Garhwal (Articles)

• 1970 Tragedy of Bethartoli Himal

  THE TRAGEDY came slowly, almost absurdly. Looking back now in 1992, after 22 years, the Bethartoli Himal and Trisul expeditions of 1970 seem so far away. more details…

• 1970 Bethartoli Himal Expedition

  The mountaineering history of Bethartoli Himal peaks begins in 1950 when a Scottish expedition under W. Murray attempted to reach the North peak (19,131 ft.) and then across the north-west ridge towards the Main peak (20,840 ft). . more details…

• 1970 After Bethartoli

  In rope there were 5 persons, with Ang Kami remaining free. He was going up and down to help each person. He will clip himself anywhere and help a person. more details…

• 1981 Sudarshan Parvat

  WE WERE a group of eleven, four French and seven Indian climbers. After a long and tiring rail journey the bus was a luxury. more details…

• 1984 Youth in Gibson’s Garhwal

  Thus wrote Eric Shipton. It is no wonder that many a young person is attracted to the hills. If they are exposed at the right age, the wonderful world of the mountains is theirs for a lifetime. more details…

• 1988 Central Garhwal and Kumaun

  THE AREA OF Central Garhwal encompasses the Alaknanda-Saras-wati valley near Badrinath and the Dhauli valley. To its south lies the Nanda Devi Sanctuary (Rishi valley) and to its west is the Gangotri valley. more details…

• 1988 In Famous Footsteps

  THUS GOES A COUPLET. The caravans to Tibet sang it in the praise of Madhosing Rawat. He ran a tea shop between the Unta Dhura and Jainti Dhura passes on the famous Tibet trade route. Carrying wood in this barren terrain from far away Girthi, he served food and tea to the caravans. more details…

• 1990 Two is Company – Jadh Ganga

  IT IS SAID that two is company. So it was. Monesh Devjani and myself spent a month in the Mana gad valley, climbing peaks, reaching a new col and enjoying ourselves. We were supported by Pasang Bodh and Yograj Buruwa. But then, who says four is a crowd. Specially in a huge valley unvisited for 51 years.. more details…

• 1992 Temptations of Kedar

  DONT YOU GET tired of fumes and pilgrims? my friends always asked me, whenever I planned a trip to the pilgrim centres of Garhwal; namely Badrinath, Gangotri, Jamnotri and Kedarnath. more details…

• 1996 Valleys of Flowers

  To the southeast of the shrine of Badrinath, in the Garhwal, is a small village named Bhiundhar.1  Frank Smythe and his team, which included Eric Shipton and R.L. Holdsworth, had climbed Kamet (7756 m) in 1931. Like true explorers they decided to return by a high pass instead of the usual trade route. more details…

• 1997 Freedom Walk

  As India celebrated the 50th year of Independence, on 15 August 1997, we discovered that there were several extra holidays to celebrate the event. Many politicians were descending to Bombay, many events were planned and all the brouhaha would lead for certain to traffic jams and noise. more details…

• 1997 Lost in Legends

  In 1934 two prolific explorers from England reached the Garhwal Himalaya. In fact it was a beginning of an exploration which made them famous. They were Eric Shipton and Bill Tilman, who were trying to force an entry into the hitherto unknown Nanda Devi Sanctuary. more details…

• 2001 Nag Tibba- The Honest Serpent

  WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU have to spend three days between two meetings in a large city like Delhi? more details…

• 2005 Obra Gad – The Hidden Valley

  In September 1999, we came down the steep trail from Lewari and Fetari along the Supin gad. As the descent finished, there was a small tea stall where we relaxed. A river coming in from the northwest was meeting the Supin river at this point. more details…

• 2006 Obra Gad Again

  It started like so many adventures must have done, in Stanford’s map and book shop in Long Acre, London. Hot foot from our home in the north of England, we met up with friends, all browsing in the basement of Stanford’s.  more details…

• 2012 Autumun Walk to Kedar Kantha

  My trek ended before it began, well almost. My companion Ashwin Popat hit his knee against a railing at Taluka rest house and had to return home. more details…

• 2014 Age of Exploration-Dhauli Valley

  The Dhauli valley in the central Garhwal is surrounded by a ring of high and famous mountains. Kamet and Abi Gamin are to the west, Ganesh Parvat to the northwest. Bara Hoti, the area which saw conflict in the 1962 India-China war, is in the northeast. Several passes in the east complete the cirque. more details…

• 2015 We Are the Pilgrims-Garhwal

  We were climbing a steep but well-made trail to Deoria tal near Okimath. “My name is Jaishankar,” said a man with a smart moustache. “I live in this area and am visiting this lake after a long time with a guest.” We sat down under a small canopy made for just such a meeting and exchanged light banter and some information. more details…

• 2019 Where The Ganga Flows

  Garhwal was carved out of the western areas of Kumaun by the British in 1839, ostensibly for administrative purposes, but really to appease the local rulers of Pauri, Tehri, Chamoli, and strengthen the British presence there. more details…

• 1964 Har Ki Doon-Ruinsara Lake

  Zafar, Bharat and I were toying with the idea of going on a trek to Har-ki-Doon area. We could easily get rucksacks at the military disposals at Delhi.1 On 4 April 1964 we were off to the hills. more details…

• 1966 Rupkund,Jatropani and Gona Lake

  The Frontier Mail started from Bombay Central on 19 May 1966, with Zafar, Jitu and me in it. We were on our third trip to the Himalaya, off on the much-awaited month-long trek to Rupkund (the lake of mystery), Gona lake (the blocked one) and Jatropani (the peak of the singing waterfall). more details…