Leaving Dehra Dun with the men and women companions, Baba shifted headquarters on the 16 th to the house of Jamnadas, the Mahant. Keki Desai was instructed to return to Delhi at this time.
Since Kaka was bedridden, Todi Singh's family had come the day before and prepared and sent the finest food. But Baba permitted the family to cook for only four days. On the 21 st , he sent them back to Aligarh. Subhadra then cooked and sent the food, after which arrangements were made for the four women companions to do the cooking.
Pendu, Don, Sadashiv, Baidul and Aloba arrived with the caravan, tongas and bullock cart on 20 January 1950. Baba's protective gaze had saved them from "the jaws of death." Someone on the way had shown them a shortcut from Najibabad to Dehra Dun and, disregarding Baba's advice to stay on the main road, they took it. At a wild and lonely place, while crossing a stream, the caravan's wheels got stuck and could not be pulled out of the mud.
At a loss of what to do, Pendu suggested that Don should decide what should be done. Don advised chopping off tree branches and strewing them over the path. All concurred and set about it. The work was strenuous, and it was past evening by the time they had finished. No water was available even for drinking — cooking anything was out of the question. Don noticed some water in a hole, but it looked filthy. Nevertheless, he told Aloba to boil it for fifteen minutes and then make tea. Aloba hurried through the task, and without listening properly, he prepared tea within fifteen minutes. Desperately thirsty, they drank it anyway. After much endeavor they were able to free the caravan from the morass. But it was now pitch-dark in a jungle inhabited by tigers and bears.
They proceeded in the darkness and luckily saw a forest guard's hut. The watchman was sleeping and had locked the door from inside.