Susan Waten
Phejin Konyak is by far the most adventurous Naga trekker I’ve ever met so far. Recently (Jan, 2012) she went on the Langtang National Park Trek, Nepal. She trekked independently without a guide or porter and climbed up 3,800 meters at Kyanjin Gompa, the last village on the trek. Normally it takes 6 full days to complete the trek but it took her a record time of 3.5 days only. People thought she was a Sherpa because of her features and also for completing the trek according to “Sherpa time.” It was indeed a great compliment when the amazed Sherpa guides and porters acknowledged this feat. One night the temperature fell to -10 degrees and she wore all the clothes she carried in her backpack. Her mineral water was semi-frozen. She recalls, “I cursed myself for taking this trek in the extreme cold and for a moment regretted that I came. I missed the warmth of my home. I slept for just three and a half hours and at 5 am the next day, I was up for an 11 hours trek with just one meal and my 10 kg backpack!”
It was that very night that she was caught in a snow storm with three Korean trekkers following behind her without any torch light. She gave her mobile phone troch light to them and made them follow her to safety. The Koreans, having gone through two years of compulsory military training in their country asked her if she too had gone through any formal military training. She replied jokingly that she had gone through her own “Tribal military training!” They complemented her that she is indeed a natural trek leader, and they walked on for two days in total silence, without even bothering to ask each other’s name, just as real trekkers who are one with nature do.
Having been known for her trek-venture, a Nepali tour operator and guide in Thamel asked her, “Which country are you from? I didn’t expect a single south Asian woman to trek independently. Only western men and women do that.” She responded, “What do you expect? And why stereo-type people? You may not see a south Asian woman but you better change your attitude after this. Anyway, I’m a Naga from Nagaland.”
Immediately after the Langtang Trek, Phejin walked 25 kms in and around Kathmandu in a single day. Tired and hungry, the restaurant owner allowed her and a friend to sleep on the restaurant floor for free. Hearing about these adventures, her old friend in Kathmandu even asked her to enroll for “Everest Marathon” because she has the potential to endure it. It was in the year 2008 that she did the Annapurna Base Camp Trek.
A month or so before she took on the Langtang Trek in Nepal, she and a friend climbed Mt. Japfu above Kisama in Kohima which is at 3,048 meters. She maintains, “I do treks elsewhere in the Himalayas and I thought, why not explore my own place?” She says that Japfu is just a day’s hike and is above Kisama but our own local people are not aware of the beauty and the adventure. (For future treks, she can be contacted at phejin@gmail.com. ) She sees tremendous potential for the promotion of tourism, especially during the Hornbill festival where tourists may like some outdoor activity other than the carnival of song and dance. She asserts, “Guest houses and foot paths can be constructed on the trek path to Japfu and the income earned can promote local sustainability.” However she laments the fact that our people throw plastics and scribble graffiti’s everywhere even in Dzuokou valley, thus spoiling the natural beauty of the place. Treks in Nepal has been going on for the last 60-70 years and still the paths are pristine and spotlessly well-maintained with people’s efforts. Qur very own neighbor Sikkim is also a good example of this.
Phejin is a person who possesses both mental and physical stamina for power endurance of any challenge. I remember the walk we took in her tea gardens at Shiyong village. By the end of two hours, I was dead meat and she like a gazelle just rising to the occasion. She says, “As long as you have the courage, the right mental attitude and stamina, you can achieve anything you want in life.”
Susan Waten, Holiday Abode for Writers & Artists, Dimapur
