The Score Magazine - Archive April 2009 issue! | Page 45

Steep View
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you die. You will run out of gas and everywhere you turn it looks the same.
Desolate, barren and dusty (so much so that we had to keep the wiper on).
Everything about the place was hostile and unfriendly. But what grandeur,
what majesty! A marvel surely created by the hand of God. We drove on to
Leh. On reaching, we met Mr Wangchuk - the magician, for the first time. He
checked us into a hotel called Kang La Chen. Though the lodging was nice and
clean, the food is nothing spectacular. Spending two chilled out days at Leh,
we got quite used to the height. There were lots of European tourists around
as this was the tail end of the season. Hardly any Indian tourists were in sight.
The only decent restaurant in Leh was Summer Harvest. Always packed but
with amazing food and portions, there was little to complain about!
The Tibetian markets around had quite a few knicknacks. Leh and everything
around it was crammed with army personnel and equipment, convoys et al,
complete with check posts everywhere. Mr Spemba had all the paperwork in
place (no surpises there!) The first sounds and sights of the mornings were
the fly boys in their Sukhoi mach II’s, flexing their muscle. It was quite a sight
to behold.
From Leh we climbed up to Nubra. It was here that we crossed Khardungla,
18,300 feet above sea level and the world’s highest motorable pass. With
lots of snow, road( or what ever was left of it) it started getting treacherous.
A scary yet exciting crawl followed to reach Khardungla. A few hearty clicks
later, we headed to Nubra Valley where we stayed at a resort called Kalon, in
tents again. But what a contrast! It was a breathtaking backdrop of hills, natu-
rally cold. Phew... To be continued.
The SCORE Magazine | April 2009
Panoramic view of Morre Plains. A vast, flat land at high altitude where you can lose your way for a lifetime.