INDIA & BANGLADESH 2014: 3 From Manali to Leh, India

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

We were ready to go at 6 AM and were soon climbing the many switch backs up the Rohtang pass. When we reached the summit at 3,978 meters (13,048 ft) we stopped for some excellent masala tea. I climbed the steps to a Tibetan stupa and walked around it in howling wind. The road was one lane pavement with many rough, dirt stretches where land slides had been cleared. Traffic was not heavy at that early hour, but there were still quite a few trucks.

Once down the other side of the pass the scenery turned from spectacular to unbelievable. The high mountains were covered with snow, and often had glaciers between peaks. When we reached the valley beyond the pass we could see where a 9 km (5.6 mi) tunnel is under construction through the mountain to connect the valley with Manali, meaning valley villages will no longer be isolated in winter when snow closes the pass. It will be a major change in life style for the people living there.

A big surprise as we ventured deeper into the mountains was farms on the valley floors growing potatoes, vegetables and even apples. Private plots of land are defined by stone walls. The valley bottoms are around 3,110 meters (10,200 ft). We stopped in Keylong (altitude 3,300 meters or 10,824 ft) village to show our passports and permits for the car, and to have a good Indian lunch. Along the roadside a large, healthy red fox stood looking at us before running across a field. A little later we stopped at a roadside gas station where the sign proclaimed "Last Gas for 365 km" (227 mi). Harish talked to some bikers coming from Leh, who told him the tent camp we were to sleep in at Sarchu, our destination for the next night, was being dismantled for the season, and what tents were left we occupied by a film crew.

From there until our destination at Jispa we were hanging onto the side of single lane dirt road where the sheer drop was ofter over a thousand feet. Marilynn was back to extreme discomfort! The road is being widened to two lanes, leaving only one very narrow lane on the outside. We were seeing an animal called a Chulu, which is a cross between a yak and a cow so they can still give milk but have a tolerance for the altitude. We averaged about 20 kph (12 mph) on this leg of the trip.

When we reached our hotel, the room was up three flights of stairs. Jispa is at 3,600 meters (11,808 ft) and we could feel it as we climbed to the room. There was a power failures in the area, so we were supplied with candles and matches. The room was clean and adequate, except the bed was a lot shorter than me and had foot-boards preventing my feet from sticking out the bottom. The only way I could stretch my legs was to sit up, so I spent the night reading by flashlight or writing – no sleep.

Once settled into our room we went for a long walk up the river in front of the hotel, returning at sundown. When the sun drops so does the temperature – from the mid 20s C (70s F) to close to freezing. A quite good dinner was accompanied by a decent bottle of Indian Chardonnay we bought in Manali, and eaten in the restaurant under dim battery powered lights. There was no way to contact the tent camp at Sarchu to see if we had somewhere to sleep the next night, so Harish suggested we start early, as if there is no accommodation the closest alternate would be in Leh 285 km (177 mi) away.

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

We met at the restaurant at 5:30 where breakfast was being prepared. We had to step around three hotel employees sleeping on mats on the floor – they just kept sleeping. We were on the road at 6 AM.

The Manali – Leh highway comes under the jurisdiction of BRO, Border roads organization, and maintenance is done by the army who have special battalions for the purpose. We were passing frequent army camps, and many more military vehicles on the road. The valleys are now averaging more than 3,900 meters (12,800 ft).and the streams along the road have ice on the edges. One area we passed was full of marmots, large furry rodents with short tails. At the village of Darcha there was another passport check, from where we ascended the 4,883 meter (16,016 ft) Baralacha la, fording part frozen streams that dropped from above, crossed the road and fell in a waterfall on the far side. La is the Tibetan word for pass, and is used throughout the area.

The 78 km (48.5 mi) drive to Sarchu took 3 hours. We found there were two tent camps owned by the same guy, one with the film crew and another where our tent was reserved and waiting. The camp is located on a broad, grassy plain at 4,225 m (13,958 ft) altitude – it is known for its freezing cold nights. As it was only 9 AM when we arrive I decided we would pay for our tent, but carry on to Leh, as neither of us wanted to waste a day hanging around with nothing to do.

