Triund Trek

McLeod Ganj (1750m) - Triund (2850m) – McLeod Ganj (1750km)

9:15am to 1pm to 5:30pm

18 km

“The entire trek is most charming, enjoyable, and challenging.”
--Dharamshala Trekking Itineraries Booklet

After my first lesson with my intermediate class, a very serious looking monk approached me and invited me to go hiking. Happily surprised by the immediate invitation to do something, we briefly planned something for the following weekend, the weekend after the Dalai Lama was giving a two-day teaching. So, after class on Friday he followed me to the teachers’ room and asked me what he needed to go hiking. Apparently this was to be his first hike—EVER! So we went over the list: food, water, comfortable shoes and sun protection. Oh…and he said he would change out of his monk robs because they weren’t suitable for hiking. Yesterday we agreed to meet at 8:15am in the main bazaar of McLeod Ganj. After waiting an hour, I was about to give up, just when he walked up the road wearing jeans, a button down shirt and a baseball cap—no monk robs!

We had both promised to do some research before the big day. I had purchased an atrocious local map with some trekking itineraries and he, well, he showed up. I had a general idea of a direction we should walk, so off we went-up the hill to Dharamkot. After reaching that little village, we turned off and followed a trail through another little village and up to a temple called Galu. At Galu we turned off onto the real trail—surrounded by rhododendron, cedar and oak trees. Clear skies up above and a great view of McLeod Ganj and the Kangra Valley down below—the views were stunning!

And the conversations were interesting too! My student and new hiking partner is a student at the Tibet Medical College, as well as a monk. So, I learned a little about Tibet medicine and he pointed out some useful herbs as we were walking. I also learned more about Buddhism and the general Tibet situation.

About 1 ½ hours from the top, we stopped for tea, a much needed dose of liquids, sugar and caffeine to keep the body moving! From there it was a steep and rocky climb of switchbacks to the top. But the top was well worth the climb! It was a long flat boulder strewn grassy meadow. From this meadow ridge, you could see the Dhauladhar Mountain range with Mt. Indrahara (4320m) straight ahead. We sat on the grassy lawn in front of a rock painted with "Free Tibet" and exchanged lunches. I shared my peanut butter-banana-honey and peanut butter-jam sandwiches with him and he gave me his sen, a Tibetan grain porridge. He also shared his salty tea and fruit. It was a feast!


After a relaxing lunch in the sun, we headed back down. Going down is always the killer on my knees. We decided to take an alternate route down. It ended up taking much longer than our morning short cut, but in the end we ended up in the right place and said good-bye at TIPA (Tibet Institute for Performing Arts). Overall a fun little outdoor adventure with a monk!

I have plans to take two more of my students up there next weekend! All of a sudden I’m becoming the local trekking guide! Ha ha ha!