travel

Go Crazy in Gokarna!

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Gokarna is one of the rare places which is popular but still not swamped with tourists and commercial restaurant/hotel chains yet. There are a couple of beaches which see the maximum crowd, and then there are others which are as good as a private beach. So ditch spending all your time at the famous Om beach and do these ‘hatke‘(different) things instead!1

What to do

  1. The beach trek: Go walking on the beach trail! You can follow the route: Gokarna beach -> Kudle beach -> Om beach -> Half-moon beach -> Paradise* beach. Have a beer at each beach or soak the sun and move on to the next one. Alternatively, the first three beaches are reachable by road and you can trek the half-moon & Paradise only. Catch the sunset at Paradise. If you don’t mind trekking in the dark you can walk back or you will be able to get a boat back to Om or Kudle.
  2. Phytoplankton at the Paradise beach: On a no or small moon night, head on for a night trek to the Paradise beach. You will be welcomed by glowing small lights once you touch the water at the beach. Since you won’t know the routes well and you have to pass through a village late at night, I would recommend going with a group and with someone who knows their way. Zostel staff organizes this trek and they take care of the transport from Zostel to the start point of the trek as well. If the weather is good you can put up a bon fire at the beach.
  3. Vibhooti waterfalls: You will need a bike or some vehicle as these are about 40 km from Gokarna. The water is very clean and falls into a sort of infinity pool where you can chill. Make sure to carry some food and plan your time well so that you can start back before it gets dark as it takes about one and a half hours by bike from Gokarna. The route is very scenic and goes through the forest. An amazing spot specially post monsoons!2

*Paradise beach – This is the most secluded beach which is not reachable by road. Until some years ago, it used to be the mecca for hippies and supposedly there used to be all night parties and camping. Then it was evacuated and banned by the authorities, but you can still get the feel and imagine how it must have been by seeing the graffiti on the rocks etc. Though it’s not legal but some people still camp here 🙂IMG_20171021_172103_Bokeh.jpg

Tips to have the more fun!

  • Choose your stay wisely. One of the main reasons I loved Gokarna was because of my stay at Zostel. You will meet amazing people, make new friends and have a peaceful time. I didn’t try any other stay but definitely loved it here!
  • Mingle – Gokarna sure gets lots of solo travelers, especially if you are staying in Zostel or one of the other hostels. Mingle with the strangers, share stories over beer and you are bound to come back with new friends and lots of memories.
  • Train journey – If you get to go or come to Gokarna by train, you are in for the beautiful landscapes and picturesque sceneries. Gokarna to Goa, for instance goes through beautiful Western Ghats.IMG_20171023_125409
  • Eat at namaste café – I think this would be the first recommendation for anyone searching for what to do in Gokarna, and it’s worth the hype. The food here is amazing. Make sure to get the beach facing seat.IMG_20171021_183022

How to reach: There are trains from Mangalore & Goa to Gokarna station. Also buses to Hubli can drop till a nearby stop from where you need to arrange taxi or auto.

In the end, even if you don’t do anything and decide to just relax and chill Gokarna is the ideal place for that. So go, have some fun in Gokarna!IMG_20171022_131554.jpg

Rupin Pass

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10 reasons to fall in love with Rupin Pass

I am sure, anyone who has done a Himalayan trek will have countless favorite moments and memories from the trek. Rupin pass was my first Himalayan trek (only one so far) with Trek the Himalayas and I absolutely fell in love with everything about it. If you have a slight inclination towards this trek and are debating whether to go or not, then apart from thousands of reasons to do this I will add 10 more which might help you make that final decision 😊

  1. Mighty Rupin River – Amidst the everchanging scenery, weather & surroundings, the Rupin river will be your constant companion throughout the trek. Sometimes becoming fierce in the flow and sometimes just showing a glimpse of itself it somehow always motivated me to keep going on. Every time I saw the river I would jump with joy and the excitement didn’t die down even till the last day. I miss it the most!
    Dhaula campsite day 1. We all couldn’t wait to dip our feet.
  2. The shepherds route – The pass lies on a traditional shepherd route starting from Dhaula(Uttarakhand) and ending in Sangla(Himachal Pradesh). So, you will find a lot of shepherds with their herds who might be staying alongside your campsites. You get to interact with them and know more about their lives.

    RP5_387.jpg

  3. Different start & end points – Contrary to most of the treks, Rupin pass trek does not start and end at the same base camp. As stated earlier, it starts from Dhaula in Uttarakhand and ends at Sangla in Himachal Pradesh. This provides an opportunity to explore new places during the decent.
  4. Interacting with the locals – For the first 3 days you will be walking from one village to other and will get opportunities to stay in village houses. Apart from getting amazed at how, some of the chores for which we don’t even care put any thoughts while in cities, take so much effort and time to be done in hills, you will also find immense peace and happiness in most of the people living there. It helps gain some perspective and to appreciate small things in life.

