Boundaries?

Trying to get up early when there is no solid schedule set may be unfair challenge with my own laziness. Packing rucksack with all I consider necessary, tent, sleeping bag, warm and weatherproof overalls, camera, knife, compass... Or should I rather say unpacking all that I would not need. Leaving warm family house for market, buying water, bread, butter, raisins, nuts, apples, chocolate, whatever I felt would be effective to carry/eat. Little pot and instant soup, in case I could make a fire. Feeling I filled my rucksack enough I found myself waiting for a shared taxi to get full and ready for departure. Finishing one adventure just so the other one can begin.
Under an hour it took to leave the boarding spot. Roads here are usually very narrow and wrecked and so even short distance may take ages. Fortunately these so called 'jeeps' are certainly among the fastest vehicles. From Srinagar an hour and half ride to Anatnak, where I remembered to buy another maybe-useful gear, not to leave my luggage too light. Another 30 minutes trying to find people who are willing to travel Pahalgam. At around 3 pm I reached this destination, got a tasty lunch in form of a dal and chapatti, creamed up with curd. Stronged up I jumped on the rooftop of the bus going to Aru. Next piece of puzzle to my adventure, rooftop bus ride finally finds it place including a bonus - magnificent mountain views. There I was enjoying the ride together with boys for whom school just finished. Jumping off I did not hesitate to start the trek being well-directed by locals. Foresty and steep beginning of the route was a kind invitation and drawn a very wide smile up on my face. Not many people I met in first 2 hours and those few I always asked to assure myself that I am going correct way to Leddrevath. There I reached in little longer than 2 hours. I met a tourist guide who would be telling me that I am doing impossible but of course very possible with him... Naaaah, I can not believe such talks anymore and lucky enough I met people working on tourist cottage (governmental property) restoration. They were kind enough to invite me to have a cup of Kashmiry chai, milky and salty one with tasty cake. As we talked I got very good information on the trek and so I was able to update those I already carried. In the cottage, these people were staying at, was little spare space for random stranger like me and so they could share it with me. Smoking hubble-bubble and talking about local habits, finalising this day with a tasty dinner Coq ala Kashmir. Night was not easy to sleep through as there were few little creatures or so called mice trying to sneak into my rucksack and get the nuts/whatever they like to feed on. And as I lit my torch cute little one would give me an innocent gaze, asking why do I have to make it so difficult, there I should be giving a resolution and handing a hand full of nuts over to restless rodent family. No I said and laid back giving my bag a big hug. They would never resist and at least bit a bit of foam, so I remembered.
Early in the morning, finishing a breakfast tea and buttered bread killed with a chunk of garlic, I ascended towards Tarssar lake(it is based in altitude of almost 4000 meters). Beautiful sceneries fed my eyes since I left Pahalgam the day before. What a munch. I am looking forward films being processed and printed.
It took around five and a half hours(including short breaks to eat raisins or chocolate; this part of journey was mostly going up) to reach very near lake, where I would feel too tired and so took almost an hour of rest on sun-heated stones. Then I climbed the near steep hill so I could see around, finding that I was rested just very close to lake itself. So I snapped few shots during a short walk around, talked to marmots which would squeak to alarm others of my presence. On my way back I stopped at the large tent which was surrounded by horses and sheep, occupied by shepherds who live in this area and look after their herds. Offering them my crumbled bread&butter combination spiced up by cucumber, they would not really fancy sharing, instead I was served with yet another cup of tasty local tea. Cutting vegetable with my swiss-made knife I asked for an attention of the elder shepherd who was willing to have a closer look. Soon he gave me his own folding knife telling me business was done exchanging not leaving me too happy about it. And as little of language we shared I was trying to convince him about my feeling and get my knife back but not in my back. Just as I felt giving this wild man a moral lesson, he would under pressure of rest of his shepherd crew return this item back to me. but I was now ready to agree with his business intention and we did exchange knives in the end again and forwarded through our short friendship. (I know that my self-righteousness and stubbornness one day will come at the great cost.) Both happy we shook hands and gaining more instructions from him I started to return back to the valley beneath. It did not take me more than hour, but the clouds in front were not giving a friendliest perspective nor my watch telling it was four in the afternoon(it gets dark at around 7pm). The other side of the river which I was crossing bare-footed that day once already, a shepherd woman in bright colored dress gestured an invitation. And so I started to search a crossing without taking my boots of. Few minutes later I was at the humblest accommodation - plastic foil covered tent with not high stony wall around. Negotiation of my overnight shelter was accepted very quickly and soon I found myself sitting within sipping a tea. There was number of people coming in and out all the time and as I in the end figured out all these people would be staying inside this tent. Communication was established with those who spoke a bit of English. Again as my trip goes I would be given a tasty and very spicy dinner, very local mutton with rice. The most successful payback was a tobacco and my rolling skill so I could make a cigarette for every single member of the family, except the wife who is not to harm her health(when it was only me and her in the tent, when all other men where with herd she sneaked a little tobacco into the hubble-bubble and smoked quickly a bit before anyone noticed). After counting sheep and dinner we were all ready to rest. Eight people crowded inside this humble little place where interrupted by whistle of the one guarding the herd. There was an attack of a wild animal (possibly leopard/bear) and caused these shepherds to run around making strange alarming noise and whistle which I assume was to scare invader. They even used home-made pyrotechnics. Unfortunately one of the sheep did not survive the attack.
In the morning I quickly got up, said 'shukria' to hospitable family, washed myself in the river and ate some for breakfast before leaving valley. Area I was walking through was extremely peaceful, quiet and I would not meet anybody for hours. At this point my only source of orientation was compass and intuition. Up and downs, long flat valleys, downs and ups, stones or golf-course grass, sunshine or drizzle. Hours of pleasant walking. Later in the afternoon I was reaching some herds and their shepherds again, asking for the directions, some would know more than the others. At around 3 pm I was advised to cross over a hill which after 7 hours of walk would not seem the easiest obstacle. Rested my body having a lunch and with very good spirits initiated the final part of my hike. As they said it is behind that hill I thought it was not going to be too far and would reach the civilized world in order to take a bus back to Srinagar soon. I crossed the valley and climbed up the hill, taking no more then hour and half of time. At the top, I could after 2 days see a village again giving me a warmth of satisfaction. It was just that village was scaled in a great ratio. To shorten this story; it took me over three hours to reach the bottom of this steep hill and it was one of the greatest fights of myself and my embodiment. My knees were trembling and it felt like I could not even walk any more. Thinking I could not go further but pushed by responsibility and dissimpathy for incapability. When despair comes very close, makes me very happy when overcome.
As I reached the village and first houses, I met a man carrying an axe, I (seemingly weak and exhausted) asked him where I could find a main road or bus stop. He without hesitation began to lead a way asking where I was going, disappointing me with information that there was no more bus to where I wanted to go. Lucky I was once again because this gentleman invited me to his home first just for a cup of tea but then suggested me to stay overnight. I must have looked very desperate as the family looked after me like a little baby... Full care, stop.
Next morning I could not feel good leaving without a little bakshish(bribe) which of course did not want to be accepted but I was not giving a choice. Now I was ready and fresh to take a bus back to Srinagar - 60 kilometers = 3 hours in the local bus, what a delight.