How I Met "The Ganga"

I was still in depression due to the bad experience I had on my birthday last month. In the mean time, I got a refreshing call from one of my close friends who was planning a trip to Rishikesh for rafting. Though I really needed a break from the hectic and busy schedule I had been coping with yet I nodded to join in halfheartedly. Because these days I am never sure of making up to any commitment until the last moment due to the nature of work I am into.

It was 15th June when I came to know that already six people were in to reach Rishikesh on 16th. Two of them were going to board a bus from Chandigarh on 16th early morning. Finally, on 15th evening, I also somehow managed to leave for Chandigarh to accompany them. Though it took me five and half hour to reach Chandigarh but the expedition was not that great to be narrated here. The other group, which was coming from Delhi by their own taxi, called us around 5.30 am on 16th after reaching at Har Ki Pauri. That was the time when we realized that we were abnormally late as we were still in our beds back in Chandigarh.

"Chandigarh to Haridwar" journey by a Chandigarh Transport Bus which was supposed to take around 4 hours, actually took us 6 hours due to traffic jams. In the mean time, we directed the other group to move to Rishikesh and search for the best suited Rafting and Camping package. We managed to reach Haridwar around 1pm. The Sun, heat, humidity and crowd; all were on their full swing and so were we. We had our lunch at Haridwar only and hired an auto to Rishikesh. It was 3.30pm when we met them in a hotel room which they had hired after we had made them wait endlessly.

After getting refreshed, all seven of us left for the real adventure. The sun was about to set so we opted for camping for the night and then rafting on next morning. As soon as I reached the location, I was enthralled to see the view; At some footsteps, The Ganga was flowing with mountains on the other side of river. Besides our group, plenty of other people were also there; some were just chit chatting outside their tents, some were playing with water and others were enjoying hot "Pakoras" with a cup of tea. From getting wet in waters to making sand castles on beach, from playing Antakhshari to talking on serious issues , from having dinner in a cliff tent to having mangoes on beaches of The Ganga, I enjoyed it all during my stay.

Next Morning, after having breakfast we headed towards our rafting starting point. Out of 7, only 2 of us had experienced it before and rest 5 were new to the adventure. As soon as our raft plunged into water, we all started shouting, screaming with joy. Within no time, we reached our first rapid and without any difficulty we crossed it successfully. Likewise we crossed all 5 rapids in the route and finally reached the cliff jumping point. The moment, I jumped into water from a height of about 25 ft, I was blank and remained so until I came back on the surface. In 3 hours or so, our raft dropped us under Ram Jhula after covering 24kms. The experience was truly awesome.

Our journey could not be completed until we pay our worships at Har Ki Pauri and seek blessings of The Ganga. As the Delhi group had their own taxi, reached earlier & took the holy bath and left for their destination. After doing our bit, we, also, boarded a train going towards Ambala. Thanks to smart mobile phones which helped us to search for various train options and we got the one. The journey was way more comfortable than the earlier one. The train reached Ambala by 8pm. They both took a bus to Chandigarh and I waited for a train to Bathinda which was scheduled to leave at 11.45pm. Next day, I managed to reach Bathinda by 3.30am and bunked office on Monday.

Regads

Parul Goyal