Good morning Bimalji! "aja Rara pugincha ta" (so will we finally reach Rara Lake today?) was how my day started. After we had  our breakfast I asked if the porters had arrived. We had made, rather, Bimalji had made arrangements the day earlier for 2 female porters, to help us with our luggage. The porters arrived and without further delay we started our trek from Gamgadi bazar. It was a 4 hour trek uphill till we reached an army post, thereafter we walked for another 45 mins on plain cobbled pavements to reach our destination - Rara Lake (or Rara Tal as it is popularly known as). People who arrive by air at Talcha airport need to walk for around 90 minutes to reach the lake. If trekking is not for you, you can also hire a four wheel drive from the bazar to Talcha saving yourself the arduous uphill trek. There are a few stops on the way to refill the water bottles and I think there were 2-3 tea stalls.
             I was here to take part in a survey, and was stationed in Mugu for the past one month. Our job was to collect data from health facilities all over Mugu. Well that is a story I would like to elaborate upon later, but for now lets focus on Rara lake.

Gamgadi Bazar in the backdrop. This was after 3 hours of climbing uphill.

       

                                                                                         

       

First glimpse of Rara Tal.

          






            After 4 hours of slowly lumbering we finally saw what seemed like sheets of blue paper spread out on vast expanses of land, and our lady porters exclaimed "uhh tini hun Rara Tal" (that is what people call Rara lake). I remember my jaws drop and I was all but reduced to cliches.
           Finally, after an arduous walk we reached the lake and were greeted by the owner of Danfe Guest House which strangely is the only place for accommodation near the lake. The guest house was small but could house around a hundred visitors under its roof or at least that was what the owner proudly claimed.
           I vividly recall my sore and tired body having carried 17 kilos of backpack feel this sudden injection of vigour upon reaching the lake. Such was its majestic beauty! The next thing I know I was roaming around the lake looking for a fowl ('local bhale' as populary known in Nepali) to have for dinner. The pain had gone, the soreness vanished and I almost felt this new found energy oozing out of me, a second wind. Instead of sitting and resting which I had planned along the entire trek, I now wanted to explore the area as we had limited time to spend here. I volunteered to set up my tent outside and refused to sleep in the cozy and inviting beds of Danfe Guest House. I just had to get the feel of camping at the lake, I had heard so much about. I managed to set up camp, but the local 'bhale' for dinner plan would have to wait. It was beginning to get dark and I found myself loitering around the lake. I wanted to visit another famous landmark, 'Mili Chaur' where King Mahendra had once penned his famous poem 'Rara Ki Apsara' in the late 70's only to return back to my tent owing to the darkness but I promised Mili Chaur that I would come back to visit her the first thing in the morning.

           Mornings in Mugu seem to greet you with open arms and I must say that I had never felt so calm and peaceful as I felt that morning. But I had a promise to keep, so I set out for Mili Chaur. Upon reaching the Chaur, I sat on a log almost kissing the shore. The blue skies, the vast stretch of green land, and the serene lake with all its beauty lay right in front. Everything was as nature meant it to be and it was breath taking. I watched as the fishes came to the shore and played right under my feet as if, almost mockingly telling me, "you can't harm us here! This is a national park, and we are well protected." One of the many things I found myself really enjoying was walking barefoot around the lake and I must confess I found the kid in me, talking and giggling with myself along the way with the occasional silly clap just like a pre-pubertal young boy in a room filled with his favourite toys. I do have to say, I really enjoyed it! After spending an hour or so being alone I slowly walked back to camp, romancing in the soothing morning wind. The smell of the soil, wet with rain was fresh and raw.

         Moving on, we later found out that the army stationed at the lake had been kind enough to carry out boat rides. However, prior to the ride we all had to fill out a letter stating that the army would not be responsible for any untoward incident. But fear not, no one is allowed to hop into the boat without a life jacket, and life threatening incidents are rare.

Dinner and breakfast were served by the guest house. Brown rice and beans (organic) would be the daily offerings, but if you're lucky enough you could see potatoes and spinach on your plates as well. They occasionally also provide mutton. Bathrooms are Indian styled and don't expect water to flow into the pipes if you are not on the ground floor. In fact, I think the whole of Mugu is unaware of the fact that attached bathrooms were invented some time ago.

