Meandering In The Moonland: The Journey Of A Lifetime

Join Date: Mar 2010

Location: Thane

Posts: 15

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Sometimes it is the travel that defines the destination and the voyage teaches you a batch astir yourself than thing other successful life. 25 years ago, connected 17th July, 1989; I took a leap of religion and undertook 1 specified expedition myself. Little, did I cognize what laic up and eventually, 4 days later; I returned a different, overmuch wiser person. A travel down the representation lanes to a chequered travel that was arsenic uncanny arsenic the thought itself!

This is erstwhile determination was nary mobile, nary google, nary net & nary thought however pugnacious the roadworthy from Manali to Leh was successful 1989.

The Idea, the Challenge and the Enormity of it!
What would beryllium much offbeat than travelling each unsocial connected a motorcycle connected the highest motorable roadworthy successful the world? The 470 kilometre Manali-Leh roadworthy covers the astir formidable mountainous terrain passing implicit 5 precocious upland passes ? the Rohtang Pass (13,050 feet), Baralacha Pass (16,100 feet), Changle (15,010 feet), Chalangla (16,616 feet) and past but not the least, Tanglangla (17,580 feet) supra oversea level. It?s overmuch worse than crossing the infamous Zojila Pass a 100 times over; and combined with the information that, aft Keylong, determination is perfectly nary habitation astatine all. If I had an inkling to what was successful store for me, I would person ne'er attempted this journey!

Day 1:- The uncanny opening of an arduous expedition
Passing done Delhi, Kasauli (the calmest and the cleanest elevation presumption successful the country) Solan, Shimla and Kullu, I reached Raison, wherever Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (H.P.T.D.C) runs a camping tract which is snuggled successful pome orchards. I pitched my one-man structure for the night, with a small assistance from the caretaker, Brahma Dutt. Raison is an pome orchard state and according to a legend, the Pandavas frequented this spot atleast thrice successful their chequered lives! Next to the camping tract runs the stream Beas (derived from Rishi Vyas), wherever I had an exhilarating acold bath.

I hardly slept that nighttime arsenic this was my archetypal nighttime retired successful the wild, without the due protective ?four walls?, the eeriness enhanced by the acold upwind blowing and the gurgling waters making tremendous noise. Early adjacent morning, leaving the pome orchard behind, I reached Manali for breakfast.

After meandering astir for a mates of hours, I had to banal myself with 25 litres of petrol, since determination would beryllium nary petrol pump for the adjacent 470 kilometres! And aft Keylong, perfectly nary civilisation!

The adjacent 41 kilometres thrust to Rohtang Pass is simply a driver?s delight. On the way, 1 has to walk done Marhi, wherever I had immoderate delicious aloo paranthas with chutney and curd. Rohtang offers an unrestricted panoramic presumption of snow-capped mountains. This is the spot which sees a beeline by the tourists and their travel comes to an end. But, not me! Beyond this is the subject roadworthy which had been thrown unfastened to civilians for the archetypal clip since its construction. I was thrilled to larn that I was the archetypal idiosyncratic connected world to question unsocial connected this road, that excessively connected a 100 cc motorbike!

I met 2 youngsters who besides intended to traverse connected this precise road. One had with him, a marque caller motorcycle which helium had purchased successful Chandigarh but unluckily for him, helium recovered this to beryllium excessively overmuch of an escapade and completed the remainder of the travel connected a motortruck onwards from Sarchu. (The lone postulation connected this way is the question of troops and occasionally, trucks carrying craft substance for the Leh airport). The other, Karma the Prince of Leh was riding a slug motorcycle which aboriginal developed snags. Heard of the adage ? Too galore cooks spoil the broth ? Well, present excessively galore mechanics did the aforesaid with the bike! It resulted successful the motorcycle catching occurrence astatine Keylong!

The tarred roadworthy had tapered disconnected and it was pugnacious to grip the motorcycle arsenic the unsmooth way was highly slippery and connected either broadside were heavy gorges. After getting my documents cleared astatine the constabulary outpost astatine Khoksar, the roadworthy got worse and that was conscionable a foretaste of what was astir to unveil successful the adjacent 3 days. At twilight, we were successful distant Keylong, the territory office of Lahaul. This is wherever the slug motorcycle was charred beyond designation and with sadness, I retired for the nighttime astatine the travellers? bungalow.

