Do I need to be a hiker to be green?

Ragini Letitia Singh
I realised it this time after several toils before,
I am no hiker.
An easy climb or a gentle slope, yes.
A long stretch of steep uphill kills my lungs
A long stretch of steep downhill kills my toes.
Backpack weighing a ton doesn't help,
Neither does my pride in not allowing anybody else to share my complete burden.
I trudge higher, pushing myself, coaxing myself
As if I'm a donkey
"Just a little bit longer and I can stop to rest"
"Another 400 metres, that's all"
"Oh c'mon! Of course you can do this!"
It helps sometimes, this coaxing.
Sometimes I feel that it's more of mental strength
that gets you there, than the physical,
That's what helped me ascend Manimahesh the first time.
By the second round, I'd lost it.
And to tell you the truth,
There exists within me a slight fear of heights.
This is where I stop and ask myself,
"How in the world is a person like me going about,
saving the Himalayas when I'm not even an expert climber
and a little intimidated by its formidable appearance???"
I sit at a dhaba en route, catching my breath,
Stealing a few more moments of delicious rest,
The question revolving in my spinning head.
A dainty bird sings sweetly,
Gentle rain falls in a musical rhythm,
The mountains around me are draped in bright green velvet,
While a goat wrestles with a branch off a cliff,
And the river dances by.
For a second the question is lost,
As the fragrance of damp fir leaves takes over.
And I know the answer.
I smile to myself, drag myself off the stone bench,
Hurl on my burden, clutch my stick,
And hike on.

Ragini Letitia Singh is the Regional Communications Officer for WWF's Himalayan High Altitude Wetlands Programme & manages the Green Hiker campaign. greenhiker@wwfindia.net

Trek to Minkiani Pass with a ‘green’ twist

Maninder Kohli
In the last week of September 2011, our team of 14 spent a week trudging across the Dhauladhar Range in Himachal Pradesh passing through Kareri Village, Kakeri Lake and finally Minkiani Pass. Starting from 1,400 masl the group walked about 45 km to reach the Minkiani Pass at 4,050 masl over a four-day period. We camped out for six nights and were supported by a group of 14 staff and a number of ponies.

As a matter of habit, after the completion of each trek we do a stock taking on how the issue of limiting environmental damage during the trek was managed by the team.
Of the 25 or so treks I have done over the past years, I feel that this particular trek was undoubtedly the most environment-friendly for the following reasons:
Use of Industrial Cylinders for fuel: These cylinders are heavy at about 36-40 kg each. From an environment and safety point of view, they were vastly superior to the use of kerosene. In previous treks I have noticed kerosene stoves breaking down forcing the cooking staff to use firewood. In one case last year, the kerosene container leaked while a porter was carrying it, badly burning his back.

All Plastic carried down: All plastic wrappers were carried back down. At all campsites a pit was used for burying biodegradable waste only.

Paper Bags for packed lunch: Packed lunch was distributed in reusable paper bags. These bags are tough and were used daily limiting the need of carrying plastic on the trek.

No trenches: Despite chances of rainfall, no trenches were dug at any campsite, which allowed us to leave all campsites as if they were never used.

Clean Up of Campsite: Between Kareri Village and Kareri Lake there is an interim campsite. Groups of school children used this campsite during the summer and had left behind a complete mess. We found broken glass bottles and paper all over. Our team along with staff did a great job in cleaning up the whole campsite.

The following are some areas where I felt there is a need to introspect and see what solutions can emerge:
Use of Toilet Paper: I personally don’t use toilet paper but find as leader of the group difficult to enforce the same practice on the team. In my opinion leaving toilet paper all around the campsite is not an acceptable practice. If use cannot be avoided we should ensure that paper is taken back to camp and burned or taken back down to the road head. I find trying to bury paper does not work as animals often dig it up or rain displaces it.

