Camping

Pugmarks is a Pune-based eco-touism organization with which I camped twice - a trek in the Himalayas and rafting on the Ganga. This blog was inaugurated with a thrilled little (ok, anything but little) post about the Himalayan trek*. Both camps were magical experiences, especially as I love travel and the outdoors. I remember the highly informative and interactive talks we’d have at dinner time, the awe that the camp leaders inspired in me with their knowledge and coolness. Camping with Pugmarks tends to be an enriching experience not only as a camper, but also as a volunteer. I was delighted when I was recommended for volunteer training on both occasions as I enjoy helping people.

So after I finished school I trained to be a volunteer. The training lasted about seven months and was mostly conducted on weekends. Back then the wildlife and adventure folk went through pretty much a common programme. However, now the programme is more specialized for each kind (http://www.pugmarks123.com/volunteers.html). We were more or less a young batch, with a sizeable chunk of high school and undergraduate students. Amongst us were many talented photographers, wildlifers and mountaineers.

Children's Camps
The first camp I volunteered on was the day after we got our certificates. It was an outing for students of Mercedes Benz International School. I was the girl volunteer in a team of four. We took the students (accompanied by two staff members) to our Panchgani campsite and conducted various indoor games and outdoor sports and activities. The kids were enthusiastic and that made the overall experience even more enjoyable for them and for us.

Wildlife Camps
My second camp was a week-long wildlife camp to Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) in Maharashtra. The campers, school students in the age group of 11 to 16 years, were taken on safaris and nature trails in the forest and the buffer are respectively.

TATR showed me a sad state of affairs. To name a few:

1.       Private vehicles are allowed inside. This means that besides violating the basic code of conduct of silence and camouflage with their vehicles alone, tourists are free to blast music on their speakers and chuck litter out the window. We witnessed this more than once.

2.       A State Highway (MSH9) runs right through the middle of the reserve, allowing not only private cars but public transport buses and two wheelers to ply in tiger habitat. We saw a tigress with her cubs lounging next to a watering hole adjoining the highway; families on motorbikes and noisy people in a state transport bus passed by gawking and screaming.

A batch of our campers on safari saw a tigress at close quarters; another batch came across a sloth bear on a walking trail. These are priceless experiences that stay with the campers for life.

The next year, I was assigned a camp to Kanha National Park (www.kanhatigerreserve.com), famed for its tigers and inspiration to Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book. We never got to sight a single tiger, but had an enthusiastic batch that delighted in the other treasures of the forest – birds, deer, foxes, wild dogs and so on.

Adventure Camps

The third camp I did in 2010 was a Himalayan trek to a frozen lake called Sour Tal, and our campers were aged between 15 and 27 years. It was a five-camp circuit, which meant we progressively ascended to the top camp over three days and descended in two. The campsites were already set up for the season, each with its kitchen and crew. We had our days when the tail turned up at the camp over an hour late, injured or literally crying. But then we also had days (more like nights) when everyone rejoiced in games, danced and sang around the fire, had long talks about all kinds of things. The views kept getting more spectacular every day and the final stretch to the little frozen lake was worth the struggle.

In 2011, I was given a trek to Tungu, a majestic spot surrounded by peaks in the Pir-Panjal range. In an unusual and most heartening event, every single camper made it to the top. Snow games and bushcraft followed, and the camp was a huge success. The added bonus as an unplanned rafting session on the swollen Beas!

2012 brought me another Sour Tal camp, this time with engineering graduates. We’d pitch and wrap up our own tents every day. The lake surface was calm and liquid this time, and much of the mountains were shrouded in green grass.

Sightseeing Camp
My second season (2011) as a volunteer began with a trip to the fabulous Sikkim. We witnessed some awe-inspiring lakes and peaks, frolicked in the snow, visited beautiful monasteries and tea gardens. Gangtok is perhaps the neatest tourist town I have been to so far. Settlements in Sikkim are situated on the tops or shoulders of the mountains instead of the lower regions or valleys, simply because the slopes are too steep and narrow. I admire the drivers and their vehicles for all the intense inclines they navigate with immense patience and care. Sunrises and sunsets were quite the sights and rafting on the Teesta was the cherry on top!

Pugmarks has a welcoming and friendly atmosphere and a vibrant crowd. Most are doing some inspiring work in their chosen field. The legacy is continued by the volunteer training programme, which moulds responsible well-rounded individuals.