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10
Day 6 – 21 June
2012 | Part 2
Yellow-billed Choughs hurriedly hopped all around us; pecking on the crumbs we dropped while
eating. It certainly looked like they were more excited in eating than we were!
Even after our rather long lunch break, we did not really feel like leaving the
place. We just fooled around the place for some more time – applying another
layer of sunscreen, lip balm and stuff! I guess each of us was making reasons
to spend some more time by the lake. Eventually though, we did get back on the
road and continue our ascent.
One hairpin turn
later, the lake was out of our view. Another couple of long sweeping turns after,
things started changing drastically. We soon passed a seemingly deserted army
settlement that separated two entire different worlds. The tarmac was long gone
by now and we found ourselves back riding on a gravel track. The road had caved
in at many places, unable to bear the weight of the heavily loaded trucks that
ply by. Little stones spread across the entire place, like grains of sand on a
beach. In a distance we could see the mountains disintegrating – the source for
the stones over which we were now riding. It looked like giant ants marching
out of their anthill just froze in time. Come to think of it, these mighty
mountains would soon be reduced to tiny bits in the years to come.
The scorching sun over
our heads was now playing with our minds. Multiple mirages appeared in all
directions. The heat reflecting off the earth made everything to dance in synchrony
– except that; there was no music being played. Absolutely everything we set
our eyes upon fluttered; some violently – and yet, there was no wind. The
entire place felt very eerie.
After about a
gruelling hour or so of riding, all along, trying to look for any shade, we
just decided to stop out in the sun itself. The only cover we had was that
provided by the hood on our riding helmets. It was only when we stopped we
realised that HT and Gurudeep were far behind us. So far, that we could not
even see them. After a while though, craning, we saw their shaky images slowly
crawling into sight. From here it looked like they would just evaporate into
the atmosphere. It was quite evident that HT was struggling to keep pace with
us.
Anyhow, once
regrouped, hydrated, and our sippers filled to the brim, we got back to our. And
almost immediately the group split all over again – this time Ramya too,
falling behind with HT. Chandramouly, Akshay, Mizan and I kept pedalling steadily
– matching each other’s pace. The odometer on Akshay’s bike kept rolling down
the numbers, and soon enough, there was not much left to be covered. We took
little breaks after riding out for about half an hour or so, but we did not
wait for the trailers to catch up. After all, we knew the backup jeep trailed
them.
Just when we had about
enough of the bumpy track, we rode by a construction site. And right about
then, things changed dramatically – this time for the better. The freshly laid road
was not the only thing that had improved. The entire landscape was a lot greener
and brighter. I would have preferred the gradient to have gotten a little
better too, but alas, the climb just never seemed to get over at all.
Since none of us
were taking extended breaks, I made it a point to get off the road and take a
little breather, each time there was anything that provided whatsoever relief
from the sun. Sometimes, it meant lying beside a mould of mud, rising up just a
few feet from the ground!
As we continued our
journey north, the sun headed further west. Before long, it was masked behind many
tall mountains, casting even taller shadows. This, surely, was a huge relief
for us. With the wheels rolling, we soon passed a milestone that announced that
Zing Zing Bar was just another five
kilometres away. On any other day, seeing such a sign would have motivated me to
push harder and get it done with. But instead, I chose to stop. The long hours
of endless climbing had sure taken a toll on my knees. My left knee was
beginning to hurt and I knew it was not a good sign. After stretching a little,
I got back on the road, this time after switching down another gear.
The weather was fairly
pleasant, tilting ever so slightly towards being a little cold, when we finally
made it to Zing Zing Bar. Oddly, we
could not find our camp, nor did the place look suitable to camp. There was
quite a bit of construction equipment parked beside a few military buildings. Unsure
of whether we had to move ahead, we decided to wait out until the others and
our backup jeep arrived. We found a spot behind one of the trucks and settled
down there, this time, taking cover from the cold wind that was picking up. After
about half an hour of waiting and still no sign of the trailers, we knocked on one
of the doors there.
The GREF personnel
welcomed us inside their warm room and even offered us hot tea. While checking
with them about a probable location of a camp site, they told us they knew of a
spot, some ten kilometres further ahead! Ha, now that is something that jolted
us! None of seemed ready to do that! Just about then, looking out of the
window, we saw our backup jeep drive by. We rushed out and waved at them to
stop. Ramya and HT were now in the jeep, with their bikes atop it. The
remainder of our backup crew, who had driven ahead (to set up our tents) returned
to the spot at just about the same time. They had not expected us to take this
much time. They told us that we had another 8 kilometres to go before we would
halt for the day. So the GREF guys were right after all. We bade them goodbye,
and hopped on our bikes, after first pulling out the jacket from the backup
jeep.
Now very determined
to get over the ordeal, I decided to push it a little bit. So much that, at
regular intervals, I stopped by the road to pick up some snow and apply it over
my knees to alleviate the pain! Riding past the last few hairpin bends, we
finally made it to our camp at about 1800.
We were to be
staying at a large shared tent – a dormitory of sorts, instead of setting up
our own tents. We parked our bikes outside and quickly got in. We were served
hot Maggi just as we entered – which we
ate, greedily! The two Frenchmen we had earlier run into had camped in the same
place. We spent the evening chatting with them and sharing stories – about rides,
places visited, wives and girlfriends! Akshay, who could speak a bit of French,
was soon promoted to our translator!
While the sunlight gradually
faded away, the temperature dropped. I had intended to take a little walk
around the place, but returned to the tent with my teeth chattering! It was
coldest I had felt in this trip so far. The girls seemed to be a little unwell
and tucked in to their sleeping bags early. Since none of us wasted much time
in cleaning ourselves, we were ready for dinner in a jiffy – which also was
served early. My appetite was a lot lesser than what it had been so far.
My knee still felt
a little sore, so I wrapped the crepe bandage around it before retiring for the
night. After all, I wanted them to be in their best condition for what lay in
store tomorrow. With restricted movement, I clumsily got into my sleeping bag.
Tomorrow, we would
make it across our second pass – Baralacha
La, of which, I have many fond memories!
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