Day 1- Me trying the First Footages at Chamba after the non-stop 6 hrs drive from Delhi
Day 1- Krushi and Pramod coming back after exploring the Sulabh Sauchalaya at Chamba
Day 1- Rachit and Pramod checking out the local provisions shop at chamba
Day 1- Stopping by Tehri reservoir after Chamba
Day 1- Tehri reservoir after Chamba
Day 1- Chirag, Karan, Me and Rachit (L to R) at Uttarkashi GMVN
Day 2- Waking up to a misty morning at Jhala camp
Day 2- Good Morning India!! School kids waking us up
Day 2- Morning at Jhala Campsite at the school premises
Day 2- Morning at Jhala Campsite looking up towards Harsil
Day 2- Breakfast ready!!!
Day 2- Pradeep busy being the Master Chef
Day 2- Team getting ready-- we are standing on the left bank of Bhagirathi
Day 2- Team getting starts off- dont know whats lyin ahead.. :-)
Day 2- Rachit's first fascination with floral close-ups
Day 2- The trail on the left bank leading towards Sian Gad junction
Day 2- Full river seen at Sian Gad junction
Day 2- Tell-tale sentinel?? Sian Gad- Bhagirathi confluence area
Day 2- Silent sentinel
Day 2- Crossing the Sian Gad riverbed strewn with boulders
Day 2- Krushi and I posing before Sian Gad crossing
Day 2- Jaisingh supervising Pramod's crossing over the first log bridge
Day 2- Crossing the Sian Gad riverbed across the wooden bridge
Day 2- Team gathering on the left bank of Sian Gad after crossing both raging streams of it
Day 2- Starting the tough climb on left bank of Sian Gad after crossing it
Day 2- Jaisingh (L) and Me (R) standing on a rock ledge during first climb on the left bank
Day 2- Rachit on the rock ledge
Day 2- As we climbed higer on the left bank of the valley
Day 2- and higher!!
Day 2- Looking down into Sian Gad river after climbing the tough stretch
Day 2- Sian Gad confluence with Bhagirathi bed seen from 300 mtrs
Day 2- Lunch time! Pramod and Chirag depart for Tapovan after this
Day 2- Parting shot with Pramod- he had to leave with Chirag on the Tapovan trek
Day 2- Stairways to heaven's?? Actually we came down from over there after having lunch
Day 2- Absolute verdant green joining in from the left side of Sian Gad valley
Day 2- Fury of nature... dead logs strewn around by some angry avalanche in winter
Day 2- As the mountain overlooking jhala recedes farther away
Day 2- Friendly shepherd dog with anti-leopard-collar after Bin Thatch
Day 2- He was such a cuty pie..looks like a Rottweiler here
Day 2- Baby trapeze artist...munching fresh greens at Bin Thatch
Day 2- Furious Sian Gad at Bin Thatch
Day 2- Sitting on a rock with the furious Sian Gad behind at Bin Thatch. The furious Sian Gad is roaring behind
Day 2- The first of the of wild strawberries...was plentiful in 2000-3500 mtrs range through out the trek
Day 2- Floral closeups enroute Jadunga camp after Bin Thatch
Day 2- Rachit's floral close up after his tryst with wild strawberries
Day 2- Campsite at last after 10 kilometers of march
Day 2- Midnight moon at Jadunga Camp site
Day 3- Krushi waking up to a pretty morning at Jadunga camp sipping hot chocolate
Day 3- Pinnacles of Jaonli ridge seen from tent at Jadunga camp
Day 3- Morning at Jadunga Camp
Day 3- Drupad ka Danda Peak seen from Jadunga Camp
Day 3- Route leading into the jungle path after Jadunga camp
Day 3- The shepherds dog greeting us at Jadunga camp in the morning
Day 3- First glacier crossing... smallest of all as we would realise later
Day 3- Patterned Snake Lilly - a kilometer from Jadunga camp
Day 3- Rich Flora in green forest - couple of kilometers from Jadunga Camp
Day 3- Rich Flora in green forest - a kilometer from Jadunga Camp
Day 3- Jungle walk after crossing glacier after breaking camp at Jadunga
Day 3- dense foliage between Jadunga and Chhota Kiarkoti
Day 3- Hey how do I get there? First river crossing after Jadunga
Day 3- Me approaching the sharp descent down to the first river crossing where we had to take off shoes
Day 3- Loaded porters crossing the river
Day 3- Shades of mauve on the dirty glacier ice. Near the river crossing
Day 3- Landslide area before reaching Chhota Kiarkoti after saying bye bye to the guys from Mumbai and Meerut - they returning from Ratia camp due to AMS
Day 3- Onwards to chhota kiarkoti- Loaded porters
Day 3- Approaching lunch stop at Chhota Kiarkoti
Day 3- View opposite chhota Kiarkoti
Day 3- Herd of Goats and sheep at Chhota Kiarkoti
Day 3- Guard dog- Chhota Kiarkoti
Day 3- Mayawati- the Benzie look-alike at Chhota Kiarkoti
Day 3- Head to Head...Goats at Chhota Kiarkoti
Day 3- Me feeding Mayawati...she was such a cuty pie!