Bathing in mountain streams: This practice is acceptable as long as you don’t use soap or shampoo in a running stream as water can get contaminated. As a practice it is better to take water in a container away from a water source for bathing. In recent times, I have started to prefer using organic products when going to the mountains but am still not sure if there are completely free of chemicals.

Maninder Kohli is an avid adventurer, climber, trekker, skier, rafter and mountain biker. He heads the Himalayan Club in Delhi and is a member of the Indian Mountaineering Foundation. He can be contacted at maninderkohli@gmail.com

Of catapults and a wildlife week

Roshni Subhash
roshnisubhash@gmail.com

We (Nimesh and I) were based out of Saiha in Mizoram, India in October 2010 when the opportunity of being a part of the Wildlife Week activities in the neighbouring district of Lawngtlai came our way. PuTlana the then Divisional Forest Officer at Lawngtlai and Nimesh who was working in Saiha on conservation had planned interactions in villages around the Blue Mountain National Park. I accompanied them offering my services as the odd jobs woman and trip photographer for whatever that was worth!
Mornings found us walking in the light drizzle exchanging smiles with the residents as they made their way to the jhum fields. This was followed by my favourite part of the wildlife week celebrations - interactions with schools. Films like Kalyan Verma’s A Hunters Tale and Shekar Dattatri’s Point Calimere were screened to help facilitate (animated) discussions on the forests surrounding these villages.
I was unfamiliar with their language, and this offered me the luxury of being an observer of reactions and images which still linger even after the trip – young ones in mute contemplation, vigorous nods indicating recognition of some birds and animals in the films, children doubling over with laughter at the movements of a dung beetle in Point Calimere. The films were paused periodically for discussion and queries, post which PuTlana also spoke with the groups on their contribution in conserving the forests around them.
Somewhere at this point in the discussion at a school in Lungpher, little hands shot up in the air, some children stood up and still others followed. Hmmm…some kind of volunteering I gathered and continued to watch.
It was not until the evening while we were sipping hot cups of tea at our host’s home that I fully understood what the volunteering was for. I heard the all too familiar thuds of children's footsteps. They paused at the door, hesitated for a bit, trickled into the room in twos and threes, plonked their catapults on the table, hesitated, giggled and ...poof ....vanished. Some shook hands with those around and lingered. The elders duly patted their backs in appreciation while they squirmed – proud of the acknowledgement and made conscious by all the attention. By the time our tea was done with, we had enough catapults to put in the hearth and prepare our next round of tea!
Hunting is a socially accepted and widespread practice in the region and the marksmanship required for it is acquired at an early age. Catapults are prized possessions of young boys as they move about the village and fields looking for birds, geckos and the likes. For some, taking aim at these smaller animals and birds is a sport or a game for children. Others use their skill to bring something home for the pot.
What in their discussion with PuTlana caused them to come by and surrender their catapults? I did not ask. Instead I found myself wondering about the number of times as a child I had consciously decided to give up a pastime/sport/recreation just because I attended a discussion at school? I could not remember a single instance.
Nimesh and I felt the need to talk to some of these boys in whatever limited (is it really? I wonder now) conversation was possible. So while clicking images of the catapults or what would have been catapults (some of them were still in the assembling stages, that is, we got fresh sculpted pieces of wood and the strips of fresh unused rubber intended for it), we chatted. They shared how mud pellets/bullets were made. One of them seemed to be an expert in making these while the other seemed to be quite a shot. They generously provided their assessment of the catapults surrendered while going through them, and marked, “Good…. Not good…. aaaaaaaaah a baby's catapult!” While frowning at Nimesh's attempts to take aim, the marksman picked one up said "that" and before we knew it, he hit the electricity pole over 50 feet away. Bullseye!
He left behind a bewildered twosome and his catapult, as he grinned and walked away.

For more journeys in the region
Nimesh’s Blog - http://mizoram-samrakshan.blogspot.com/
Roshni’s Blog - http://ayeartomyself.blogspot.com/