For centuries Rishikesh has been the undisputed Yoga capital of the world and people from all over the world seeking spirituality have found their way to this ancient and holy town. It is located in the northern part of the Indian State of Uttrakhand, on the banks of the Ganges River and is surrounded by hills on 3 sides. People flock here for practicing meditation, learning the techniques of Yoga and sometimes just for the peace of mind that it offers.
Rishikesh – Where Gods reside!
The Beatles made it even more popular in the 1960s when they stayed at the ashram of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. It is also home to the 120 year old Kailash Ashram Brahmavidyapeetha, an institution that has been dedicated to promoting and conserving the traditional Vedic studies and had the likes of Swami Vivekananda has one of the students. There are many more Ashrams in Rishikesh where the traditional “Guru-Shishya Parampara ” is being followed.
Students of one of the Ashrams praying at the banks of the Ganges
In the last 10-15 years, Rishikesh has also earned another name, that of being the Rafting Capital! The shores are lined with camps that make for a great retreat and offer a host of activities for the adventure seekers. It has become an extremely popular spot for white water rafting and on a must visit list of most adventure buffs. Ganges River offers medium to rough rapids, rated class 3 and class 4.
What it means – A Via Ferrata or Iron Way or Iron Roads is a fixed protection climbing path or route found primarily in the Alps. The term originates from the Dolomites mountain range in Northern Italy. Its core is a steel cable that runs along the path and is sporadically fixed to the rock. Climbers secure themselves to the cable and also use the cable as a climbing aid. Other climbing aids include pegs, carved steps, iron rungs and sometimes bridges and ladders. It makes an otherwise unsafe route relatively easy. Even those with very less or no climbing experience get the chance to reach places otherwise only accessible to avid mountaineers. All you need is some basic equipment and technique coupled with the will to do it!
Climbing with the help of iron rungs.
Origin and History – Simple paths with basic protection aids and ladders have been there in the Alps for centuries. These paths helped the natives connect to the high pastures. These constructions date back to the early nineteenth century, during the time of the early Alpine exploration, and can be considered as a harbinger to the modern day Via Ferrata. Via Ferratas are also strongly linked to the First World War when, to assist the movements of the troops, many of them were constructed by the Italian Army on the Dolomite Mountain range in northern Italy. This was primarily to access difficult peaks and to also carry heavy equipment.
Development – Via Ferrata is a new adventure activity and is often tried by people looking for something slightly more challenging than the routine alpine hiking and climbing. Many new paths have been developed over the years, especially recently and their tourism benefits recognized. They have gained popularity amongst serious climbers and amateurs alike. Traditionally associated with the limestone mountain regions in Italy, Via Ferratas have found their way to other mountain ranges outside Europe too. There are more than 1000 Via Ferratas in the world today, majority in the Alps.
Via Ferrata – Dolomites
Safety and Equipment – Via Ferratas were primarily climbed using basic equipment like carabiners or slings attached to a rope or harness. However it was soon realized that these did not provide much safety or prevent serious injury. To resolve this, many devices have been developed that act as shock absorbers. These are aimed at dispelling energy of the fall efficaciously, keeping the climber safe. A Via Ferrata set contains a lanyard and two carabiners. The lanyard comprises of an energy absorbing system, two arms that connect to the cable and a way of connecting to the harness, forming a “Y”. It’s called a Y tape configuration and is the only type to be approved by the UIAA. It is safe and simple.
Adventure Nation Guru Amit Chowdhury (Sitting – extreme left) with the other UIAA members at Chamonix, France
Grading and Types – Via Ferratas vary in length and difficulty levels, from under one hour short tours to long and demanding alpine routes at high altitudes that can take 8-10 hours to finish! These routes can sometimes be just simple paths in spectacular surroundings to very steep and dangerous treks. These definitely require the strength, if not the technique, of serious rock climbing. There are numerous grading systems that exist today and most focus on the difficulty level of the toughest passage, using a 5 or 6 point scale. The Kurt Schall guides use an A to E 5 point scale.
