Gunji:
Two kilometres to Gunji,the trail bifurcated. There were no directions to Gunji in sight. We markded the path for those trailing behind withloose pebbles and by writing on stones with toothpaste!

At Gunji we were greeted by smiling children, Chanting ‘Om Namah Shivay’ and asking us for toffees. The gruelling pace of the previous two days,covering 18-19 km of trek everyday,was taking its toll. We decided prudently to split the remaining 35 km to Chhota Kailash, into three days instead of two. Toour great relief we found that we would be leaving for the next leg of the trek only by 9am the next morning and not earlier.

Sunrise was a lovely sight,with the beams encircling the mountain peak. We set off with rejuvenated spirits, our path taking us along the meandering river Kuti. The tall bhojpatra trees offered a sharp contrast to robust mountains. there were eye-catching fields, dotted with re-hued cash crops of Rongkong village.

On hills, ponies are set free to graze druing nights. Alarmingly, the beasts would run away in the night and one of our porters had to trace them every morning.

We now left for Kuti, ascending to 3,600 m. we had been trekking above 10,000 ft for the last three days now  and had got acclimatised to the climate and oxygen deficiency.