The people who know me well
enough and even some of those that don’t, will agree with the fact that I am an
adrenaline junkie of sorts. I love trying new things at least once, and as a
result, have an insane amount of crazy things on my bucket list. Trekking features
on it too but it was somewhere down the charts, mainly because I was under the
impression that I had done my fair share of it. You see, as a child, trekking
for me meant climbing up and down the side of a cliff near my home or trudging
across vacant plots in my colony only to get to a point where I could scale the
walls of a cemetery and then explore the eerie grounds within. From there, as I
made it to the era of scouts and guides, we were taken camping, which included,
what I now call mini treks. It seemed as easy as a stroll in the park. But how
wrong I was! Two weeks ago I was introduced to the real sights, sounds and
several, several steps of what I now know as the professional trekking world…
It all began on a pretty
regular Saturday evening. There we were, my mum and me, in the kitchen, baking
an almost neon coloured rainbow cake for my four-year-old niece. That’s when
the doorbell rang and on my doorstep stood my family friend and neighbour
Shaila, who, as soon as I opened the door, smiled and asked, “Do you want to
come trekking tomorrow?” Now, what you have to know at this juncture is that
Shaila, her husband Pronob and their two kids, Taran and Ananya, possess much
more sports-and-activity-filled lives than I do. They trek, camp, swim and run
and manage to do all this in addition to going to work, seminars, school and
tuitions. As I looked apprehensively at her, she soon calmed my trepidation by saying
that it would be just fine, everything had been taken care of and all I had to
do was show up in appropriate trekking gear. And so I did, backpack stocked
with water, a jacket, a change of clothes, some bits and bobs and my heart
filled with a good-kind-of-nervous excitement.
So we set off to Panjim, where
we met a bunch of other people, including the lovely Bianca Dias from Off Trail
Adventures, who was leading the group. We were soon in a bus and off to the
back of the beyond where everything I saw left me spellbound. Of course, there
were times when I was speechless because I was out of breath from all the
climbing but I still managed to make it all the way to the point of our trek –
a gorgeous, humongous, towering waterfall in the middle of nowhere. Coming
back, it started pouring and it wasn’t long before every downward slope became
a slippery slide of mud. Not one to waste any time, I soon perfected the art of
the mudslide and cut my return journey in half in addition to cutting my hands
and legs in a few places. I also very kindly ferried some leeches on the way
and left my behind more than just a little sore with all the spills I took. But
still… No complaints! I loved every minute of it and I know that I am
officially hooked and will be going back for more, even if it means huffing and
puffing every step of the way!