Day 3- Lazing goats at Chhota Kiarkoti- our lunch stop
Day 3- Baby Goat at Chhota Kiarkoti
Day 3- So sweet and innocent!! Chhota Kiarkoti
Day 3- Krushi lost in thoughts amongst goats
Day 3- Contemplative Mayawati- reminded me of Benzie- the hollywood dog-star
Day 3- Reaching Kiarkoti camping grounds
Day 3- Karan admiring the Kalanag at Kiarkoti camp
Day 3- The small nala emanating from North Face of Kalanag bang infront of the kiarkoti campsite
Day 3- Mystical skyline from the tent at Kiarkoti camp
Day 3- Distant Jaonli ridge from Kiarkoti camp
Day 3- Lovely skyline at Kiarkoti camp...the night would see a thunderstorm
Day 3- Praveen thought this was the reason of the thunderstorm. The mutton being processed...porters had a gala time
Day 4- Damp and chilly morning at Kiarkoti camp overlooked by North face of Kalanag
Day 4- smoky morning at Kiarkoti camp site
Day 4- The gurgling stream of water source at Kiarkoti camp
Day 4- North Face of Kalanag seen at Kiarkoti camp site
Day 4- Blooming flowers in the cold morning at Kiarkoti camp site
Day 4- Morning at Kiarkoti camp site Kitchen and porter tents at the left and the members' tent on the right
Day 4- Looking ahead to Ghantraro area lying towards the head of the valley where the valley takes a sharp turn to left and forks out between Sian Gad and DDK Pass area
Day 4- Krushi and me after some huffing and puffing in the forest above Kiarkoti camp
Day 4- Rachit catching a flower of wild-strawberries in full bloom
Day 4- White out in the rocky route ahead from Kiarkoti
Day 4- Moments of jest amongst rocks- Rachit in Yellow and Krushi in white
Day 4- Resting for a moment in the route thru morraines ahead of Kiarkoti
Day 4- Me pointing the way to approaching party near the cave area also known as Ghantraro camping ground
Day 4- Rachit after pitching tents at Odar Camping ground near the Sian Gad stream crossing
Day 4- Me after pitching tents at Odar Camping ground near the Sian Gad stream crossing
Day 4- White out towards Kiarkoti - evening at Odar camp
Day 4- The sharply bending valley coming up from Kiarkoti- evening at Odar camp
Day 5- A huge Himalayan Brown bear came visiting us at the ground about 100 feet below the Odar camp
Day 5- Can you make out the figure of two men and a dog? Morning at Odar camp looking South to the head of the valley
Day 5- Porters shouting out alarm to Karan as the bear advanced towards the camp
Day 5- Early morning at Odar camp ..looking down towards Kiarkoti
Day 5- Krushi busy finishing morning chores at Odar camp- getting ready for the river crossing
Day 5- A shot of the mountains at the head of Sian Gad Valley
Day 5- Mountains at head of Sian Gad valley ..Odar camp
Day 5- The valley leading towards the pass... we are to follow on its left bank (to the right in the picture) after crossing the Sian Gad
Day 5- Morning at Odar camp- smokey mountains towards Kiarkoti side
Day 5- Wondering how to cross THAT one!! Sian Gad in full fury challanging us to cross it
Day 5- Jaisingh at work in the middle of the river
Day 5- Ropes fixed and all stations manned...ready to get the members across
Day 5- First porter crosses over
Day 5- And then another
Day 5- Karan and Rachit lead the way amongst the members
Day 5- Jaisingh supervising the crossing shouting instructions into his radio (white towel on his shoulder)
Day 5- Me wading through the waters quickly
Day 5- Krushi probing the waters during the crossing
Day 5- River crossing...team in actions
Day 5- Last of the loads coming thru
Day 5- And finally this little drama.. Porter Sirdar Rathore refuses to touch the cold water
Day 5- Safe crossing!! The team on the other side of the river
Day 5- Gotta reach that ridge and follow the valley upwards to the left bank
Day 5- Begining of the zillions of glacier crossings
Day 5- Taking a breather at Ratia camping ground
Day 5- Smokey midday at Ratia
Day 5- Flower bedecked gurgling stream at Ratia
Day 5- The ghastly skeleton in its rocky burial at Ratia camping ground- only the skull is visible...remains of a decade old dead trekker
Day 5- Taking a breather in wispy white out onwards to DDK Base camp
Day 5- Struggling on beyond Ratia
Day 5- Black and whites at DDK Pass Base camp
Day 5- DDK Pass Base camp established!!