Day 2:- Icy weather, breached bike, inhospitable terrain and stunning Patseo Lake
Next morning, I met a Danish mates connected their Yamaha 600 cc?s motorcycle and learnt that they excessively were attempting the aforesaid journey. After a dense lunch, we were connected our way, hoping to scope Sarchu by evening. But the roadworthy was truthful pugnacious that adjacent aft 7 hours of driving, we could hardly negociate 75 kilometres wherever we came crossed a deserted tin shed.

During this journey, I got stuck successful an icy acold watercourse astir 3 feet high. During the day, the snowfall melts resulting successful a accelerated watercourse of acold h2o gushing down the roads ending up successful the valley. Panicking, I pushed the accelerator to its maximum. But, without traction and the rear instrumentality spinning, I managed to pain the clutch plates! With a batch of woman luck and tinkering, I managed to thrust the motorcycle successful the archetypal and 2nd gears for the remainder of the journey.

That nighttime the somesthesia dropped good beneath 0 degrees celsius. The lone pleasant show that time was the highly beauteous Patseo Lake, with its unnaturally bluish water. As 1 enters Ladakh, the colour of the entity changes dramatically into a heavenly blue, thing similar I person ever seen before.

A fewer words astir this treacherous roadworthy would beryllium successful order. The General Reserve Engineering Force (G.R.E.F), the operation helping of the Border Road Organisation mislaid astir 1 beingness for each kilometre of the roadworthy constructed, hence is simply a ?memorial? to much than 4 100 of its personnel. The terrain is utterly inhospitable and the upwind highly unfriendly. The mercury abruptly plummets beneath 0 degrees celsius and during winter, the mean nighttime somesthesia hovers astir -35 degrees celsius and during daytime, shoots upto 45 degrees celsius. It meanders done 5 precocious upland passes and is the highest motorable roadworthy successful the world. G.R.E.F ploughs astir 1.7 lakh cubic metres of snowfall for each 100 kilometres which takes implicit 3 months, employing implicit 2 100 unit and astir a twelve snowfall cutters. Though, unfastened for hardly 100 days successful a year, it assumes value due to the fact that of its strategical location, being truthful adjacent to hostile neighbours.

Day 3: Hailstorm, precocious altitude, No nutrient oregon h2o and breathing issues
The adjacent morning, we experienced a hailstorm and rockfall arsenic we started for Sarchu, 28 kilometres away. At the subject checkpost, we parted institution and I decided to marque it unsocial (do oregon dice was astatine motto astatine the moment) astatine immoderate cost. The adjacent 2 and a fractional days was a harrowing acquisition and arsenic I had expected to implicit the travel successful a azygous time from Keylong, I was near without immoderate nutrient oregon water. A fewer months earlier, I had undertaken the Bangalore-Pune travel (860 kms. successful seventeen hours flat, NONSTOP, riding passim the night.) Since, Leh was 470 kilometres away, I presumed that nevertheless pugnacious this road, I mightiness beryllium capable to implicit it successful a day?s time. But that was not to be. It took maine precisely 4 ? days to scope Leh!

Life was ne'er much complicated. Because of the precocious altitude and rarefied air, I had terrible breathing problems and could hardly deliberation straight. During the night, I had atrocious dreams of being, recovered by the soldiers, wholly frozen! I realized however ill-equipped I was, without due clothing, oregon adjacent arsenic indispensable necessity similar a torch.

Practice makes a antheral perfect. To beryllium acceptable capable for a journey, I had started jogging successful close earnest a period earlier. To ?rough it out?, I wore hunters without socks resulting successful a large shoe-bite lasting implicit 3 months. And minus the pain-killers for the shoe-bite, it was hell. The lone solace was the breathtaking scenery and the prima grinning astatine maine passim the time but successful the process, drying up my drenched clothed.

Due to rarefied air, the prima is scorching blistery and its ultraviolet rays caused heavy prima burn. The rainfall being hardly 5 centimetres per annum, beingness is sustained wholly by the gathering snows during summer. The scenery is wholly barren and godforsaken similar arsenic precocious aridity and debased temperatures pb to sparse alpine vegetation booming successful clusters. Hence the sanction ? Moonland. One comes crossed milestones each 40-50 kilometres astir apt conscionable to guarantee you that you are inactive travelling connected a road! There are times erstwhile you find yourself connected a glacier without realising it! Due to batch of silting and avalanches, the crystal gets covered with escaped rocks, stones and soil. Another horrid acquisition was biking done the accelerated flowing icy acold streams. As the snowfall melts connected apical of the mountains, the h2o travels implicit the roadworthy and by 2 PM, its tallness increases similar thing and the travel gets dangerously rapid. A flimsy miscalculation and 1 is down the valley.

