“What’s your natural high?”, Ato asked us. He was our trip leader Vikho’s friend. All seven of us were huddled inside the cosy kitchen, the only place with a fire burning and a light blub. There was no electricity or network connectivity there on the top of the mountain at Dzukou valley camp. A good place to connect with yourself, nature, and the people around you. But the question was a deep one, it was a while since anyone had asked me such a deep question–What gives me a natural high in life? The answer for me was simple though–writing gives me a natural high. Whenever I write something beautiful, be it a poem or a story or a snippet, I am in awe of the beauty of creation, how words create magic and something beyond me gives me the ability to do this. I keep re-reading it and feel the high. Maybe this was Universe’s way of reminding me to get back to writing after this Nagaland trip.

That’s the thing that I like about travel, it makes you meet people who make you think deeply about life–yours and others–the similarities and the differences, but in the end all of us strive for our own natural high in life.

Exploring Nagaland: My First Group Travel Adventure

Travelling to Nagaland had been on my mind for many years now, it’s a state so distinctly different and fascinating, but it was only this time when my project got over that I made up my mind to finally do it. As usual, I didn’t overthink it, I spoke to the team at Chalohoppo, the travel company I had come across on Instagram, liked the itinerary and the team I spoke to, and I made up my mind. Having always been a solo traveller, this was the first time that I would be travelling with a group of strangers, but I told myself that this would be an experience too.

After taking two flights from Bombay, I reached Dimapur on a hot, sultry morning. I met Vikho, the trip leader, and we briefly chatted as we waited for the rest of the group to join us. Then after short introductions, we were all excited to start our journey.

Khonoma: A Warm Welcome to Nagaland’s Countryside

The minute we left the plains and hit the winding mountain road, with clouds floating around, the air changed, and the mood changed. Our first destination was Khonoma village, a picturesque countryside with hard-working, sweet people always ready with a smile. We were called to sit in the kitchen and relish the home cooked delicious dinner. That’s when Vikho told us that the kitchen was the main centre of every house in Nagaland where everyone gathered to eat, talk, and sit around the warm fire. With a happy stomach, I crashed for the night.

The next day I woke up early and saw the clouds kissing the mountains, one of my favourite sights, while I sipped hot tea. Thoughts settled, mind settled, it was just pure bliss. I wish I could always be in that state of mind, maybe someday I will reach there.

Putting on our hiking shoes, we took a walk in the village, saw the traditional houses, walked through the narrow lanes of the village abundantly decorated with variety of flowers that were a feast for the eyes and perky green paddy fields. Most of the people owned a piece of land where they grew their own organic produce and that made a way to their kitchen. Eating clean food, working hard in the fields and breathing fresh air showed well on their fit bodies and smiling faces.

Dzuleke: Embracing Nature and Simplicity

Our next destination was Dzuleke, another quaint village with only 35 households. It’s quite a contrast to where I come from, that is Bombay, where just my building alone houses 88 households, and the entire society has around 700 households.

The lady of the house at our homestay was cheerful and warm, a quality which you find in most people here. The houses are big enough for families but once they get married, they create a separate kitchen for the young couples to start their own family.

There was a small shed in the courtyard, the only place where they got mobile connectivity and for some reason, I was okay with no connectivity as the abundant views of nature filled up my senses. This seemed like the true way in which humans were supposed to live–in a symbiotic relationship with nature, but the more our population grows, and the more development takes place, we are going farther away from it.

We set out to explore the village on our feet under the sparkling blue skies. This truly seemed like a village out of a storybook–pretty looking houses, lazy cats by the fireside, chicken strutting behind the hen, occasional villager passing by, a single dispensary, a single school, medicinal plants, happily blooming flowers, borders guarded by the forest and a beautiful gurgling stream hurriedly flowing by.

As we walked around, Pele our guide told us about the community-based living in this tightly knit village, which was mostly inhabited by the Angami tribe, which is one of the seventeen tribes of Nagaland. Farmlands are divided by the elders in the family, and each one grows their own food and sells whatever is in excess of their needs. Occasionally when something has to be built, the villagers come together for it and a feast follows as a token of gratitude.

After our walk we headed back to our homestay, and we were invited right into the kitchen where we got to taste the local rice beer and peach wine as we shared stories and jokes, making it an evening worth remembering. But that was not all. As we stepped out into the pitch-black night, our eyes were treated to a star-filled sky. As I stared at the stunning sky, I felt grateful to be a part of this beautiful universe and its creation. Humbled and overwhelmed by the beauty, I snuggled cosily into a deep state of sleep.

The next day, in the morning, we lazily gulped down cups of tea while soaking in the meditative atmosphere of floating clouds around us. Then we packed our bags, bid adieu to everyone, and headed to the capital of Nagaland- Kohima.

Kohima: Balancing Tradition and Modern Life

The first impression that I had of Kohima was that all our cities are the same–tightly packed with houses and human population, traffic jams, busy markets, streets lined with shops, in between you find some beautiful cafes, students hurrying back home after school, ladies busy setting up their stalls, restaurants with local and not so local food, taxis taking people around, some landmarks sprinkled here and there, connectivity to the outside world, always trying to look beyond what we have–in short a place where people are always in hurry to live. Development always takes away the slowness of living and being. Is there an antidote to that? Well, I don’t know.

After some sightseeing and shopping, we headed to our homestay for the night. Since the next two days would turn out to be the main highlight of the trip, Vikho gave us clear instructions regarding the dos and don’ts for the trek to Dzukou valley.