Alps Mountain range is one of the most popular in the world. It attracts millions of tourists every year from all over the world. Here are some interesting facts about the Alps:
The formation of the Alps started some 300 million years ago. It was a process spread between various episodes from the Paleozoic Era to the Mesozoic Era to the Jurassic Period. From a single tectonic plate, the Pangaean supercontinent broke into many plates, thus forming the Tethys Sea between Laurasia and Gondwana. Mountain ranges called the Alpide belt were formed when the Tethys was squeezed between the colliding plates – a process that continues till now. This orogenic process led to the formation of the Alps, caused by the collision between the Eurasian and the African plates.
Aerial View of the Swiss Alps
Covering eight counties, the Alps are located in Middle-Southern Europe and cover a distance of 1,200 km. This crescent shaped mountain range is majorly divided into Western Alps and Eastern Alps. The division is along the line from Lake Constance through the Rhine to Lake Como. The Western Alps are located in Italy, France, Monaco and Switzerland, the Eastern Alps in Austria, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovenia and Switzerland.
Alps have been extremely important from a historical point of view. Even before antiquity, countless numbers of armies crossed the Alps, including Caesar and other Roman leaders during the expansion of the Roman Empire. In the Middle Ages, post the fall of the Roman Empire, barbarian hordes looking for a new settlement migrated through the Alps.
Famous Mount Jungfrau in the Swiss Alps
In 1991, a mummified man nick-named Otzi the Iceman was found at the Austrian/Italian border in the Alps. It is said to be 5,000 years old. In the Drachloch cave above the village of Vattis in the canton of St. Gallen, radiocarbon dated charcoal placed around 50,000 years ago was found. It proved that the high peaks in the Alps were visited by prehistoric people.
Experts state that around 50 million years ago, a head-on collision between two tectonic plates led to the formation of the Andes. These were the Nazca and the Antarctic plates that were undergoing subduction beneath the South American plate. This process has continued to this date and causes earthquakes and volcanic activity in the region.
Aerial View of the Andes
The Andes Mountains have been inhabited for centuries. One of the most recognizable civilizations from the past is the ancient Inca Empire. Inca engineers built massive and impressive sites, including Machu Picchu and the capital city of Cuzco. They also constructed roads and conduits throughout the mountain. Inca Empire, also known as Tawantinsuyu in the Quechua language, covered the entire length of the Andean range from Colombia to central Chile to northwestern Argentina.
The ancient city of Machu Picchu
The name “Andes” is believed to have come from the Quechua word “Anta”, meaning copper or “Anti”, which means “East Cardinal Point”.
The Andes Mountain range at 4,500 miles is the longest mountain range on the Earth. It is located around the entire western coast of South America and covers a surface of 800,000 square miles. It is divided into three sections – Southern (Argentina and Chile), Central (Chilean and Peruvian cordilleras and parts of Bolivia) and Northern (Venezuela, Colombia and Northern Ecuador).
Snow Mountain, Peru
Born on February 14th, 1898, Major Harold William “Bill” Tilman was an English explorer, mountaineer and one of the finest travel writers of the last century. He is known for his many climbing and sailing expeditions.
Tilman fought in both the World Wars and was awarded the Military Cross for bravery twice and Distinguished Service Order in World War I and II respectively. The latter was awarded for having fought behind the enemy lines in the Balkans.
Bill Tilman Image Credits: www.grin.com
He was the true embodiment of the spirit of adventure. As he grew older, his zest for adventures became stronger. He has often been referred to as the conceiver of the stylish lightweight approach to mountaineering. It is said that Tilman was ahead of his time, he pioneered ecologically sound principles of adventure and exploration. He was one of those rare people who considered the journey itself as the adventure!
