The Call of Triund: A Tale of Friendship and Altitude

Where are we going to visit today?
India is situated in the continent of Asia which is also called the country of diversity. Himalaya mountain range is situated in the north of India where the state of Himachal Pradesh is located. Dharamshala is situated in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh where there is a hill which is the most famous and its name is Triund hill, its height is 2828 meters from the sea level and there are 2 ways to reach here and one can reach here only on foot.

Why is Triund hill famous?
Due to Buddhist culture, this hill got ample opportunity to become famous. Majority of Buddhist population lives in Dharamshala and McLeodgunj. The temple of Dalai Lama is also situated here, to visit which tourists from the country and abroad come every day. Because there is also an airport in Dharamshala, so reaching this part of the mountain becomes even easier.

The second reason for this place being famous is that Triund hill is situated in the Dhauladhar mountain range. If the trekker goes above Triund hill while trekking, then Indrahar pass will come which can be crossed and then Chamba valley can be reached. So yes, trekking is making this place famous. It is very easy to reach here on foot with family because the walking distance is only 9 km.

The third reason for this place being famous is that this place is very close to the city. One can easily reach here by travelling overnight by bus from Delhi. Dharamshala, which is 585 km away, where Volvo buses come, plays an important role in making this place famous. Employees working between 9 to 5 leave Delhi on Friday night and reach there on Saturday morning and start the trek. After camping on Triund hill for one night, they return to Dharamshala the next morning from where they take a bus to Delhi. So it is easily possible to travel from this place in 3 days.

How did I reach here?
I was at my friend's house in Delhi when he said that let's go somewhere for a walk. Well, I had to go to Bir-Billing in Himachal Pradesh, so I got ready. He asked where we would go for a trip...to which I replied Triund hill. Come, I will take you for a hike at a height of 2828 meters from where snowy mountains are visible. It was the month of October and winter is about to arrive in the Himalayas. The rains ended last month and now snow will fall directly.

We packed our bags and reached Dharamshala by night bus. We only slept during the 12-hour bus journey. The bus dropped us in Dharamshala at 5 am, the weather is cold at a height of 1350 meters. As soon as we got off the bus, we wore a jacket each. I told him that we will stay in the hotel today and start the hike tomorrow, which my friend happily accepted because he did not have much experience of traveling by bus and he could not even sleep in the bus at night.

We reach Khaniyara by taxi where we take a room, first take a bath, then have breakfast and then sleep. I was not tired but seeing my friend Ajit sleeping, I also fall asleep. Anyway, the next morning we take a local taxi which drops us at Indranag temple from where the walking path of Triund hill goes.

Khaniyara to Triund hill hike
There are many ways to reach Triund hill, first from Dharamshala, second from Bhagsunag waterfall and third from Indranag temple here. Dharamshala and McLeodganj are visible from Indranag temple. The sun is about to rise now, the glow of which will spread over the whole nature and magically the earth will first turn orange and then yellow.

If we hike from this side of the mountain, we will have to climb only 7 km because the path from this side is 2 km shorter. Today the weather is good, the sun has come out, there are clouds on Dhauladhar and green grass is shining on the earth. On the trail we find a cow who screams welcoming us to the mountain. The sun has risen from the horizon and light has taken over the earth. We are enjoying the hike a lot.

My friend Ajit who does very little trekking is getting very tired, he drinks a liter of water in the first one and a half kilometer after which I give him my 250ml bottle to drink telling him to take a sip every 500 meters. Do not drink all the water at once otherwise the throat will dry and then we will not get water at the top, listening to me he nods in yes like children ignore the teacher's words without listening to them and just nod their heads.

While climbing the steep hill we find a temple on the way which is related to which god, we did not know because there was no idol inside the temple. Perhaps this temple is dedicated to the mountain and nature, that is why it is like this. We go ahead with folded hands in front of the temple. At a little distance we see some cows, seeing which Ajit shows them his empty water bottle and asks if we will get water ahead.

The cow wags its tail and defecates, after which I can only say that now we have got the answer, let's move ahead. Ajit gets upset but as we move ahead he starts liking the views from here. He says that every person should definitely trek in the mountains once, it makes both the mind and the body feel good. Although he does not talk about knowledge, but the mountain has definitely made him knowledgeable.

And we reach our destination "Triund hill"
To reach 2828 meters, we had to hike 7 km and finally we are standing at a very famous tourist place in the Dhauladhar mountain range. We do not go to the camping site 200 meters from here because there will be people and noise there, so we sit here. There is a hut here which is closed, There are some cows with whom we talk, Ajit reaches Triund hill and talks to the cows full of knowledge, it seems as if he will not go back from here.

It is cloudy today so we do not see the snowy mountains. I look at the views visible from here and close my eyes for a while and let the sacred peace of this place fill my heart. When I open my eyes after 15 minutes, I see that Ajit is still talking to the cows. Now I feel that the altitude has hit him and on top of that our water has also finished, so he is just repeating the same thing again and again. After spending about an hour here, I ask him to go down.

Ajit says that if there was water here, I would have stayed longer. He is right but we have to go down because the effect of altitude has been too much on my friend. We start descending, there is not much water so we reach Khaniyara in about two and a half hours from where Ajit returns to his turn after drinking water. I ask him what he talked about with the cow on Triund Hill, to which he replies, “If only I could remember something, I would write a book on that topic.” I just laugh.

Disclaimer: This post is originally written in Hindi and I have used Google Translator to translate the Hindi text in English. All the photos have been clicked by me from POCO F1, gopro hero 4+ and edited in lightroom. I want to declare that I have already posted 2 photos of this post on hive.