An Escape to the Himalayas: Abhay’s Har ki Dun Trek with Thrillophilia

Can’t decide if I was more impressed by the beauty of Har ki Dun or my wife’s secret abilities that I was completely unaware of before this trek.

Well, I am a certified trekker who has been on multiple trekking expeditions till date. My wife, on the other hand, is not much of an outdoor person, loves her comfy couch and prioritises her comfort over anything.

Being well-aware of my wife, as always, I was planning a solo trek to Har ki Dun. This would have been my third solo trek after my marriage. However, seeing me plan a trek alone for the third time, I think that made her pretty furious.

I was talking to an agent of Thrillophilia about the trekking dates and other details when she interrupted me and said that she wants to join me too. After my call ended, I asked her if she was serious or just joking.

As we all know that trekking is something that requires you to step out of your comfort zone, challenge yourself to the extreme and keep going no matter what.

But, she replied, “Yes, I am serious. I also want to see what happens on a trek.”

I did not know how to react to it, knowing well that she was not going to like it. So, at first, I tried my best to convince her that trekking was difficult and she would not like it much. However, she was pretty firm about her decision. Ultimately, I had to improvise my plan and purchase a package for two.

To make it a little easier for her on the trek, I sent her a dozen videos about trekking and forced her to go on morning walks with me. Even though she hated me for waking her up early every morning, I knew it was important for her.

Ascend towards Har ki Dun
As expected, she quickly became friends with everyone on the trek. Surprisingly, everyone in the group got to know my name as well, thanks to my chatty wife. It was something happening for the first time that I was talking to so many people on the trek. Otherwise, I am that lone person who majorly focuses on completing the trek, rather than meeting new people.

Our trek started off pretty smooth. I kept checking on her to see how she was doing. Unexpectedly, she was climbing the mountains like a pro. She was clicking pictures, saying hello to everyone passing by, touching almost every flower on the way and petting every animal she could.

I was simply amazed to see her and asked myself, “Is this my wife?”

She even forced me to pose in different styles for the pictures. And let’s not start about selfies. We LITERALLY took an uncountable number of selfies, in every possible pose and facial expressions. Whenever she used to see a new flower, she used to call me so that I could see it too.

These things slowed us down from other trekkers but it was a really beautiful and new experience for me.

As it was her first time, she did take a lot of breaks in between. There were several moments when she almost gave up and simply wanted to go back home. At this time, I made her realise how far she has come and how close we were to our goal. This happened almost everyday of the trek but the best thing was that she got up every time and pushed herself.

Finally, after all the struggles, we made it to Har ki Dun successfully. When we were at the summit, I simply looked at my wife with utter surprise. I did not have any words to say, however, my heart was full of appreciation and pride for my wife at that moment.

The Descent was the Real Challenge!
There are two types of trekkers, one who loves climbing and the other who hates descending.

My wife was the latter one!

So finally after soaking in all the wonderful views from the summit, it was our time to get down. Within a minute or two of our descent, my wife cried, “I can’t do this!”

This is when I learned that descending is more difficult for her than ascending. So I had to hold her hand on every step, making sure that she doesn’t fall or get hurt.

Also, a huge thanks to our trek leaders, Mukesh, Devendra and Sonu. They understood the entire scenario well and did their best to help us. At times, when I was tired and unable to help my wife, they would ask me to rest and help her get down.

Till date, they were the best trek leaders I got who took care of us, guided us in the best possible way and kept motivating us to reach the end goal.

A One-of-a-Kind Experience!
As I stated above, I have been on multiple treks before this. However, this trek was something entirely different and the most memorable one so far!

Thanks to my wife, I got to experience so many things.

It was my first time socialising with everyone in the group. People knew my name, I even participated in games, asked people about their occupations and told them about mine.

Before this, I had never stopped to look at any flower or what was around me. I know now that I was missing such a huge aspect of trekking. My wife taught me how to appreciate the nature around us and trekking should be done.

The goal is not to reach the summit but to witness and admire the pristine nature around us.

Additionally, I have been on so many treks but I have less than a dozen pictures to show it. First time on this trek, I clicked so many pictures that I realised it is time to change my DP on Instagram and Facebook.

I even got to know so many new things about my own wife. I absolutely had no idea that one day she would get up from her favourite couch, decide to go on a Himalayan trek and complete it like an expert. I saw a completely different side of her on this trek which made me feel guilty about my assumptions on her.

All these experiences were new to me. These little things definitely made a huge impact on my trekking experience.

I believe it now when they say, “The wife always knows better!”

Read More: Thrillophilia Uttarakhand Trek Reviews