Trekking to Dzukou Valley: A Must-Do Adventure

When we woke up the next day, we were all keeping our fingers crossed that it shouldn’t rain because we knew that would make the pathways slushy and difficult to climb. But luckily for us when we reached the starting point of the trek it was a clear sunny day. The first part of the trek was a steep climb through the forest, so I decided to do it slowly and steadily, and Vikho helped me wherever I got stuck.

Our group was a mixed one, with two extremely different people on both ends of the spectrum– one was a 64-year-old uncle who was an avid trekker and felt completely at home on the tough stretch and kept advising us and imparting wisdom on how to confidently move forward. And the other was a 25-year-old goofy young kid, brimming with confidence and jokes, who kept the atmosphere light and the rest of us all were somewhere in between. This contrasting mix made the trek interesting and fun.

At one point there was a steep big rock which I couldn’t climb on my own. Half of my group who were fast trekkers had gone ahead, and the rest were behind me. So, I decided to wait for them. As I sat there alone in the middle of the forest, a great sense of calmness descended on me, I almost felt like I was one with nature, I will never forget that feeling. As I relished that feeling, a group of trekkers who were returning found me sitting there and asked me if I needed help, I gladly said yes, and then they guided me to the top. That’s the thing about trekking, everyone helps each other out.

Finally, when I completed the hard stretch and reached on top which had taken us almost two hours, Vikho told us that it was just a one km stretch as the crow flies and that was hard to believe because trust me it seemed like forever to cross it. But from there onwards the walk was easy even though I stopped in between to catch my breath and to simply marvel at the stunning sights and Vikho told us to enjoy the marvel of nature as much we wanted because that’s what this journey was all about. And that’s what we did, every few steps we would stop to admire the new view that was in front of us, and click hundreds of pictures as we just couldn’t get enough of it.

Dzukou Valley: A Surreal Beauty

If you look closely at the valley and the overlapping mountains, there’s something surreal about it. The entire valley is filled with bamboo grass which gives it a smooth velvety look. The backstory is that these valleys were forest once upon a time, but there was a fire which burned down all the tress and thereafter only bamboo grass grew on it. People in the past have tried to cultivate here, but nothing grew on it. Hence, the name Dzukou which means a soulless place. But I felt it was anything but that. It was a different kind of soulful beauty, the kind that takes your breath away and makes you look at nature with so much awe and wonder. Since we had visited in July, it was a vast carpet of pristine green, against the blue sky and white clouds lazily hanging low. Some stretches had the burnt black trees standing tall, giving testament to the fact that you can’t take away life so easily, it will fight and stand tall as long as it can. All in all, a trek worth all the effort.

After four hours of walk we finally reached the camping area, a place with two dormitories, a kitchen, three cabins, camping area to put up tents, a place with just the basic facilities. No electricity and no network meant that we could all completely soak in the experience and gather around the fire and talk to each other, and that’s what we did, and that’s where all the deep questions emerged. But I was in a thoughtless state, just being there right in the moment with no past or future attached to me, no questions bothering me, no answers that I was seeking. Maybe this is what people refer to as the Zen state.

Next day morning we woke up early and after a quick breakfast we headed down to see the main valley. By now we had become used to walking amongst the narrow pathways in the middle of the bamboo grass, which were wet from the occasional rain. There was a small stretch with some flowers blooming, we had missed the lilies in bloom, but it didn’t matter. We all walked around and soaked in the beauty as much as we could so that it could stay with us even when we were back in the city surrounded by traffic jams. Sitting there by a stream, I was just grateful that I got my alone time with nature.

Unexpected Adventure: Navigating the Dense Forest of Dzukou

Unexpected Adventure: Navigating the Dense Forest of Dzukou

Back in the camp area, we packed our bags and began our return journey which would be another six hours of walk, but little did we know that this would turn out to be the most adventurous part of our journey.  Vikho told us to start the walk as it was a clear pathway and he would pack up and catch up with us. But by some strange mystery we took a wrong turn and reached a place in the middle of lush dense forest with a steep downward walk.

At first, I was not sure if I would be able to do it, as the overnight rains had made the path a bit messy and awkward. But thanks to the encouraging and helping hands offered to me by Poonam and Chevy in our group, I began my journey down.

There were some parts where we stopped just to admire the beauty around us, there were some paths which looked extremely difficult, there were some parts where I completely trusted the hand helping me and there were some parts where I told myself not to think too much, it was all about one step at a time. Then from out of the blue Vikho found us, and we all managed to safely descent and reach the parking area, he was the best trek and tour leader that one could have asked for on such a trip. We all cheered as it was definitely an interesting journey filled with stories to take back home.

We then headed to Kohima and chatted and laughed at each other’s stories into the night, and finally said goodbye to each other as the group was heading back to their respective homes, and we promised that we would come back together for the Hornbill festival in December.

I stayed back in Kohima for two more days, as the solo traveller in me wanted to explore the city by myself. Like in most places I travel to, I found a quaint bookshop, it had one section filled with books, one corner had a café with tables and pretty walls for a quiet reading. I spent leisurely time there picking a few books written by local authors, ordered a small meal and spent some time enjoying the book and the food. I also chatted with some fellow book lovers and got some deep insights about the youth in the city. Post that, I went around exploring some historic and touristy places, and some more quaint cafes.

Overall, it was an insightful and memorable trip, made new friends and I hope I bump into them when I travel next. With a phone full of pictures, a happy heart and a mind which was already planning to come back again for the Hornbill festival, I bid adieu to Nagaland.

Nagaland – you are truly unique.