Every now and then life gets
complicated and you need to escape. Even though nobody needs an excuse to
escape, sometimes it serves as the right incentive. Whether you are just
bored or your mother-in-law is visiting or your craving for adventure is really
getting strong, a road trip is the answer to everything that can be your excuse
to get away. You can carry your curiosity and sense of adventure with you and
the let the diversion en route add to the sensation.
My idea of a perfect road trip is
pretty simple: the Himalayas, my husband and his camera and a sturdy SUV.
Mountains fascinate me, especially the Himalayas. If I have time for a trip, I
always inadvertently end up planning a trip around the rocky terrain of the
Himalayas. My favorite is the North East India – not much explored yet, thus
provides an unspoiled charm.
Yet, this time was more special, for
we went, just the two of us, first time ever, to explore the majestic
mountains, just the way we would like. We started from the city of Gangtok in
Sikkim. We were going to drive north wards. We were going to go as far as we
could drive. We were going to literally go till the end of the road.
Immediately after we started the
scenery began to change. The city soon gave way to the dense green of Deodar
and Pine on one side of the road and solid rocky structure of the mountain on
the other. White prayer flags that lined the road lent a mystic charm to the atmosphere.
The fresh mountain air filled our
lungs. Probably it was the reason why we were so terribly hungry within a couple
of hours into our journey. We stopped at a roadside joint – a small home
actually, where the family sold momos. We loaded ourselves with the tastiest momos
I had ever had and set on the road again. Lunch was also similarly served by
another family. It was a simple meal of rice, dal and cabbage curry but yet we
felt we had tasted nothing better.
As we drove further the road became
narrower and the evening was already descending. It had rained the previous day
but the cloud still hovered around us. It was chilly and it made no sense to
keep driving in the dark. So we stopped to stay the night in the only village we
spotted and asked around for accommodation. It turned out, almost all the
houses in the village provided tourist accommodation for a nominal charge.
Our host, Mr. Shiring provided us with
hot water, warm blankets and dinner of steaming rice and home cooked chicken.
Next morning we started the second
half of our journey at 5. It was still dark. The road ahead was fully covered
with snow and we could spot the track of only a single vehicle before us. As we
drove on, the raw beauty of the nature mesmerized us.
We passed several hairpin curves. We crossed
an army camp.
As we drove steadily upward, we
spotted the Yumthang peak of the mountain turning golden with the first
sunrays. It was a breath taking sight.
We crossed the Yumthang valley covered in fog and
went on. We kept driving until suddenly we reached a plateau and there was no
further motor-able road to go on. We had reached the zero point. Here we met a
group of three friends from the only other vehicle whose tracks we had followed.
The cloud had cleared and it was a
bright sunny morning. We took in the rocky, naked beauty of the mountain as
much as we could. There we were, at the end of the world, where nobody sane
came. After a while when the snow melted and the rocks started to heat up, we
started our journey down.
The veil of the thick fog that had
covered the Yumthang valley on our way up had lifted now leaving the vast
expanse of the valley sprawl ahead of us.
As we stopped there for photography, we spotted few public convenience cottages. But no one was there, because apparently, it was off season.
As we proceeded even downward, we
skipped stopping for meals and ate our own supply of food that we had carried
with us.
We had had the adventure we were
looking for, and, now was the time to get back. But apparently the surprises
were not over. A few hours down the way, we suddenly heard sounds of
explosions. It grew louder as we went. We took it to be the sound of dynamites
being used to open up the mountain to make way. But it turned out to be a landslide!
The road was completely blocked and we
stood there idle for six hours. The road wasn’t wide enough to turn back and
was closed ahead to move forward! A beeline of vehicles formed behind us as the
cranes cleaned up the road.
When we finally reached Gangtok it was
well after 11 in the night. We were tired, exhausted and famished. Yet we were
strangely satisfied. We had spent two days in the heart of the nature and we had met some wonderful people who lived in perfect harmony with the nature and to whom guests were indeed synonymous with God. It was the best road trip I had ever taken.
It was one of those road trips where
nature’s sights and sounds keep you so busy and wide eyed that you forget to
put the music player in your car on. It was that ultimate road trip that ended
with the road itself and then began with it. It was the road trip that would
always define itself as perfect in my head in terms of companion, route and
destination. It was the road trip that would always be special because it gave
me memories I would like to relive again and again and yet again.
Love,
This post is written for "The Perfect Road Trip" contest in Indiblogger sponsored by Ambi Pur. To know more about them please visit, facebook.com/AmbiPurIndia
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Riot of Random
