Our overnight hotel provided not only for a comfortable rest but also for terrific early morning views with the rain stopped and clouds hugging the nearby mountains.
Back on the road again we wound our way along the turbulent Beas river caused by recent torrential rain and nearby dam spillway release.
The narrow road running at height following the course of the valley through steeply sided valleys gave the group an excellent view of impending disaster with a never ending stream of Indian trucks plying this major trade route from the opposite direction !
Near Aut we took an amazing 4 km long rock tunnel carved straight through the mountain described by the Indian Times as being a recipe for disaster with little maintenance and no fire fighting equipment - I'm glad I read this afterwards !
Suspension bridges and even flying foxes crossed the river proving a life line to villages high in the mountains.
Finally after a total of 16 hours coach we reached Manali which with its various activities (including skiiing) appears to be the Indian adventure capital !
Having unpacked at our hotel we ventured down into town having some lunch and walking around this pretty cosmopolitan town.
Although only at 1,920 meters the altitude is certainly noticeable. With some warm up cycling planned tomorrow before our first big day on Monday I'm hoping the acclimatization process is a quick one !
In the meantime there's not a lot to do other than have a beer or two, enjoy the scenery, try something different on the Indian menu and get ready for what should be a great cycle from Manali to Leh !
No comments:
Post a Comment