Matt's Indian Expedition

1. Acclimatisation Phase

Ladakh is known as the land of the high passes or little Tibet, and is bound between the peaks of the western Himalaya and the Tibetan Plateau.. The Markha Valley trek is very demanding both physically and mentally. The team will be reaching altitudes of over 5,100m when crossing some of the passes in the region. Thankfully we will be limited to treks that do not require technical climbing but we will require a good level of fitness and an acclimatisation phase prior to ascent.

Delhi
We will fly into Delhi, the capital of India, and will need to allow at least one day of our itinerary to accomplish various tasks. The city is a curious blend of the modern with the traditional, skyscrapers and wide tree-lined avenues are mixed with architecture that reflects Indias ancient civilisations. We will need to change currency, visit the British High Commission, re-confirm flights etc. before organising onward travel to Manali where we will begin our acclimatisation and provisioning phase.

Manali
Located in the northern mountain region of Himachal Pradesh, Manali, situated in the Kullu valley, is a bustling Himalayan town. Its inhabitants have a friendly manner and unassuming lifestyle. At 1892m, it is a beautiful and ideal location for us to acclimatise and start preparing for the next stage of the expedition. While in Manali we will have to find some where to stay, eat during the day and plan provisioning for our next phase, plus arrange transport for the 2-day trip across the mountains and passes to Ladakh - quite a lot to do.

Leh
Located in Ladakh, Leh is cut off by road for most of the year. A small mountain town, it is dominated by the Leh Palace, the former home to the Ladakhi royal family. The town is Tibetan and Buddhist in feel, home to several impressive Buddhist Gompas (temples). At 3,500m the town is an ideal base from which to further acclimatise before our main trek, and will be the base for our time in Ladakh.

2. Challenging Phase

Project work
The team will be working for 4-5 days on a community project in Leh, helping with repair and building work in a small school in the Leh Valley.

The Trek
The team will undertake a 10-11 day trek of around 75-100 miles over some of the highest mountain passes and along the Marka Valley, accompanied by a trekking crew of guides and ponymen.

A typical trekking day

It is hard to be too specific here as every day is different but typically a day will be:

0600 Wake up, pack tent and equipment.
0700 Breakfast.
0800 Last minute preparations, sterilise and fill water bottles and litter sweep prior to setting of on the trek.
0830 - 1230 Trekking including regular water and tea-house stops.
1230 - 1330 Lunch en route carried in daysacks
1330 - 1700 Trekking including regular water and tea-house stops.
1700 - 1800 Post trek administration to include washing (self and clothes) and setting up camp.
1800 - 1930 Dinner usually prepared by cooks though team can help.
1930 - 2030 Evening debrief. Discussion of the day’s events and lessons learnt as well as simple sharing of ideas.
2030 Socialising in the mess tent or the tea-house with team and trekking crew.

3. Rest and Relaxation Phase

After an exhausting time on the trek we will be flying back to Delhi before setting off for a couple of days’ well deserved R&R in Agra, including visiting the Taj Mahal.

The total cost of the expedition will be just over £2800, plus innoculations and kit. One of the features of the World Challenge expedition is that the participants are required to raise the funds themselves instead of simply getting a blank cheque from their parents. It was a lot of money, but we've had 18 months to raise it. I finally raised the last £20 last week with only 20 days to go before we set off to India.

I have achieved this amount through a range of individual activities and group organized events. The individual fundraising efforts included:

Smartie Tube donations (A great kick off for my fundraising)..........£650
Work (housework, gardening, catsitting for neighbours)................£275
eBay sales (Dinky cars, Lego and old clothes).........................£755
'Coporate' sponsorships (Natwest and the John Weston Trust)...........£200
Carboot sales...............................................£180
and a few other odds and ends.

Group efforts included:
2 Valentine's disco's }
A quiz night at school }........................................£115
Weekly cake stalls }
A sponsored lock-in at Derby's old haunted gaol.......................£270

I would like to thank all the people who have helped me get this far, but a special thanks has to go to these people for their outstanding generosity in helping me reach my target; Natwest Bank, The John Weston Charitable Trust, Peter Oliver, My Grandparents Noel and Peggy, Sarah and Andy Patton, Peter and Tracy Dudley, Graeme and Julia Makepeace, Karen and Andy Roberts and last but not least my Parents.

Ladakh is in one of the most northernly regions of India and is populated by people of many cultures who speak many language and have many religions, though buddism tends to prevail due to Ladakhs proximity to China. The climate of ladakh ranges wildly, from -10 in the winter to 40 in the summer. Ladakh gained most of its wealth from being on the silk roads from Asia to the Middle-East. Ladakh is a mainly mountainous region with some of the highest passes in the world and it boasts the highest aiport in the world too.