way you go, and climbs about 4000 feet in elevation as Darjeeling sits
right around 7000 feet above sea level. I was told the hike would take
from five to five and a half hours. We did it in three hours and
twenty minutes. That's right.
I got up at 6am to have my mornimg tea and watch the sun rise. My
guide, Prakash, came to meet me at my room at about 6:45 with a fully
loaded backpack. Prakash is a slight man; I doubt he weighs 100
pounds. He has a full, thick beard, putting mine to shame. On this
morning he had on slacks and a Glenburn sportcoat and the obsequious
tone that most of the staff have was noteably absent. I liked him
immediately.
To start the hike they drive you out of the estate and down into the
valley (this is not included in the 25k). Once at our drop off point
Prakash left his bag in the vehicle as the car was going to follow us
(again) and meet up for "breakfast". This pampering thing was cool and
all, but I was interested in going for a hike, not a leisurely stroll
with occasional breaks where someone serves you lemonade on a tray in
the middle of the woods. I brought my pack, and when Prakash offered
to carry it for me, I said "no thank you" and pulled the straps
tighter. I'm not going to make another man carry my bag; it's just not
going to happen.
Prakash started down the road (with vehicle following) but quickly
strayed off onto a small path. We continued downhill, alternating
between tea fields, woods, and small villages. He seemed to just float
downhill, especially down rocky paths where he would bounce
effortlessly from rock to rock. I managed to keep up, albeit much less
gracefully. In hindsight, I think he was maybe testing me to see my
hiking ability. Along the way he pointed out all the different plants
and bird calls - he knew both the plants' botanical as well as common
names. This conversation naturally led into vegetables and fruits (as
many there were many trees fruit trees), paving the way for further
discussion of food, a favorite topic of mine. We got along just fine.
We met up with the vehicle along the road and Prakash broke out the
tea, biscuts, sandwiches, etc. There was a veritable feast to be had!
However, I opted just for some tea and a couple little biscuits as I
did not want to weigh myself down before this hike. I implored Prakash
to take most of the food and things out of his bag as not to weigh him
down, but he insisted on carrying the prepacked sandwiches, "just in
case". I didn't argue; it was his funeral, as they say.
Instead of following the road (as do most people), Prakash and I set
up the mountainside along a narrow path through plentiful tea fields.
There's not much cover - the tea plants are only a couple feet tall -
so the majority of the hike was in the sun, though this also provided
for spectacular vistas the entire way up. Prakash kept taking
"shortcuts", which I renamed "steepcuts" as they took us straight up
rather than the usual switchback. Though the steepcuts probably took a
few kms off our total hike, they definitely made for some precarious
climbing, often with only enough room for one foot to plant safely.
Whenever we looked up the mountain we could see Darjeeling hovering
above us as we inched closer. I'm pretty sure Prakash had not taken
this route before. I say this with pretty assured measure because as
we got closer to the top he stopped and asked every single person we
came upon (not many) which way to go.
At one point while we were taking a water break Prakash told me his
sister just got engaged and that she lives in Darjeeling. He asked me
if I liked chai tea and if I wanted to stop at his sister's house on
the way up. I'm pretty sure this was not standard operating
proceedures, but I excitedly accepted. He pulled out his phone and put
in an order to his sister for some tea. It was like a little bonus on
the hike!
As we started to get into the developed area, dirt path changed to
semi paved walkways and stairs, equally as precarious. The
mountainside is steep, and the views that each of these ramshackle
buildings has is phenomenal. Views like this would cost $1-2 million,
easy, in Cali. We snaked our way up through the houses until finally
Prakash stopped and yelled up. We had found his sister's house!
The house was a series of rooms on different levels, each separate
from the others. The house was built out of concrete, and had a large
deck at the top level overlooking the entire valley below. I was led
into a room where there were three men already sitting around a glass
coffee table: his father, uncle, and brother-in-law. Everyone was
there apparently to receive the sister's new fiancé- a traditional
cerimony I suppose. The men were all very nice and spoke at worst
decent English, which droppped the rating on the awkward scale to
about a 7. I wouldn't say there was a lot of conversation going on,
but we did manage to talk about how Darjeeling has changed and Obama
(the latter of which has turned out to be a hot topic throoughout
India- more on this later). The majority of the 30 or 40min I was
there we spent in awkward silence. Our tea arrived and it was the best
chai yet! She also brought these delectible little sweets (which were
well received after my strenuous hike). They were like donut holes,
except made from many tiny donut holes the size of quiñoa pushed
together with a sugary glaze. I believe Prakash was hanging out with
his sister this entire time.
I thanked everyone and congratulated his sister before we set off for
the top of the town where we were to meet up with Lexi, who had opted
to get a ride up.
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