Are you tired of sitting at home? Want to get out and flex those muscles? Want to feel that fresh air? Maybe pluck some blackberries from wild trees and munch on them while walking through some serene quaint jungles?
Here is the best part - All within the limits of Dehradun city?!
Join us for our one-day nature hikes conducted in and around the city of Dehrdaun. The perfect getaway for a weekend in the wild.
So, how do we conduct a nature hike?
These hikes have been designed keeping in mind our motto- to make people self-reliant in the outdoors with basic skills. We want you to be an internal member of the hike/ trek however small or big it be so that you can get back into the wild and do a trek on your own after doing a couple of them with us.
So as a part of this, during the nature hike session, you will learn not only to find your own way but also to cook, pack, stay safe from the sun, and of course how to select the source of water and learn how important hydration is.
Navigating:
One of the most important things when it comes to trekking is finding your own route. That's why people approach organizations, why guides and porters are hired, and well you should. They keep you safe and help the village folks earn their wages.
But it is always a useful skill if you know to read contour maps and chart your trail earlier. And we teach you that. During our nature hikes, we provide you with a contoured trail map, with our path clearly marked, orientation and landmarks marked. Then it is up to you to lead us. Our trip lead will always be there, in case you take too many wrong turns, but the whole concept is to get you to find the trail on your own!
Planning and preparing:
Knowing how to read a map and a compass is not enough. You will have to plan everything prior and fill your backpacks with the right tools needed for a trek. So, we will help you prepare for your trek. We will tell you what to carry, how to plan, things you will need in case the hike doesn't go according to plan, and most importantly carrying your share of ration/ food.
Cooking:
Once you know how to read a map, and plan where you will stop for lunch, the next essential skill would be to know how to cook. Dhabas are usually hard to find in jungles so you will have to carry your share of dry ration usually. (Here we will do all the heavy lifting and only teach you how to cook)
Cooking in the outdoors is a challenging task. Collecting firewood, lighting it, having the raw ingredients, using a butane stove (these stoves are meant for outdoor cooking and are immensely useful) are all a part and parcel of outdoor cooking and we will teach you how to do it all.
By the end of the session, we can feast on a delicious well-cooked meal in the wild.
Leave no trace:
Once the cooking is done, this part is as if not more important than cooking. Cleaning the area and putting out the fire. Ideally, we should leave the locations so clean that no one should know we cooked there. These principles of 'Leave No Trace' are a core part of any outdoor activity and we believe in it with all our heart and will make sure you understand its value as well.
Reflection session:
After the entire session, at the end of the day, you would not only have learned how to find your own trail, cook, and head back but also figure out the smaller details that we miss in the bigger picture. Maybe you forgot to put on sunscreen and carry your cap, so you got burnt, maybe you didn't fill your water bottle enough, maybe you overdid by bringing 3L water bottles and ten chocolate bars.
So, at the end of the hike, we sit together and reflect. On what we learned, on how things went, on what could have been better, or what was the highlight of the day. Sitting and talking with each other at the end of the day is very important as it helps you put things into perspective, giving you everybody's point of view.
And then you go back home, sleep well and join us again on the next hike. And maybe plan your next big week-long trek eventually. Or maybe we will see you on a multiday trek with us.
Cheers!