To trust someone with your life enough to let them hold your hand when you are scared takes an immense amount of courage. It can be achieved only with the right kind of communication. Would you give up on your grip to hold someone else’s hand if you weren’t a hundred percent sure that they knew what they were doing? This connection exists between not just people involved in a trek but also the organisers that help each other in times of crisis.
Do you remember feeling Bunny’s pain in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, when he tells Naina about missing the calls from friends and family regarding the death of his father? It is definitely a tough scene to forget. How do regular trekkers maintain the thin balance of being away from the world and yet stay connected enough to be in touch with their loved ones?
Kinjan, a member of Activity Adda, which organises treks and other adventure activities across the country, says, “After a while, even our families have come to understand that being disconnected for days comes with the job.” He tells us how they keep calling or messaging whenever possible, but in some locations, especially during treks in mountains up north, it becomes extremely difficult.
However, for people like Kinjan and his team, it isn’t just about their own well being but the safety of the entire team they take for the trek, they are responsible for. Upon being asked about it, Kinjan tells us that as a rule, the organising team visits the place and ensures that they know of every emergency aide in the vicinity. They keep in touch with locals who can help with evacuation if things go south.
He tells us, “In locations where we have proper mobile connectivity, we keep emergency contacts handy. However, in places where there is absolutely no signal, we take helpful locals along with us, in exchange for a fee. The person has a local phone and knows the place well.”
“We also have a WhatsApp group of trek organisers, where we can put a message in case of emergencies. In such a scenario, whoever is the nearest, comes to help,” says Miten Shah, Kinjan’s teammate.
However, what when there is no signal to send a text over WhatsApp? Miten tells us that in most locations, they are able to get enough signals to make a call, thanks to Reliance’s Jio, and if required one can call a person on the group, asking them to send out the message of help. He seems happy and confident about having the said back up. We are too!
Miten further tells us how during a recent trip to Raigad Fort, the nearest hospital was over 20 kms downhill from the base they rested at. “In such cases, it becomes important for us to know the other sources of a medical aide. At Raigad, there was a general practitioner available around a kilometre away and we had the required contacts.”
Both Kinjan and Miten tell us how they have been fortunate enough to not have to put such extreme protocols in action. However, one needs to always be prepared, says Miten.
When asked about how they keep in touch with each other in locations without a proper mobile network, he says, “We use walkie-talkies as those are the only available option. We have fire signals and shout calls to communicate.”
When it comes to adventure sports and trekking, television and movies seem to have played an important role in romanticising the idea — or so we thought before running it by Miten. He tells us about the other side, “Often we encounter people who feel trekking is too dangerous and they might have to go hungry because that is how they see in on a screen. We then spend a bit of time explaining everything to them and gaining their confidence.” He tells us how food is properly rationed and proper safety measures are taken on their part to ensure a safe, fun experience for the participants.
This brought us back to the point from where we began — communication is key to an adventure activity, no matter how much it seems to be about strength, willpower and experience.
Pictures by Kedar Koli
Kedar Koli
Love for the language drew him to English Literature, which he graduated in. Thirst for the knowledge brought him to Journalism which he currently is pursuing! You can connect with him on Twitter at @kolikedar09
Text by Jagruti Verma
Jagruti Verma
With a little experience of feature writing and subbing on her resume, Jagruti strives to get better with each piece of writing she works on. You can connect with her on Twitter at @JagrutiVerma
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