We left Sarchu on flat land following a river where the banks were sculpted into surreal shapes, then started to climb through a series of 21 switchbacks (called loops here) up a near vertical cliff on the way over Nakee-la. We had to stop near the top as two convoys of army trucks going opposite directions had met on the single lane dirt road. It took over half an hour for them to come up with a strategy to pass. In the end the truck in front of us drove onto loose rocks that had fallen from above, as all other wider parts of the road were taken by trucks behind. We parked behind that truck, not a problem as our car was no where near as wide.

A soldier then guided the trucks coming downhill around the stopped one. I photographed the front wheel of one of the trucks – it was no more than 6 inches (15 cm) from the sheer drop of over 2,000 ft (610 meters). There are no guardrails on any of these roads. The process was further complicated by the parked truck leaning over towards the downhill trucks, causing the canvass covered tops to rub against one another, forcing the downhill trucks over even further. Eventually the process was completed successfully, but the relief on the face of the drivers was something to see when they were once again on safe ground! We stopped at the top of the 4,740 meter (15,547 ft) pass to take photos of the stupas and prayer flags.

From there we snaked back down one lane dirt road where the drop off to the side of the road was no longer in hundreds of feet, it was in the thousands. We crossed a river in a broad valley then climbed Laihuug-la at 5,067 meters (16,620 ft). There is no plant growth in the mountains and sparse grass in the valleys. Near the top of the pass waterfalls were already frozen solid. The majesty of the scenery cannot be described.

Once down from the pass we started across broad, high sand desert. Shepherds were taking their flocks to lower pasture for the winter, filling the canyons with a river of thousands of sheep which we slowly pushed our way through. We were fortunate to be able to watch a herd of mountain goats bounding around the steep cliffs. Here the mountains were coloured by mineralization into stripes of bright purple, green, black, white and grey. The patterns sometimes went into swirls and other fantastic shapes. Huge fans of sheer rock would appear, as well as high cliffs the width of a highway stretching back from the road separated by gravel strips the same width. It was astonishing!

We were finally in the broad Indus River valley on the way into Leh at 6 PM, just as it was beginning to get dark. We had for some time been passing tidy Tibetan Villages with dozens of stupas, and now there were many monasteries and fields full of stupas. Leh is on a gradual hillside at about 3,500 meters (11,480 ft), surrounded on all sides by towering peaks. Other than areas with irrigation the valley is dry, high desert.

We arrived at the hotel we had been booked into, but rejected it as we would be on the third floor with no elevator, the room was very sparsely furnished and it was a considerable distance from town. Ali, the local travel company manager, came to the hotel where the manager agreed to cancel the reservations without charge. We were then driven to the Grand Himalaya Hotel, which was much better. We had a quick dinner in the hotel restaurant and headed for the comfortable bed. There is no heat in the hotels – pretty much everything in Leh will shut down at the end of this month.

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Because we had cut one night from the trip we had the day to ourselves, so headed into town. There is a shortcut from the hotel that makes it about a 5 minute walk. What is amazing is the religious diversity. The majority religion is Buddhist, and there are monks everywhere in their dark red robes, but also Muslim women in different states of attire from just a head covering to a full head to toe cover up. There are many Hindus, Sikhs, and Christians as well. No one seems to think anything of the differences – it is the most outstanding example I've seen of total religious tolerance. The city is surrounded by Buddhist monasteries, almost always perched on high hills. In the city there are large, ornate mosques with tall minarets.

We were told there was no internet in the city, because the servers were all destroyed in the floods, however we found two places that had very slow internet using a different system. We checked out both, but the wait to get on was over an hour long. Eventually we went back to the hotel where I put everything I needed to send on a flash drive, then did the waiting and got off the emails.

The city is full of intriguing market areas with narrow paths between the stalls. Not having space in our carry on luggage for bulky items, Marilynn confined herself to jewelry stalls. Dinner was at the hotel – a mistake,

as they were out of all types of meat and a lot of other things as well. Not an inspiring meal. Today was our first cloudy day, which was welcome for wandering around town.

Friday, September 26, 2014

We met Amo, our guide, and Ali our driver today to go on a monastery tour. We were asking Amo how they did over the winter months when this area is cut off from road communication with the outside. She said that it was a very quite time, with most people staying home. Food is too expensive to fly in, so at this time of year people are drying local apricots, peas, apples and meat to eat during the winter. There is little employment during the winter, so everyone saves during the summer when there is work, but that the costs of living during the winter are very low. Amo was saying the Leh, a city of 130,000, is largely crime free, that there is no violent crime.

