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Deotoli Col: to the realm of the 'Blessed Goddess'- a brief report


Introduction

In September-October 2011, Thendup Sherpa, Nandan Singh Negi, Anindya Mukherjee, Lhakpa Sherpa and Pemba Sherpa left Joshimath and entered the Trisul/Nandaghunti basin. This basin was first surveyed by the legendary Himalayan explorer Eric Shipton in 1936. In October 1936, he along with Sen Tensing and Ang Tharkay crossed a saddle (Ronti Saddle) located at the head of Ronti glacier and descended down the Nandakini.

Objective

Our objective was to explore the Northern spurs of Bethartoli Himal (North Summit 6352m, South Summit 6318m) with an eye to find an alternative passage on the barrier wall of Nanda Devi Sanctuary  . Bethartoli Himal is located due north of Trisul I. We were looking for a couple of low and accessible points on Bethartoli’s two Northerly spurs. Bethartoli North has a satellite peak on its North Ridge. From this satellite peak two spurs originate and descend towards Rishi Ganga due North. Since we would approach from Ronti glacier side; the one next to Ronti glacier was referred to as ‘frontal spur’ and the one that lay beyond was called ‘distal spur’.

Journey
view from the unnamed glacier stretching east from Deotoli Col.
20th  September, 2011, starting from Joshimath we drove up to Saldhar, a point 5 kilometer beyond Tapovan by the left bank of Dhauli Ganga. From Saldhar we hiked up to the village of Subhoi and camped for the first night. In this village is a temple dedicated to ‘Bhavisya Badri’. It is believed that in distant future the idol of the present day Badrinath shrine will shift to this temple.’
For next two days we crossed passes namely ‘Chattri Dhar’ and Ghaniyal Dhar’ (marked as ‘Col a’ and ‘Col b’ in Map 1 of this report) to enter the Ronti Valley. These two passes have been traditionally used by villagers and shepherds of Subhoi and Reni. In 2 days walk from Subhoi we reached below the north face of Ronti. Porters abandoned us here before reaching the snout of Ronti Glacier forcing us into double load ferries, extra days and shortage of food. We managed to keep our spirits high and continued up the moraines of Ronti glacier.

On 26th  September, 2011, we reached a high point ( 4800m) below the frontal spur and ‘Col C’ (5350m) and camped. 27th September, 2011, we climbed to ‘Col C’ located on the ‘frontal spur’ and crossed into the small, boulder strewn basin to its East. This high ground and its nearly dead small glacier have its own narrow valley system and have given rise to a small and insignificant tributary of Rishi Ganga. This river is called ‘Dudh Ganga’ and it meets Rishi Ganga on its true left directly South of Dharansi Pass and Malathuni in the Rishi Gorge. We decided to call this little valley “ Dudh Ganga valley” and the ‘Col C’ as   Dudh Ganga Col. We also located an accessible point on the ‘distal spur’ of Bethartoli North

28th September, 2011, we climbed up the ‘distal spur’ and reached ‘Col D’ at an approximate altitude of 5400m. We were blessed by great views of the peaks located on Northern and Eastern rims of Nanda Devi sanctuary. Below us to our East lay a small unnamed glacier. Its gentle slope looked very inviting. From our maps and taking bearings with our compass; we knew this would lead us to the camping grounds of Deotoli by the Trisul Nala. We thought of calling ‘Col D’ as Deotoli Col (5400m).

 29th  September, 2011, we crossed the Deotoli Col again to spend a night on the unnamed glacier. We were rewarded with magnificent views next morning. For next 4 days we retraced our steps back to Subhoi and Joshimath and thus ended our exploration.

Conclusion
Thus we were able to locate two feasible cols of the northerly spurs of Bethartoli Himal and climb them. We were the first party to locate and climb them. These two cols did not require any climbing skills. Any seasoned himalayan trekker will be able to visit them. Obeying the law of the land we did not set foot on the valley floor or enter the Nanda Devi Sanctuary. We stood on its barrier rim and retraced our trail back. From an explorer’s point of view we hope our explored cols will join the list of previously known passes and cols of the Nanda Devi Sanctuary.
on top of Dudh Ganga col 5350m. Trisul I-7120m in the center


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