Epic Minor

Nag Tibba Summit : The very first Trekking Episode!

Key Resource information for planning trip to Nag Tibba via Delhi is detailed below followed by our personal experience:-

How to reach Panthwari village(start point of the Nag Tibba Trek) from Delhi:-

Route 1:

Delhi to Dehradun ISBT - 7 hours travel required in Bus/Volvo
Dehradun ISBT to Vikas Nagar - 1.25 hour travel in local Bus
Vikas Nagar to Nainbagh Village - 2.25 hours travel in shared Jeep
Nainbagh Village to Panthwari Village - 0.5 hrs in shared Jeep

Route 2:

Delhi to Dehradun ISBT - 7 hours travel required in Bus/Volvo
Dehradun ISBT to Mussoorie - 2 hour travel in local Bus
Mussoorie to Nainbagh Village/Panthwari village - 2.5 hr travel via local bus or shared taxi from Gandhi Chowk in Mussoorie. It is possible to find direct shared taxi to Panthwari else first go till Nainbagh and then from Nainbagh catch shared jeep till Panthwari village.

Please note that above routes can be followed on the way back as well. Ensure to leave from Panthwari village to Nainbagh in shared jeep by 2 p.m. as the last bus from Nainbagh to Mussoorie/Dehradun leaves at 3 p.m. After which private taxis would charge 2-3K for travel till Mussoorie/Dehradun.

Camping Gear/Guide requirements:

Please carry complete winter wear for head to toe as it gets freezing cold in the night. A nice pair of shoes with firm grip will be of great help in this trek. Carry Maggie/Instant food and chocolate/energy bars for the trek. Ensure to carry water as much as required as further up there are no shops and you would have to rely on local water sources for the same.

First time trekkers are advised to hire a Guide at Panthwari village as he will be able to set up the tent for you and also cook Maggie/ Tea for you. It depends on the deal you can make and you can usually hire a guide for 1000 rs.

Camping gear (tent, sleeping bags and sleeping mats) can be hired for 600 rs for two people from Panthwari village itself. Bargain and ask that the camping gear be carried on mules till the base camp and back for free as this will save you from carrying additional weight on this trek.

Timelines for the Trek :

Uphill Journey:

Panthwari Village till Base Camp - 3-4 hrs trek
Base Camp till Nag Tibba Mandir - 2 hrs trek
Nag Tibba Mandir till Nag Tibba Summit - 2 hrs trek

Downhill Journey:

Nag Tibba Summit till Panthwari Village - 2.5-3.5 hrs trek

The Nag Tibba story begins...

The Prelude

Feb 1-22, 2017 - Well here we go, Ankan suggests a 3 day weekend approaching with Maha Shivratri on Friday 24, 2017. We are keen to go for a wild life safari in Ranthambore.

Ankan being the Government employee in Railways has been to Sariska National Park three times before( on duty) to inspect a recently launched wildlife package from the Railways. He failed to spot a single tiger on all these trips. He is sure that even the crocodiles there are made of rubber as he saw three crocodiles basking in the same spot, same posture from the top of a hill all the three times. Hearing and laughing to his stories we decided that we will not go to Ranthambore as the internet reviews of tiger spotting were not encouraging enough for us to head out. We zeroed in on Dhikala lodge in Jim Corbett park but had to drop the idea as it was fully booked as well.

After contemplating a bike trip and other remedies for us to break away from the mundane city life, we finally decided that we will opt for trekking in some serene place away from the noise and glamour of the city. Nag Tibba seemed to be the only viable trek for us, as this could be completed in under 3 days from Delhi.

We saw some packages with adventure companies that would cost roughly 5000 per person, including all transport, food, trekking guide and gear. I firmly believe that there is no purpose of travel if you are booking a travel package as you are simply moving from one comfort zone to another. The best travel experiences happen unplanned and on the go. You have got to leave some things for self discovery. Keeping this in mind we decided we will go up there by ourselves and not be part of another group.

I read on the internet as much as possible to prepare for the trek. It was mentioned that bears and leopards do frequent the ranges and it is easy to lose your way on the 8 km trek to Nag Tibba summit from Panthwari village. I prepared myself mentally to face these challenges. Ankan was all keen to go Bear Gryll's style and camp by ourselves. Easier than thought, we realized later that it is no child's play to do some of the most basic things in a trek(like setting up a tent or try lighting a fire with proper fire source). Much of internet research did help as we took some good decisions that would have otherwise ruined the entire purpose of our trek.

