The Road Unknowingly Taken

“GUESTHOUSE”, I mouthed and mimed desperately. “Which way to the guesthouse?” I repeated, in every language I knew. The bemused locals looked back at me, their expressions blank.
Shaking my head in exasperation & cursing my over enthusiasm, I walked away.
A couple of hours ago, I had raced ahead of my trekking guide & group, eager to beat them to the destination – a guesthouse with a stunning view of the famed Trisul peaks in the Kumaun Himalayan range. Unsurprisingly, I found myself lost in the vastness of Bedni Bugyal, an alpine meadow in Chamoli district of the Indian state Uttarakhand.
When I came across a hamlet, my hopes rose a little but were dashed when I realized that the people didn’t speak my tongue.
“You wanted to be the first person to reach the guesthouse. Now you’ll be lucky if you find it,” I chided myself.
Using the sun as a compass, I tried to navigate towards the guesthouse. I knew that the peaks were southeast of Bedni Bugyal. Hearing the sound of flowing water, I went to take a closer look. Don’t survival experts say that following water gave the best chance to find civilization?
Behold, there it was. An incredible sight! Not the one I was looking for, but one that gave me great joy - a small cave with pristine water dripping out. Resting on a small slope was a rock projection. Peppered with grass & shrubs, it stuck out like a sore thumb. A gorgeous sore thumb. Perhaps due to the flow of water, the blackish rock looked smooth & polished.
The water flowing down from it made it look like a miniature waterfall, especially considering that it was located at height of over 10,000 feet!
I rejoiced at the beauty of my discovery & rested my tired body. Drinking the cave’s sweet water, I convinced myself that I was the first to set eyes on it. Before taking off again, I had a good look at the cave, imprinting it in my memory forever.
After more rambling, I somehow made it to the guesthouse. Almost everyone from my group had reached there before me & admiring the trident shaped peaks. The sun was setting, lighting its silhouette perfectly. But I didn’t regret my enthusiasm to get there first anymore. It had led me, even if unwittingly, to a place that few others could’ve ever been to.
Who would’ve guessed that the best time I would have on a Himalayan trek would involve being lost for a few hours? People say that the road not taken is better than the road that is often taken. On that day I found that the road unknowingly taken is the best.