Preparing for a trek

Since my previous blog was about trekking, I thought I'd write something about how to prepare for a trek. Please note that all these tips apply as a general rule for 1 day treks in the Sahyadris. If your trek is a 6-7 day trek in some snow clad range, some or many of these tips might be irrelevant.

As always, use your own discretion.

Whenever you plan a trek to some location, keep a few things in mind.

1} Always google the place you are planning to go. Generally, someone must have gone there before and put some info online.

Better still, see if someone you know has visited the place before.

2} Plan your schedule very carefully. You don't want to get stranded overnight without any preparation.

As a general rule of thumb, plan to start your return journey by 5 or latest 6 in the evening.

3} If you're going trekking in the monsoons or you're planning a dip in a lake or a waterfall, include a cap and\or a windcheater as well as spare clothes.

Be careful about the depth.

4} Check the items you are planning to carry. A few items that are must-haves on any trek are a 1 or 2 ltr bottle of drinking water, a towel, a plastic bag to put your watch and mobile.

Two items which are generally in-demand on almost every trek are Odomos (for those pesky mosquitoes) and Glucon-D\Electral Powder (provides a much-needed boost when you're burned out).

And carry a larger tiffin than what you eat everyday as you tend to work up a huge appetite after a trek.

5} The last and the most important thing that you should take care of for a trek are Shoes. I know you must be shaking your head in disbelief and amusement but think about it. Your feet are going to be under huge amounts of strain. Good footwear will go a long way in making you comfortable and helping you enjoy your trek.

Here are a few choices you might want to check out (Not in any order of preference. Judge for yourself.)

 1]The most commonly preferred option for 1 day treks are the Kito style sandals you can see in the pic below.

They give good grip on almost all surfaces, even wet rocks. (Performance varies from Sandal to Sandal but generally they're pretty good.) No problems even if they get wet. Only major downside is toes are left unprotected.

Many of my friends swear by them but I personally prefer shoes.

Cost: I think they're in the range Rs. 300-600. Quite cheap.

 2] Believe it or not, these are the shoes I've worn on almost all of my treks.

These are semi-formal shoes from red tape made from leather (yeah, you heard it right!!).

The sole is almost paper-thin and offers next to no protection from sharp stones, impact of jumps etc. but the grip they give is unbelievably good.

And they're remarkably durable, considering that I've trudged through streams, rocks, ladders, sharp stones, scree and loose mud wearing them.

Wish Red Tape brings out trekking shoes pretty soon. :-)

Cost: Rs. 999 which is pretty cheap when you compare them with the cost of an average trekking shoe (and they've lasted close to 15-20 treks!!)

 3] Recently, I've purchased these trekking shoes marketed by Action after hearing a lot of praise for them. Haven't tried them out on a trek yet but all indications are good so far. :-)

They come with a rubber sole which is pretty grippy. Also, very light and comfortable. I'm very eager to see how they fare in the field.

Cost: Rs. 750 Very cheap considering that it's supposed to be a proper trekking shoe.

Now THIS is a shoe which I want you to avoid buying at all costs.

This is a Woodland shoe costing approx. Rs. 2700 and it has the honor of being the costliest as well as the most useless (dangerous, even) shoe I ever spent my money on.

The shoe is heavy and most importantly, dangerously slippery on wet surfaces, especially wet rocks.

Never wear this shoe if you have to go near wet places.

Strictly for dry treks (maybe somewhere in the desert).

You can get many other foreign brands with anti-slip soles like North Face, Merrel etc. but they are generally in the range of Rs. 4000-5000. Unless you're really serious about trekking, that's a lot of money.

So, go out and explore, and check out what nature has to offer to you.

Happy trekking!! :-)