My personal felicitations and congtratulations to all the CATS who donated blood.
Regards
Vivek Atray
Congrats CATS
CATS can do it! Hats off to all the CATS for cat-walking into Fortis to gleefully donating blood. CATS Supreet, Dr Ashok and Dr. Neerja deserve kudos for their enthusiasm and verve with which they brought together all the CATS to try out this new 'adventure' with a noble cause.
Thanks to you friends, little children who undergo free heart surgery under the Rotary Heartline project of Rotary Club of Chandigarh, shall always be grateful to you for saving their lives. And what a better way to celebrate life for the CATS by saving the lives of children they know not.
On behalf of Rotary Club of Chandigarh I compliment everyone, and am sure, together we shall continue to touch the lives of the people around us with many more such adventures of selfless service.
Yours truly: Elusive CAT? or Recurring Virus? CJ
Thanks to you friends, little children who undergo free heart surgery under the Rotary Heartline project of Rotary Club of Chandigarh, shall always be grateful to you for saving their lives. And what a better way to celebrate life for the CATS by saving the lives of children they know not.
On behalf of Rotary Club of Chandigarh I compliment everyone, and am sure, together we shall continue to touch the lives of the people around us with many more such adventures of selfless service.
Yours truly: Elusive CAT? or Recurring Virus? CJ
A day well spent
A day well spent
After indeed a bad turnout for our walk in interview’s and not much left with the receding sunshine, the brightness peeped , with a Meow from Anuradha. The idea didn’t seem great with boredom hitting Zenith however this CAT’s crouch didn’t leave you with much options.
And there we were with this fascinating Nurse drawing blood with a smile, and CAT Neerja and this other Lady giving the glimpses of Mother India. I did give the brightest smile after my recent Dental Investment that had dwindled my balance. Such interesting was this other Lady that I was touched quiet deeply. I fail to recollect her name, but maybe Deeds are all that matter. May God be with her and help her all the way.
I was the last string and the Karma came to an end with me donating my blood. I however Salute all above in the chain ,who set the motion with perhaps a hidden determination to leave this planet a little better , To die a Little Better and to Leave me a little thinner. I promise I will get back again in 3 months time for many reasons. Keep my Coffee & sandwiches ready.
Thanks & Regards
CAT Abhijeet Shahi
After indeed a bad turnout for our walk in interview’s and not much left with the receding sunshine, the brightness peeped , with a Meow from Anuradha. The idea didn’t seem great with boredom hitting Zenith however this CAT’s crouch didn’t leave you with much options.
And there we were with this fascinating Nurse drawing blood with a smile, and CAT Neerja and this other Lady giving the glimpses of Mother India. I did give the brightest smile after my recent Dental Investment that had dwindled my balance. Such interesting was this other Lady that I was touched quiet deeply. I fail to recollect her name, but maybe Deeds are all that matter. May God be with her and help her all the way.
I was the last string and the Karma came to an end with me donating my blood. I however Salute all above in the chain ,who set the motion with perhaps a hidden determination to leave this planet a little better , To die a Little Better and to Leave me a little thinner. I promise I will get back again in 3 months time for many reasons. Keep my Coffee & sandwiches ready.
Thanks & Regards
Photo Gallery - Blood Donation Camp
CATS standing beside our very first banner...Elegantly announcing our very first Blood Donation Camp...
Cheer Leaders from Rotary Club of Chandigarh with the CATS Donors...
Our 'Elusive CATS' AP and Charanjeet along with our 'Cool CAT' Neerja...
engrossed in conversation with our 'Top CAT' Ashok :-)
Notice how these two CATS can't stay away from their mobiles,
even while donating blood??
Men... can't take them anywhere!!
Hats off to our CATS who donated together with family and friends...
engrossed in conversation with our 'Top CAT' Ashok :-)
Notice how these two CATS can't stay away from their mobiles,even while donating blood??
Men... can't take them anywhere!!
Hats off to our CATS who donated together with family and friends...CAT Anu ensured her husband CAT Maharaj also donated blood..
whilst CAT Gopika merrily munches on her refreshment...
See.. it does not really hurt says CAT Madhvi :-)
A moment of sheer pride to pin that little badge to the brave one!
Gang of new and old CATS sharing post bleeding refreshments..
Nope.. we have not had enough as yet..
See.. it does not really hurt says CAT Madhvi :-)
A moment of sheer pride to pin that little badge to the brave one!
Gang of new and old CATS sharing post bleeding refreshments..
Nope.. we have not had enough as yet..We want more blood !
And more from Nikhil and CAT Ashish...
And more from Nikhil and CAT Ashish...Meow Feedback - Blood Donation Camp
It has been a day of hopes, disappointment and then surprises from unknown quarters.
Given that 21 CATS had registered for the blood donation with some bringing in their family/friends/colleagues with them, we had set ourselves a realistic target of 20-30 units. As everyone knows that ours is a contributory trekking club, there was no money in the kitty. However, our 'Elusive' CAT Charanjeet and CAT AP were determined to make it memorable for us all. Both insisted that we must have a banner. CATS were doing something good and it ought to be celebrated.
Their passion rubbed off onto me and I thought it would be nice to have a badge depicting the blood drop which CATS could wear with pride. CAT Charanjeet surprised us by quickly printing some car stickers in his office as well. CAT Neerja took care of all the arrangements at Fortis Blood Bank. CATS were all set for the D-Day.
Hats off to the enthusiasm of CAT Ravinder, who despite having never been on any of the treks with us, gave blood two days in advance as he was set to leave for Bangalore yesterday. This morning the first ever official CATS banner was put up inviting the CATS in to donate blood. It was a Kodak Moment but there was not a CAT in sight to share it with!
I was the first one to re-open the CATS account at Fortis Blood Bank around 9.15am. CAT Madhavi has never been on any of the treks with us, but came in to donate blood before going to her office. It was 10.30am. Half a dozen Rotarians and CAT Ashok dropped by to cheer up CATS donating blood, but CATS were conspicuous by their absence! I had organized the camp only after getting a consensual opinion from CATS, 21 had volunteered but where were they?
Perhaps CAT Neerja saw the disappointment writ large on my face and quickly got into action. She went on a round of the hospital and soon the blood bank was buzzing with employees of Fortis from various departments, happy enough to donate blood to demonstrate their commitment to join CATS. Others I am sure simply could not refuse the request to donate blood from our charming CAT Neerja.
First time donor, manager of IDBI Bank got cold feet and disappeared after his medical. CAT Neerja appointed IDBI's security guard to bring him back! One first timer requested to be photographed once he had donated blood. Yet another first timer said, 'It feels good' when asked how he was feeling after donating blood. We were on a roll. It was sheer joy to see the pride with which CAT Neerja was putting the pin on every donor. She was honoring the brave ones, who also got a car sticker and a certificate in return for the little effort they made today. We dubbed this little ceremony as 'Taaj-Poshi' of CATS!
It was a relief to get a call from CAT Dharminder that he's on the way and more so, he's bringing along Ashish with him. I was delighted to see CAT Jolly walking through, even though he had not registered. CAT Sandeep walked in chattering his life away on two mobiles he was carrying. CAT Navpreet showed up soon thereafter. Our quite CAT Paramjeet was another surprise. CAT DV Bhatia stayed put good part of the morning to cheer the CATS. Finally some regular CATS started pussy footing through the door but we were still miles to go before we met our target. It was 1pm soon and the tally was still only 11.
