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Among chantings of 'Har har Mahadev', we left Dharchula to drive along the
Kali Nadi to reach Mangti, which is where one starts walking from, and where the
horses and porters meet you. Here we met the IXth batch returning from their
yatra (these were delayed because of the misfortune of losing a yatri in a land
slide accident). It is a wonderful feeling of fellowship when two batches meet.
Loud greetings of 'Om Namo Shivay' and 'Har har Mahadev' are exchanged before
the on going group bombards the returning group with questions. A young girl I
was chatting with gave me her walking stick, which I took considering it good
luck and she was happy to have someone use it! I spoke with a gentleman from
Kanpur, who had done this for the second time after a gap of 15-20 years, I
think, who felt that Kailash and Mansarovar were no longer so,
'untouched'!
 Thus started the 8 kilometer trek from Mangti to Gala.
This was a steep climb, but not impossible. No dearth of greenery here. Since
there are big trees along this track, there is a plethora of ferns and moss. We
reached the camp to be greeted by a cold drink by a smiling KMVN employee. That
night we had a kirtan session followed by a poem recitation by the manager of
Gala, Mr. Durrani. This was something he had written after the Malpa tragedy the
previous year. The weather had become quite dismal and drizzly by now and it was
an effort to walk up to the dining hall, which was at a little distance. But the
greater incentive to walk in the drizzle, was the telephone-- here we had our
first experience of using a satellite phone. And it was pretty cheap too. Our
call to Delhi was only Rs 15!
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