Stok Kangri - The Acclimatization

It was visible from the road to Leh. It was visible from the market places in the town of Leh. It was visible from the Shanti Stupa and the Leh palace. It was even visible from the bathroom window of our hotel room. There was just no ignoring this huge mountain of Stok Kangri that we had come to climb.

Over the two days that we were given to get acclimatized at Leh, we went back to our eat-play-sleep routine. The several restaurants in Leh catering to the torrent of tourists that flocked the town in that season, served, surprisingly, the widest range of cuisines that I had seen under one roof. We could eat Indian, English, Italian, Tibetan, Israeli, Ladakhi, German and Chinese food sitting in the same café. One morning we climbed the 400 steps to Shanti Stupa, one of the modern Buddhist stupas in Leh, from where we got a great view of the town. This being the summer time in Leh, the days were very hot and sunny, and dissuaded us from venturing out of our hotel rooms. So we played all the card games we could think of. One evening, we went to the very unusual looking Leh palace, and also climbed to the nearby monastery. During all these moderate climbs, I was not happy with the way I soon started panting and puffing, and made me seriously doubt the possibility of me summiting Stok Kangri.

The Shanti Stupa

View from the Leh Palace

 Pangong Tso

On the third day, having nothing very interesting to do at Leh, I half-heartedly decided to join a few of my fellow-trekkers on a day trip to the Pangong Lake. The idea of another long drive on the mountain roads made me hesitate. But as it turned out, the trip, although tiring, was one of the highlights of this entire vacation. This huge 150 km long lake, two-thirds of which lies in China, made me redefine the meaning of ‘enormous’. Being in such vast expanses, which make me feel so insignificant, has always had a strangely comforting effect on me. I saw at least fifty different shades of blue that day. I was thankful that I got a chance to set my eyes on a landscape so enchanting.

On the deserted banks of the lake, I saw a man sitting outside a small tent that he had pitched, with his car strategically parked so that there would be shade on this tent. He was sitting there peacefully, reading a book. He looked like a snapshot from one of my dreams. Much as I wanted to go talk to him, I left him alone. When one day I sit in his position reading my book and looking at the mountains, I do not want random travelers disturbing me with small talk.

The man living my dream

Pangong Lake

Trek to the Base Camp

After all this great build-up, we started trekking from the village of Stok, which was about an hour’s drive from Leh. There were fourteen of us in all, and five members from the Trek the Himalayas team. The approach to the base camp was supposed to be tortoise-like - slow and steady. The idea was to gain altitude gradually, and then spend enough time at a higher altitude each day before coming back to camp. Almost throughout the trek to the base camp, we walked along the Stok River, or rather, on the wide rocky bed of the river. The river looked more like a stream early in the morning, but the water would increase in volume later in the day.

The Stok River

En-route the Base Camp

Our first camp was at Chang Ma, and on the next day, we camped at Mankor Ma. On the third day, we reached the base camp, which was at an altitude of approximately 5000 meters. On all the occasions, even after keeping a leisurely pace, we reached the next campsite in three hours tops. After settling down a bit at the camp, we were taken for acclimatization walks.

And there was a lot to explore. We just used to pick out a slope with a suitable gradient depending on how strenuous an exercise we were in a mood for. Many a times, we saw some wildlife around – herds of blue sheep and some majestic yaks. We also saw a lot of Marmots – or mountain squirrels. A dog had joined our trek group somewhere on the way, and he used to have a great game of chasing these Marmots, imaginary at times, over the mountains. It was incredible how the little canine used to run across the river and over the slopes at that altitude.  

Base Camp

It was always fun to walk among the mountains to work up an appetite. But my favorite pastime was to pick a nice spot and sit with my book near the river. My beloved Nook, my e-book reader, served me really well on this trek. This life suited me – walk some, breathe pure, eat well, drink fresh cold water from the river whenever thirsty, feel the warmth of the sun, read a lot, and look up to see the incredible mountains all around.  

One day before the summit stretch, we were asked by Sandeep, the trek leader, to sort ourselves out in two groups according to our pace – the faster ones and the slower ones. He would then describe the strategy that each of these groups were to follow for the summit stretch. That is when I was in a real dilemma - I considered myself slower than the fast ones, but faster than the slow ones. Not knowing how my body would respond to the rarefied air of the increasing altitude, the only logical thing for me to do was to put myself in the slower group. But I was feeling strong and healthy after all this acclimatizing – the initial foreboding and self doubt I had about summiting had disappeared. Despite all the show of vulnerability, I was confident that sometime over the next twenty-four hours, I would be standing on top of the Stok Kangri. 

In front of the Stok Kangri