CAT Navpreet swung into action and rounded up his team from the office as well as friends circle. Since they had come in at lunch time, we actually fed them before taking any blood! Nikhil Bhalla, Raju, CAT Anu Sodhi, CAT Ashish Arora donated courtesy CAT Navpreet's bullying tactics. Count was 20 by the time we went for lunch at 3pm. We had met the lower end of our estimate, but we wanted to have a little higher result.
Special mention needs to be made of CAT Anu Arora, who came in after finishing off her school and attending the condolence meeting at a colleague's home. She was late, but she came nevertheless. CAT Maharaj got stuck at work today but called up just now ( 10.pm) to confirm that he would be going to Fortis tomorrow to donate blood. The final count today was a respectable 25; a quarter century as CAT Navpreet called it.
Overall, 25 units were donated in our maiden effort of blood donation. 3 were rejected on the grounds of having low HB and CAT Maharaj will take our total to 26 by donating tomorrow. Even if the regular CATS had not managed to donate blood, the determined CATS ensured that our first blood donation camp was a complete success.
Three Meows to the CATS who donated blood today and all of us would be wearing our CATS Donor badges with great pride on our next trek.
- CAT Supreet.
Given that 21 CATS had registered for the blood donation with some bringing in their family/friends/colleagues with them, we had set ourselves a realistic target of 20-30 units. As everyone knows that ours is a contributory trekking club, there was no money in the kitty. However, our 'Elusive' CAT Charanjeet and CAT AP were determined to make it memorable for us all. Both insisted that we must have a banner. CATS were doing something good and it ought to be celebrated.
Their passion rubbed off onto me and I thought it would be nice to have a badge depicting the blood drop which CATS could wear with pride. CAT Charanjeet surprised us by quickly printing some car stickers in his office as well. CAT Neerja took care of all the arrangements at Fortis Blood Bank. CATS were all set for the D-Day.
Hats off to the enthusiasm of CAT Ravinder, who despite having never been on any of the treks with us, gave blood two days in advance as he was set to leave for Bangalore yesterday. This morning the first ever official CATS banner was put up inviting the CATS in to donate blood. It was a Kodak Moment but there was not a CAT in sight to share it with!
I was the first one to re-open the CATS account at Fortis Blood Bank around 9.15am. CAT Madhavi has never been on any of the treks with us, but came in to donate blood before going to her office. It was 10.30am. Half a dozen Rotarians and CAT Ashok dropped by to cheer up CATS donating blood, but CATS were conspicuous by their absence! I had organized the camp only after getting a consensual opinion from CATS, 21 had volunteered but where were they?
Perhaps CAT Neerja saw the disappointment writ large on my face and quickly got into action. She went on a round of the hospital and soon the blood bank was buzzing with employees of Fortis from various departments, happy enough to donate blood to demonstrate their commitment to join CATS. Others I am sure simply could not refuse the request to donate blood from our charming CAT Neerja.
First time donor, manager of IDBI Bank got cold feet and disappeared after his medical. CAT Neerja appointed IDBI's security guard to bring him back! One first timer requested to be photographed once he had donated blood. Yet another first timer said, 'It feels good' when asked how he was feeling after donating blood. We were on a roll. It was sheer joy to see the pride with which CAT Neerja was putting the pin on every donor. She was honoring the brave ones, who also got a car sticker and a certificate in return for the little effort they made today. We dubbed this little ceremony as 'Taaj-Poshi' of CATS!
It was a relief to get a call from CAT Dharminder that he's on the way and more so, he's bringing along Ashish with him. I was delighted to see CAT Jolly walking through, even though he had not registered. CAT Sandeep walked in chattering his life away on two mobiles he was carrying. CAT Navpreet showed up soon thereafter. Our quite CAT Paramjeet was another surprise. CAT DV Bhatia stayed put good part of the morning to cheer the CATS. Finally some regular CATS started pussy footing through the door but we were still miles to go before we met our target. It was 1pm soon and the tally was still only 11.
CAT Navpreet swung into action and rounded up his team from the office as well as friends circle. Since they had come in at lunch time, we actually fed them before taking any blood! Nikhil Bhalla, Raju, CAT Anu Sodhi, CAT Ashish Arora donated courtesy CAT Navpreet's bullying tactics. Count was 20 by the time we went for lunch at 3pm. We had met the lower end of our estimate, but we wanted to have a little higher result.
Special mention needs to be made of CAT Anu Arora, who came in after finishing off her school and attending the condolence meeting at a colleague's home. She was late, but she came nevertheless. CAT Maharaj got stuck at work today but called up just now ( 10.pm) to confirm that he would be going to Fortis tomorrow to donate blood. The final count today was a respectable 25; a quarter century as CAT Navpreet called it.
Overall, 25 units were donated in our maiden effort of blood donation. 3 were rejected on the grounds of having low HB and CAT Maharaj will take our total to 26 by donating tomorrow. Even if the regular CATS had not managed to donate blood, the determined CATS ensured that our first blood donation camp was a complete success.
Three Meows to the CATS who donated blood today and all of us would be wearing our CATS Donor badges with great pride on our next trek.
- CAT Supreet.
Meow Feedback - Shimla Shali Peak
Year end was approaching and CATS wanted to do something different, rather than just attend yet another New Year bash in town. But what could it be?? We were not entirely sure. We conducted a quick e-mail voting between three options. A) Dharamshala-McLeodganj B) Shimla C) Dalhousie. Dharamshala was a clear winner but required 4days for a good trek (as in fact did Dalhousie option). Since nearly all the CATS could not afford to take more than 1-2days off, being close to Chandigarh, Shimla was the only option left.
Trip to Shimla sounded nice, but neither were we sure of getting snow there, nor did we wish to get stuck in the touristy rut. Hence over a quick cup of coffee, with a couple more CATS, we got in touch with Mr Shaukat Sikand on the phone, whom we had been introduced to, at a recently held Tourism Conclave. By the time I had put the phone down, we had developed our complete itinerary for the our New Year Trek to Shimla – Shali Peak. With the trek sorted, all we need to figure out was how to travel to Shimla and for this we chose the Rail Car from Kalka.
With a train which can accommodate only 18 passengers and a guest house which would bust at seams with 20 people, we knew we could only take 18 with us. Immediately 22 people called in to join this wonderful trek, so we decided not to circulate an email or put the fact sheet on the blog. Unfortunately, within days we realized that 8 were not paying up and had actually backed out. We were left with 14 seats filled, everything had been paid and we needed 18 people at the very least to break even. Time was running out fast and due to this last minute pull-out, we were struggling. Anyhow, given the itinerary was so good, 3 more people joined in to complete our team of 17 to go to Shali Peak.
Many of us could not sleep on Friday night, in anticipation of what lay ahead of us. Sleepy heads got together on Saturday morning at the appointed time and we all left for Kalka. Such was our eagerness that we were early for the train and infact the Railway Station Manager had to keep us busy with some tea/coffee and biscuits whilst the Rail Car was brought at the station.
Regardless of the age, all of us were squealing with delight at the sight of the Rail Car. There were only 18 seats and it ran on a generator set. The Driver was merrily honking the horn and we were meandering through the narrow back lanes of the villages on the way. At times we had to tell to driver to stop speeding! Kids had started counting the tunnels whilst I could not help sticking my face out to feel the breeze. We were in heaven already. Or was it the land of Lilliput?
