This is to share our experiences on our recent college trip to Rishikesh, ‘The Yoga Capital of the World’, organized by our own School of Engineering & Technology, Sushant University, top college in north India for engineering. This was the perfect trip to bond, destress while also have great fun along with our teachers & classmates.
Rishikesh is a city in Dehradun district of Uttrakhand and famous across the world as a spiritual, Yoga and adventure destination. It is situated at an elevation of 1,120 ft and is accessible through road, rail (nearest railway station is Haridwar) and air (Nearest airport is Jolly Grant Airport). We, of course, had our own Air conditioned bus, to travel in comfort, provided by our University. Let us began by taking you through our journey.
Day 1 – Travel to Campsite in Shivpuri
The trip started with all the students gathered on the university campus. Our Dean, Dr. Sudipto Sarkar was there to wish us a happy and safe journey. The students and two teachers,Alpana Ma’am and Shadab Sir were equally excited. The bus journey was full of adventures. As soon as we boarded the bus, the fun began. Everyone was singing, dancing and eating. The excitement was so much that nobody slept till the first stop at a Dhaba around 2am on a cold winter morning. We were rushing to get a cup of hot kulhad tea. After that we boarded the bus, danced, sang and ate, while some slept. The next stop was when things got interesting, as two of the tires from our bus got punctured at the same time somewhere in Uttrakhand with no mechanics nearby. We saw the beautiful sunrise in the foggy morning till the tires were replaced which was a different kind of adventure altogether. We reached our campsite around 11:20am in Shivpuri, had some breakfast. Shivpuri is around 16km from the mail Rishikesh city and is a village on the holy Ganga river. This is also one of the most popular rafting destination in India.
Some students played a game of volleyball, while me and some of my friends went to the Hiyunl river side and had some quiet and peaceful time by the river and then went back to the campsite. There we had lunch and a small nap to energize ourselves. By the time we were up the bonfire was lit, and the party mood was set with beautiful lighting and music. Everyone gathered around the bonfire and slowly started moving towards the dance floor, dancing the whole night away.
Day 2
The next morning we woke up early and trekked to a new campsite which was in a small beautiful village with a great view of the place. Everyone had a lot of parathas for breakfast and then many kids jumped into a swimming pool. We had a beach day planned for this day. We all got ready and trekked to the beach by the Ganga River. It was a peaceful day, we clicked a lot of pictures, enjoyed the beautiful view, and trekked back to the campsite for a bonfire and DJ night.
Day 3 – Trip to Waterfall
One of the best days, on the trip, was the day of the waterfall trek. The trip started with all of us being loaded in jeeps, to reach the starting point of the trek, the ride in the loading jeep was adventuresome with some of my friends comparing it to the rides in an amusement park. The trek to the waterfall was through the low-rise waters with a few slippery slopes. The excitement of getting wet in the clean waters was a new experience by many, with lots of laughter and playing alongside the water throughout the trek. With no network in our cellphones, we were enjoying the trek to its true essence, without any distractions, absorbing the beautiful sights that stood in front of us. Throughout the trek everyone provided a helping hand to others and supported each other, making new friends through the journey. Laughing, falling, helping, sharing our experiences and stories we reached the majestic waterfall. Throughout our trek we had the cutest dog accompanying us, he trekked alongside us, guiding us from the campsite to the waterfall without leaving our site. Tired, we all sat down, alongside the waterfall enjoying the view, with delicious and steaming hot Maggi and chai, with a small bonfire, lit to keep us warm. After enjoying the scenery and the waterfall for about a few hours, we began our journey back down to the campsite, which was all set to welcome us back after the long, beautiful yet a bit tiring trek. Upon arrival, we were served with refreshments and the DJ was set for the night, where we danced our hearts out under the stars and moonlight.
Day 4 – River Rafting
The last day was the most awaited day of the trip. It was the day when we had to raft from Shivpuri to the main city of Rishikesh through the Ganga river. The excitement could be seen as everyone woke up super early and waited patiently to get transported to the location of rafting.After reaching the rafting location, we were briefed about the safety measures and instructed on how to use the paddle. We were provided lifejacket, helmet and a paddle and were instructed on how to use the paddle and the safety measures were in place for us to safely enjoy the river rafting. It was an exhilarating experience of sheer risk and fun. While rafting through the Ganga rapids we stopped near a cliff and were given the opportunity to voluntarily cliff jump. While rafting we competed with the other rafts of our batchmates. The thrill of reaching the finish line first was another amazing experience. As we rafted beneath the famous Lakshaman Jhula and Ram Jhula we saw the rituals taking place by the bank of the Ganges. We finally arrived at the end point looking at the beautiful view. This was how our exciting rafting experience came to a stop. After boarding we trekked to our bus, whilst shopping along the banks of Rishikesh.
To end with, this trip to Rishikesh was an unforgettable experience for each and every student. A special thanks to the organizing team, teachers, and our Dean who organized this amazing trip for us after a very long time.
Ms. Nandini Rana
Final Year ( B.Tech Cyber Security)
School of Engineering and Technology
Sushant University
