The Mother of all Cycling expedition Manli-Leh - The never ending Baralacha la climb

Rewinding.. We started off from Manali, moved all the way up till Marhi, crossed Rohtan (pile of Corpses), moved down till Tandi and onward to Baralacha la and into the higher altitude valleys of Sarchu and Pang. 

Tandi camping spot is right by the river with mountains on three sides. The moonlight show on the previous morning raised my hopes of a bright and sunny morning. Alas that wasn't to be. For the third day running, it was a cold cloudy and wet morning.  The mountains on either side looked like Chocolate cone topped with Vanila Ice Cream with fresh white snowfall/rain. 

BSNL still worked, so I called up my family. Data was barely 2G. 6:30, 7:30 and 8 ; the regular schedules of departure. The route, all uphill until Patseo or Sooraj Tal and the next day, cross Baralacha la. Unlike Tandi which had a thriving village nearby, Patseo was going to be in the wilderness by the side of the river bed.

Satnam was still not 100%, he had switched to antibiotics on the previous day night and sounded weak (he wouldn't show it though).  I was getting worried. We started around 8am. A steady climb along the right bank of Bagh river.  As we approached Keylong, the rain intensified. My shoes and socks were completely wet. Past Keylong we climbed up the mountains and driving uphill. I saw many villagers working to resurrect the roads damaged by avalanches. As I drove down towards Jispa, a board caught my attention in the midst of the downpour.

A board written in Malayalam inviting Travelers to visit Camp Jispa. Really I rubbed my eyes. Yes a board written in Malayalam which is spoken in the southern most part of India (Kerala). With No other language other than English. Throughout my journey I had noticed boards written in English Hindi Punjabi and Ladhaki. This was an abberation.  Perhaps testimant to the hardcore bikers and travelers from Kerala.

At the break at Jispa, I was shivering when I stopped because of the rains and cold weather. Rohtang had taught me the pains of riding with a normal gloves (without finger covering) - I had two layers. My brother warned me about lack of roads from Darcha. Here we were at the  beautiful confluence of 3 river valleys at Darcha completely drenched in rain. We rushed into a Dhaba and grabbed a blanket and lunch. Saurabh peeped out and asked few bike riders who were returning about the route. Pretty bad ; in Baralachala it is snowing.

I did not want to get out of the comfort of the blanket. Reluctantly, I and Bobby started the ride . This area is prone to landslides, there is an outpost which keeps track of the to and fro traffic in case someone gets stuck. Half way up, we had to wait due to road repair work. One of the bolero drivers recommend us to keep moving and get past the landslide areas. After a 30 minutes ride, we arrived at a river crossing. Saurabh's advixe
1. Ride through
2.Push through and save your shoes by hanging them on the bike

When you are fully drenched, does it really matter?? I and Bobby just rode through. The last 5km was tough. Later at the campsite, Manas explained how Ria had fallen into the river crossing and how he got drenched while going in to pick her up.

Possibly mentally than physically. Deepak Tal appeared on the left side but the campsite was still away. We followed the trail and soon we were at the beautiful campsite.

Deepak Tal or Patseo was an amazing campsite. Lovely valley, with a river flowing by the campsite leading to a lake and mountains on either side. Amazing beauty. We took a spin around the mountains in the evening. The rain subsided, but the clouds were still Omjnous.

We returned to the campsite before the sun went down. A small green camp ahead of our Bolero camper caught my attention. Possibly some riders I thought. Later that night, we met Eferen and Rafael (Falo) from Lena, Asturias, in Spains northern hilly country.  Eferen could speak English, Falo couldn't. Their journey was mtoviated by a book which described to them the route and camping site. Unfortunately the book inaccurately described a campsite a Managed campsite at Patseo. It was not to be. We offered them dinner and after a bit of perusation, they joined in. A course meal in the wildernesses is something they did not dream of. Eferen mentioned that the forecast mentioned that the weather would get better by tomorrow. There was no indication of that at least on the evening. After getting fooled in Tandi with Moonlight, I was not going to fall for it again especially having seen clouds in thr evening. Crossing Baralachala in the snow would be hell of a task, but I couldn't have dreamt of anything else. I slept with the river singing lullaby. Just nature, and the natural sounds. I was fast asleep cuddled in the sleeping bag.

What am I seeing??? Is this dream or am I hallucinating. I cannot believe my eyes. 4 days after leaving Manali, the rain clouds had disappeared. Bright sunlight and clear blue sky. Though the start was planned around 8am, we delayed it just to get the warmth of Sunshine which had deprived us for so long. Bad news : Bobby woke up with an eye infection. Satnam looked better but was on medication. In the periphery of my eye I could see Eferen and Falo packing up as well. We decided to ride together and meet up at Sarchu our next camping spot and importantly a rest day ahead. But before that, the Baralachala crossing.

By around 9 we started rolling, a steady incline until Zing Zingbar. From there the loops and the road ahead is visible. At each switch back, it was a daunting look upwards. When the canyons worry you, you start looking up. But when the uphill looks daunting you don't know what to do. Between devil and deep sea. At the end of all the switchbacks, we reach Sooraj Tal (lake). Amazing beauty of nature. I rmemreme having seen videos of this frozen lake on YouTube. The air for thinner. I and Abhishek rode together. At the end of each turn, we looked up to see how far the pass was. At the 5km break before the top, we took the lunch break and decided to do a per km cadence. By now we were riding through the roads carved out from snowfall in the previous day. It got chilly even with 4 layers. I took a moments break to grab snow in my hand. The Goal sometimes makes the effort seamless. Even with air thinning down and putting pressure on the lungs, the last two kilometres till the top looked a breeze. Baralacha la conquered. 4 days in a row we had crossed climbs of 6k plus climbs every day.

As always we spend very less time on top of the pass to avoid AMS issues. We rode down till Bharatpur (trickers camp) and took rest in a Dhaba.

The down hill ride was studded with pictures landscapes. A few kilometres down hill and river Tsarap Chu appeared on my left. As I continued to ride along its right bank, a feeling of floating along the Grand Canyon of India.

A few kilometres before the campsite, I Satnam and Manas sat down along the banks for a few minutes, amazed by its beauty. A heard of sheep was grazing on the mountains above. 

Sarchu is the border between two states. Across the bridge it is Ladhak territory in Jammu and Kashmir. A dusty terrain and guzzling winds. Himank starta from here on. A quick tea, a doctor visit for the ill and a walk to the nearby public phone (managed by Indian Army). 

At the dinner table, I could sense the yearning for the rest day. Half of the journey done with two passes conquered. A well earned rest day alongside Tsarap Chu river, the Grand Canyon of India. 

Next : The Ghost of Ghata Loops.