Once the initial delight had taken seat, we started as usual with a prayer followed by Antakhshri, never forgetting to whistle and hoot in the darkness of each tunnel. CAT Prabhmeh and CAT Nehchal were in great demand. CAT Aman was as good as a bathroom singer whilst our first timer, CAT Simran was happier sitting with the driver in his cabin than join us for the singing session. CAT Sandeep and CAT Nirmaljeet we figured out were bossom buddies; quite literally! CAT Rajpal on the other hand was his usual self, quietly smiling at the ruckus being created by the rest of us!
Rumbling bellies soon alighted at the picturesque Barog Station, where hot breakfast was served to us promptly. The food was delicious, the station was pretty, weather was perfect and we were delirious. We could not take enough pictures.
As soon as we got onto the train for the second leg of our journey, practically all of us fell asleep due to the sumptuous breakfast all CATS had stuffed themselves with. The four storey bridge consisting of 34 arches, built in 1898 woke us from our peaceful slumber. It’s known as the highest bridge in the Indian Railways.
CAT Sandeep had to redeem himself by dancing on ‘Sharaara-Sharaara’. One group had got stuck at word ‘J’ during the second half of Antakshri. When all else seemed to be failing, CAT DV Bhatia put his hand up and said, ‘Jo bole so nihaal’, immediately the rest of the train chanted, ‘Sat Sri Akal’.
After crossing 19 stations and 110 tunnels, we alighted at Shimla where our guide Mr Sikand met us. We had a wonderful lunch at Combermere and we soon we were set for our Shimla Heritage Walk. We went to the Rani Jhansi Park but it resembled a derelict vegetable garden. We went to the Church on the Ridge and found it to be closed since the church keeper had gone for lunch. We went to the Gaiety Theatre but it was in shambles due to renovation work. Disappointment had started to set in by now but we kept our hopes alive. Mr Sikand had told us to walk towards the Viceregal Lodge whilst apparently was only 20minutes walk away. We kept on walking but the Lodge proved to be elusive. Legs had started to give way, our sling bags had started feeling heavier, kids were getting crankier and we were loosing our patience.
However, the sheer magnificence of the first sight of the Lodge put an end to all disappointment. I personally felt as if I was back in England, strolling through one of the Stately Homes in the countryside. The Lodge was imposing yet serene, strongly built yet delicate looking, beautiful green lawns and lovely willowy trees made our day. We took the guided tour of the Lodge but they showed only 5 rooms of this massive building. It was so silly that they would not allow us to take photos inside, but themselves freely destroyed the beautiful building and its old furniture. It’s nothing short of blasphemy to paint over original solid burma teak paneling with white emulsion and highlight the crevices in gaudy gold paint. Beautiful furniture pieces from the Raj, gothic paneling, musky wall coverings, crystal and wooden chandeliers were only a handful of items I can describe. Rest, you have to go and see for yourself!
After finishing of the guided tour, the group divided into two. One half decided to drive back to the guest house and the second lot decided to go back to the Mall for some last minute shopping for the trek. Everyone in the bazaar kept telling us that it would be very cold and very difficult trek to do, so we all bought an additional pair of leggings, gloves and caps. Once the shops closed, we ran amok drinking soups, coffees and eating momos, frnech fries and corn. CAT Sandeep kept calling us from the guest house and we found Shimla to irresistible to leave. Eventually he told us that we should leave soon since the road from Shimla to the guest house was haunted. ‘GREAT’ we all said in unison :-)
We finally reached the guest house around 10.15pm and a wonderful dinner was served soon. The guest house, ‘Fair Winds’ was clean, comfortable and warm. Over the dinner it materialized that even our own guide, Mr Sikand was of the view that we would not be able to make it to the top of Shali Peak. He felt that our group was too big, too varied in age and fitness to even seriously contemplate reaching the top. He suggested that we do another easier trek nearby and then catch the train to go home. Infact, two of the CATS had decided to stay back at the guest house the following day whilst the rest could do whatever they wished to.
This is not what we had set out for. We knew our kids were resilient. We were aware of the disparity of fitness in our group but CATS are brilliant motivators. Yet we had to be realistic. I chose to call an emergency Catty Conference. CAT Sandeep agreed with me that though we appreciated the opinions voiced by others, CATS could not simply accept defeat. CAT Navpreet and CAT Nirmaljeet also said that we should atleast give it a try. However, it was not good enough to just have a positive frame of mind. We had 17 people in our group, half of whom had never been on a strenuous trek. Hence, we needed to be practical about our abilities and we also had a train to catch.
Consequently, we quickly made an itinerary. We needed to wake up at 5am and leave the guest house at 6am to reach our base camp in Dhatnol by 7am to have breakfast in a dhaba there. Our guide said that given we had woken up early already and had had a long journey to reach Shimla and then the guest house, we would not be able to leave the guest house before 7am and hence it would be too late for Shali Peak. I assured him that waking up everyone was my duty and his only job was to ensure that hot tea and some light eatables were available by 5am sharp for CATS before we hit the road.
The rest of the itinerary was to leave base camp Dhatnol by 8am. Mr Sikand told us that it would take 2.5 – 3 hours for us to reach the top and 2 hours to trek back. So we decided that if we leave base camp by 8am, we would reach the top by 11am, trek back to the base camp by 1pm, drive to our guest house by 2.30pm, have lunch and then leave for Shimla by 3.30pm and catch our 5.30pm train from Shimla to reach back Kalka. We all decided that come what may, to ensure that we are able to catch out 5.30pm train, we must stop wherever we are at 11am, regardless of whether we have reached the peak or not and simply walk back. It did not take us long to make our sleeping arrangements. Kids even got a tent to sleep in one of the rooms.
I could not sleep a wink the whole night in nervous anticipation of what lay ahead the following day. The following morning I actually knocked on everyone’s doors at 4.15am rather than waiting for the clock to turn 5am. We had left Chandigarh with a goal and I had to try everything to ensure that we reached our target. Without much ado, everyone was ready and we left the guest house by 6am in two taxis, as we had decided. We reached Dhatnol just after 7am and dived into the packed breakfast at the dhaba, but the other taxi carrying the rest of the CATS had still not arrived. Eventually we found out that they had driven direct to the ridge and were waiting there for us.
At 8am we finally started trekking towards the Ridge which we reached just before 9am. Hungry CATS pounced upon the food and we were all set to trek towards Shali Peak within minutes. Despite our assurances and request, CAT DV Bhatia and CAT Nirmal Bhatia decided to stay behind as they believed they would hold us back since they were slow in trekking. Leaving them behind with nothing but each other for company amidst the most beautiful landscape, we reluctantly moved towards the Shali at 9am.
The path was stony, uneven and even treacherous at times. We did not have enough space for a foothold at times, with sheer drop inches away. It was breathtaking. CATS were finally coming off age. As usual, the faster CATS moved ahead whilst the slower ones started trailing. However, both the groups kept in constant touch with each other through mobiles. CAT Rajpal literally had to pull CAT Aman by his trouser belt since the rocks were as high as Aman’s legs at some places! But we kept going.
