"…that this was pleasingly beautiful, while the other was sublimely grand" -Meriwether Lewis, June 14, 1805
Hindustan-Tibet Highway
“From Shimla the trace passed through Fagu, Theog, Matiana, Narkanda, Kotgarh, Nirath, Rampur, Sarahan, Tranda, Paunda, Nichar, Wangtu, Kalpa (Chini), Rarang, Akpa and then Jangi, where the road came to an end. After this point, a rough track continued to Labrang, Sugnam, Namgea and finally Shipki [La]…” ( from The Toy Train; The Kalka Shimla Railway Line, Raaja Bhasin). Underlining added to illustrate common villages on present day National Highway 22.
It is about 240 km from the check post at Jangi to Shimla, and thus about 200 km from the hydro station at Karcham where the Sutlej River and tiny Baspa come together and are harvested. It is also at Karcham that the road to Chitkul by why of Sangla breaks off for its winding, high minded pass through forests and along the Baspa. After a night in Chitkul, I rejoin 22 and make for Sarahan, a town with a temple mentioned by the guesthouse owner in Chitkul.
Goods Carries wind along National Highway 22 between Karcham (behind) and Jeori (ahead) like ants in an ant farm. Just before on a steep climbing section, a shepard led goat (or sheep?) using the roadway and uphill traffic took slow turns overtaking the herd while downhill traffic thankfully slowed even slower as blind turns continually revealed more excitement.After the ant farm, before Jeori the road opens up and for the first time it is hot and humid and along the roadway I spot women in bright clothes for the first time. It feels like a jungle and I’m looking for Kurtz.Turning off at Jeori on a motorbike still in need of repair, I pass by a wedding under a pavilion and soon after make a wrong turn that takes me along inadvisable roads (pictured, and video). I backtrack and finally make Sarahan and in the cold night air visit the hindu temple of Bhimakali (pronouced like in the Indian Jones movie, sans the ‘ma’).
The temple at Bhimakali in Sarahan at night. It is cool out and back at my guesthouse, the night is once again cold. Sarahan itself is already much cooler than when I first reached Jeori and motored up in the daylight.Along the Highway 22 before Shimla. I have left after overnight in Sarahan, having the bike worked on by an opium addled freelance mechanic. The shop owner is kind enough to offer me tea with local company and a spot weld to the repair the broken Ladakh finishes the job.Looking back. The road has lowered in a corner, now raises and winds. I must be traveling west, another reason for the westward exposure. I can’t quite peg the temperature; it is nearly coatal Florida like but still and cooling down faster as the sun lowers. I still need to make Shimla tonight.Near Fagu, a tribe of monkeys shoot across the road and I begin laughing out load. I carry a gin for the next hour. I’ve never seen a monkey, nor did I know that they resided in temperate foothills of the Himalayas. In Shimla, just ahead, I’ll meet the 130 ft statue of a monkey god from Hindi mythology. It is gorgeous old growth conifers again, and I stop in Fagu for a Mt Dew, a chocolate and a cigarette. It is already to late to be riding, and the night is not even nearly over yet.
