‘You may break; you may shatter the vase, if you will. But the scent of the roses will cling to it still.’ This book is a delightful collection of introspective essays on the Garhwal Himalaya and life around it. The author draws from his memories of being brought up in the mountains, pictures that linger like a waft of sweet perfume on a breezy afternoon. With affection, Ganesh Saili writes of his many journeys through these valleys wrapped in the mist, travelogues that evoke details of natural history interwoven into the delicate social fabric of mountain life. The book is a living tribute to the large-hearted sons of the soil, who, down the ages, have yoked the hills together, through thick and thin, good times and bad times, have laughed at the thunder and mocked the skies, have left for the plains only to return, again and again, to the call of the mountains. The Garhwal Himalaya have always been much more than lumps of rock and ice—an enigma, a constant companion for travellers and explorers. Wanderings through the Garhwal Himalaya is a gripping study of this incredible part of the Himalaya, which will make you want to be out there in the mountains amid sleet, snow, rain and wind.
