Rajesh Ojha
The Economic Times; 2002

Finally the day had come when I could just pack my bags and head towards the destination I had been dreaming of Leh.

The first Leg: After the familiar route through Himachal up to Solang, we went to Jispa. Rohtang Top (3900m) was the first halt point and the lunch at Koksar was memorable. This was our first taste of dhaba food on this trip. We tanked up at Tandi, 7 km short of Keylong, the last fuel station before Leh. I could see people eyeing our two beautiful Boleros with much interest. Crossing Darcha, the first checkpoint on route to Leh, we reached Zing-Zing Bar, the base station before the Baralacha La pass. Melting glaciers, ice and stone mixed in chunks next to the road, the little Deepak Lake, snow all around on the mountain, everything was picture perfect.

We sipped hot soup while watching the moon appear over the Ladakh range, framed beautifully by the peaks that surround and reveal the ever-present spell of the Himalayas. The first leg was over and the second leg had just begun and of the long wait before it turned to reality.

The next day was to be the crucial day, as we had to cross Khardungla, the highest motorable pass in the world, beyond Leh. The road on both sides of the pass was broken, potholed, water running over the surface making it difficult to judge the depth. But the phlegmatic Boleros didn't even whimper in protest. The suspension made the drive all that more comfortable. It was snowing!!! We took lots and lots of pictures and had many glasses of tea, courtesy the Army personnel. After crossing Pullu, 14 km beyond the pass, the drive became silken smooth. If we had been allowed to go further we would have bumped into the Siachen Base camp of the Army. We met scores of people enjoying the sulphur baths after a long vigil at the unnamable high altitude posts.

The high point of the trip was the drive to Pangong Lake. We drove for four hours to Changla pass. At the first sight of the lake through the 'V' of the ridgs of the valley all cameras, digital videos etc came tumbling out. The azure lake beautifully set off the golden yellow of the mountainside, painted thus by the mellow rays of the evening sun, on a canvas of crisp blu sky.

What happened the next day will go down as my most arduous and at the same time exhilarating drive. We drove on for 100km through sand and stone, often charting our own course before we struck the metal road, some 38 km short of the plains of Pang. We did another cross country and reached Calving at 11 pm...tired, sleepy, stiff and hungry.

After two leisurely days in Sangla, we left for Shoja, where we spent time at Serolsar Lake, and the Raghupur fort and meadows. My fellow travelers, for whom this was the first time, immensely enjoyed the undulating walk. From Shoja to Thanedar, another three hours driving through the heavens. A picnic at Hatu Peak, where we sat and thought about the 28 days past, it seemed like no time at all in the timeless mountains.

The next day was going to be the end of the holiday but we were already planning the next one through Nepal to Sikkim, Bhutan and Arunachal in November. The thought of the next holiday, I think, took the sting out of the coming to the end of this one. Indeed, it will never be forgotten.