Much of
what happened on that trip was unplanned and thus began our meetings too with
the unexpected. All journeys start for a reason and this again was no different
in anyway. The trains and buses were so oddly on time! People around were nice
and helpful and because it was my first outing in the state of Himachal i did
know to some extent what to expect through some reading but after a whole night
in the bus when the terrain revealed itself in the daylight –the journey with
the unexpected started.
Though the
journey was to end at Kullu”the possibility of reaching Rohtang and then beyond
was too exciting to pass up. So then this extension to the trip was made and we
started off to “Manali the next day (thanks to the roads getting cleared after
a landslide the day before) and then towards Rohtang.
The first
views of the valleys and snow laden mountain peaks were so beautiful and
dominating in its raw form. It was the view of the green valleys and the
intriguingly beautiful landscape that transformers the traveler to a dreamer.
The beauty of the place just left me in a state of awe and then knew within,
that this was a place that needs to be preserved for what it was, full of raw
nature and for how it dissolved us humans around to inconspicuous specs.
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| Beautiful and frighteningly calm |
The
mountain spreads could easily freeze you and transport you back many centuries
and make you a monk too – all in few seconds if you let it. The vastness and
immensity of the terrain is both magical and solid real before you. That is
when i decided – I could kill defending this mystical sanctum of nature.
The freezing
cold and breathlessness that we felt initially slowly receded and we could move
around more freely, exploring through some remains of earlier landslides and
rocky paths. It is a very exhaustive terrain for the unused and the elevation and
the low pressure could make you blurry eyed too.
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| blurred vision ! |
We came
across a company of army men patrolling down with their huge trucks lined like
marching ants. No we cannot imagine how tough it is for those brothers in arms-
the terrain itself is a battle!
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| Inside a makeshift tent |
The road
goes past Rohtang and then leads you to Leh with some only once in a life time landscapes
along the path which also has the highest motorable road in the world. But then
that journey in sum is another tale. The world never stops for a traveler and
his magic word is “beyond!
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| and Beyond ! |
Note: The “we in the writing
represent me and my good friend Arjun Kumar!