Even though he suffered from altitude sickness all his life, he either summited or attempted to summit the highest peaks known to man. He was a part of the two of the Mount Everest expeditions in the 30s. He participated in the Reconnaissance Expedition (to Everest) as the expedition leader, and reached 27,000 feet without oxygen. Along with his team that included Peter Lloyd, H. Adams Carter and Eric Shipton, he successfully made the ascent to Nanda Devi Sanctuary in 1936 and that remained to be the highest summit climbed by man until 1950. It was during this ascent that they discovered a new passage to this summit. More information about this can be found here .
Adventure Nation is thrilled to share with you all that our Mountaineering GuruDebabrata Mukherjee along with his team, has recently been chosen to be awarded with the prestigious Himalayan Club Award for excellence in Mountaineering for the best Indian Himalayan Expedition – 2013. This is for opening a new route to the Himalayas during the historical exploration from Badrinath to Gangotri over Chaukhamba col.
A legendary polar explorer, and one of the chief figures of the time period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, Sir Ernest Shackleton led three British Expeditions to the Antarctic. So strong was his love for the region that after his death in 1920, his wife asked that he be buried in South Georgia, accompanied by the stormy seas.
Sir Ernest Shackleton Image Credits: en.wikipedia.org
Here is a look at this great man’s life:
1. Explorer Extraordinaire
Ernest Shackleton is the ultimate personification of a time at the beginning of the 20th century that is now regarded as the “Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration”. An Irishman by birth, Shackleton put behind him the disappointment of his first foray into the frozen wastes of Antarctica – poor health led him to return home from the 1901-04 Discovery Expedition (also known as the National Antarctic Expedition) – to become one of history’s most storied polar explorers. His epic, though ultimately futile, attempt at crossing the continent of Antarctica would become a feat of “Endurance” for the ages.
2. Pull of the Ocean
It was through books that Shackleton got his taste for adventure. But such was his restiveness as a teen that his school (Dulwich College London) let the boy leave to seek a life out at sea. With the (reluctant) encouragement of his doctor-father, Shackleton became an apprentice aboard the Hoghton Tower, a sailing boat, and spent the next four years living the life of a seaman, learning the tools of the seafaring trade. Shackleton travelled around the world, sailing with men from all walks of life. These experiences would prove invaluable as he turned his gaze towards Antarctica.
The Island of South Georgia in the Southern Ocean
3. “The Great Southern Journey”
Shackleton’s second journey to the South Pole was as part of the four-member Nimrod Expedition, which he led. During this trip, Shackleton and his fellow explorers reached as far south as anyone had ever done at that point in time – a latitude of 88° 23’ S, the equivalent of 97 geographical miles (that’s 112 statute miles, or 180km) from the South Pole. The party also reached the summit of Mount Erebus (3794 m/12,448ft), the first men to do so. Shackleton proved to be a fine, as well as an empathetic, leader of men. For his Nimrod exploits, he was knighted by King Edward VII.
Lewis Clarke, a fearless 16-year-old from Bristol, England, made history by becoming the youngest ever person to trek from the Antarctica coast to the South Pole. Read more here.
Lewis Clarke ImageCredits: nydailynews.com
The teen adventurer set out on December 2, 2013 – only a couple of weeks after celebrating his 16th birthday – and reached the South Pole on January 18, 2014. Clarke took the Hercules Inlet route, a distance of some 1100 km (about 700 miles), skiing for eight hours and covering roughly 29km (18 miles) every day. Clarke, who had to tow a sled of supplies over the duration of the trek, was accompanied by polar explorer Carl Alvey.
There were challenges aplenty: Clarke had to combat temperatures as low as -50C and wind speeds of up to 120mph, as well as a broken ski and blisters – but if this hardy young man was flustered over the 48-day hike, he didn’t admit it. “I knew it would be hard, but it’s harder than I ever thought it would be.
“I think sometimes about how few people have done this. Only 300 in 100 years. And I’m doing it. That’s pretty cool.” Clarke reached the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station on the evening of January 18 (a Saturday), beating the mark of Canada’s Sarah Landry (who was 18), set a decade ago, in 2004.