Day 5- Brilliant moon after nightfall at DDK Base camp
Day 5- Brilliant moonlight (moon not visible) after nightfall at DDK Base camp
Day 5- Evening twilight at DDK Base camp
Day 6- Icefall emanating from west face of Kalanag
Day 6- Glacier area to the East- DDK Pass base camp
Day 6- First view of the pass in the cloudy morning- the pass is just immediately to the left of the prominent rock mound on the ridgeline
Day 6- Sun and shade throughout the day!!
Day 6- More of sun, clouds and shades
Day 6- Close up shot of the pass thru misty white out. The crossover point is just to the left of the begining of the rocky hump on the ridgeline
Day 6- Gloomy morning at DDK Base camp- Rushi getting over his AMS
Day 6- Glimpses of the blue sky over the eastern horizon- DDK Base camp
Day 6- Fixing tripod for the panorama shot as Rushi and Rachit get ready for the recee trip
Day 6- Camp site Panorama ...DDK Pass Base camp
Day 6- Guys starting off on the recee trip.... the dark rock band of the pass is visible atop the snow ridge in midframe
Day 6- Dal Bahadur and Pradeep getting ready for the recee trip
Day 6- Even a gloomy day can have its sunny sides
Day 6- Weird reddish deposit on ice ..may be iron ore there??
Day 6- Dal Bahadur and Rachit on recee trip
Day 6- Idle gossip in tent after reccee trip- Me
Day 6- Idle gossip in tent after reccee trip- Me and Karan
Day 7- Lovely morning on summit day at DDK Pass base camp
Day 7- Breakfast time at DDK Pass base camp before starting for the pass
Day 7- Lovely view ..almost dreamy at DDK Pass base camp before starting for the pass
Day 7- Bright sun heralds the summit day
Day 7- Summit day....starting off from camp!
Day 7- Rachit suffering from bad bout of asthma but still soldiering on
Day 7- Proceeding on to the pass...camp site at far distance
Day 7- Bright morning on summit day!!
Day 7- Summit day...leaving the campsite behind
Day 7- Getting ready for that long climb to the top
Day 7- Pradeep helping dal bahadur out of a snow ditch
Day 7- Pradeep raring to go for the summit.... poor chap has to chaperone us the whole day...me and rachit
Day 7- The looong climb up the ridge leading to the pass
Day 7- Bit of a snow and lots of rock on the ridge...were we lucky!!!
Day 7- Luckily this fat bed of snow did not straddle our track on the way to ridge top
Day 7- Krushi happy after reaching ridge top
Day 7- Cairn marking the ridge top leading to the pass
Day 7- View of the Cwm to the right leading towards Ratia Peak and swararohini range
Day 7- Rachit and Pradeep approaching the top part of the ridge leading to the pass
Day 7- The almost vertical wall leading to the pass lies just below the rock band with threat of falling rocks
Day 7- This tall pillar marks the position of the pass ...looked so different from the base camp
Day 7- Jaisingh assisting me in the final climb thru the fixed rope section
Day 7- Summit at last at 1144 Hrs at 5300 mtrs
Day 7- On top of DDK Pass
Day 7- Karan huddled and waiting! on top of DDK Pass
Day 7- Praveen (L) and Krushi (R)! on top of DDK Pass
Day 7- White depths on the otherside of the pass...several tarns and lakes vaguely visible
Day 7- Waiting for others to arrive! on top of DDK Pass
Day 7- The heart shaped tarn visible on the kalanag glacier..seen from top of DDK Pass
Day 7- Absolute white out over the area we just came from
Day 7- After all that toil...a liesurely trudge thru snow
Day 7- The crew in a long single file thru snow and white out...radio contact was a must
Day 7- Trudging thru snow and white out along the right bank of Kalanag icefall
Day 7- Ahh!! Finally reached the Banderpunch Glacier camping ground- Jaisingh somehow called this place Camp 1
Day 8- Morning at Banderpunch glacier camp
Day 8- Morning clouds and blue skies over the peaks in Banderpunch range
Day 8- Early morning at the banderpunch glacier camp
Day 8- Peaks of the banderpunch massif in sun n shade
Day 8- The Kalanag peak as seen from Banderpunch glacier camp
Day 8- The majestic Banderpunch Glacier
Day 8- Kalanag Icefall- seen from Banderpunch glacier camp
Day 8- The Banderpunch peak hidden in clouds at centre-frame
Day 8- Blue skies over the Northern Horizon beyond the swargarohini ridge- Banderpunch glacier camp
Day 8- Banderpunch glacier camp- Close up view of Kalanag Peak
Day 8- The pretty Banderpunch glacier
Day 8- Closer view of Kalanag Icefall
Day 8- Parting shots at glacier camp- Views of Kalanag and Banderpunch...
