T

he mountains rise.

The mountains

attain giddy heights.

The mountains

culminate in

powerful peaks seducing the bold.

The mountains excite the not-so-bold

to window shop for the sceneries.

Glacial waters forming in the high

homes gather in streams of various

sizes. Some of snowy, bare, verdant,

and forested slopes are hospitable

while others are hostile. Smitten by

these contrasts, I planned a 36-day

visit to Chamoli and Rudraprayag

districts, starting in the last week of

March, 2019.

The spring would let me avoid

raucous monsoon rain and resultant

ruckus, I thought. The river volumes

swell with the rain. The rain

frequently instigates violent sliding

of the instable soft mountain slopes

holding the roads. The collective

action blocks the roads and the

rivers causing traffic jams and fear of

floods.

Even though, every day, the sun

was new, the weather did not wear

its traditional spring uniform. The

unexpected drizzles and rains kept

me indoor and ruined some of my

plans. The windows of homestays,

hotels, and vehicles let me observe

and ponder. I gazed at the complex

mountains from the porches for long.

I reflected on wishes of the mountain

dwellers and visitors.

Mismatch in Natural and Man-

made Symmetries

Probably, the residents did not find

Unknotting Maso, Nandprayag. Himalayan Bulbul.

Chamoli and

Rudraprayag

First Impressions

208
Volume 4, Issue 1 | June 2019