It was the month of December 2018 when my friend Keshav Chaulagain came to my room. He told me that his friends were coming to Pokhara for Mardi trek and asked me if I was interested in joining them. Without a single thought in mind I said ‘Yes’. This was probably the most hasty and worthy decision of my life. I had heard about Mardi and its beauty before as well. Deep inside, I had made up my mind to go to Mardi when I heard about this exactly one year ago. With the bags packed the next day we were heading towards our destination ‘Mardi’.
Pokhara to Mardi
We took the local bus around 5am and reached Hari chowk. From there we took a bus which was going to Baglung. With an hour of ride we reached Kande, from where our real journey began. We started to walk through the trails. On the way we saw some houses made of mud and wood. The entire region of this trekking route of Mardi is a conservation area and is managed by Annapurna Conservation Project Area(ACAP). After walking for some hours we reached the Australian Base Camp. We saw some brick made hotels and restaurants there. After resting for some time we continued our journey. Succeeding some hours of walking, with pumping and hustling we went to Pritam Deurali through Pothana where we had our lunch. There was a junction to ABC via Landruk and Mardi. With enough rest at Deurali we started stepping towards the Mardi way. Walking in the hills wasn’t easy for me as I never had such experience before. My heart was pumping a lot. I felt as if I would die there and would not make it. But my friends motivated me and slowly and gradually after taking some rest I channelized all my energy and walked in. Finally, after some hectic walk we reached our stay of the day ‘Forest Camp’. We could see some horses there and just opposite of it was Ghandruk. We took a room in one of the hotels and had our dinner. We could see other groups of young people and foreigners who had come to this Trek. Meanwhile we noticed a Korean Couple who also had come for the trek. This was their honeymoon trek. We also met with one of the guides who knew how to read palm. That palm reader was reading the palms of those Korean couples. I was excited to see that and requested that Palmist read my hand. He didn’t match my past events and felt like he was lousy at this art. After having some fun with foreigners, taking clicks and a campfire we went to sleep.
Next day we woke up early around 5:30am and after having some snacks we continued our journey. The best part of our trek was that we hadn't felt like we were tired and were excited to see the Himal. The forest was dense and the algae covered on the ground made it look like a green carpet. After some hours of walking we reached Low Camp. We could see some hotels there and in one of them we planned to have a lunch. From there we could see some glimpse of Fewa Lake. The sky was dark and slowly snow started to fall. There was no boundary of our ecstasy. We jumped, shouted and expressed our happiness. The last snowfall was 7 years back. For that, we consider ourself very fortunate. After having lunch we continued on our trail. The trek route was covered with snow and it was difficult to recognize the path. We met other trekkers on the way and together with them we walked. During the whole journey, I had a short bamboo stick that helped me climb the hills. On the way, we could see some Yaks. We also met with people carrying gas cylinders on doko. They were going to Sidhing to refuel them. After a few hours of walking, we reached High Camp. It was our stay of the day. We could see the fish tail mountain very closely and realized the reason behind its name. There were very few hotels and in one of them we stayed. Although snow had just stopped, it was too cold outside. I hadn’t worn proper trekking shoes. My feet were freezing because of the cold as water had reached there.
We met with the hotel owner and with great delight heard his stories about conflicts regarding the claim for the mountains between Annapurna and Machhapuchhre Gaupalika. We had our dinner and were warmed by fire. The water in the restroom was frozen. Snow may seem to be beautiful for travelers like us but life in such an area is really difficult. Next day our aim was to reach Viewpoint and return back to Pokhara. We needed to go as early as possible as mountains are covered with clouds after some hours of sunshine. So, early we went to bed and were excited for tomorrow.
Next day, we woke up at 4am and were ready to go ahead. We didn’t know the exact route. Luckily, we met the same Korean couple and the guide whom we met in Forest Camp. We followed them. We had heard about the two routes to the viewpoint. One which takes an hour and another 15 min. We took an hour route as it was less risky. It was dark and with the help of a torch light we marched ahead. Our mobile battery had run out. The trail was very narrow and risky, 200 metres below there was dense forest. It was thrilling. Yesterday's snowfall had further added hindrance. Despite all the problems, the journey was beautiful. After an hour, we finally reached Mardi Viewpoint. The scenery was majestic. Even in the dark, Annapurna and Mardi Himal were somehow visible. The hardship and struggle we went through the journey totally paid off. After sunshine we had some clicks and breakfast. We decided not to go to basecamp as said by local people. The view was almost the same. We were also bound by time and headed back towards Sidhing.
As we were walking from higher to lower altitude it was easier to walk and our pace had increased. Snow had melted and the route had become slippery. Passing through High camp and Badal Dada we reached Low Camp, where we had our lunch. After having some rest, we walked through the steep downward route to Sidhing. With the rest in the middle, watching the beauty of nature and some hours of walking we reached Sidhing. It was a small village. We waited some time for the jeep to come in. It was already around 5pm. We also met other travelers who were going back to Pokhara. After an hour of wait the jeep arrived and together we sat inside. Through the route of Lwag Ghalel and Hemja and an hour we finally reached Pokhara.
It was a tough trek for a guy who had never walked on the hills. Although it was a three days trek, the lessons learned were of years. The journey made me realize that life is beautiful and more beauty is still to be seen.
