Sharayu Jakhotiya

It was past midnight and my phone beeped for the thousandth time that night. I picked it up and with groggy eyes tried to read the message on my screen. An Indian scientist, who has worked in Singapore, Japan, Iran and finally in Wuhan, China has shared the secret of the deadly Corona Virus. And he says that Corona virus is lethal only if you come in contact with pigeon poop after contracting the disease. Stay away from pigeons! Well, that clearly meant that Mumbai was a goner. Mumbaikars live in the pigeon kingdom. There was no escape for any of us. The pigeons were sure to take advantage of the situation and try to get revenge for the decades of harassment we have put them through. I am sure they will hunt and find Corona patients and poop on their faces and once they are dying, they will do the guturgu dance and probably make out. No, I am not writing to tell you about the secret behind surviving this pandemic (because you can't, you are probably going to get that virus anyw

I had tears rolling down my cheeks. Somewhat because of the cold and also slightly because of fear. I could now actually see the last protruding rock at the top which I knew was the summit. From that rock started the beautiful Tapovan meadows. That also meant my nightmare was soon about to get over. I must say some of the tears were tears of relief. The last part was taking its toll on each one of us. The road to the top never eased out and we were still ascending at a 70-degree angle over very, very loose rock and gravel. I closed my eyes for just a second when I remembered how I had seen that huge rock rolling down the slope after it was touched by one of us. Every step I took, I held my breath to check if the rocks were rolling down. my feet kept slipping at every step I took and I had to steady myself. There was nowhere to hold either. I made the mistake of clutching at a couple of rocks in the initial ascent and as soon as I touched them, they came off and rolled dow

Trek: Kashmir Great Lakes (KGL) August 2017 Highest Altitude: 13750 Duration: 8 Days Skill: Moderate Endurance: Difficult Trek Organizers: Trek the Himalayas Trek Guide: Pawan Co-guides: Riyaz Bhai and Farooq Bhai Trekkers: Sanjeev, Suresh, Ravi, Prasad, Vasant, Sagnik, Chandan, Rajat, Sweta, Veena, Munnabhai, Zubair, Meenakshi, Akshay, Hiren, Mario, Mayuri, Sharayu Head Cook: Kashi I skipped along the final few yards and ran towards the tents which had already been set up. Not many people from the group had reached yet as a plonked my bag down on the rock outside one of the tents and sat down next to it. The camp was right next to the Nandkul lake and the shards of sunlight were filtering in through the clouds and mountains to give an ethereal glow to the water. I stared and stared till my eyes burnt and I had to look away for a second. Even after witnessing so many beautiful lakes their beauty still managed to enthral me. It was a weird feeling.