With a train to catch, we did not have much luxury to stop and stare, but we could not help stopping and staring intermittently to admire the natural beauty that surrounded us. How could we miss a cloud caressing our cheeks, the smoke emerging from a stray house dancing in the clear skies, the dauntingly strong peaks interspersed with the snow capped pretty mountains. We did not know what to see and what to miss. We decided that though the goal was important, so was the journey!
Half way through the trek I felt as if I was lagging behind. We had reached 11am already, the deadline for us to start walking back. I called up CAT Navpreet who was in the group ahead. He said that they had the peak in sight and would reach there in 20minutes. Since we were about half an hour behind them, we should keep moving up and that we would have packed lunch to eat on the way to the train station to make up for the lost time. So we kept moving up.
CAT Amanat started lagging behind whereby we had to shout out her name to ensure that she was safe despite knowing that two junior guides were behind her. CAT Aman also started asking how far we had to walk by now. Worst was when he said that he needed to go to the ‘potty‘. We told him that he would have to sit on two stones as there was not a single house in sight. He was shocked to know of the makeshift arrangement and decided that the matter was not urgent afterall. I also could not figure out why I was slowing down but constant phone calls from CAT Gurpreet and CAT Navpreet were enough to keep me focused on the trek.
At a particular plateau on the way, we came across animal skulls, chopped hair, bottles of liquor strewn around, signs of cold bon fires and suddenly thoughts of human sacrifice crossed our minds. Sight of a half eaten dead cow and the skin of a small white dog further made us uneasy and we decided to stay on the trek rather than take short cuts, which took more energy anyway. Around this time I got a call from CAT Gurpreet and all I could hear was hooting, shouting, shrill and happy noises. They had reached the Peak. CAT Navpreet kept repeating just one word, ‘Awesome’. CAT Gurpreet was busy describing the views from the top. I was hearing everything but was finding it difficult to respond to them. Something was not right with me but I was not sure what? CAT Gurpreet and CAT Sandeep were the first to reach the top with CAT Nirmaljeet and his son CAT Simran, CAT Prabhmeh and CAT Navpreet following suit. CAT Simmi reached with CAT Puneeta and her daughter CAT Nehchal a little later.
We started eating chocolates in the second group by this time, as we reached the little Shali Temple on Shali Road, which had been constructed by Maharaja Har Inder Singh Bahadur of Faridkot in 1936. I thought it was lack of filling breakfast that was causing slight dizziness. We were told that the Peak was about 20minutes from this place by a passer-by. Constant phone calls from the CATS at the peak ensured that we kept walking towards the top. There was no way to go but to the top. It would have been a shame not to reach the top as we were so close. Only 20 minutes we reassured ourselves.
CAT Amanat had lost her gloves and cap by now. I promised to buy her a new set when we reached back. CAT Monica and CAT Monisha could have moved ahead, but they chose to trek with us. Then suddenly we found ourselves in the middle of snow, but we did not give ourselves the luxury of playing much in the pure white fluff. We had to reach the top and we had to carefully tread the ice. CAT Monica had started playing the game of ‘Counting Steps till 10’ by now since CAT Amanat was really struggling. If this was not enough, CAT Aman declared that he could not control his bowels anymore. A make shift toilet arrangement was quickly made for him to ease himself.
Finally we set off on the last leg of our trek. Just when we reached the final bend of the temple and thought our struggle was over, we saw 80+ steps waiting for us to climb over before we could actually reach the top. We just could not believe our eyes. But there was no other way. We had to reach the top.
CAT Monica, myself, CAT Monisha with CAT Aman and CAT Rajpal reached the top at 12.30pm. Slow but definitely determined, CAT Amanat was the last one to reach. One glance around at all our tiredness was gone. It was all worth it. Snow capped peaks around, nothing but chilling breeze, only snow and rocks underneath our feet. We were very hungry but there was hardly anything to eat.
After polishing off squashed bananas spilt into many halves to go around each hungry belly, we shared the flattened sandwiches and drank water from an open water tank. Water was yellow, tasted awful, froze our teeth, had bits swimming in it, but we had no choice. Our filtered water reserves had finished and we needed to get some water down our throats. Even after going through all the packed food we were still hungry. Then we ate all the ‘Prasad’ from the temple of Mata Shali at the Peak, even picking bits from the open mouth of Nandi. We were sure Mata Shali would forgive us famished CATS for this little sin we were committing. There was no more food left to eat at the Peak and the only way we could have some food was at the base camp of Dhatnol. Plus we had a train to catch. We quickly pulled our socks up to start trekking back. We started walking back at 1pm.
In the meantime, the other group had tried to make a snowman but somehow the snow kept falling apart. They decided to drop the idea of making a snowman and put my muffler around its neck and they also had a train to catch! They were half an hour ahead of us.
Walking down was not easy business since in the rush to catch the train, we were running down and falling every few minutes in the process. I had started to feel more uneasy by now and decided that it would be better if I had some medication to be on the safe side. I asked CAT Rajpal for a crocin incase I had fever and a perinorm to control my nausea. There was not much water left in the bottle and I struggled to get the pills down in two sips. There was no time to rest or fall ill. I had taken the pills and I had to walk down as fast we I could. We had to catch the train.
Around 2pm, when we were still no where closer to the base, I realized that it would be futile to try to catch the 5pm train and it would be better if we could request for the train to be delayed till 7pm. My request was flatly turned down. Since our train was chartered, it had to run on specific time. I was shivering badly even though I was well padded. By this point, I knew that I must be running fever in excess of 102F as my body generally falls apart when the body temperature reaches this number. CAT Monica gave me her scarf and CAT Amanat gave me her spare pair of gloves.
At first Railway Authorities agreed to the timing to 6.30pm. Unfortunately, few minutes later I got a call that the latest they can delay the train is till 5.45pm and if we don’t reach the station by 5.30pm, then we will miss it altogether. I made one last attempt by calling our Director Tourism to see if he could pull some strings. It was a lazy Sunday afternoon and he did not answer by SOS. Somehow, I had to muster some energy form somewhere as I had 17 people to get back home.
I called up the gang ahead, who had reached the guest house by now. I told them it would be impossible for all of us to catch the train. Since they were already at the guest house, they stood a chance to train and must leave. I told that the CATS left behind would somehow make alternative arrangements to reach Chandigarh. CAT Sandeep would not even entertain my request. We had come together and we were going back together he said. CAT Navpreet also said that we first had to reach the guest house and then all can move together.
It had become known to the whole group by now that I was very ill. I told CAT Navpreet to make arrangements for the whole group to move back to Chandigarh, either in the cabs or in a luxury bus. I could not even keep myself walking straight, forget being able to talk anymore. I needed water but there was none. I was hungry but there was no food. Mr Sikand suggested that I take a ride on a mule but I refused. Mules have a bad habit of walking right by the edge and no matter how ill I was, I was determined to reach the guest house in single piece! Lo and behold, we spotted a Maruti 800. A request was made to the driver if he could take us down a few kms since I was very ill to walk, but to our chargin, he refused. I was past caring by this time. I had to reach the bottom to get into the car and crawl into the bed.
The path simply refused to end. On an odd occasion I would look up but struggled to even keep my head up to appreciate what I had enjoyed so much on the way to the top. I had only one goal left, to reach the car on the ridge so that I could crawl into the bed at the guest house. Since I had started to ask ‘How far are we?’ practically with every breath, CAT Monica decided to give her i-pod to me, thinking that listening to music would take my mind of my arduous journey. Little did she know that given every song is approximately of 5mins length, I had actually started counting the songs instead to know how far had I walked!
