Basic Course in Mountaineering - NIM

I completed my Basic Course in Mountaineering (BMC) from Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) in September 2015 and graduated with ‘A’ grade.

NIM is one of the finest mountaineering institutes in the country and rigorous both physically and mentally. Each day of the 20+ day course is demanding yet rewarding where you learn hands-on techniques to survive and navigate through rock, ice and snow.

The institute is located in Uttarkashi. The NIM rock craft training area is located in Tekla which is a 5 km hike from the institute. The ice craft training is conducted at Dokrani Glacier below the Jaonli and DKD II peaks.

The first week of the course starts with rock craft training, followed by 2 weeks in the mountains, successively moving higher up the mountain from base camp, advanced base camp and finally height gain and snow craft at Camp I of DKD II peak.

The Advance Course can be done if you secure ‘A’ grade in BMC and here you plan and execute the summit expedition to DKD II within your rope – group of 8-9 persons within which you divided at the start of the course.

Both BMC and AMC courses are in lately in high demand among trekkers and future mountaineers as it’s an exhaustive learning experience under highly skilled instructors and also because the courses are subsidised by the Ministry of Defense who manage the Institute. Thus, the wait time to get a seat in these courses can be as long as 2 years. The courses are conducted twice a year.

The courses are highly demanding, inevitably some people will give up in the middle. My advice to anyone interested to take up the BMC course is, prepare yourself mentally and set your expectations right from the beginning, this a mountaineering course and not just another trek, train well before you go and once you are there go with the flow, take it a day at a time and when it gets hard, think why you came, look up and enjoy the view which will keep getting better and motivate you, bond with your group, they will be like your family for the next 3 weeks and once you graduate, the sense of achievement you get will be one of the best you would have experienced!

All photos below were clicked with iPhone 4s.

Day 1: Induction hike above the institute

Phase 1: Tekla rock training area

Daily 5 km hike for a week to Tekla from NIM for rock craft training

Indoor wall climbing at the institute

Chimney techniques

Heading back after the session at Tekla

Session on climbing equipment

Ready to leave for the mountain

On the 3 day trek to base camp

Base Camp

Heading for the glacier

Dokrani bamak/ glacier

Movement on the glacier

Ice craft training sessions on the glacier

Jaonli (6632 m) and DKD II (5800 m) peaks in the backdrop of the training area

River crossing

Glacier snout

Returning to base camp after the daily training at the glacier

Juniper shrubs

Advanced base camp

Sunset as seen from ABC (advanced base camp)

Snow at camp

Blue Sheep/ Bharal near the camp

Learning self arrest techniques on snow

The much revered Brahma Kamal flower spotted in full bloom

Brahma Kamal, named after Brahma, the God of Creation, is native to the Himalayas, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, India, northern Burma and southwest China. In the Himalayas, it is found at an altitude of around 4500 m. Saussurea obvallata or Brahma Kamal is a perennial growing to 1 feet. Flowers bloom in mid-monsoon (July–August) amongst the rocks and grasses of the hillside at an altitudinal range of 3000–4800 m. Flower heads are purple, hidden from view in layers of yellowish-green papery bracts, which provide protection from the cold mountain environment. The flowers can be seen till mid-October, after which the plant perishes, becoming visible again in April. It is the state flower of Uttarakhand.
Brahma kamal is a medicinal herb. The plant is considered an herb in Tibetan medicine. It has a bitter taste.

Glacier beyond ABC, much closer now to Jaonli (6632 m) and DKD II (5800 m) peaks