Into Untravelled Himalaya

INTO THE UNTRAVELLED HIMALAYA – Travels, Treks and Climbs. By Harish Kapadia. Sketches by Geeta Kapadia. Pp. 256, 14 colour and 34 b/w photos, 23 sketch maps, 2005. (Indus Publishing Company, New Delhi Rs. 400).

Success in life, it is said, is the progressive realisation of a worthy ideal. Fairly early in his life Harish Kapadia realised that mountains were definitely a grand ideal to pursue. Exploring the lesser known and unknown Himalayan peaks and valleys for over four decades now; his high altitude pursuits have taken him to some of the remotest regions, taught him many useful lessons in life and won him many admirers and friends. It has also brought him international acclaim including the highly prestigious the Patron’s (Royal) Medal from the Royal Geographical Society; the first by an Indian in over 125 years. A prolific writer and editor of the prestigious Himalayan Journal, Harish through his earlier writings has taken us across peaks and passes, opened up high-unknown valleys and led us into the unexplored hidden Himalaya.

As he enters the sixth decade of his life, an age when many of us will hang up our boots and start churning out sagely advice, mostly unsolicited, to anyone who will listen; Harish tells us that he is far away from doing any such thing. In the book under review, he describes his exploits in the last decade, a ten years period, which has been very momentous for him – both personally and professionally. During this time he had to take a call on relinquishing his family trading business and devote all his time to his mountaineering passion. It has also been the period when he won international acclaim and honour. It was also a time when his two sons came of age and left home to seek their own destinies. This book is dedicated to the memory of his younger son, Lt. Nawang Kapadia, a mountaineering enthusiast and a Gurkha Officer who went down fighting terrorists in Kashmir while saving a comrade. A glorious act indeed and in the finest traditions of the Indian Army.

In Into the Untravelled Himalaya we accompany Harish on his travels, treks and climbs in regions spread across the length of the Himalaya and beyond to the high Tibetan plateau. Himalayan Geography, indisputably, links India and Tibet and therefore China. Many of our major rivers originate in Tibet and both India and China are on the threshold of being economic and military superpowers. During his travels into Tibet, Harish also shows that links between the two ancient civilizations run deep and extend to shared cultures, religions, politics and history including wars and conquests in the past by Mongols, Sikhs and British. Interestingly, with an eye on history, the author commenced his last journey to Tibet a century later – exact 100 years to the day – to Sir Francis Younghusband’s march into Tibet with the British troops, which was a decisive gamble played by Lord Curzon in the Great Game.

The author shares with us the joys of traversing through the benevolent Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan whose history, politics and destiny is interwoven to her giant neighbours to the north and south. He brings out why its national priorities, even in the capitalist world of today, are towards preservation of its unique cultural heritage and increasing gross national happiness for its people as against blindly chasing materia gains. There are sweet moments experienced and memories of past relived while gently exploring Sikkim under the gaze of mighty Kangchenjunga. In his travels to Arunachal Pradesh, an area not visited by him hitherto, he explores the Tawang tract and the Tsangpo-Siang Bend, where mighty Brahmaputra enters the Indian Territory. He also weaves together an interesting historical narrative of the late 19th century British explorers to this area, pays homage to the sacrifices of the Indian Army in 1962 war and compares the social changes sweeping across the land. All these are described in his inimitable prose, shooting straight from the hip sans any irrelevant metaphors but backed by detailed maps, solid research and reference footnotes.

The Dalai Lama says that the advantages of living a good life are that when you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time. After many ‘misspent’ years of Himalayan climbs and as age weakens the body but not the spirit, Harish admits, there are more gentle treks and shorter climbs now with friends; many of them acquired in those years of shared hardships undergone during strenuous mountain climbs together. It is a delight to read the accounts of his ‘Bagpipe Treks’ undertaken with varied friends, including many renowned names in mountaineering. These jaunts to beautiful and often unexplored places in Uttaranchal & Himachal show us the simpler joys of camaraderie and reliving past memories, while simultaneously enjoying the experience of being in the midst of Himalaya, savouring unique cultures and interaction with the local people.

The highlight of the book is undoubtedly the accounts of author’s climbs and travels in East Karakoram; a region at the crossroads of ancient trade routes, it stands high like a geographical fulcrum and was the nucleus of the 19th century Great Game between the imperial powers. Harish takes us through the bleak landscapes littered with bleached bones of animals and humans that fell to the hardships of the treacherous terrain and to places associated with 19th century explorers. So at the Karakoram pass we remember the indefatigable Andrew Dalgliesh of The Central India Trading Company who was murdered there by an Afghan and at Leh we pay homage at the grave of Ferdinand Stoliczka. In a slight personal twist regarding the latter, a few years ago, I drove for five hours from Delhi to see Stoliczka’s Bushchat, Saxicola macrorhyncha, a rare endemic bird about the size of a sparrow, found in the dry wastelands of Western India that was first described to science by this 19th century Russian naturalist and is therefore named in his honour.

While in the rugged East Karakoram, Harish does not however forget the real ‘Kings ofKarakoram’- the humble mules! Through a masterly treatise he delves deep into the lives of these hardy animals that – as in the centuries past – continue to play a vital role in the success of any travel, exploration and climbs in these desolate heights. As this region once again regains strategic focus, Helicopters to maintain the supply lines to remote posts and the ubiquitous gasoline Jerry cans that turn the wheels of the military convoys are also vital necessities now, laments the author.

Beyond enjoyment for mere sport, we mountaineers have a duty to see that the pristine mountain places are saved from environmental degradation. I am sure the future generations will not forgive us if we short-change the fragile Himalayan environment in return for a few short- term economic gains. Harish takes us through the saga of Siachen, environmental side affects of this two decades old war in the high altitude and efforts by many to give the peace and the region’s environment to recover a chance. With both countries agreeing to a ceasefire and holding on to a fragile peace, a short-term objective may have been achieved, he says, but there’s a long path to travel before the proposed trans-boundary Peace Park is a reality and the fragrant roses bloom again in these icy wastes. Harish is passionate in his plea to the Governments and people of both countries that ‘Nations, which do not understand and respect geography are condemned by history’.

The book with detailed sketch maps of remote regions, photographs and beautiful sketches by Geeta Kapadia is a must have for every serious worshipper of the Himalaya.

Cdr K B Singh