Then suddenly CAT Amanat quietly said to me when I had stopped to take another break, ‘Bua, If you walk just few more steps, our car is waiting to take us back to the guest house.’ I thought she was kidding me! I took a few more deep breaths and lifted myself off the rock, prepared to walk down for another mile or so. I went round the bend and as I looked up, there was our car. I literally ran towards the car.
CATS returned to Chandigarh as conquerors of Shali Peak at midnight, in cabs organized by CAT Navpreet. None of us regretted having missed the train in our pursuit to ensure each one of us kissed the peak.
CAT Aman(6yrs) may have been the youngest known child to reach Shali Peak, but we must not forget that we had other equally fiesty kids with us. CAT Simran(9yrs), CAT Prabhmeh(7yrs), CAT Nehchal(10yrs) and CAT Amanat(11yrs) deserve and equally loud round of applause. CAT Rajpal(45yrs) was the eldest to reach the peak whilst Bhatia couple were the eldest to join us for the trek.
Despite all odds, despite all warnings, despite all dissuasions, all the CATS had reached the Peak. We had beaten all odds.
(As I can recall our Shimla-Shali peak trek, 3 weeks later – CAT Supreet)
Trip to Shimla sounded nice, but neither were we sure of getting snow there, nor did we wish to get stuck in the touristy rut. Hence over a quick cup of coffee, with a couple more CATS, we got in touch with Mr Shaukat Sikand on the phone, whom we had been introduced to, at a recently held Tourism Conclave. By the time I had put the phone down, we had developed our complete itinerary for the our New Year Trek to Shimla – Shali Peak. With the trek sorted, all we need to figure out was how to travel to Shimla and for this we chose the Rail Car from Kalka.
With a train which can accommodate only 18 passengers and a guest house which would bust at seams with 20 people, we knew we could only take 18 with us. Immediately 22 people called in to join this wonderful trek, so we decided not to circulate an email or put the fact sheet on the blog. Unfortunately, within days we realized that 8 were not paying up and had actually backed out. We were left with 14 seats filled, everything had been paid and we needed 18 people at the very least to break even. Time was running out fast and due to this last minute pull-out, we were struggling. Anyhow, given the itinerary was so good, 3 more people joined in to complete our team of 17 to go to Shali Peak.
Many of us could not sleep on Friday night, in anticipation of what lay ahead of us. Sleepy heads got together on Saturday morning at the appointed time and we all left for Kalka. Such was our eagerness that we were early for the train and infact the Railway Station Manager had to keep us busy with some tea/coffee and biscuits whilst the Rail Car was brought at the station.
Regardless of the age, all of us were squealing with delight at the sight of the Rail Car. There were only 18 seats and it ran on a generator set. The Driver was merrily honking the horn and we were meandering through the narrow back lanes of the villages on the way. At times we had to tell to driver to stop speeding! Kids had started counting the tunnels whilst I could not help sticking my face out to feel the breeze. We were in heaven already. Or was it the land of Lilliput?
Once the initial delight had taken seat, we started as usual with a prayer followed by Antakhshri, never forgetting to whistle and hoot in the darkness of each tunnel. CAT Prabhmeh and CAT Nehchal were in great demand. CAT Aman was as good as a bathroom singer whilst our first timer, CAT Simran was happier sitting with the driver in his cabin than join us for the singing session. CAT Sandeep and CAT Nirmaljeet we figured out were bossom buddies; quite literally! CAT Rajpal on the other hand was his usual self, quietly smiling at the ruckus being created by the rest of us!
Rumbling bellies soon alighted at the picturesque Barog Station, where hot breakfast was served to us promptly. The food was delicious, the station was pretty, weather was perfect and we were delirious. We could not take enough pictures.
As soon as we got onto the train for the second leg of our journey, practically all of us fell asleep due to the sumptuous breakfast all CATS had stuffed themselves with. The four storey bridge consisting of 34 arches, built in 1898 woke us from our peaceful slumber. It’s known as the highest bridge in the Indian Railways.
CAT Sandeep had to redeem himself by dancing on ‘Sharaara-Sharaara’. One group had got stuck at word ‘J’ during the second half of Antakshri. When all else seemed to be failing, CAT DV Bhatia put his hand up and said, ‘Jo bole so nihaal’, immediately the rest of the train chanted, ‘Sat Sri Akal’.
After crossing 19 stations and 110 tunnels, we alighted at Shimla where our guide Mr Sikand met us. We had a wonderful lunch at Combermere and we soon we were set for our Shimla Heritage Walk. We went to the Rani Jhansi Park but it resembled a derelict vegetable garden. We went to the Church on the Ridge and found it to be closed since the church keeper had gone for lunch. We went to the Gaiety Theatre but it was in shambles due to renovation work. Disappointment had started to set in by now but we kept our hopes alive. Mr Sikand had told us to walk towards the Viceregal Lodge whilst apparently was only 20minutes walk away. We kept on walking but the Lodge proved to be elusive. Legs had started to give way, our sling bags had started feeling heavier, kids were getting crankier and we were loosing our patience.
However, the sheer magnificence of the first sight of the Lodge put an end to all disappointment. I personally felt as if I was back in England, strolling through one of the Stately Homes in the countryside. The Lodge was imposing yet serene, strongly built yet delicate looking, beautiful green lawns and lovely willowy trees made our day. We took the guided tour of the Lodge but they showed only 5 rooms of this massive building. It was so silly that they would not allow us to take photos inside, but themselves freely destroyed the beautiful building and its old furniture. It’s nothing short of blasphemy to paint over original solid burma teak paneling with white emulsion and highlight the crevices in gaudy gold paint. Beautiful furniture pieces from the Raj, gothic paneling, musky wall coverings, crystal and wooden chandeliers were only a handful of items I can describe. Rest, you have to go and see for yourself!
After finishing of the guided tour, the group divided into two. One half decided to drive back to the guest house and the second lot decided to go back to the Mall for some last minute shopping for the trek. Everyone in the bazaar kept telling us that it would be very cold and very difficult trek to do, so we all bought an additional pair of leggings, gloves and caps. Once the shops closed, we ran amok drinking soups, coffees and eating momos, frnech fries and corn. CAT Sandeep kept calling us from the guest house and we found Shimla to irresistible to leave. Eventually he told us that we should leave soon since the road from Shimla to the guest house was haunted. ‘GREAT’ we all said in unison :-)
We finally reached the guest house around 10.15pm and a wonderful dinner was served soon. The guest house, ‘Fair Winds’ was clean, comfortable and warm. Over the dinner it materialized that even our own guide, Mr Sikand was of the view that we would not be able to make it to the top of Shali Peak. He felt that our group was too big, too varied in age and fitness to even seriously contemplate reaching the top. He suggested that we do another easier trek nearby and then catch the train to go home. Infact, two of the CATS had decided to stay back at the guest house the following day whilst the rest could do whatever they wished to.
This is not what we had set out for. We knew our kids were resilient. We were aware of the disparity of fitness in our group but CATS are brilliant motivators. Yet we had to be realistic. I chose to call an emergency Catty Conference. CAT Sandeep agreed with me that though we appreciated the opinions voiced by others, CATS could not simply accept defeat. CAT Navpreet and CAT Nirmaljeet also said that we should atleast give it a try. However, it was not good enough to just have a positive frame of mind. We had 17 people in our group, half of whom had never been on a strenuous trek. Hence, we needed to be practical about our abilities and we also had a train to catch.
