Drawing on the pair of favorable
factors I continued hiking with a
clear head and hoping to reach
Gorson Top well in time.
The Gorson trail featured Padiyar Temple
besides peaks and layers of snow. Under
canopies of oak and yew, the temple was
marked with shiny red and yellow flags. The
short temple of wood and stone dedicated to
Bhumiyal, a local deity, was almost wrapped
in a blanket of fat snow. Even in snow I was
not allowed to walk near the closed temple. My
guide ordered, “Remove shoes or maintain two
feet distance.”
As we trekked down to Tower 10, number of
people on the slopes rose substantially. Day
tourists thronged the skiing slopes. Some tried
their hands at skiing or snow sliding. Others
clicked selfies. Others just walked and talked.
Some slid on snow using big tires. Joyous
shrieks and fearful cries killed the serenity. All
day-tourists were not gentle. A big group of
young boys had its own way to enjoy leisure:
making a pass at girls and women and letting
out a series of the dirtiest expletives while
talking. The snow was wet, dirty, and slippery.
Smudged footprints were everywhere. Local
community tried to sell their snow sports’
skills and rent visitors their equipment: Learn
skiing for ₹500 per hour or so. Rent waterproof
trousers to play in snow for ₹100 to 200 per
piece, per day. The commercial deals typical
of mass adventure tourist market were at its
height.
Snow patterns along the trailtheoff.info
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