"It was by chance that I landed on the Kashmir Great Lakes trek by Indiahikes. That trek changed the way I looked at trek leading. 

I was born and raised in Chhattisgarh. In the environment I grew up, independent thinking or non-traditional career choices were frowned upon. I struggled to break free from the set notions. Finally, I quit my full time job in 2019 and joined an International NGO.

In 2021, I was all set to travel to Croatia to represent the India Chapter for the NGO. Unfortunately the conference was cancelled and I had 7 days in my hand. That’s when I decided to trek to Kashmir Great Lakes. 

On the trek I was in awe at how Indiahikes was actively working towards sustainable trekking. It felt like a new dimension had opened up in my life. Moving forward I wanted to actively practice sustainability. 

I also observed how impactful it was to work as a trek leader. 

Throughout my career I attended many leadership programs. But this was the first time I witnessed a role where you could apply all the learnings to impact people’s lives in a very short span of time.

Soon after the trek, I wanted to be associated with Indiahikes. Around the same time Indiahikes opened recruitment for Weekend Trek Leaders. I decided to apply and got selected. 

In the past two months, I have led three groups as a Weekend Trek Leader. As I lead treks, I meet new people, talk to them about values like sustainability. 

Looking back at my journey I notice that these conversations give me a deep sense of love and pride about the work that I am doing. Being a Weekend Trek Leader here fills me with gratitude.”

- Saurabh Bhoyar