Consequently, we quickly made an itinerary. We needed to wake up at 5am and leave the guest house at 6am to reach our base camp in Dhatnol by 7am to have breakfast in a dhaba there. Our guide said that given we had woken up early already and had had a long journey to reach Shimla and then the guest house, we would not be able to leave the guest house before 7am and hence it would be too late for Shali Peak. I assured him that waking up everyone was my duty and his only job was to ensure that hot tea and some light eatables were available by 5am sharp for CATS before we hit the road.
The rest of the itinerary was to leave base camp Dhatnol by 8am. Mr Sikand told us that it would take 2.5 – 3 hours for us to reach the top and 2 hours to trek back. So we decided that if we leave base camp by 8am, we would reach the top by 11am, trek back to the base camp by 1pm, drive to our guest house by 2.30pm, have lunch and then leave for Shimla by 3.30pm and catch our 5.30pm train from Shimla to reach back Kalka. We all decided that come what may, to ensure that we are able to catch out 5.30pm train, we must stop wherever we are at 11am, regardless of whether we have reached the peak or not and simply walk back. It did not take us long to make our sleeping arrangements. Kids even got a tent to sleep in one of the rooms.
I could not sleep a wink the whole night in nervous anticipation of what lay ahead the following day. The following morning I actually knocked on everyone’s doors at 4.15am rather than waiting for the clock to turn 5am. We had left Chandigarh with a goal and I had to try everything to ensure that we reached our target. Without much ado, everyone was ready and we left the guest house by 6am in two taxis, as we had decided. We reached Dhatnol just after 7am and dived into the packed breakfast at the dhaba, but the other taxi carrying the rest of the CATS had still not arrived. Eventually we found out that they had driven direct to the ridge and were waiting there for us.
At 8am we finally started trekking towards the Ridge which we reached just before 9am. Hungry CATS pounced upon the food and we were all set to trek towards Shali Peak within minutes. Despite our assurances and request, CAT DV Bhatia and CAT Nirmal Bhatia decided to stay behind as they believed they would hold us back since they were slow in trekking. Leaving them behind with nothing but each other for company amidst the most beautiful landscape, we reluctantly moved towards the Shali at 9am.
The path was stony, uneven and even treacherous at times. We did not have enough space for a foothold at times, with sheer drop inches away. It was breathtaking. CATS were finally coming off age. As usual, the faster CATS moved ahead whilst the slower ones started trailing. However, both the groups kept in constant touch with each other through mobiles. CAT Rajpal literally had to pull CAT Aman by his trouser belt since the rocks were as high as Aman’s legs at some places! But we kept going.
With a train to catch, we did not have much luxury to stop and stare, but we could not help stopping and staring intermittently to admire the natural beauty that surrounded us. How could we miss a cloud caressing our cheeks, the smoke emerging from a stray house dancing in the clear skies, the dauntingly strong peaks interspersed with the snow capped pretty mountains. We did not know what to see and what to miss. We decided that though the goal was important, so was the journey!
Half way through the trek I felt as if I was lagging behind. We had reached 11am already, the deadline for us to start walking back. I called up CAT Navpreet who was in the group ahead. He said that they had the peak in sight and would reach there in 20minutes. Since we were about half an hour behind them, we should keep moving up and that we would have packed lunch to eat on the way to the train station to make up for the lost time. So we kept moving up.
CAT Amanat started lagging behind whereby we had to shout out her name to ensure that she was safe despite knowing that two junior guides were behind her. CAT Aman also started asking how far we had to walk by now. Worst was when he said that he needed to go to the ‘potty‘. We told him that he would have to sit on two stones as there was not a single house in sight. He was shocked to know of the makeshift arrangement and decided that the matter was not urgent afterall. I also could not figure out why I was slowing down but constant phone calls from CAT Gurpreet and CAT Navpreet were enough to keep me focused on the trek.
At a particular plateau on the way, we came across animal skulls, chopped hair, bottles of liquor strewn around, signs of cold bon fires and suddenly thoughts of human sacrifice crossed our minds. Sight of a half eaten dead cow and the skin of a small white dog further made us uneasy and we decided to stay on the trek rather than take short cuts, which took more energy anyway. Around this time I got a call from CAT Gurpreet and all I could hear was hooting, shouting, shrill and happy noises. They had reached the Peak. CAT Navpreet kept repeating just one word, ‘Awesome’. CAT Gurpreet was busy describing the views from the top. I was hearing everything but was finding it difficult to respond to them. Something was not right with me but I was not sure what? CAT Gurpreet and CAT Sandeep were the first to reach the top with CAT Nirmaljeet and his son CAT Simran, CAT Prabhmeh and CAT Navpreet following suit. CAT Simmi reached with CAT Puneeta and her daughter CAT Nehchal a little later.
We started eating chocolates in the second group by this time, as we reached the little Shali Temple on Shali Road, which had been constructed by Maharaja Har Inder Singh Bahadur of Faridkot in 1936. I thought it was lack of filling breakfast that was causing slight dizziness. We were told that the Peak was about 20minutes from this place by a passer-by. Constant phone calls from the CATS at the peak ensured that we kept walking towards the top. There was no way to go but to the top. It would have been a shame not to reach the top as we were so close. Only 20 minutes we reassured ourselves.
CAT Amanat had lost her gloves and cap by now. I promised to buy her a new set when we reached back. CAT Monica and CAT Monisha could have moved ahead, but they chose to trek with us. Then suddenly we found ourselves in the middle of snow, but we did not give ourselves the luxury of playing much in the pure white fluff. We had to reach the top and we had to carefully tread the ice. CAT Monica had started playing the game of ‘Counting Steps till 10’ by now since CAT Amanat was really struggling. If this was not enough, CAT Aman declared that he could not control his bowels anymore. A make shift toilet arrangement was quickly made for him to ease himself.
Finally we set off on the last leg of our trek. Just when we reached the final bend of the temple and thought our struggle was over, we saw 80+ steps waiting for us to climb over before we could actually reach the top. We just could not believe our eyes. But there was no other way. We had to reach the top.
CAT Monica, myself, CAT Monisha with CAT Aman and CAT Rajpal reached the top at 12.30pm. Slow but definitely determined, CAT Amanat was the last one to reach. One glance around at all our tiredness was gone. It was all worth it. Snow capped peaks around, nothing but chilling breeze, only snow and rocks underneath our feet. We were very hungry but there was hardly anything to eat.
After polishing off squashed bananas spilt into many halves to go around each hungry belly, we shared the flattened sandwiches and drank water from an open water tank. Water was yellow, tasted awful, froze our teeth, had bits swimming in it, but we had no choice. Our filtered water reserves had finished and we needed to get some water down our throats. Even after going through all the packed food we were still hungry. Then we ate all the ‘Prasad’ from the temple of Mata Shali at the Peak, even picking bits from the open mouth of Nandi. We were sure Mata Shali would forgive us famished CATS for this little sin we were committing. There was no more food left to eat at the Peak and the only way we could have some food was at the base camp of Dhatnol. Plus we had a train to catch. We quickly pulled our socks up to start trekking back. We started walking back at 1pm.
