Day 5: Quick thinking and persistence pays up!
We could hear the sound of continuous rain all night and could not get a sound sleep, maybe just because of the anxiety around next morning's drive! We woke up early and got ready but we made conscious efforts not to hit the landslide spot in the dark. So, we started around 5:30-45 am amidst rain and fog. Since the roads were empty and it was a clear descent all along, we managed to reach the landslide spot by 6:45 or so. It was still raining heavily and clouds had come down covering almost the top half of the opposite mountain. We also saw a big waterfall emerge through the gaps of mountains on our left side.
As we approached the same spot, we could see 4-5 cars already waiting there. There was a police constable deputed to stop the cars from moving further. As per the confirmed news, we knew that they had started allowing vehicle movement through the cleaned patch but we were not sure of this new issue. I was just hoping that no new landslide had hit the highway that night again blocking the road.
When checked with the constable, he mentioned that there had been few fresh stones rolled on the road at night, which needed to be cleared. The JCB operator was on the way and they were planning to open up the road in another 15-20 minutes. We breathed a psy of relief. We just went back a couple of meters to secure a safe parking spot and waited patiently. It continued raining as we eagerly sat in our car waiting for some indication of traffic movement. Finally at around 8 am, they started allowing a few cars from the opposite side to cross the cleared landslide. We saw mainly small cars were moving first while heavy trucks were still waiting on the other side. Now it was 8:15 am and authorities stopped the incoming traffic from the other side and asked cars ahead of us to cross that patch. A police constable was looking up high at the pile of boulders and debris on the right hand side of the so-called ‘road’. Once he was confident that no fresh shooting stones were in sight and it was safe for a single vehicle to cross the freshly cleared landslide, he was waving his hand to the driver to proceed further. And yes, now it was my turn!!
On the right hand side, I could see all the heavy machinery and support staff who had helped to clear the debris. I tried to look up at that spot and it was one hell of scary sight. I felt that anytime soon a big boulder would start rolling and everything would again come to stand still. We all just prayed to the almighty and continued driving slowly through the slush till we reached the tarmac of the unaffected road on the other side. And we realized how fortunate we were against all those who had directly suffered in one of those July - Aug landslides claiming lives!!
Now the road quality was good but since it continued to rain, I was driving slowly. At multiple places, we saw smaller landslides on the road and few builders and debris still lying on the road. But since we were among the first set of cars which crossed the landslide from the Sarahan / Rampur side, there was hardly any traffic on the road. Visibility was strictly restricted to a few meters and we were almost driving through the clouds for most of the time. Soon we were driving through the most famous part of the road cut through the mountain.
By now, we had hit another traffic jam but this time it was a flock of sheep, fortunately! Shepherds were trying their best to clear up the way but sheep had their own will. Soon we crossed into Kinnaur and it was easily distinguishable because of the good quality of the tarmac road. We crossed a couple of bridges (built of metal trusses) and could hear almost similar sounds of what one hears in the AC compartment of a long distance train! We were driving along the river for the entire time. We topped up our diesel tank on the way and soon reached Karcham bridge. The road ahead was leading to Kalpa, which was going to be our destination for the night. However, since we had lost a day, we just wanted to take the Karcham bridge towards the right and check out Sangla and Chitkul within the available time, before heading for Kalpa. We crossed the bridge and then on the left we saw a huge water reservoir mostly being used for the JSW hydro project built there. From Karcham, Sangla is around 18 km and Chitkul is at 40 kms. However the road is just a single lane throughout, with some spaces carved out for giving pass to an overtaking vehicle or vehicles coming from the opposite side. Also one has to drive very carefully and with a consistent speed since the elevation keeps on increasing almost linearly. It was our sheer luck that we did not face any Bus or truck coming from the opposite direction at any critical spot. The right side of this road was a sheer drop in the valley of maybe a few hundred to a thousand feet.
