conveniently close by from my place in Chanakyapuri. I bought a balaclava cap, lafuma gloves and a raincoat (like the one we wear on a bike), Petzl Tikka plus LED lamp and I was set except for one thing-I did not have trekking boots! Some more search found me confused for the variety of choices. Finally Adidas Terrex GTX won me over and though they costed a bomb, I bought a pair from the Adidas shop in the inner circle, Connaught Place. I had a Lowe Alpine Contour Mountain 40 daypack and I intended to fit all the stuff I was to take, into this. Of course I failed miserably, but more on that later.
I soon found out that one of the trekkers from my previous group which went to Stock Kangri ABC trek, was also signed up for the trip. This made me happier as I knew at least one of my fellow trainees beforehand. Orkut got me 2 scraps from 2 more guys joining the same course.
So here I am, all set to board Mussorie Express from Delhi on 22nd April, for Haridwar.
So I had sanctioned leave, a confirmed slot in the Basic Mountaineering Course (BMC) number 202, at Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM), Uttarkashi, starting from 24th April 2008. The first step was to look up the list of essentials we were supposed to bring with us to NIM. After some search on the net for likely places which stocked the required gear, I zeroed down on Adventure 18, Satya Niketan, Near Venketeshwara College. This was conveniently close by from my place in Chanakyapuri. I bought a balaclava cap, lafuma gloves and a raincoat (like the one we wear on a bike), Petzl Tikka plus LED lamp and I was set except for one thing-I did not have trekking boots! Some more search found me confused for the variety of choices. Finally Adidas Terrex GTX won me over and though they costed a bomb, I bought a pair from the Adidas shop in the inner circle, Connaught Place. I had a Lowe Alpine Contour Mountain 40 daypack and I intended to fit all the stuff I was to take, into this. Of course I failed miserably, but more on that later.
I soon found out that one of the trekkers from my previous group which went to Stock Kangri ABC trek, was also signed up for the trip. This made me happier as I knew at least one of my fellow trainees beforehand. Orkut got me 2 scraps from 2 more guys joining the same course.
So here I am, all set to board Mussorie Express from Delhi on 22nd April, for Haridwar.
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