Hiking the Himalayas for Highland Hospice – a journey of prayer flags, sunrises and thunderstorms
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Andrew Leaver, Highland Hospice's head of income and development, was among 13 people who completed a Hike the Himalayas challenge.
Together they raised over £58,000 – enough to fund the full employment costs of a nurse on the hospice's inpatient unit for a year.
He gives a personal reflection of the trip:
Although each of us was motivated to take part for different reasons – a personal challenge, to experience India in the safety of a group, to reconnect with passions and interests we thought we had lost, to develop self-confidence – all of us were connected by a shared commitment to supporting Highland Hospice.
We arrived in the heat and chaos of Delhi off an overnight flight. A little bit tired we had just a few hours before transferring to a sleeper train for the first leg of our journey to Dharamshala, the base for our trek.
Off the sleeper train we were straight into cars for the final three-hour drive – literally planes, trains and automobiles to get to our destination.
Dharamshala is 5000ft up in the foothills of the Himalayas, developed during the British Raj as an escape from the summer heat of the cities, it has more recently become the home of the Dalai Lama and the seat of the Tibetan Administration in Exile.
Buddhist monks wander the streets and prayer flags are in abundance, offering tantalising glimpses of the snow-capped Dhauladhar mountain range that we would be heading towards.
The following morning, after the first proper bed in three nights, we were ferried to the start of our trek.
The Highland Hospice team was joined by trekkers from other charities to form a larger group.
Our lead guide, Sunny, was Indian, hugely experienced, and able to find paths overgrown with weeds. On the first day we walked through dense pine forest, then crossing a mountain stream on a rickety old bridge we arrived at a local school we used as a lunch spot.
The tired old buildings were brightly painted making the school feel fresh and joyful.
The use of colour on buildings and in clothing was something we saw throughout our time in the mountains.
By late afternoon we arrived at camp to find our bags ready to collect and tents set up. All the heavy items were carried by mule and a local team of more than 10 would put up the tents and prepare our meals.
Some of the camp food was better than restaurant quality and every night saw a different menu. The local support was exceptional.
Next morning, we realised our numbers had been swelled by two.
Stray dogs are everywhere in India and a pair had adopted our group. They stayed with us for the rest of the trek, making friends with all of us.
One of them came all the way to our hotel door, before finding a different pack to follow.
Our new friends were remarkably well behaved and loyal. During the day we loved having them around, but at night when they started barking – we were never sure if they were lonely or protecting us – there was a little less affection being felt.
Day two saw us climb more steeply.
The line of trekkers spread out as we each found a pace we were comfortable with.
The stops to allow the folk at the back to catch up got a little longer and this let those of us near the front sit and enjoy the scenery.
Camping that night, we were entertained with a thunderstorm over the mountains – thankfully the rain came to nothing and we all remained dry.
Day three was the big one, a climb of 4000ft – the height of Ben Nevis - to reach the Triund ridge and our first direct view of the Dhauladhars.
Taking it slow but steady we all reached our destination and felt exhilarated by our achievement and the views of the Himalayas.
Our camp for the next two nights was on a thin part of the ridge, the mountain dropping off sharply on either side with the sun setting on one side and rising above the mountains on the other the next morning.
My tent was truly a ‘room with a view’. At that altitude the nights were cold, very cold, so we all enjoyed watching the sun rise, bringing with it much needed warmth.
Day four saw us reach our highest point, over 10,500ft. We could feel the air getting thinner and breathing was a little bit harder but again our guide kept us at a sensible pace, and we were able to reach the high point we were aiming for
Some took the chance to celebrate our shared connection to Highland Hospice and posed with a flag.
Our final day was one of mixed emotions. Many of us felt another night in the tranquillity of Triund would have been fantastic, but all good things must end, and we wandered our way down the hill
towards Dharamshala, stopping often to enjoy the views one last time.
Just outside of town, by the side of a waterfall was the Shiva Café and it’s here we took our final stop allowing all the trekkers to catch up so that ‘The A Team’ could finish the way we started – together.
I didn’t know what to expect when I signed up for Hike the Himalayas and at times I did wonder if I would enjoy it. How wrong was I, I loved it.
My time in India with the amazing Hospice team will live with me forever, and every memory is a good one.
If I had the chance I would do it all again and if someone asked me if they should join a Hospice fundraising challenge like this, I would tell them to grab the opportunity with both hands.
I’m hugely grateful to the Hospice and to my teammates for this experience, my only question to them is – where are we going next?