Our first stop was the Thiksey Monastery, they call the mini Potala Palace, and its design is similar. One thing you can count on in visiting monasteries is loads of steps! The next stop was the 16th century Hemis Monastery, a massive operation with over 200 branch monasteries and 1,000 monks throughout the Ladakh region.

The royal family who ruled when it was a kingdom are still here, but are not subsidized by the government. They have land which they farm for income, but still officiate at public events. They are very highly respected still. Shey Palace, the royal residence, is now open to the public, and contains a 3 story high Buddha.

We walked into town to Chopsticks restaurant for an excellent meal. It was interesting to watch two monks at the next table having dinner between conversations on their cell phones. Definitely a cultural leap!

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Today's expedition was to Pangong Tso Lake, a drive of 10 or 12 hours return. Marilynn is very uncomfortable when forced to sit for that length of time, so chose to stay at the hotel and get at organizing some of our photos.

The route took us over Chang-la, a 5,393 (17,688 ft) pass that the sign said was the world's third highest. It was possible to clearly see the old caravan road to Tibet from the 1800s in the deep valleys , the same route the British used to insert spies to map Tibet for military reasons during the "Great Game" with Russia. Around the top of the pass rivers, waterfalls and ponds were all frozen.

It was necessary to have our special permit to visit the area and passports checked at various points along the route. There were many army bases, and more under construction. The Indian army is very well thought of by the people, as they provide free medical care (even to tourists), schools, sports equipment and many other services to civilians in addition to road construction and maintenance.

There is a large area of disputed frontier between Tibet/China and India, so the current uneasy border is called the "line of actual control". According to newspapers the Chinese moved civilian settles, backed by the military, into no man's land close to the line of control, causing the flurry of Indian army activity. The fact that this activity was timed to coincide with the first visit of a Chinese Premier to India makes one wonder if there is not a power play in the Chinese hierarchy, and the move was designed to embarrass Premier Xi who was in meetings with Prime Minister Modi as the time. In spite of Premier Xi's efforts it was more than 4 days before there was a withdrawal.

When we reached the lake it was very beautiful, set among bare hills and with multi colours in the bright sunshine. The average altitude in this area is 4,482 meters (14,700 ft). It takes about 15 minute to walk around the permitted part of the shore line, and to drive a short distance along the lake. From that point on is a military zone. The lake is about 1/3 in India and 2/3 in Tibet. There is a base with army patrol boats near the Indian end of the lake. We had lunch at one of the tent stands that line the road.

When we returned I was not feeling well, so Marilynn had food sent to the room – I had a desert of sorts as that was about all I could manage.

Sunday, September 28, 2014

Today was to be the big day for me – a trip over the highest drivable pass in the world, however it was not to be. After a bad night with both ends going we reported to the lobby to meet Amo, who immediately organized a hospital tour. Once at the hospital we were ushered into the office of a doctor immediately, who prescribed pills and a glucose IV followed by an antibiotic IV. It seems I had fairly serious food poisoning – we are quite familiar with the famous "tourista" and can handle that easily, but this was a whole different thing.

The way the system works is that the doctor and hospital are free, but someone goes across the street to one of several pharmacies (chemist shops) to purchase whatever medication is required. I could not say the hospital was spotlessly clean, however it seemed very efficient. There is a special tourist ward with 5 beds that requires a major trek uphill. Once there they got me settled in a bed, plugged my arm into the IV drip and kept an eye on me for the next hour and a half. Meantime our driver Ali, and Amo fussed over me. She had gone out and bought a banana to get something on my stomach, but that lasted only until I got back to the room.

Most others in the room were there for altitude sickness, one spent 9 hours on oxygen. They have a simple test that tells if there is an altitude problem, and people are left on oxygen until the test results show they are OK. Both Marilynn and I tested fine for altitude. It wasn't a great night, compounded with the hotel elevator going out, and all water discontinued for 5 house so the toilet could not be flushed.

Tomorrow we have an early 55 minute flight to Jammu, at about half the altitude of Leh.