We woke up to a gorgeous day. The skies were
clear, the sun was shining bright and the lake was breathtaking. The crew went
around taking lots of pictures while Radhey Shyam and me were fixing the
vehicle up. The colours of the Tso Moriri was something that cannot be described
nor captured in photos and videos. It has to be experienced. The colour of blue
is not there in any colour palette. Many people prefer Tso Morir to Pangong
Tso, while others the opposite. Suffice it to say that both are gorgeous
creations of Nature and life takes on a different meaning once these have been
experienced.
After a hearty and relaxed breakfast we moved
on from Tso Moriri. Looking at the printed map we thought that we could take
the left bank of the lake to go to Chuchul. But after driving a few kilometres
found that Chushul was getting left behind and we were headed towards China.
Not where we wanted to go. Like last nigh, U-turn happened and we retraced our
way back the way we came – to Sumdo and to the Mahe Bridge. The drive was
breathtaking and this is what we had missed when we came through last night.
Driving through the valley, the landscaped rivalled the Morey Plains. In fact,
it was way more beautiful than the Morey Plains. Absolutely breathtaking.
Crossed sundry smaller lakes, sheep and goat grazing through the meagre grass
that grew on the gentle slopes, took some pictures, passed what I decided was
Namshang La, and soon enough hit the Mahe Bridge and turned right towards
Chushul.
Gas was running low and I was starting to get
a little worried. Despite carrying extra fuel we would still probably run
short. There are no gas stations after Leh and how much extra gas can one
carry? I was carrying enough for 300km and that too would not be enough. Maybe
some friendly local would sell us some gas.
We reached Nyoma village. Someone on the way
had told us that there was a road between Nyoma and Chushul. On enquiry I found
that the only way to Chushul was through Loma, about 20km up ahead. No fuel at
Nyoma though we did see a fuel dispenser standing forlorn in the middle of a
dusty stretch. Someday that place would become a gas station, but not today. Muth
too did not have any fuel to spare, though in every village we crossed we found
vehicles. They surely got their fuel from somewhere, and someone was surely
stocking it. Not for us though.
Anyway, we headed on towards Loma and after
crossing the TCP, we were on our way to Chushul. I have wanted to do this road
for a very long time and today that dream was coming true. Wonderful. Stay on
course and life kind of works itself out the way you want it sometimes. Stay
cool.
A signpost announce Tsaga. Which meant that
one of my passes, Tsaga La, would be thereabouts. Sure enough, we came to Tsaga
La. And then we were driving through what I have known as the Chushul sector,
the battleground of the 1962 war with China. This was where it had all happened
and this is where I had wanted to come for so long. We crossed a few war
memorials, some frozen steppes, lovely blue skies and arrived at the town of
Chushul. Having heard of Chushul ever since I was a kid, I probably expected a
bustling town. But Chushul was just like any other town on this road – lonely,
desolate, with maybe fifty houses in total. Though there was a police station
there!
We were headed to Tangtse and after asking a
couple of people we found on the way, were told to head in a particular
direction. We drove on. The drive again was beautiful and soon after crossing
an army battalion located in the valley, we started climbing up the mountain.
The roads started getting worse, the international boundary between India and
China and the icon of our car on the GPS started coming ever so closer.
We climbed up to what looked like a pass with
prayer flags and all, at around 16,500 feet. We thought that after the pass,
the road would wind down and we would be heading towards Tangtse. The GPS had
given up a long time ago and there was nothing in it to guide us, expect the
grid reference, the altitude, and the ever present Chinese border. There was
absolutely no one on the road, a large part of which was broken. We crossed
another lovely lake down below in the valley which we hoped we would come to
soon. But we kept skirting the lake and kept going up. Darkness was starting to
envelop us and we kept on climbing. We came to 17,542 feet and the road ended.
Well it did not really end, but a culvert was being constructed and there was
no way we were going over it. Hmmm. Time to turn back. We had come a long way
up the mountain and we had a long way to go back down again. It took us about
two hours to get back to the army unit we had crosses on the way up and I
promptly headed into the unit requesting to stay the night with them. In true
Army graciousness and hospitality we were welcomed in and were very comfortably
put up in the Mess. The night was cold and the temperature was minus 15 degrees
centigrade. Fortunately there was a heater in the room, which would stay on
till 11pm. We got into bed and got cosy. I do not remember spending a night at
this low temperature before, but it was great fun and very very comfortable.
Trust the Indian Army to make the best possible use of the most adverse
situations they find themselves in.
I dozed off thanking the Indian Army.
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