Pindari Glacier

It was pretty late in the season to be doing any trekking and with concerns over snow and temperature we choose the Pindari trek for its relative low altitude and easiness.

A couple of bus rides got us to the start of the trek and we were luckier enough to then share a 4x4 up the mountain to save a bit of a hike. I'd just watched our fellow passengers demolish a bottle of the local rum (for the warmth solely) and they proved to be chatty and entertaining company for the short journey up.

Off we go 

A couple of hours climbing up though the forest got us to our first camp. A lovely spot, looking back out over the valley, but a bit exposed. We managed to spark a fire into life to give us some warmth but it proved to be a cold night. Not the sort of temperature we were really geared up for.

Contemplating 6 more days of this

We continued our climb in the morning, up and over the snowy pass - with beautiful views from the top - and into the main valley of the hike. We were aiming for the only town in the valley and the prospect of some lodgings, and it turned into a long day with the village obstinately remaining out of site somewhere up the valley.

Over the top of the pass and into the main valley

We were delighted to be enticed into Hotel Anpona before we got there. With a friendly owner and stunning views over the junction of two valleys, it was lovely spot to spend the night.

Wrapped up in Hotel Anpona

We continued up the valley, stopping for the obligatory chai in Khati, and a long walk along the river floor as the original path up the side of the valley had been destroyed by a landslide a few years prior. 

Khati

Our next camp was just below below the snowline so we took alot of care finding the warmest spot we could, eventually settling down on a thick bed of dry leaves tucked up beneath a bushy tree. With the snow above we decided to attempt the glacier with a long day from where we were so were up early in the morning.

We made good progress to start. Meurig feeling a bit peaky however but battling on through the periodic urges to hurl his guts. It didn't take us long to hit the snow and we found alot of it. And that slowed us down. There was a lonely set of tracks leading us down the track to keep us in check. Fortuitous, but only going one way?! The pindari baba perhaps?

The final push

It has hard going and with the glacier hidden round the corner at the end of the valley difficult to judge our progress. It took some insistent cajoling to keep Meurig going just to the next corner, the next brow, just over there and then... Yasss!  There it was, finally the glacier revealed itself ahead.

Still quite far ahead mind and with only 4 hours of daylight left we called time on it there. A short scramble above our lunch spot got me a view down into the bowl ahead and I spotted the famous baba pacing between his snowy shrines, presumably deep in meditation. We made it up to 3715m. 

Was a bit of a shame not to make it down for a chat and a chai but it took us more than the remaining daylight hours to traipse back into camp. Time enough to get a roaring fire going though and dry out our sodden boots.

As far as we got

We had out last night back in the luxury of Hotel Anpona and I made a fatal error of judgement. Despite the traceable route of mild sickness to the Anpona water supply on the way in, I drank it again. And although I never got really ill I wasn't to shake it off for the rest of the trip (and beyond).

A long, slightly perilous 4x4 journey took us up and down and out the valley and with a selection of jeeps, buses and taxis we eventually made it all the way to Ranikhet where we thought we'd recuperate for a few days.

Baboons basking in the morning sun