19 July 2010

Next morning, we gathered up all the thrash and disposed it off in the village tea stall. "No Littering" is our strict policy. Sat down for a breakfast of samosas and masala dosas. Irony, Masala Dosa in Ladakh. Ajit had already done a round of the nearby area where they do Camel Safaris. These are Bactrian camels, double humped. Seeing the photographs, we also could not resist paying a visit.
The Safari costed Rs 150 for 15 mins. There was some dispute over the camels we were offered. Two of them were malnourished. You do not want to travel all this way and then photographed over an emaciated camel. After fighting over it, they finally changed and brought in healthier ones. Unlike the single hump camels, these were shorter in height. But they made up for it in their bulk. Rohit was still having trouble from his fall during parajumping(Fall #5) and declined the safari. This left him available for camerawork.
It was almost noon when we left Hunder. Leh was 125 kms away. When we were close to Khalsar roundabout, each one of us thought of an ingenious pose with our bikes. Now, the road was uphill. But still we made good progress till North Pullu only to find a huge jam. Our Rohtang luck was still following us. The PagalNullah was terrible. Even though BRO was working since morning, all the traffic was blocked. We had to wait another 3 hours at the checkpost. Being so crowded, there was no meal to be had at the restaurant. They were up to their necks in orders. The temperature was also on the higher side. We took our refuge in the shade besides the kitchen.
As soon as one man saw the route opened up, he informed all the others. There was a mad rush now. It was the sort you see at Delhi's traffic lights. Motorcycles were caught between the huge number of cabs. At every turn, there was a long line of stuck traffic. More PPFTs. Dutta also had a fall at one of the turns(Fall #11). He had been one of our luckiest riders. If there was a mad rush towards KhardungLa then at the K-Top, there was utter chaos. Some sadhu was visiting, probably from Radha Soami Satsang Beas. Why do people idolize such wasteful souls, I never comprehended.
Only Rohit and I were together. We were thinking of taking a bike line-up pic this time, but our fellow riders had moved on. Even if they had been present, there was no space to take such a pic. Another large group called as Ferris Wheels had their Bullet 500s lined up. The riders were all foreigners, some even females. They looked grand. We found the rest of the gang waiting after another nullah crossing. Mountain passes are like a mirror. The descent is a close replica of the ascent. Nullahs are found at similar distances, Tarmacs start after similar gaps.
The drama was still not over. During the descent, I saw Ajit was not riding his usual self. He was much faster than usual. Again Nature came into its teaching mode. With Leh being 7 kms away, he hit dirt over a tight road and gravel(Fall #12). Thanks to all the protective gear, there were no injuries. With the exception of Saurabh and Doley, everyone had taken a tumble. These two became the envy of everyone. After the tumble, his Bullet failed to start. We all stuck together as he rolled down the final distance.
The Bullets yet again went to Mohan Sharma. There were small corrections to be made on every bike. You can meet almost every comrade at that shop. Some are newcomers, some are leaving. Bikes going in and out. No wonder, Leh is called the Mecca for bikers. For dinner, we went to a small but popular restaurant at Fort Road. The owner was another dragon lady. We reached the restaurant a little late and were the only ones left inside. Shockingly, we learnt that it was a dry day. Somebody did try to explain why but I did not understand. Also, there was no non-veg food available. The food we got was delicious. The dragonlady was mad that we were not giving a collective order. Alls well that ends well. Tomorrow we hit ChangLa and the most beautiful lake in the world.