The signs were all there. I just chose to ignore all of them. I had just decided to go on a roadtrip to the most inhospitable of all Himalayan regions with two city slickers who wouldn’t sleep on some sticky pillows if their life depended on it. I just didn’t see it coming.
One CommentTag: Himachal Pradesh
So I am going to Spiti Valley. In September. That shaded region in the map with the black lines showing approximate route taken to get there. Apparently its a very beautiful place.
Leave a CommentMcLeodganj is a quaint little town with about 4 radial roads going out from the city cetre which end before you can say ‘kaput!’. And on those 4 roads, shops sell everything from locally made handicrafts to can’t-find-even-in-Mumbai chocolates. There are Buddhist monks everywhere. The Bullet’s roaring sounds is in the air. You hear Hindi and English the least and what you hear doesn’t make much sense. People from all over the world are here. The Dalai Lama’s home is nice and pretty. Definitely worth coming. But if I am here to “see” anything, there is nothing but disappointment. No temples. No museums. No snow filled resorts. Nothing. Which is the reason why not too many Indian tourists come here. And thank god for that!
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When I slept last night, I did not know where I will go. I wanted to go to Ganganagar but the only person I knew wasn’t responding and it wasn’t worth the effort to go all the way there for nothing. So it back to nothing.
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Beautiful morning. Perfect for taking your two wheel set to a nice ride. The mountain was bright and majestic. The concerns about tent, petrol and other things immediately took back seat when I saw Rohtang Pass in the morning. I was going to do it.
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Afternoon
Over the last one week, there has been tremendous amount of snowfall in over major passes. There are places where snowfall is more than 5 feet (that’s till neck height, for the uninitiated).
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The stomach is feeling much better. Still not perfect but good enough to ride. Paid off the bill and took off. The news from the mountains is still not good. But the twisties between Mandi and Manali more than make up for it. Short, very curvy corners with plenty of blind turns. Its a dream.
Leave a CommentNot a good day. All this while I had taken care of everything but what I ate. I ate everything. Absolutely everything. And now it…
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I had thought last night (BEFORE my Old Monk and coke) that Solan to Manali would be rather simple. Big mistake. I had breakfast till 10.30 and sat with the manager discussing the road. And he said, it will be 10 hours. It must be a mistake. I rushed to my room and checked the map. There it was. It was looooong way. Can’t make it in one day. Not on mountainous roads. Rushed my packing and was on the road in 15 minutes.
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This was the big day. Raid De Ladakh once more. 😉
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