Adventure Nation organized a rock climbing workshop on 18th January, 2014, at Camp Wild, Dhauj near Gurgaon. The initial promotion through social media channel itself got a great response and in no time it was houseful!
It was a day event starting at 8 AM and concluding at 3 PM.
The schedule included pick up from HUDA City Centre Metro station, Gurgaon, snacks after reaching the destination, introduction to Rock climbing by our Guru Wing Commander Amit Chowdhury, followed by a demonstration by the Guru and the instructors. Post that all the attendees attempted and successfully climbed the rocks, the workshop ended with a lunch and then a drop back to the Metro station in Gurgaon.
Here are some moments from the day. Even young children were seen enjoying the activity:
Rock climbing Guru briefs about the task ahead!Yes you can!The first step!The triumphant smile!
On May 19, 1975, Junko Tabei, a Japanese mountain climber, became the first woman to summit Mount Everest – world’s highest peak. But that isn’t her only accomplishment. Read here to know more about this true adventurer:
Although the youngest mountain range, Himalayas seem as old as the world itself! It is majestic, mystic and mesmerising and has been the subject of innumerable explorations and a part of popular culture for many years now.
Here are some interesting facts about the Himalayas:
The Himalayan range, as believed by many, was formed some 70 million years ago after a massive collision between the Asian and Indian land masses (tectonic plates). To get an idea about the geology behind this read more here or take a look at this fascinating video!
A depiction of the Himalayas as seen from a satellite
Mount Everest (the highest mountain peak in the world) stands at a dizzying 29,029 feet and is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. Locally called Sagarmatha (Nepal)and Chomolungma (Tibet/China), it came to be known as Mount Everest after Sir Andrew Waugh, the then Surveyor General of India, decided to name it in honour of his predecessor, Sir George Everest, in 1865.
Moon rising over the Himalayas – mesmerising!
Would you believe it if someone told you that the Himalayas are geologically alive? Yes, they are! It has been proven by several tests performed by geologists over the years. This majestic and gigantic chain of mountains is said to be moving approximately 20mm every year!
We all know that the Himalayas are the highest mountains in the world. But what’s fascinating is that there are 30 peaks towering over 24,000 feet, and of the 10 highest peaks in the world, nine are located in the Himalayas (Nepal Himalayas). Check out the Everest Base Camp trip!
Born in 1919, Sir Edmund Hillary, along with Sherpa Tenzing Norgay became the first climber to conquer Everest in the year 1953. In addition to this, he also climbed many peaks in his home country New Zealand and till date is the only man to have reached both poles and climbed the tallest peak in the world!
Here are some of the landmark moments of his life:
Road to EverestBirth of the MountaineerFearless Airman
There are thousands of films released every year around the world. But very few of these are based on adventure or real-life adventure stories. And even out of those that are made, there are only a handful that actually do justice to the spirit of the theme!
This New Year, Adventure Nation recommends to you four of the finest films made on some of the most significant moments in mountaineering history.
Touching the Void (2003):
This adventure-filled documentary is based on Joe Simpson’s book of the same name. It features Simpson’s and Simon Yates’ calamitous attempt to climb Siula Grande (6,344m, 20,814ft) in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.
This film is high on emotion and has been widely praised for its cinematography. It combines documentary footage of the interviews of the climbers along with a re-enactment of the attempt. It is highly rated on rotten tomatoes.
Touching the Void – Movie Poster! Image Credits: summitpost.org
Everest: Beyond the Limit (2006):
This reality television series by Discovery Channel is about the attempts made on the summit of Mount Everest every year. Russell Brice, a mountaineer from New Zealand, is the leader.
In this season, there are 11 climbers, three guides and a group of Sherpas followed by a production crew of 17 people, during their climb in the months of April and May of 2006. We highly recommend this film to all adventure lovers for the actual footage in extreme conditions.
