Basic Mountaineering Course

"It is not the mountains that we conquer but ourselves"

                                                                                     - Sir Edmund Hillary

Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering is one of the four national Mountaineering institutes in India. A great place to learn mountaineering with excellent trainers.
          Duration of BMC is 26 days which is usually held in Sonamarg(J&K).Pedagogy of JIM is similar to Nehru Institute of Mountaineering the course is mainly divided into two parts Rock Climbing and Glacier Training including other activities such as treks, river crossing etc. Mountaineering is not all about fun it is the rigorous training to survive and successfully summit a Mountain.  

DAY 1:

      The first day is one of the most important parts of your acclimatization.We simply took rest and were busy admiring the beauty of Kashmir while we were introduced to our instructors(Ustads)who are army personals well qualified and experienced in adventure activities.We were also introduced to rules and regulations of the course and the schedule for the next day. Distribution of tracksuit, rucksack, wind cheater, sleeping bag, and utensils for the next 24 days was also the part of the first day.

Sonamarg base camp(9200 ft.)

DAY 2:

       Lazy? Unfit? Who ever you are waking up at 6 am grab your tea and breakfast. Fall in at 8 am and the first introduction to your course.All the pursuing Mountaineers have distributed in 4 groups each group consists of army officers, air force officers, NCC cadets, and civilians.On the second day, we visited Sonamarg market which is 3 to 4 km from base camp and don't give a thought of going from roads. The day ended with a dinner under the sky full of stars.I would like to mention the food is of good quality but the taste should not bother you at 9200 ft. 

DAY 3:

      The third day was a great day as we have to prepare for the trek, trek to Happy Valley. We grabbed our lunch from base camp and started our trek at 9 am trek is full of adorable scenic views and after 3 to 4 hours of trekking, you will land among clouds.

On our way to Happy Valley 

  

                                               View from Happy Valley trek

Our trek ended with a visit to HAWS(High Altitude Warfare School) where various mountaineering equipment was introduced to us wrapping our trek day with a tea break and dinner. 

DAY 4:

      P.T. at 7 o'clock sounds simple but the first experience was harsh as it was 5 to 6 km endurance run followed by breakfast.On the 4th day we were ready for an adventure activity we all really were excited for "River crossing" were different river crossing techniques were taught. Let me introduce to that river I have never seen a river in such a pure form whose origin is Thajiwas glacier near base camp.

DAY 5:

      Starting with morning PT and breakfast we had an another adventure activity zip lining followed by lectures and practicals on rescue techniques for descending a casualty. We enjoyed the day as it was a beautiful evening in the valley. Now friendship got its root in our tent and day ended with laughter and sharing crazy experiences.

        

DAY 6:

      Packing our bag for another trek, trek to Table Top. The table top is on the route of Great Lakes one of the most beautiful treks of India. We were tired of admiring nature's beauty and having lunch in these mountains is one of the greatest experience one can have in his life.

 DAY 7:

       Morning PT at 7 o'clock, breakfast at 8 o'clock was now the part of our life.Today we were introduced to one of the most important activity for a mountaineer Rock Climbing which is held at HAWS training area and seriously it is one the worlds best rock climbing area.We were introduced to rock climbing, rappelling and base making.

Rock Climbing training area

DAY 10:

       The previous 2 days had the same routine and until we were divided into two groups for rock and glacier training. 

             Glacier training consists of base making, crevasse rescue, and drill.

We were distributed ice axe, snow shoes, and other glacier equipment. Our day usually ended with evening lecture which was very practical and fascinating.

DAY 16: 

       Our 6 days glacier training ended with a practical test on the drill, base making and crevasse rescue which is based on your practical learning abilities these tests were more like tasks and we really enjoyed them.

                 

                                                  On completion of glacier training

DAY 17:

       We were back to our rock climbing training. Morning PT breakfast, rock climbing training, evening lecture, and dinner was our schedule for the next 4 days.Once you start learning to climb you will come to know there is nothing better than rock climbing.

DAY 22:

       Final endurance test with 10 kgs of load followed by last rock climbing training, documentaries in the evening and the excitement of last few days wrapped our day.

             

                              

DAY 23:

       Rock climbing, base making, and rappelling test. Finally, Viva in the evening and the day just vanished.

DAY 24:

       The last day started with a one hour written test and the evening which every one of BMC-115 students will remember Course Completion ceremony which was full of laughter, dance, mimicry and price distribution ceremony.

                     

                         Fruit of 24 Days of training

    

                                    Finally bon voyage with a spirit of Mountaineer.