Day 8- Shots at glacier camp- Views of some peaks in the swargarohini range...
Day 8- Note the interesting looking trapezoidal shape of the white looking peak in the middle of the trio of peaks at mid-frame
Day 8- That small ridge in front of the camp was the shooting gallery overlooking the massive glacier area...
Day 8- Close up of the Kalanag icefall
Day 8- 180 degree Panorama in front of Glacier camp site
Day 8- Getting ready for the day of long march at the breakfast table
Day 8- Getting ready to break camp- Banderpunch glacier camp
Day 8- Unknown and pretty...cacti looking flora near Banderpunch glacier camp
Day 8- Close up of Kalanag icefall
Day 8- The rising storm cloud...looking weird
Day 8- Descending down to the yellow flowered meadow enroute Kiarkoti(Ruinsara side) camping ground
Day 8- Riot of yellow
Day 8- All four of us (L to R sitting) - Krushi, Karan, Rachit and me kneeling behind..in the tiny flowery meadow
Day 8- Guys spent time in a major photo session afterwards
Day 8- Tall grass at Kiarkoti camping ground...was it Green!!!
Day 8- Kiarkoti camping ground- we reached there at midday
Day 8- Route leading out to Ruinsara valley from Kiarkoti camping ground
Day 8- Another valley of flowers between Kiarkoti and Ruinsara
Day 8- The Tange nala coming down from Balipass area
Day 8- The little forest overlooking Ruinsara taal
Day 8- Ruinsara taal- all green and dark brown...shades of blue if the sky is clear
Day 8- Log bridge across the nala past Ruinsara Taal...last of our worries for the day
Day 8- Whoa!! Surprise coupon!! Angry Ruinsara gad flooded the track
Day 8- Porters crossing over the submerged track under full fury of Roaring ruinsara gad
Day 8- Jaisingh overseeing porters' crossing....according to him porter Rajan Kirki just got saved by a whisker!!
Day 9- Early morning at the Ruinsara Gad camp...we had soft dunlop bed in the tents...thanks to the overgrown foliage underneath
Day 9- Waking up at the campsite overlooking HKD/Ruinsara junction.. lets call it the Ruinsara gad camp
Day 9- Crossing the wooden bridge over Ruinsara Gad to move on to the left bank of Supin
Day 9- Phew!! Lovely view after the tough climb that awaited us after bridge crossing... Gujjar Thatch...Kalanag and Banderpunch in view
Day 9- Entering the HKD valley...looking down towards Seema
Day 9- Looking back towards HKD valley
Day 9- Karan stuck in a traffic jam...couple of kilometers to Seema
Day 9- How verdant is my valley...looking up towards HKD
Day 9- Suspension bridge connecting Seema and Osla
Day 9- Karan taking a breather over the suspension bridge across Supin near Seema
Day 9- Raging torrents of the Supin river little ahead of Seema
Day 9- Gangad Kids
Day 9- Gangad Village...we took a call to follow the shorter route by the river side
Day 9- Karan captures evidence of systematic logging...or was it about the age of the tree??
Day 9- HKD architecture in Osla houses
Day 9- The Taluka Village
Day 10- Good Morning Taluka!!! Forest Guest House
Day 10- The lovely forest walk from Taluka to Sankri
Day 10- last of the huge land slide areas between Taluka and Sankri
Day 10- Finally the long trudge comes to an end- Jeep to carry us to Sankri
Day 10- The Team posing for group photo at Mori before the porters departed for Uttarkashi
Day 10- forest near lunch stop near Nowgaon
Day 10- The moon-flower blooming in front of our eyes at Barkot GMVN guest house
Day 11- Django greets me back as Rachit looks on
Day 11- Jackie barking eager for attention at my place
Day 11- Django and Karan at my place