The Journey Begins

Feb 23, 2017 - Booked a bus ticket to Dehradun for INR 450 per person. Bus which was supposed to depart at 10:45 p.m. leaves Anand Vihar at 12 midnight.

Feb 24, 2017 - We reach Dehradun ISBT in the morning at 07:00 a.m. We freshen up and I would like to mention that it is by far the cleanest ISBT, I have come across. It was just like Delhi, completely flat with city slick and flat roads. I was surprised, as I had always been under the impression that it was a hill station which was frequented by Delhi people for weekend getaways. For me I did not find Dehradun "Hilly" enough to be a vacation spot.

After inquiring with a couple of local people for the bus to Panthwari Village near Nag Tibba, we soon realized that nobody had the slightest clue of what we are talking about. Using internet information we asked for directions to Nainbagh village which is 12 kms away from Panthwari. The helpful locals readily guided us on two routes as mentioned below:

Bus from Dehradun ISBT to Vikas Nagar and then catch another bus to Nainbagh village
Bus from Dehradun railways to Mussoorie and then catch bus/shared jeep to Nainbagh village.

We took the second option so that we could get a feel of Mussoorie as well. I have been to Mussoorie 15 years back as well and this "Queen of Hills" is definitely loosing its sheen. Over crowded, with shops lined up on the Mall Road, there is striking similarity between the Delhi Markets and Mussoorie. Especially so because, half of the people there in Mussoorie are from Delhi on their much awaited weekend break trying to consume and make the most of it by the usual medium of clicks and likes. We reached Mussoorie at 12 noon and quickly munched on some light salads served on the Mall road.

Walking through the busy streets we find the spot (Gandhi Chowk) from where we could get buses/shared jeeps. Luckily we got a shared jeep directly to Panthwari village for 150 rupees per person. We started from Mussoorie at around 13:30 and reached Panthwari at 16:00 hrs.

Panthwari village to Nag Tibba Base camp:

On reaching Panthwari we saw other trekkers offloading their gear. We went to the nearest Gear shop and rented a guide (1000 rupees) and camping gear (600 rs). Camping gear included 2 sleeping mats, 2 sleeping bags and a tent. Thankfully these were carried by mules to the base camp at no extra cost since we struck a good bargain. We took the guide as we knew there would be no daylight by the end of the day and we knew nothing about setting up a tent or light a fire to cook food. Better to watch and learn than being miserable at the end This was the best decision as it saved us a lot of trouble that we would have gotten ourselves into by trekking during night and carrying dead weight of the camping gear on our shoulders.

With our bag packs weighing around 15 kilos, we started our trek with our guide to the base camp at 16:15 p.m. We were already late as trekking during the night is not recommended and the total trek takes around 3.5 hours till the base camp. We saw fellow trekkers carrying their entire gear and marching up. Most of them were people with previous trekking experience and some had been to the Everest base camp as well. We walked and we walked uphill. I was short of breath and when i thought that the heavens would fall, we came to the 1 km mark of the total 8 km trek. I had taken ORS powder and medicines with me as I knew that cramps and troubled stomachs could be an eventuality.

I took off my Jacket and hung it from my backpack, as I was sweating profusely. All this when the temperature was around 5 degrees! Just when I wanted to give up, I looked down from the hills to the village that was getting smaller with each advancing step. This gave me hope that we have come a long way up and will reach the base camp in no time. We managed to see a beautiful sunset over the hills and some pristine natural beauty. As day light dwindled our guides urged us to pace up as we would not be able to trek in the night.

Daylight disappeared at 18:30 and we trekked for one and a half hours more in torchlight to reach the base camp. It is dangerous and not recommended, as you have to see the ground in front of you, to be sure footed and not slip and cause injury. I realized that one bad slip or twitch could make this experience hell for you as medical help was miles away. On reaching the base camp, where several other trekkers had pitched their tents we chose an opportune location for ourselves to be placed. Our guide managed to setup our tent in torchlight and cooked us Maggi for dinner.

