RELIVING AN ANCIENT TRAIL

By Chimi Wangmo

Not too long ago the people of Thed and Wang migrated to Punakha every year to avoid the cold Thimphu winter.

While the Punakha-Thimphu trail was used by many generations of Bhutanese, today, the tradition of using the old migratory trail is almost completely lost and unknown.

Therefore, to once more tread and relive this ancient trail, 25 students from Mothithang Higher Secondary School took part in a three-day journey of reliving the old tradition from 15 to 17 October this week.

The event was organized by the Bhutan Ecological Society, United Nations Bhutan, and supported by Mothithang Higher Secondary School, Tourism Council of Bhutan, and Dhumra Farms in Punakha. 

According to UN Bhutan, during the three-day hike the students were taken on an ecological experience focused on the fauna and flora spread over the two most interesting vegetations, changing from sub-tropics to temperate.

“The students trekked through cultivated fields, tiny picturesque villages and lush forest while listening to the music of rivers in deep gorges,” UN sources said.

Further, UN Bhutan wrote that students also got the chance for unique cultural insights of the trail in which they experienced traditions from the past which is still practiced by the people living along the trail.