Friday, March 30, 2012
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Sunday, March 11, 2012
To explore the unexplored
I love the outdoors. Trekking,
camping, hiking, rappelling, rafting, mountaineering - these are some of the
things that get my adrenaline pumping. Being a nature photographer, I like to
immortalize these moments using my camera. But what I really love to do is to
drive into the wilderness. To explore the unexplored, with my car and my camera
- gives me the greatest joy & satisfaction.
This is the story of the best 10 days
of my life. A motley group of 6 friends, acquaintances, friends of friends
decided to go on the trip of their lives into the high altitude terrains of
Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, India. The trip got off to a rather inauspicious
start with bad weather damaging many of the roads and passes enroute from
Manali to Leh. This meant that our long cherished drive was to be quickly
swapped with a Jet Airways flight ticket. We landed in Leh, after witnessing
some breathtaking sights of the Himalayas from the air.
A birds eye view of the Himalayas
Landing
in Leh and looking around, it almost felt surreal - like we were in a time warp
- When nature was still pristine, when man was still a small speck in the grand
scheme of things, when wind, water and soil were so overwhelmingly beautiful,
calming & soulful. As we got out of the airport, we saw our SUV waiting for
us – ready and gleaming! A Mahindra Scorpio driven by a retired Army Soldier.
Here
begins the 1500 km long drive that took us from the bustling town of Leh into
the remotest passes of the Himalayas.
Our first stop was the Leh Palace. Leh is at an altitude of 9000 ft
above sea level and the oxygen levels in the air is quite low. It is mandatory
to rest for a whole day so that the body gets used to the low oxygen levels.
Acute Mountain Sickness is a serious issue amongst most travelers. Us being us,
we decided to put our bodies to the test and instead of driving up, we chose to
take the path less explored and climbed up the hill all the way to the top. As
we reflect back, it felt quite good to know that our bodies were fit enough to
take that strain on day 1.
Climbing to the top of Leh Palace
Day 2
saw us embark on the long drive to Tso Moriri. The landscape was simply
gorgeous. “Negative Space” takes on a whole new meaning in Ladakh. Wide Angle
is simply not wide enough. 8 GB cards get used up by the hour. Ladakh is a
visual artist’s dream. The massiveness in scale is something you need to see to
understand. Ladakh is one place that makes you small, irrespective of who you
are or what your background is.
The pristine high altitude Tso Moriri Lake
I was amazed to see full blown Royal Enfields
having a top speed of 40kmph as they struggled through the mountains. The air
is so thin , as we ascended to 15000 ft that even an Enfield struts around like
a moped. Make no mistake the Enfield is a mean machine & the environment in
Ladakh is meaner. Thankfully, the Scorpio was a dream as she sliced through the
mountains nonchalantly. Not once did the SUV struggle. As a photographer, I got
the best seat in the office. Next to the driver, on the window sill. Latching
onto the carrier on top and sitting on the window sill, feeling the wind in my
hair, camera in hand, silence all around (except for the rhythmic sound of the
engine ), it felt like I was in heaven already. I managed to capture some of my
best ever landscape shots – as the SUV hurtled down the slopes.
Our beloved Scorpio - in front of the massive peaks
We
stayed overnight at Tsomoriri and the next day we decided to drive all the way
to Sarchu (half way between Manali and Leh) to make up for the missed driving
opportunity enroute to Leh. The drive through More plains was an explorer’s
fantasy. This was a flat plane engulfed by mountains, with no road whatsoever.
There was no GPS, no telephone signal, no landmarks, no map. The nearest gas
station was 300km away. The nearest village a 100 km away. There was no life
whatsoever - Just us & the wind, the sand, the sound of the soft engine and
the mountains. We somehow managed to navigate taking help from the tyre marks
of other fellow travellers. It was an exhilarating experience to say the least.
Exploring the unexplored gives me such a high, its hard to explain.
Day 5
saw us renting bikes and driving down NH-1 towards the moonscapes of Lamayuru.
Riding down NH-1 towards Kargil, gave me goose bumps, to know that so many soldiers
were killed by shelling on that very road. War over a piece of land, seems so
juvenile in the grander scheme of things. Unnecessary loss of valuable lives on
both sides, all to satisfy a couple of politicians who have no connection to
either the land or to the people who so unselfishly become martyrs for their
country.
NH-1
Over
the next week, we drove in excess of 1000 km to cover the length and breadth of
Ladakh. Everywhere we went, it was just the Scorpio and us. The SUV seemed to
be used to explorers such as us who wanted nothing but to walk on lands that
were never stepped upon, to appreciate nature for her beauty and respect her
for its power, to leave nature just as pristine as she was when we stepped on
her. Even at the extreme altitude of Khardungla (18000 ft), the Scorpio never
complained even once. At this altitude the air is extremely thin & one of
the patrolling soldiers warned me against running around excitedly as I might
collapse due to lack of oxygen. Thankfully all those months of sweating at the
gym kept me in good stead.
Dreaming away at 18000 ft
To cut
a long story short, this trip was about getting out of our everyday stressful
work lives into a world where nature stood in all its glory. It was about
enjoying the pleasures of walking up unknown paths, climbing up random
mountains, having lunches by the gushing Himalayan streams, meditating with
monks in a monastery, rafting on the treacherous Zansar river, floating in the
Indus with not a care in the world, driving down NH-1 on bikes, appreciating
the BRO, Saluting the Indian Soldier for all they have given to us, seeing
nothing but land and water, hearing nothing but the wind and the engine,
driving through the country side with Dylan playing into our ears, exploring
all this with a group of people who are now some of my best friends for life –
In short, this road trip was the closest I have got to seeing heaven on earth!
To many middle
class Indian travelers and explorers like me, the Mahindra Scorpio was the
ultimate fantasy vehicle. It was something that one could easily take into the
jungles or the rugged terrains of the mountains, from dust bowls to marshes,
the Scorpio handles them all with ease. For city dwellers it gives you the much
needed respect and space on the road (if you know what I mean). But the time
has come for the Scorpio to pass on the reins to a successor and I think the
Mahindra SUV has all the right ingredients to be worthy of taking on the mantle
and the responsibility. The SUV comes with AWD (All wheel drive) technology for offroading, 2.2 litre engine 140 bhp, an integrated GPS and driver info system and the works. Already we have seen the XUV run away with numerous
awards. Cant wait to test drive one soon! For more details please logon to twitter on #MahindraXUV500 or visit http://www.mahindraxuv500.com/
For more pictures from the trip please visit http://soaringseagull.blogspot.in/search/label/Ladakh
Wednesday, March 07, 2012
Tuesday, March 06, 2012
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