Page 9 - Seniorstoday September 2022 Issue

approximately), or 2) a jeep ride to a certain and the back. And finally, by around 2
point followed by a short trek of about 6
km downhill, or 3) a full trek of almost
14 km for those willing to do so. I opted
for Option #A3 though I am now 55, the
adventure spirit in me fueled this decision
- many colleagues coaxed me not to walk ;
in hindsight this was likely sincere advice
due to my biological age, but I walk at least
5 km/day anyways, so I didn’t consider this
a big challenge. Swami (one of Sadhguru’s
brahmacharis) told us that the walk would
be about 5 km uphill, then about 3 to 4
km on a straight and the last 6 to 7 km
would be downhill. This was going to be a
challenge, I realized, but I wanted to take it.
Day 3
Many people looked at me and said, “Get
into the jeep, doc... your toes will hurt
walking 14 km”. But I said, “No, I want to
walk”.
And a group of us (largely youngsters)
started walking. Let me tell you when
you’re walking from 9,000 feet altitude
to 12,000 feet uphill, you huff and puff
and could get a bit out of breath. So do
it slowly. Walking on the straight after
that is not challenging. But the biggest
challenge is the downhill. And as a doctor,
I should have known this. The strain on the
femoropatellar ligament and the knees is
just tremendous. A dear friend had loaned
a walking stick to me - considering her age
at 65, she opted for the helicopter ride. I
was adamant not to use it for most of the
walk but on the downhill I was compelled
to use it for a stretch. Downhill walking
at high altitude is tough. And you have
to have both physical and mental grit to
do it in hot weather. We had a few snacks
with us and we walked slowly with our
team leaders keeping up both the front
SENIORS TODAY | ISSUE #39 | SEPTEMBER 2022
pm (a five- to six-hour walk) we reached a
small little home near the bridge over the
river where we sat and had a few biscuits
and tea served by the lady of the house.
Chicken Maggi noodles were also offered
but non-vegetarian food was not something
we wanted to do on this pilgrimage. Our
guiding sherpas happily devoured that!
Finally, the jeeps came down gradually
on a road at the other end of the bridge. We
walked across the bridge in groups of six
to seven (pic), got into the jeeps to take the
final upward journey to 12,000 feet. It was
a memorable day, toes paining a bit, but
when you finally arrive at the campsite, no
words or pictures can describe that feeling.
Hepka is the first camp that we go to
situated in a small valley surrounded
by mountains. There is significant cloud
cover most of the day and therefore access
for helicopters is becoming an increasing
challenge, especially since so many groups
are doing this pilgrimage, and literally
back-to-back. 21 groups did this pilgrimage
with Isha with approximately 60 pilgrims
each - 12 groups were entirely foreigners,
and 8 groups of Indians. The walks in
Hepka were outstanding, and one was
particularly beautiful where you walked
up a hill and then walked down the hill to
an area with a small water body
Dr Sujeet Rajan
Hepka
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