The stars become a different story. I wanted to pick some of them up with my hands as they seemed so beautiful and up close. There was a cold chill due to the night wind and we were unable to feel our palms after some time. Both of us had not brought our gloves. While eating too we were eating, using both hands alternatively as the other hand needed to be in the jacket pocket or else it would be numb in no time. After gorging in on some Snickers and feeling replenished, we decided to call it a day as it was just too cold to stand under the naked sky. We retreated into our tents and slept tight.

In the middle of the night, I got this urge to answer natures call. I stepped out of the tent to realize that everyone was asleep . It was pitch dark and freaking cold. If a leopard were to come and pick me up, no one would even know. Scared and shivering from the cold, i quickly finished the job and returned to our tent to sleep gently into the good night ( how can you not quote The Revenant when that is the kind of feeling you get in a Trek)

Feb 25, 2017 - We woke up at 6:30 a.m to gorge on the beautiful morning atop the hills. We were advised to not go up till Nag Tibba Summit as that will cost us 3 hours more and only go till Nag Tibba Mandir. Last public bus was supposed to be at 4 p.m. and if we do not make it back by then, we would end up paying 3500 for a taxi to Mussoorie.

After having morning tea and Parle G, we began the ascend to Nag Tibba Mandir through thick forests at 7 30 a.m. Gratefully this time we had the option of leaving our bags at base camp. In my mind, I had plans of what i would do if I saw a leopard or a bear. Honestly it would not matter. I was so short of breath, so tired and fatigued, that if they were to come my way, I would be happier to present myself as a packed lunchbox to carry away. You cannot outrun a bird on the hills, leave aside some predatory animal with four legs. The guide assured us at the beginning that there were rare sightings of bears so there was no need to worry.

We reached Nag Mandir at 9:30 a.m. and decided that we will go up till Nag Tibba summit as we had come so far. We rushed our way up, utilizing the last reserves of energy and reached Nag Tibba summit at around 11: 30 a.m.. The views were worth our efforts! We saw snow on the way and its hard to be sure footed on snow. We saw the beautiful peaks in the distance and were thrilled to be on top.

We began our descent soon after. Risks of injury are more on descent as the rocks give way easily when you are going downhill. Me and Ankan slipped a dozen times, thankfully no broken bones. We rushed to the base camp and hurriedly ate our Maggi. Our guide quickly packed our tents and we struck a deal that saves our day. We ask him to get the Mule guy to transport our backpacks till the village. Morning tea and this mule service along with Tip costed us 200 bucks more.

To catch the bus at 4 p.m. from Nainbagh it was imperative that we reach the village by 15 15 p.m. to board the shared taxi that will take us there. We started from base camp at around 13:30 p.m. and rushed down enjoying the views. On our way we met a bunch of young guys walking down, one of whom had a small pocket guitar and he played numbers like Jason Mraz - I'm yours. Video of that uploaded below though the sound quality is not up to the mark. Trekkers going uphill remarked - "We are unable to climb and these guys are playing guitars walking down" . That was really something beautiful --> grass meadows and this lovely young guy playing guitar and singing while making the descent.

And finally we could see the village from above as a speck. And then we started jogging down as fast as we could. We actually ran the last 1.5 kms downhill and slipped several places, We managed to reach the village on time, collect our bags and board the taxi to Nainbagh at 3:15 p.m.

On reaching bus stand at Nainbagh at 15 50, locals told us that the last bus left at 15 30. We refuse to buy their claims as we think they are conning us into getting a taxi. We waited till 16 30 and then realized that we had actually missed it. We decided to get a shared taxi ( 80 bucks per person) till Vikas Nagar and then catch the bus from Vikas Nagar till Dehradun. Lucky for us we got a shared taxi , as later in the day we got to know that other trekkers got stranded as they did not get a shared taxi till Vikas Nagar. On reaching Dehradun at 20:00 hrs, we had a well earned dinner at Dana Pani restaurant and took the bus to Delhi at 10:00 p.m. We reached Delhi at 04:00 a.m. Please note that after de boarding at Dehradun bus stand we were unable to walk and people thought we were drugged or something. I could not feel my legs till Delhi and both of us had a good laugh seeing each other trying to walk.

We were walking like Ducks!

Below are some pictures and a video taken during this trek for everyone's reference:-