Soon we reached Sangla and found a decent restaurant just opposite to the bus stand. As usual, a variety of parathas helped us to finish the breakfast quickly. After a few mandatory photos, we moved towards our next destination, Chitkul.
At Sangla Bus stand
After driving for a couple of minutes, we reached one beautiful spot where there was a pink Gazebo kind of structure put on the corner of the road. The entire Sangla valley was visible on the right hand side. Clouds were moving smoothly across the valley towards Chitkul on the left. We took a short break, captured a few photos and moved on.
Now, the story was altogether different. Although Chitkul was some 22 odd kilometers from there, the road quality was absolutely poor and to add to the challenge, it started raining heavily. Reduced visibility forced me to drive more carefully. This entire route was full of landslides and shooting stones. At multiple places we saw JCBs and freshly cleared landslides, with stones and boulders still lying on the road deceptively. We did see many Maruti Alto’s flying around. And I mean yes, seriously flying around but mostly that's why they had picked up small, lightweight cars to navigate those small, tricky roads. We crossed Batseri, Rakchham on the way but there was nothing much to see there since it was raining and visibility was poor. There were some places where we could see colorful fields with blooming flowers. I tried to capture a few photos but just managed to capture a few trying to avoid my camera and phone from getting wet.
Around Chitkul
After reaching Chitkul, we simply started our journey back to Karcham through the same rough terrain.
After crossing Sangla, rain stopped for some time while we were crossing the same cliffhanger road. But this time, a truck came from the opposite side at a tricky point. I had to reverse my car for a few meters to find a safe spot and the truck driver was kind enough to cross that patch without brushing our car. Soon, we reached Karcham bridge again, took the right turn and headed towards Kalpa. Kalpa was some 55-60 kms from there but the road quality was good again. River was on our left side and we crossed it on quite a few occasions.
Soon, we took the Kwangi diversion towards Kalpa and drove to Kalpa through the hustle bustle of Reckong Peo market. We decided to head to the top of the mountain ranges since that's where HPTDC property was. We just decided to review the HPTDC property and view from there first and then decide. As usual, HPTDC property is located on the top ridge, bang opposite to Kinnaur Kailash ranges.
That's HPTDC Kalpa
When we checked out the property, even with a 30% off season discount, we found it to be expensive for just the three of us. Fortunately the very adjusted hotel was good enough for us, giving almost the same view from the top floor balcony.
Our hotel and top floor corner room
Honestly, there were no tourists in it, other than us. So, we practically had the entire hotel for us as part of that deal
It was a small but newly built hotel. So, all the rooms, furniture and accessories were in the best condition. The manager was courteous and helped us quickly to settle us in the top floor corner room, which we needed to witness the most magical sunset of Kalpa.
Though it was raining intermittently and weather was cloudy, this location was perfect to view Kinnaur Kailash range. Not only did I get an opportunity to shoot a sunset timelapse but I could also photograph glowing peaks of Kinnaur Kailash range in golden hue.
And the ever eluding peak finally showed up in all its glory!
Since we didn't get an opportunity to take a break for lunch, we decided to use ready to cook Pohe sachets and enjoyed our little snack break in the hotel room itself. Since we were the only tourists in the hotel, we placed our dinner order well in advance and were in the restaurant at 8 pm. Again, the restaurant was all empty and we enjoyed our hot soup and dinner while the mercury dropped outside quickly.
We had driven some 185 kms on that day but in terms of the challenges it was one of the most challenging drives of this trip.
A drinking water jar of 20 ltr, ready to cook maggi, pohe, upma and coffee sachets, 1 ltr thermos flask with boiling water to assist such 3 minute cooking, were some of the items included in our luggage beyond regular checklist items for such a long road trip.
. We stayed in hotel Rajmahal on the highway, which was a decent place for a night halt. The only issue we faced was unavailability of hot water for bath in spite of promising it while paying the booking amount. The hotel has a dedicated and secured parking place, which was a main deciding factor in its favor. There was a vegetarian restaurant in the next premises, where we took our dinner and decided to call it a day.
