Dhak Bhairi ( night walk)

Sunset was not at all a good omen for the trek as we were in dense forest full of wild insects and animals and to add to it we would have to travel with the aid of only our torch beams. In such conditions the chances of getting lost in the forest increases. We neither had enough water nor food to last for the whole night. The only option was to reach our next halt as soon as possible. We were already worn out by the day’s hard work and now we had to walk our way in these horrific conditions. We didn’t know how along the village was. We had to watch every step and be careful all the way. The relief was that we didn’t have to face the scorching heat now but that to was short lived as soon we were facing bitter cold. Even our sweaters betrayed us as they proved to be of very little help. Meanwhile we saw something glittering in the bushes some distance away from us. It appeared as eyes of some animal. We were not sure of what they were and we could only guess about what they were. But they neither blinked nor moved. We hoped that it was not some animal out for a “torch-lit” dinner.
It was almost 9:00 in the night. Still we had no clue to where we were or where we were heading to. We took small halts to recharge our batteries but with lack of water and food it was of little help. Until now me Rohit and Pratik were joking about how we would be sitting in our cozy houses enjoying all the luxuries of life if we hadn’t come to this trek. But it was truly in sense of humor as it was our own decision and we were to stand by it. It was Rohit’s first trek ever. I and Pratik were enjoying at Rohit’s expense and pulling some fast ones on him. I had some chocolates on which we relied for energy.
At around 9:30pm we heard barking of dogs. I cannot explain how reliving it was as it signaled us of some village nearby. We were pumped up by it and it boosted our energy to some level. Our speed of walking increased and soon we were standing in front of two-three hutments. But alas! Our joy was short lived as we came to know that this was not the place we were to halt. Our halt for night was still a good 20mins away. We had some water, ate some biscuits and marched forward.
At around 10:00pm, we again heard dogs barking and this time we were very sure that this was going to be the place we were going to halt at. And yes, this was the place we were to spend the night at. Our fellow trekkers who had not stopped at the Bhairi caves and moved ahead were here waiting for us. There was a small bonfire made to get some heat from. As soon as we reached near the hutment we kept away our bags and sat besides the bonfire to heat our aching body.