Laxmivan

 We started our day at 6:00am. After getting fresh,  Soma & I Went to the temple. There were only a few local people. We prayed for some time. Then we visited nearby Hotspring & visited one of the Sant who spent 6months there every year. We took our breakfast & met Pushkar Singh. 

Manu Rawat sent a pickup van for us & within 15 minutes we reached Mana Village from where our trip will start. Near ITBP camp, there was a well-defined path towards the Satopanth Tal. There we met with Manu Rawat. There he assured us regarding our next 5 days trip, informed our food options & introduced with our porters also.

At about 9:15am, we started our trek. The first 2-3 km was a normal walk. We found small herbs on both sides of the road. It was a stone-paved path. We had found lots of different small flowers in every step. You need to smash them to put your feet. Some red fruits, locally known as “kudrunchjha” are found here and there.

After walking 2km we found a valley named “Anandvan” where we found lots of pinkish flowers. Our guide Pushkar Ji told us it was called the valley of flowers in Satopanth. The view was awesome. We found only unknown flowers everywhere.  

After that, we crossed the Dhanu glaciers which are flowing like a stream. It was a little bit scary. If anyone slips, there is no option to escape. Thereafter we had to cross a high assent. This was the first ascent till now we had faced. I had followed the footsteps of the porters. Though there was some man marked path is available. But after crossing the assent we reached a green meadow. The greenery will give shame to the color which we are familiar with in our day-to-day rural life. We filled a real joy inside us. There were some sheep here & there.

We took our packed lunch there & spent some time just lying idle. We met some Gujrati pilgrims who successfully completed their trek. After spending some time we again started. This time, there was only a stone-paved path. The stone size was not similar. Our guide advised us to take a long step at a time. Now the real trekking path was found. 

The next 2Km trek was on the stone-based path. Some decent staircases were also found. The narrow road was the divider between a sky-touched Stone wall & KHAI. The width of the road was not more than 4ft wide. We found lots of small bushes here & there. The colorful bushes every time tempted to take a halt & appraise them.

We have crossed two meadows, the first one was Chamtoli & then the Laxmivan. The green measdow gives an eye-soothing feeling inside the land of stones. Our Porters pitched the tent on Laxmivan. Here we need to stay for the night.

We decided to take a troll nearby places. Actually, we noticed Alaknanda is flowing just a few meters ahead by creating a virgin meadow. It was tempting us to go to the beachside. The lucrative look of the virgin beach with white sand just tempted us very much.

So Soma & I asked the porters, how we can reach there. They informed us that there was lots of ways to go there, just follow any one of them. We took the way & easily reach there. The river was quite wide there & created a virgin beach. On one side of the beach, there was some bhujrapatra trees. Some water was blocked there gives a pond-like feeling. The opposite of the river, we can view some moren, some small stream meets here with the mainstream.S o the water flow was quite high. But due to flat land, it gives a feeling that there is no flow in water.

Suddenly, we noticed a boy from the opposite sides tried to catch our sight. He asked us how to cross the river.We did not has idea about that. So we casually say, "We don't have idea" & ignore the boy.

After half an hour We came back to that place where our tent warer pitched,which was on the higher side, not near the beach.From there we noticed that the boy was not able to cross the stream neither the main stream so he can came the same side of the river where we are nor his side, there was some small but high flow stream. At last he tried to cross the stream by swimming & falied.His sleeping bag was flown in the river. It was not possible for us to go there & help us. Though our porters blown whistle to catch his sight, but he did not noticed.

We were waited with beated heart.After some failed approach, he tried to go back on the same way he came.Most probably he would go back to Mana Village.   

We took our dinner approx 7:30pm & went to tent for sleep. It was drizzling outside.

Satopanth Tal

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