In the meantime, the other group had tried to make a snowman but somehow the snow kept falling apart. They decided to drop the idea of making a snowman and put my muffler around its neck and they also had a train to catch! They were half an hour ahead of us.
Walking down was not easy business since in the rush to catch the train, we were running down and falling every few minutes in the process. I had started to feel more uneasy by now and decided that it would be better if I had some medication to be on the safe side. I asked CAT Rajpal for a crocin incase I had fever and a perinorm to control my nausea. There was not much water left in the bottle and I struggled to get the pills down in two sips. There was no time to rest or fall ill. I had taken the pills and I had to walk down as fast we I could. We had to catch the train.
Around 2pm, when we were still no where closer to the base, I realized that it would be futile to try to catch the 5pm train and it would be better if we could request for the train to be delayed till 7pm. My request was flatly turned down. Since our train was chartered, it had to run on specific time. I was shivering badly even though I was well padded. By this point, I knew that I must be running fever in excess of 102F as my body generally falls apart when the body temperature reaches this number. CAT Monica gave me her scarf and CAT Amanat gave me her spare pair of gloves.
At first Railway Authorities agreed to the timing to 6.30pm. Unfortunately, few minutes later I got a call that the latest they can delay the train is till 5.45pm and if we don’t reach the station by 5.30pm, then we will miss it altogether. I made one last attempt by calling our Director Tourism to see if he could pull some strings. It was a lazy Sunday afternoon and he did not answer by SOS. Somehow, I had to muster some energy form somewhere as I had 17 people to get back home.
I called up the gang ahead, who had reached the guest house by now. I told them it would be impossible for all of us to catch the train. Since they were already at the guest house, they stood a chance to train and must leave. I told that the CATS left behind would somehow make alternative arrangements to reach Chandigarh. CAT Sandeep would not even entertain my request. We had come together and we were going back together he said. CAT Navpreet also said that we first had to reach the guest house and then all can move together.
It had become known to the whole group by now that I was very ill. I told CAT Navpreet to make arrangements for the whole group to move back to Chandigarh, either in the cabs or in a luxury bus. I could not even keep myself walking straight, forget being able to talk anymore. I needed water but there was none. I was hungry but there was no food. Mr Sikand suggested that I take a ride on a mule but I refused. Mules have a bad habit of walking right by the edge and no matter how ill I was, I was determined to reach the guest house in single piece! Lo and behold, we spotted a Maruti 800. A request was made to the driver if he could take us down a few kms since I was very ill to walk, but to our chargin, he refused. I was past caring by this time. I had to reach the bottom to get into the car and crawl into the bed.
The path simply refused to end. On an odd occasion I would look up but struggled to even keep my head up to appreciate what I had enjoyed so much on the way to the top. I had only one goal left, to reach the car on the ridge so that I could crawl into the bed at the guest house. Since I had started to ask ‘How far are we?’ practically with every breath, CAT Monica decided to give her i-pod to me, thinking that listening to music would take my mind of my arduous journey. Little did she know that given every song is approximately of 5mins length, I had actually started counting the songs instead to know how far had I walked!
Then suddenly CAT Amanat quietly said to me when I had stopped to take another break, ‘Bua, If you walk just few more steps, our car is waiting to take us back to the guest house.’ I thought she was kidding me! I took a few more deep breaths and lifted myself off the rock, prepared to walk down for another mile or so. I went round the bend and as I looked up, there was our car. I literally ran towards the car.
CATS returned to Chandigarh as conquerors of Shali Peak at midnight, in cabs organized by CAT Navpreet. None of us regretted having missed the train in our pursuit to ensure each one of us kissed the peak.
CAT Aman(6yrs) may have been the youngest known child to reach Shali Peak, but we must not forget that we had other equally fiesty kids with us. CAT Simran(9yrs), CAT Prabhmeh(7yrs), CAT Nehchal(10yrs) and CAT Amanat(11yrs) deserve and equally loud round of applause. CAT Rajpal(45yrs) was the eldest to reach the peak whilst Bhatia couple were the eldest to join us for the trek.
Despite all odds, despite all warnings, despite all dissuasions, all the CATS had reached the Peak. We had beaten all odds.
(As I can recall our Shimla-Shali peak trek, 3 weeks later – CAT Supreet)
Photo Gallery 1 - Shimla Shali Peak
The journey begins... CATS ready to leave Kalka for Shimla
Picture Perfect RAIL CAR which CATS had chartered for two days..
Keeping his promise... CAT Sandeep dancing to the tune of... hold your breath... Sharaara - Sharaara ;-)
Hungry CATS pounced upon the continental lunch at Combermere in Shimla...without much ado :-)
CATS all set to leave for Shali before the crack of dawn...Photo Gallery 2 - Shimla Shali Peak
Was this the toughest of the treks we had set foot forward for?I think the photo says it all !!
A hike of sheer drops and breath taking views...
Hand in Hand we carefully treaded the treacherous icy patches... 
Snow had brought the kid out of us all..We had forgotten the long haul up to reach the top!
Yeah... the magic snow creates :-)
The first set of CATS to reach the Shali Peak.. Do you realise now what you have missed??
The last of the CATS to reach the Peak
CATS resting their paws after conquering the Shali PeakCATS Shimla -- Shali Peak trek
Our guide and host, Shaukat Sikand acknowledging the efforts of CAT in scaling Shali Peak.. as well as confirming that CAT Aman at the age of 6yrs, is the youngest known child to have reached the top of Shali Peak…
CATS Shimla -- Shali Peak trek
Feedback from a reluctant CAT Gurpreet who we literally bullied to join us and ever so eager CAT Navpreet who thinks he's become a PRO :-) (more)
CATS Shimla -- Shali Peak trek
Old Paws on the trek, CAT Sandeep giving his feedback about reaching Shali Peak...
CATS Shimla -- Shali Peak trek
Feedback Times.. CATS back at the guest house after a long, testing tiring but thoroughly enjoyable day... CAT Nirmaljeet, a first timer with CATS giving his feedback.. He thought we were going for a picnic and calling it a trek.. little did he know!!
CATS Shimla - Shali Peak trek
The wonderful social fabric of CATS at display... the youngest of the pack, CAT Aman (6yrs old) being helped by the eldest of us all on the trek, CAT Rajpal (45yrs old).
CAT Aman would not have been able to achieve the status of being the youngest tourist to scale SHALI PEAK at the age of six without the unrelenting support of CAT Rajpal.
CATS Shimla - Shali Peak trek
After having a sumptuous breakfast at Dhatnol, CATS can be seen gearing up for the vertical steep trek that lay ahead of them...
We were standing at app.5,580ft above sea level and the temple at the top of Shali peak is at 10,000ft above sea level, which also happens to be the highest peak in Shimla Hills.
CATS Shimla - Shali Peak trek
Even before the sun had woken up the lesser mortals... CATS setting off towards the base camp of Shali Peak.
CATS Shimla - Shali Peak trek
The magnificent views of Shimla hills at night... with CATS scrambling for sustenance!
CATS Shimla - Shali Peak trek
Trains running on narrow guage, pretty stations every now and then... It was like being in a Fairy Land.
We were kids again :-)
CATS Shimla - Shali PEAK trek
Pretty views from the front of the Toy Train... on the way to Shimla.
This was indeed a dream ride for CATS.