Located in the Zanskar Valley, the Chadar Frozen River trek offers a unique trekking experience and makes the wish list of every trekking enthusiast. This trek is definitely not for a novice, and even for seasoned trekkers, who have experience of many Himalayan treks; this trek is nothing like they have seen before. The hardly habitable environment of the ‘Chadar’ has all the makings of an extremely challenging trek – one which dares a trekker to test his/her attitude and tolerance while providing some of the best visuals imaginable. On Chadar trek, the only constant is the freezing cold, with temperatures dropping to 30 degrees below zero at times. Dressing sensibly is of vital importance. It is difficult to accurately predict the environments at the Zanskar frozen river trek; but here is a general outline of what to expect on this winter trek:
Chadar Frozen River Trek
1. Best time to go –
Chadar literally means sheet and in this case a sheet of Frozen River. January to February is the time when the upper layer of the river gets hard and trekkers can walk gently on it.
Even though Trekking is considered a soft adventure sport, going for a trek in winters can prove to be a little taxing on the body if one is not well prepared.
Here are the tips one must keep in mind before setting off for a winter trek –
Located out in the Atlantic, the isolated Azores is 1564 km directly west of Lisbon, Portugal, and 3900 km off the North American coast. This chain of nine islands, all volcanic in origin, was colonized by the Portuguese in the mid-15th century. The islands’ location, almost bang in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, has proved of great strategic value. Today, they are a key mid-ocean refueling and pit stop for commercial airlines, international shipping, cruise ships and private yachts.
Extremely popular for deep-sea fishing, wine production, many varieties of tropical fruit and local cheeses, the Azores is increasingly becoming a favorite tourist destination. Even the nonchalant traveler will be smitten by the emerald-green and sapphire-blue lakes, volcanic craters and cones, verdant grasslands, 15th-century churches and majestic manor houses.
Mountaineering or Mountain Climbing is one of the most popular adventure sports/activities in India and many other countries. While a lot of people wish to climb high peeks, they tend to ignore the basics.
We have compiled a list of top 7 tips from our Gurus, that will help you understand mountaineering better and what goes into a successful climb. Here goes –
Tip 1 – ResearchTip 2 – Get fitTip 3 – Acquire the gear
Mountains, beaches, deserts and the colorful festivals, India has it all. Offering activities like Mountaineering, Kayaking, Cruising, Birding, Wildlife and Desert Safaris, Outdoor Photography and more – India is a popular travel destination.
Here are some glimpses of this diverse landscape –
Mountaineering in IndiaKayaking in the GangesRock Climbing near GurgaonSafdarjang, New Delhi Image Credits: facebook.com/PhotographyByManoo/
Located 14 kms from Manali in Himachal Pradesh, SolangValley (8500 ft) lies on the western bank of the River Beas. It has a number of hotels and other accommodation options available nearby – and also the choice to pitch your own tent!
The start of international skiing competitions like the Alpine Premier League has made the valley very popular among foreign tourists.
Solang Valley, locally known as Solang Nullah, derives its name from a combination of the words Solang (nearby village) and Nullah (water stream). It offers great views of the surrounding glaciers as well as of the splendid valley lying between Solang and Beas Kund. The valley is also home to a shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva, located on top of a hill. Hidimba Temple and Raha Waterfalls are other attractions nearby that one can visit.
4 months of workout, 4 months of abstinence, 4 friends – and the mountains beckoned!
This is their journey from New Delhi to Roopkund and back, covered in 7 days!
Day 1 – Reached Kathgodam by train from Delhi and drove up to Loharjung (7600ft), which is a 10-hour drive through the foothills of the Himalayas – past gushing streams, through valley clouds and on curvy roads.
Fresh streams on the way! Image Credits :facebook.com/anandkshitij/media_set
Day 2 – Walking past icy-cold streams and coming face to face with high-flying birds, the group trekked its way up to Didna (8800ft). Villagers’ huts and blankets came in handy for camping.
On the way to Didna Image Credits :facebook.com/anandkshitij/media_set
Day 3 – The day began at 8, and through muck, rock, oak forests and meadows, they reached Ali Bugyal – the next campsite.
