3rd June 2012
The scenery gradually starts changing from green Kashmir to brown Ladakh
The day started early. We rode on boulevard road along the beautiful Dal Lake.
Just outside Srinagar, my partner met with a minor accident. Luckily there was no damage, but it had shaken his confidence. We stopped at Ganderbal for breakfast and took stock of the situation. Regaining composure, we resumed our ride through the rural Kashmir where fields were being prepared for the paddy plantation.
The path took us to the beautiful meadows of Sonmarg. We rested there for a while, stretching our legs and preparing for the first big challenge of our trip -The Zozila, feared by most, also called a mother of all passes.
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The Zozila – Gateway to Ladakh
The beautiful tarmac road turned to rubble and puddle mountain road having sharp hairpin turns, with high snow walls on both sides.
Rubble and puddle mountain road
High snow walls
Luckily for us, it was not raining that day. The Zozila, was kind to us. Just before noon, without any problem and fuss, we were at Zozila Top.
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Crossing the first pass of the trip was a real morale booster for both the rider and the ride. It gave us confidence that we could complete the trip without any problem, and we did that.
Crossing over the pass, we found a stark change in the landscape – from beautiful green landscape to stony, arid mountains with few green patches.
Our lunch stop was Drass the second coldest inhabited place
Our next stop was at Kargil war memorial. It is a must visit place on the way to Kargil. We paid homage there and moved on towards Kargil.
Twilight was falling, when we started our search for the hotel but without any success. Almost all were full and the only available was pathetic.
We continued our search and met a taxi driver who was coming from Leh. He suggested we ride 35 kms ahead to Mulbek as there were chances to get decent accommodation over there. I have also read about availability of good tented accommodation there. Without wasting more time, we started towards Mulbek. By the time we reached Mulbek we were completely done in. We spent the night at the Guest house near Chamba statue.
To be continued…