CATS Shimla - Shali Peak trek
Interiors of the Toy Train or Rail Car as it is also called... but for CATS.. it was The JOY TRAIN :-)
CATS on the way to Shimla...
HAPPY NEW YEAR from CATS
Could there be a better way to say goodbye to the year 2007?
Fifteen CATS did it in style by scaling the vertical heights of SHALI PEAK at 10,000ft above sea level. This is the highest peak in Shimla.
It was a bright and sunny day but winds tore through us, but we still managed to play in the snow.
The views at the top simply took our breath away. It was worth every ounce of energy that we spent to reach the peak.
MEOW WISHES for the New Year
Don't think there could have been a better way to say goodbye to year 2007...
New Year Greetings to all the CATS and their families.. All the way from SHALI PEAK
Meow Feedback... Nepli-Kansal Trek
On a cold early Sunday morning, CATS set their paws at Nepli Forest only to be greeted by a huge lock at the entrance to the Nepli Gate. Apparently CATS had beaten the expectations of even Mr Ishwar Singh (Dy.Conservator of Forests & Director Environment-Chd Admin.), who had thought that we would be arriving after 8am or so!
CATS had sprung yet another surprise :-)
However, since Nepli Forest is where we CATS had cut our teeth, we decided to march on till the appointed guides caught up with us. Another reason to keep marching was that it was the only way to ward off the bitter cold, stop our teeth from chattering and falling on the trek! Cold it may have been, but the onset of dawn in the wilderness left us all speechless. It was as if the sun rays were fighting through the leaves and branches to reach us and warm our hearts.
Another interesting incident happened. The headcount just before leaving for Nepli was 47. However, when the headcount was repeated at the gate of Nepli, surprisingly were 48! Whilst I was still scratching my head and going through my lists, CAT Rahat suggested that perhaps one of the expectant CATS had had one bump too many on the road to Nepli, resulting in the additional CAT :-)
Jokes aside, the addition we later realised was that one of the regular CATS had brought a guest with him, who's name was scratched on the reverse of the registration sheet. With all in order, we marched ahead, recognised some familiar bends and of course the old well where we had had tea with biscuits and water from the well, all courtesy Mr Ishwar Singh. We were back at our patch and we were served ever so courteously by the staff of Nepli Forest.
Thereafter we went off our path a little once again to reach Hawa Mahal where we decided to have breakfast, which was quickly followed by a quick session of 'Nach Balliye', without music of course! Check out our videos if you have missed the action :-)
Then came the final leg of the trek, from the last Watch Tower towards Kansal Log Hut. It was a magnificent view from the top. A beautiful log hut set in pristine gardens was a view to die for. It was hard to imagine that we were in Chandigarh. This was a face of Chandigarh, unexplored and unexploited. Nepli is full of flora and fauna, quietly waiting to be touched and felt and admired. Something which would have never been experienced by the ones who arrive at Nepli in their climate controlled cars, get their minions to fetch sustenance to fill their bellies, yawn, belch and then head back to their cars. Nepli is beyond the beautiful Log Hut or Inspection Hut. Go and explore it for yourself.
The youngest of the pack was CAT Aman (6yrs) and whilst the eldest was CAT Daljeet (56yrs). I would also like to make a special mention of CAT Vansh (7yrs), who had started crying on the trek and wanted to go back. Since there was no way to head back and all temptations seemed to be failing to convince him, I had made a promise to write about him in the blog. Not sure if he actually understood what I was offering, but it seemed to have worked! Not only did he start walking again, but he thoroughly enjoyed himself along the way. He was even found making Christmas tree with dry grass at the Kansal Log Hut :-)
After resting their paws a little, CAT Dilawar got the younger ones together for 'Spoon n Potato' race. This was followed by the elder CATS getting their concentration in order. Can you imagine how daft we were? We ran for the prize money - A bag of potatoes!
If this was not silly enough, we indulged in a game of 'Dog and the Bone' where CATS of all ages played together, divided into two groups. I will let you see the videos to see what transpired there :-)
With this, I sign off the Nepli-Kansal trek.
CAT Supreet
CATS had sprung yet another surprise :-)
However, since Nepli Forest is where we CATS had cut our teeth, we decided to march on till the appointed guides caught up with us. Another reason to keep marching was that it was the only way to ward off the bitter cold, stop our teeth from chattering and falling on the trek! Cold it may have been, but the onset of dawn in the wilderness left us all speechless. It was as if the sun rays were fighting through the leaves and branches to reach us and warm our hearts.
Another interesting incident happened. The headcount just before leaving for Nepli was 47. However, when the headcount was repeated at the gate of Nepli, surprisingly were 48! Whilst I was still scratching my head and going through my lists, CAT Rahat suggested that perhaps one of the expectant CATS had had one bump too many on the road to Nepli, resulting in the additional CAT :-)
Jokes aside, the addition we later realised was that one of the regular CATS had brought a guest with him, who's name was scratched on the reverse of the registration sheet. With all in order, we marched ahead, recognised some familiar bends and of course the old well where we had had tea with biscuits and water from the well, all courtesy Mr Ishwar Singh. We were back at our patch and we were served ever so courteously by the staff of Nepli Forest.
Thereafter we went off our path a little once again to reach Hawa Mahal where we decided to have breakfast, which was quickly followed by a quick session of 'Nach Balliye', without music of course! Check out our videos if you have missed the action :-)
Then came the final leg of the trek, from the last Watch Tower towards Kansal Log Hut. It was a magnificent view from the top. A beautiful log hut set in pristine gardens was a view to die for. It was hard to imagine that we were in Chandigarh. This was a face of Chandigarh, unexplored and unexploited. Nepli is full of flora and fauna, quietly waiting to be touched and felt and admired. Something which would have never been experienced by the ones who arrive at Nepli in their climate controlled cars, get their minions to fetch sustenance to fill their bellies, yawn, belch and then head back to their cars. Nepli is beyond the beautiful Log Hut or Inspection Hut. Go and explore it for yourself.
The youngest of the pack was CAT Aman (6yrs) and whilst the eldest was CAT Daljeet (56yrs). I would also like to make a special mention of CAT Vansh (7yrs), who had started crying on the trek and wanted to go back. Since there was no way to head back and all temptations seemed to be failing to convince him, I had made a promise to write about him in the blog. Not sure if he actually understood what I was offering, but it seemed to have worked! Not only did he start walking again, but he thoroughly enjoyed himself along the way. He was even found making Christmas tree with dry grass at the Kansal Log Hut :-)
After resting their paws a little, CAT Dilawar got the younger ones together for 'Spoon n Potato' race. This was followed by the elder CATS getting their concentration in order. Can you imagine how daft we were? We ran for the prize money - A bag of potatoes!
If this was not silly enough, we indulged in a game of 'Dog and the Bone' where CATS of all ages played together, divided into two groups. I will let you see the videos to see what transpired there :-)
With this, I sign off the Nepli-Kansal trek.
CAT Supreet
Photo Gallery - Nepli-Kansal trek
The starting line up...
Nepli Forest is home ground for CATS...Even the forest care-takers allowed CATS an odd liberty to pinch their bikes for a joy ride!
A quite lesson in environmental sciences for the young ones...
Time to Rest and Reflect
and in case you thought Rest and Recreation is all we did... THINK AGAIN
Though I admit... we did have loads of fun :-)
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