‘Trekking is like a cricket match’

Sukhjot Singh (left), Nakul (second from left) and Kuljot (third from left)

For just a two-day weekend trip to Dharamsala, Kuljot Singh is carrying quite a huge backpack. But that's because he and his friends have also planned a trek to the nearby hills, which requires them to carry trekking shoes and other equipment along, before they return for Sunday's India v New Zealand World Cup fixture. This is a norm for most young visitors from neighbouring states who drive into this hilly town for a match and combine it with a trek along the Himalayan slopes.

"We will be trekking to Triund [which offers breathtaking views of the snow-covered Dhauladhar ranges and ascends to a height of 7,000 to 9,000 feet, depending on the camp site] on Sunday morning. It's a half-day trek after which we will head to the HPCA Stadium for the match," Kuljot, who works for a MNC in Noida, tells
mid-day.

Also Read: The grass is green, insists HPCA secretary

Ticket-trek package

Sukhjot Singh, who has organised quite a few treks here, adds: "Normally, the travel company that I work for, purchases match tickets online [mostly for Indian Premier League games] and then plans a trek just before the game and sells it as a combined package to fans. But this time, since it's the World Cup, there is a shortage of tickets, so we have urged our patrons to buy their own tickets and have sent them the trekking itinerary accordingly. Most of them have purchased East Stand tickets which were available online for Rs 2,000."

A view from the top of Triund which is at the foot of the Dhauladhar mountain range

Needless to say, all these trekkers are cricket fans and interestingly, they believe their nature walk is similar to their favourite sport. "Trekking is a lot like a cricket match.

You have to be fit and plan everything to the tee. The opposition is the mountain you're trekking on, so you have to learn about it in advance, just like you study an opponent in cricket. Also, like a cricket match, for the first few hours you are all excited, but as the day goes along, you get tired, but you still have to finish the trek/match well, so that calls for focus and good execution," explained Nakul Singh, an engineering student from Lovely Punjab University, Phagwara.

Fan predictions

Try asking the bunch who, they think, will win on Sunday and they scream back, "INDIA".

Before the big game begins however, these young fans have a mountain to climb!