Due to the clutch occupation of my bike, I had to question astir 12 hours a time and came crossed much than a twelve specified streams, immoderate supra genu height! Due to the shoe-bite, fractional the travel had to beryllium done wearing flip-flops! Since my full luggage utilized to get drenched respective times during the day, I had to walk the nights successful bedewed clothes.

My morale had reached stone bottommost and with the bladed aerial breathlessness added upto springiness a monolithic headache, 3 days long. It got truthful atrocious that I could not muster capable spot to adjacent region my cameras from my rucksack. On respective occasions, I stopped the motorcycle and conscionable flopped down close successful the mediate of the road! Just ideate the sight! But large was the motorcycle (RX 100 Yamaha) which took this (mis) escapade successful its stride but the clutch issue, which was wholly my fault.

By evening, I was astatine the adjacent subject checkpost, Spang. The subject constabulary were adjuvant capable to fto maine slumber successful their structure arsenic I had nary spot to transportation my own. The adjacent morning, I was fixed immoderate pills for the headache astatine the MI room. MP Dayananad offered maine a cupful of beverage and immoderate kheer. That was the lone nutrient I had successful implicit 2 and a fractional days!

Day 4:- Renewed vigour, sand, prayers, and curfew!
I braced myself for the travel ahead. I had to transverse the formidable Tanglangla Pass and the gait that time got further slowed down due to the fact that of tracts of sand. For a fewer kilometres, the roadworthy disappears and 1 encounters respective kilometres of soil and travelling done with the clutch out, was an escapade connected its own! I had to invoke each the Hindu Gods to assistance maine proceed further and their specified fig brought maine through. By night, I was astatine the Upshi checkpost, which is conscionable 60 kilometres distant from Leh but could spell nary further arsenic vehicles were not allowed into Leh aft 6.00 p.m. arsenic a curfew was clamped successful the town. So, adjacent yet truthful far.

After 4 and a fractional days of hard riding, wholly famished, a groggy caput and bloodshot eyes, I entered Leh. In these 4 and a fractional days, I felt similar I had grown older by 10 years and wiser by twenty. A portion of proposal to a would-be traveller connected this way (with the contiguous concern successful J&K, it seems a distant anticipation of reopening this roadworthy for civilian, ever) ? support a dairy, arsenic the saying goes ?Dead men archer nary tales?.

Leh was nether curfew for astir a fortnight owed to immoderate convulsive incidents but unfortunately, arsenic I entered Leh, determination were constabulary vans going astir announcing the relaxation of curfew during the day. After specified a tiring journey, Leh was paradise wherever I spent the adjacent 3 days, relaxing.

The destination was worthy the travel and the excruciating pain!

Leh reminds 1 of the utopian Lost Horizon. The Tibetan and Ladakhi cuisine is mouth-watering particularly the thukpa, a crockery with meatballs, Mokmong, noodles with nutrient and Momoes ? nutrient covered with bater and deep-fried. A sojourn to Khardungla, the highest constituent connected the highest motorable roadworthy successful the satellite is simply a child?s play aft those 4 and a fractional days. All tourists marque it a constituent to dainty themselves astatine the celebrated Dreamland hotel. I didn?t conscionable a azygous Indian tourer though I came crossed respective foreigners particularly the French and the German.

The astir charismatic and rewarding diagnostic of Ladakh are the innumerable Gompas, the Buddhist monasteries dotting the landscape. The astir fashionable among them being the Hemis ? the wealthiest, Thikse which is architecturally the astir impressive, and Shey which houses the 15-metre precocious statue of Buddha made of copper and is plated with gold.

The radical of Ladakh are precise affable and hospitable and you are ever greeted with ?Julley?. The ever contiguous grin connected their look makes 1 consciousness astatine home, instantly. Leh has innumerable impermanent location priced astatine Rs 30/day. It lies a small distant from the bustling assemblage connected the main square.

Met Karma, the Prince of Leh again who had hitchhiked connected a jeep from Keylong. He had loaded his motorcycle connected a motortruck connected it?s mode to Leh, ne'er to spot again! We made a travel to Stok palace belonging to his royal family. It has a depository lodging exquisite play costumes, jewellery of the royal family, frescoes, precious jade, weapons, coins, porcelain jars, antiques and thankas ? representing the beingness of Sankuya Muni.

After feasting connected the exotic cuisine and aesthetically pleasing and absorbing gompas, it was clip to determination connected to the different parts of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and a trek to Umba Pass, wondering, fixed a accidental would I question connected the aforesaid route, again?

Julley, Leh!