Hindustan Times
Sweat on the jungle treks
Here’s a little bet. When I say the word trek, what’s to say that your mind immediately conjures the picture of barren trails through tall, stark mountains topped in snow? Do you start thinking of tents and sleeping bags and jackets that can keep out the wind and the cold? Of lots and lots of climbing up and down and knees that creak in complaint?
I don’t blame you. Most trekkers think the Himalayas are their mecca and refuse to acknowledge the existence of a world beyond them. For them, the main goal is to climb higher with each successive attempt. What they refuse to accept is that there is a whole breed of trekkers out there who don’t care about getting to the top.
For these guys, the thrill of a week out of the house is spending it in the lap of nature. In the middle of a jungle, where there is something alive and moving under every tree, bush and leaf. Where there are green growing things to look at, creatures with two legs, four and even more, and birds of various hues. Streams, lakes and waterfalls pepper the way; readymade picnic spots where you can stop and watch the world of the jungle carry out its routines undisturbed.
For them, that part is very important too: leaving the world undisturbed and unaffected by their presence. They try not to disturb the cycles of the jungle dwellers and leave no mark of their presence in that world.
On tropical treks there’s always a lot to see and hear. The problem is, that a lot of those things can also see you and want a bite! So you’ll find that you spend a lot of time swatting things away and scratching the points where they bit you when you didn’t swat fast enough. And when you aren’t swatting or scratching, you’ll be wiping away the sweat that will be rolling off your forehead nose, chin in loud salty plops!
But don’t let that be a deterrent. Give it a shot and you’ll discover a world full of colour, sounds and sights.
Crossing the stream that marks the beginning of the trek across Interview Island in Andaman & Nicobar
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