the Ladakh journey | stuck in mountains day 1 - Letters From A Nomad - travel blog

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THE KHARDUNG LA PASS : 


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We started climbing up towards the Khardung La pass from Leh side. It was 7 a.m, the air was absolutely still, the sky a deep blue, a monastery on a hill was lit up by the sun, and the Indus was snaking its way through the high plateau in the distance.

We were eight of us and we were in two cars, with 500 km under our belt since we'd started, but this was the highest we would go on this trip but our excitement was more than 5600m high.

All well and good was the general mood as we started gaining height we passed a bunch of cyclists, all foreigners, on their way up. It had started getting cold, and we rolled up the car windows, put on an extra sweater, and snuggled closer.

We were now at 4500m and soon enough snow appeared on the side of the road and as usual, the sight of snow excited everyone. The car was stopped and photographs were being clicked. It was windy so no one could stay out for too long, so we soon started the drive up.

In an exhibition of how quickly the weather changes in the Himalayas, especially at such high altitudes, a factor most recreational tourists have yet to understand. Within no time, less than ten minutes to be precise, the scene had changed. The sunlight was replaced by dark clouds, low visibility, crisp air, and moisture.

It wasn't raining but our windshield was dripping with water. The weather god must have decided not to fuel our apprehension any longer as after that it was snowflakes on the windshield, as we moved further high the snow began to get stuck up against our wipers and it struggled to clear the snow and our car slowed down.

There was snow on the road as we drove cautiously over the tracks made by cars ahead of us, we knew it would take a long time to cover 2-3 Km to the top. Well, I was scared myself but for our driver, it was no big deal. It was a normal thing for them to drive on snow filled roads on such a height.

The beautiful mountains were no longer in sight and all we could see was snow. Like a white sheet spread across the place. You know how I mentioned climate can change very drastically very suddenly well it seems to have favored us this time. The snow was steady and the sky started to clear up.  The mountain ranges, which now appeared to be lower to us, were covered in a fresh layer of snow. 

A couple of hundred meters further we turned a bend and there it was the top. More importantly, a cafeteria run by the army. 
Quite a few cars were parked there and the cafeteria was bustling with activity. The army was offering hot Kahwa to everyone, and we even bought a plate of Maggi and samosa. However, the situation might be a hot plate of food will fix it all.

The altitude though had the final say and when the forced break extended for more than an hour, quite a few people started felling induced headache, accompanied by breathlessness and dizziness. We were still at the top of Khardung La and the snow has stopped falling, but the army hasn't given the green signal for the vehicles to cross over, even though their supply of hot drinks and snacks was almost over. 

Finally, about an hour or so the army said we can go and there was a huge rush of all the cars and we were now getting to the other side of Khardung La where the Nubra valley lies. 

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