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India Diaries – Madhya Pradesh

“So far as I am able to judge, nothing has been left undone, either by man or nature, to make India the most extraordinary country that the sun visits on his rounds. Nothing seems to have been forgotten, nothing overlooked.” – Mark Twain

Often called the heart of India, Madhya Pradesh is the second largest state in the country. Rich in history and tradition, the origins of this state can be traced to as far back as the Middle Pleistocene era, around 500,000 years ago. In addition, it has been home to two of India’s greatest dynasties – the Maurya Empire and the Gupta Empire.

Madhya Pradesh has a lot to offer to every type of tourist. From art and history lovers to adventure seekers, it has something for everyone. MP has three destinations that have been declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO – the Khajuraho Group of Monuments, the Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi and the Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka.

Adventure Flicks for the Mountain Lover!

There are thousands of films released every year around the world. But very few of these are based on adventure or real-life adventure stories. And even out of those that are made, there are only a handful that actually do justice to the spirit of the theme!

This New Year, Adventure Nation recommends to you four of the finest films made on some of the most significant moments in mountaineering history.

Touching the Void (2003):
This adventure-filled documentary is based on Joe Simpson’s book of the same name. It features Simpson’s and Simon Yates’ calamitous attempt to climb Siula Grande (6,344m, 20,814ft) in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.
This film is high on emotion and has been widely praised for its cinematography. It combines documentary footage of the interviews of the climbers along with a re-enactment of the attempt. It is highly rated on rotten tomatoes.
Touching the Void – Movie Poster!
Image Credits: summitpost.org

Read more about Joe Simpson here.
Everest: Beyond the Limit (2006):
This reality television series by Discovery Channel is about the attempts made on the summit of Mount Everest every year. Russell Brice, a mountaineer from New Zealand, is the leader.
In this season, there are 11 climbers, three guides and a group of Sherpas followed by a production crew of 17 people, during their climb in the months of April and May of 2006. We highly recommend this film to all adventure lovers for the actual footage in extreme conditions.
Read more

The Chadar Frozen River Trek

Located in the Zanskar Valley, the Chadar Frozen River trek offers a unique trekking experience and makes the wish list of every trekking enthusiast. This trek is definitely not for a novice, and even for seasoned trekkers, who have experience of many Himalayan treks; this trek is nothing like they have seen before. The hardly habitable environment of the ‘Chadar’ has all the makings of an extremely challenging trek – one which dares a trekker to test his/her attitude and tolerance while providing some of the best visuals imaginable. On Chadar trek, the only constant is the freezing cold, with temperatures dropping to 30 degrees below zero at times. Dressing sensibly is of vital importance. It is difficult to accurately predict the environments at the Zanskar frozen river trek; but here is a general outline of what to expect on this winter trek:

1. Best time to go –
Chadar literally means sheet and in this case a sheet of Frozen River. January to February is the time when the upper layer of the river gets hard and trekkers can walk gently on it.

Roopkund Trek – A Travelogue!

4 months of workout, 4 months of abstinence, 4 friends – and the mountains beckoned!
This is their journey from New Delhi to Roopkund and back, covered in 7 days!

Day 1 – Reached Kathgodam by train from Delhi and drove up to Loharjung (7600ft), which is a 10-hour drive through the foothills of the Himalayas – past gushing streams, through valley clouds and on curvy roads.

Fresh streams on the way!
Image Credits :facebook.com/anandkshitij/media_set

Day 2 – Walking past icy-cold streams and coming face to face with high-flying birds, the group trekked its way up to Didna (8800ft). Villagers’ huts and blankets came in handy for camping.

On the way to Didna
Image Credits :facebook.com/anandkshitij/media_set

Day 3 – The day began at 8, and through muck, rock, oak forests and meadows, they reached Ali Bugyal – the next campsite.