Hiking in India

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Experiences of an experienced India hiker

Meeting Rudy has been godsend for me. He is Swiss, but has lived in India with his family for a long time. He has already covered many long hiking trails in Tamil Nadu. He is not only familiar with the challenges of the trail network, but also with the helpfulness of the people.

Here are some of his most interesting experiences, which I am grateful for and which may also be useful to others:

• Risky paths! In India, it is often not known whether field or footpaths lead to a road at the other end. It often happens that you can't go any further in the middle of the terrain. His recommendation is then to go all the way back - and not to risk any new detour. But if he knows, for example with the help of a GPS, that there is a good way to continue in a short distance, then he sometimes invests more than an hour to make his way through a few hundred meters of steep undergrowth.

 

• Drinking! The most important thing to have with you as equipment is enough water. It is often very hot on the plains and you don't know where and when you can find potable water. He would only drink from a spring if it is certain that there is no human settlement above it. However, it is possible to drink from a tap like locals if you have carefully got used to the local germ cultures - e.g. by initially mixing some tap water with filtered water and only using it to brush your teeth; The tap water dose is then carefully increased.

 

• Always kind! Rudy is more of a reserved person. That is why I am positively surprised that when he walks he greets everyone who lines his path or comes towards him. He explains that it is very useful because if an urgent situation should ever arise with officials, someone would always remember him and vouch for him to be "okay".

 

• Ritual! There are often very short dialogues with such people, but they are very unfamiliar with the non-locals. In passing, one of the standard phrases is: Saptingla?" - "Have you already eaten?" - Rudy assures you that this question is meant seriously. And if you answered “No”, people would of course invite you. And he gave me a great deal of confidence when he said that as a hiker you would almost always be approached and invited by locals. However, this is more true for people in the country than in a city.

 

• Magic!? There is one point where he is skeptical and I take his advice as a warning. It's about the idea of ​​offering magic or a song recital or something else as a thank you for the hospitality of the people. The simple, normal people would be irritated by this and could be unsure of what I'm trying to achieve with these things.

 

• Which side walking? In India there is left-hand traffic. So I thought that when walking on the street we should go on the right side so that the oncoming traffic could see us better. - Rudy advises against this for two reasons: First, it would irritate oncoming traffic because it is unfamiliar. Second: In India it is an unwritten law that you don't look back in traffic, that you are fully responsible for what happens in front of you. He who comes from behind has to be careful.

 

• Dogs! A helpful word when approaching a dog is the cute spoken phrase “Nai Kutty!” That means something like “little dog!” - Kutty could be derived from the English “cute”.

• Invitation to Meal! A rule when you are invited somewhere at home: It is customary for the men to eat first and the women to serve the food in the meantime. As a Westerner, it would be rude to try to break this rule as a guest.

 

Complementary experience on the way

• Police! - In Germany it is said: "Police, your friend and helper!" In fact, in Germany I always have a worried, uncomfortable feeling when a police officer speaks to me. - On my journeys in India, I experience the police as really friendly: less controlling as in Germany, but more helpful. Once a policeman even brought me a small breakfast. - But in certain areas and at certain times (e.g. before festivals) there are traffic policemen who demand high fines for small offenses.