Our aspiration to ride out to Leh today will be dampened with rumours of a violent Khardung La. Or perhaps that is to be the official excuse, for we are already well into the evening. It would not be in our best interest to commence the journey in the dark of the night. We have briefly run into Biru today as he returns from a lone ride to Turtuk - a heavily guarded and extremely inaccessible border village. His company awaits him in Diskit and he will continue forth without us. In time, we - Spiderweb, Motorbreath, RomeoMike, Drifter, Vishal and I will return to Diskit as well and resolve to have dinner together. Vishal will get high both in and on spirits, summon the waiter several times and repeat only this:
"Ladhak humko bahut pasad aaya par aapke mausam ne toh hamari g**nd hi maar di hai."
(We really liked Ladhak, but the weather here has really been a pain in the ass)
Our waiter, not the one to not see the humour in the situation, will also re-iterate each time:
"Ab mausam ka kya kar sakte hain. Aap agar bolte ki kisi aadmi ne aapko pareshaan kiya hai, toh saale ko goli maar dete. Par mausam ka koi kya bigaad sakta hai."
(What can one do about the weather? Had you told me that some fella was troubling you, I would have shot the bugger. But what can one do against the weather?)
Vishal will nod understandingly. The waiter will excuse himself and serve other tables for a while and the process would re-iterate.
Vishal will also go on to narrate his favourite episode - one where his associate, under heavy intoxication will proudly proclaim his desire to relieve himself on the staircase of the bar - a desire that is promptly squashed by the bouncing cavalry. He will iterate it a total of three times, each time as if it were his first. As I recall, this is the second time I will iterate this, the first being when I introduced Vishal to you.
We retire to our rooms. We must wrestle Khardung La in the early morn.
June 14, 2010
I have not many tales to tell today, for everything goes according to plan. Spiderweb will intimate us well in advance that he has no intention of lingering around Khardung La top. He will scale and descend as swiftly as he must, for he does not wish to suffer the wrath of Khardung La anew. Motorbreath will agree to stay with Spiderweb. I will agree to stick with RomeoMike and company for I carry more fuel than they. We will all set out together, we will all wait with bated breath as an army checkpost will ask us to wait while they clear the approach roads off snow fall from the night prior, we will all choke on perhaps the worst preparation of momos the world has to offer. Remember this when you hit North Pullu. Don't order the momos.
We will lose sight of Spiderweb and Motorbreath for a while but we will find them waiting patiently for us on Khardung La top, despite their impulse to do otherwise. Today, more than ever, we will ride together as one. We will encounter army machinery clearing out the after effects of avalanches - we will wait patiently and in awe as they make way for us. We will pixellate like we have never pixellated before. What follows is our journey in pictures. Ride with us. I'll see you on the other side...
Facebook update:
Khardungla again!! Will be in Leh tonight! Major details to share!
14 June 2010 at 19:50 via Text message
Ameya.D Nimkar, Sagar Raikar, Joaquim Gonsalves and 2 others like this.
Gopinath PS sweet.. Cant wait to hear the stories man :)
14 June 2010 at 20:01
Winsey Varghese WTH
14 June 2010 at 20:03
Koustubh Shenai Wow, coool.
14 June 2010 at 20:12
Honey Misra share share .. got ur message ..
14 June 2010 at 20:16
Tushar Jadhav bring it alankar.... dont make it more suspense now
14 June 2010 at 20:20
Rachit K Guyz whr had u been. Al of us whr worried. Hope every1 is perfect
14 June 2010 at 20:59
Rohit Chourasia ^^^Snowstorms, Search parties, Treks, Rains, Petrol Hunts, etc, etc, etc... ;)
15 June 2010 at 18:49
Rachit K hey vow.. u r here..!! great to see u rohit..!!
so many problems.. this season was bad it seems
15 June 2010 at 18:51
Rohit Chourasia yes, Pangong to Nubra was the craziest ride done. No roads for 40 kms at all 2 flat tyres (not mine) No petrol 2 ppl lost 4 kms-2 hrs Trek to search 'em sleeping at an Army camp MUCH MUCH MORE...
15 June 2010 at 19:14
Rachit K oh gosh.. sounds like a fulltoo adventure ride man..!!
waitin for you guyz to come back safely...!!!
15 June 2010 at 19:18 via
Rohit Chourasia thx bro. :)
Finger's crossed for B-La & T-La...
15 June 2010 at 20:27
Tushar Jadhav go go go......
15 June 2010 at 21:19
Ameya.D Nimkar Guys just keep us updates...congrates & al the best ahead
15 June 2010 at 22:12
Alankar Misra Doin that whenever I have network!! :-)
15 June 2010 at 22:14
Ameya.D Nimkar yup b'coz 4 to 5days u were disappeared...so bring some mitti of leh & ladhak 4 me
15 June 2010 at 22:19
Alankar Misra Lol. I wrote a note on why we dissappeared! As for leh ki mitti, plenty on my clothes!
15 June 2010 at 22:57
Rachit K year B-La & T-La is specially a task.. if its so cold out there in K-la, cant imagine what will it be like in B-La .. All the best guyz.... Network may be disappearing for 2 days
16 June 2010 at 11:36
Ameya.D Nimkar Oye Alankar I want mitti, stones n all that. not the dhool of your cloths
16 June 2010 at 21:14
We will get to Leh without event. The Universe has been gentle with us. We treat ourselves to a sumptuous dinner for we have scaled the world's highest motorable road a second time today. RomeoMike, true to his name, will strike up a conversation with a foreign national, Amy. For the next 2 hours, RomeoMike and Motorbreath will turn on the hormones and perhaps turn off the foreign national. She will share with us that she made acquaintance with her companions, two Punjabi gentlemen, in Goa. She accepted their invitation to head to Leh with them (no pun intended). They, we are told, own a lodge not far from where we now sit. Spiderweb, Drifter, Ashwin and I will merely giggle at our mates, as they try hard to score. The score? Nil, Nil for she leaves with whom she came.
As we return to our quarters, the lights go out quickly...