The landscape surprises: Anyone who knows about Rupin pass is aware of the surprises in the everchanging scenery that it offers throughout the trek. Some of these views and landscape settings that are not to be missed:

  1. Meadows amidst the glacier valleys – Once you reach the upper waterfall (our campsite was right after reaching on top of the waterfall) you will be welcomed by vast area of meadows amidst glacier valleys.RP4_0817
  2. The view of upper waterfall – As per the Trek the Himalayas itinerary, our 4th night campsite was at Dhandharas thatch. It is hands down the best stay location on this trek (or for me, anywhere else too). You get the view of the upper waterfall in front which is nothing but majestic. Sleeping amidst the snow capped valleys below this waterfall will always be a cherishable memory.RP4_1012RP4_1035
  3. Pine forests – Shade of these long trees will be nothing but bliss when you are walking with the sun right on top of your head (especially if you go in summers). Walking amidst the caves of these trees will make you sing many of those Bollywood songs!RP3_142 2419m.JPG
  4. The bridge b/w Uttaranchal & Shimla – Don’t miss the border b/w Uttaranchal and HP. It is marked by a bridge with the beautiful stream flowing underneath. It comes between Sewa and Bawta on Day 2 of the trek.
  5. Snow bridges – Walking on the snow bridges was a thrilling experience. I kept remembering all those movie scenes where someone would just fall beneath the ice and freeze 😛 Luckily nothing like that happened.
  6. Cute wooden villages – The villages on the way till Jhakha are all made up of these cute little wooden houses. In Jhakha many houses are made right on the edge of the rocks, hence many tourists call it the hanging village.
    The hanging village of Jhakha

These 10 points cannot cover the essence of the amazing experience that the Rupin pass trek is. Sliding on the snow, dealing with extreme cold conditions, no network for 8 days, the feeling of achievement once you reach the summit, drinking water from streams and so much more. If you are still debating, trust me & go for it!

7 mistakes NOT to make while travelling

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I am not trying to scare you but there are many things that can go wrong when travelling. Here are some of the top things that I learnt the hard way and can be controlled! 😛

  1. Pack too much – A big shout out to my pretty ladies out there. It can be a daunting task deciding what to keep and what to skip. You need the favorite dress but one is too less? What if it’s a little chilly – then I need my light hoody, shorts for going to the beach if its a sunny day, separate party clothes, day clothes and night clothes and the list goes on! DO NOT FALL FOR THAT. Especially if you are going to travel to multiple cities. Pulling those big bags up and down the metro stairs can be really frustrating. So pack less and pack wisely. Which takes us to our next point
  2. Not planning your laundry – Key to packing less is to repeat your clothes. And you don’t want to be that stinky guy in the bus. So plan your laundry. Check in advance which of your stays has the facility and plan it accordingly.
  3. Eating – Spending too much time and money on eating. When I have a long day ahead I always carry my water bottle and some munchies or snacks along. So that every time when I get a hunger pang I don’t have to go in to a place and order. My day meals are usually on the go. I prefer to spend time on meals only when meeting up friends or have some specific joints to try or maybe dinner time to just have a drink and relax after a long tiring day.
  4. Commute time – Not planning for travel and commute time in your timetable is very easy to miss. Spots that might seem close on the map and just a few blocks away might take up quite some time specially during rush hours. You don’t want to be hushing around and ending up having to cut out on what you planned.
  5. Trying to see everything –  See 2 places and enjoy them thoroughly rather than covering all those 5 spots and doing just touch and go. Always remember this thumb rule. Trying to cover too much, you are not going to enjoy it and you are going to exhaust yourself.
  6. Wrong shoes – You will walk, walk and walk all day. Make sure you pack the right shoes as per your plan. Walking shoes, trekking shoes, hiking shoes or whatever it is that you are going to do. This is one item where there shouldn’t be any compromise of comfort for style.
  7. Gadget-o-mania – Now we all want to capture the moments and make memories, but do not forget to experience and enjoy the place too. Many a times I notice as soon as people reach their destination, they start looking for the right spot or the right angle to get that perfect selfie or the shot. I do that too and yes we need that capture or want to go live on social media immediately but we simply forget to actually enjoy that place. So make the conscious decision to not take out that phone or camera for first 10 minutes and just live in the moment.

Happy travelling!

xoxo