Rob Woodburn

For a complete change of pace from India's urban commotion, head to the northern state of Uttarakhand and the hill town of Almora, the starting point for a dour-day walk in the foothills of the Himalayas.
Dawn in Almora reveals a breathtaking panorama that includes the snow-tipped twin peaks of Nanda Devi, India's second highest mountain. After a hearty breakfast, we set off over undulating terrain, following narrow, well-trodden paths that link isolated villages in the Kaumaon area.

The route passes through forests of grey oak, pine, cedar and rhododendron as it negotiates the taxing slopes between Kumaon's deep valleys. Village children shout their greetings and then squeal with laughter whenever hikers pause to catch their breath. Each day's walk includes a leisurely lunch break beside small shrines to the Hindu god, Krishna, built on wooded hill topes with stupendous views.

A solitary and tiny temple set among an emerald-green patchwork of rice paddies provides one particularly treasured moment. I'm told it's been a place of worship since the 8th century. Squeezing through the tiny door, I squat before a 1,000 year old statue of Vishnu the Preserver, my hair brushing a ceiling that's been blackened by centuries of joss stick smoke. Vishnu's gaze is eternally impassive.

At each village visitors are welcomed by smiling mothers as their tiny children peek pensively

from behind colorful skirts. Wiry old men squat contentedly, smoking hand-rolled cigarettes and gazing at the surrounding peaks with a faraway look in their eyes.
These villagers are genial folk who tolerate a hiker's curiosity and don't mind having their photo taken. The village of Deora is the first overnight stop.

Walkers dine each evening with their hosts, usually enjoying a curry with rice, dal (thick lentil stew), raita (chopped salad in yogurt sauce) and fried vegetables.

The Kumaon village walk is soft adventure, well suited to those lacking the inclination, will or stamina needed for a strenuous Himalayan trek. Between five and six hours a day are taken up walking at a gentle peace and each night is spent in a partly-renovated house, sleeping on string beds (charpoys) with simple mattress and cotton sheets.

Torches and mosquito coils are provided, and hot water is brought in


Kumaon hills with the Himalayas in the
Background. Photo courtesy of Shakti

buckets to a washroom with adjacent western toilets. We have morning tea on the second day at a house along the trail while sitting beside piles of red chillies drying in the sun.

In the paddy fields women carry enormous grass bundles, food for the tireless buffaloes that help farmers till the land.

At twilight, several young girls in Alai village, dressed in bright orange and yellow saris, entertain our exhausted troop with impromptu dances, before we crowd into a snug, earthen-floor kitchen where hosts Thukar and Bhaguli Singh toast hand-made chapattis on an open hearth.

The walk reaches its highest point at 2,300 meters on the third day before descending through woods to the village of Jwalabanj. Westerners are rarely seen in these remote foothills.

The final evening is spent in a spacious farmhouse above the village. After a meal of spinach pakoras (deep fried with batter), rice, chicken and lentils, our wizened host, Umed Singh, launches into rambling anecdotes.

Should it rain overnight expect a slippery descent the following day, literally sliding down precipitous slopes to reach grassy river banks far below.

Once there, However, it's an easy stroll though beautiful cedar forests to the medieval temple complex of Jageshwar, a pilgrimage centre and the pick-up point at the end of the Kumaon adventure.

For more information go to www.shaktihimalaya.com