Watching fishes say "this is a sanctuary and we are safe here, cheers!" The entrance to the lake

Even moving dead/fallen logs around are prohibited here. Even moving dead/fallen logs around are prohibited here.    Danfe Guest House

Bimalji, didn't seem bothered he could fall off.

Alcohol is expensive as you would expect and a bottle of Tuborg beer costs Rs.500 here but you won't feel betrayed with the price tag once you recall how hard it was to get here in the first place let alone bring along cartons of beer bottles.                                                           No it's not weed! (on the way to the lake)

Preparing the BBQ         Wild horses in the day and foxes at night seems to be the trend here

Pamphlets given out at Rara by the Army staff. Pamphlets given out at Rara by the Army staff.

Rara noodles, sadly is what we associate with the word 'Rara'.

Me and my tent. There is only one guest house here. Politicians and "people with reach" can stay at the army barracks but for the mango people (Aam Admi) this is it. And yes, you can rent a tent as well. Accommodation for a room is a thousand rupees for a night and the open secret is that you can cramp in as many people as you want. So for students on a low budget, I think it's a fair bargain. Evenings get pretty chilly and I am pretty sure you would need blankets at night. Bonfires are prohibited but secretly allowed as trees are marked. Raucous behaviour at night most certainly will alarm the army posted just a stone throw distance away from the guest house.

           Another thing that I noticed was that this guest house is at the mercy of the army, and the Major stationed at the Rara barrack is as you may call him the commander-in-chief here. He dictates what punishment is handed out to the poachers/fishermen/smugglers.

           Rara springs to life during the evenings and specially on evenings preceded by rainfall, after which one can see layers of hills and the descending clouds leave behind a white blanket in the sky with the sun almost carving a golden necklace on the mountains later in the evening.   

On the second day, we were lucky to be informed that some staff from the army had slaughtered a goat and we could purchase some mutton if we wanted. Soon plans for a BBQ was made and the mutton bought (Rs.560/kg compared to the 820/kg here in Kathmandu). Although happy to get the meat, we regretted having not pre-cooked the meat before bbq-ing it because it was chewy and our plan to bbq had to be abandoned mid-way, with the left overs being cooked for dinner inside the kitchen later that night.

                               

                                                           

From my Note 3, although pictures don't really detail what I saw.                                                  Across the lake at Mili Chaur is where Mahendra Sarkar sat down                                        and wrote his famous poem, 'Rara Ki Apsara' in 1964. It is said that Rara comes in seven flavors, three of which are seen here.

Finally, after spending three sunsets and two sunrises it was time to march on for work. We had after all come for a survey. I had once jokingly even asked my troops to grant me leave for a week while they fetched the survey data. They didn't take it very well and I had to return with them. All I recall is the numerous times I had to turn my head to get one last glimpse of her, the day I knew what heaven on earth truly meant.            I hope you are all getting this feel of a completely different world. Yes, yes I too felt the same way. Rara Lake is something I had never experienced and trust me it took me to that level where I almost wondered how nature can play tricks and tickle around with your senses. How feelings, thoughts, views you never thought existed in you could come out, almost bulge out and scream at you making you realise that Mother Nature IS such a force.           And now when I look back I ask myself, with roads almost touching the eastern shores of this lake I wonder how long will it take for roads to reach here. Who would be the winner when a tourist sits here and can hear diesel tractors ply all day. Will we then be able to see the blue Rara ever again in its serine self. Will you my dear readers see Rara as I have, or will it be too late. But who am I to want to snatch development from reaching here. People here would have to pay less for rice and commodities which previously had to be flown in, is what the roads will bring to this lake. However, I must confess the child in me has my fingers crossed and wishes that just like other works of development that have been stranded, delayed or abandoned, the development project here follows the same path. My advice would be please visit her before its becomes just another 'Fewa Tal'.

My next story will be about the health facilities/stories in Mugu,until then good night.

Dr. Manish Bhattarai
Drmanishbhattarai@gmail.com