Kangyatse - Learning the Ropes - 1

The expedition to Kang Yatse 1 and 2

It was a much-anticipated event for me being my first expedition of life post Basic Mountaineering Course and was an introduction to mountaineering.

I had been preparing for the expedition after the BMC and was in a fix on whether I  would be able to make it to the team given my official obligations. Getting a leave for 15 days just 50 days after a month-long leave was a challenge. Surprisingly, I was transferred mid-year which displaced me from Gurgaon. Joining a new place, I was not sure if I would get the leaves on the set dates. There was no time to prepare physically and mentally. It was not even known if the organizers were sure about us joining the team as the sanction of leaves from work was to be the deciding factor. It was a tough call to take.

All the haphazard planning and anticipation culminated in getting leaves sanctioned on time. For Manmeet, it was not much of a hassle and she even got her confirmation a bit earlier. For me, as usual, it was a last-minute confirmation with everything at stake.

In a happy mood, I started packing the equipment and my rucksack on the night of 4th July 2022. I had to catch a flight early in the morning at 5:30 AM. The flights to Leh usually fly early in the morning and the last flight is generally not later than 11:00 A.M. I did not want to miss out on 4-5 hours of my daytime in Leh. So I booked the earliest flight although I had a bad experience on the previous early morning flight.

Manmeet had reached Leh 2 days earlier to me to acclimatize better and get used to the surroundings. However, she had a work assignment for 4 days before starting off on the expedition. Still, she got a few days to adjust and acclimatize. I was stressed out before the start of the expedition due to my pending request for leaves.