All Roads (High & Rough) Lead to Ladakh-Another Indian Adventure

[RB]

Storri Urvashi’s retreat food
At most meals we were the only diners. The well reviewed pizzas were never available, the fish dish that Magan recommended wasn't available and emphasis seemed to be on vegetarian dishes for domestic travellers. Despite this we enjoyed excellent omelettes at breakfast and the meals we all well cooked ( seemed that 30min was a min cooling time). I seem to have only limited photos- the spinach sauce with pasta in the last photo was a hit

A chicken & mutton meal and beaut garlic naan. The lime slices with the salads worked well.


A different take on garlic bread but a couple of nice simple dishes




Enjoyed a couple of rich soups


The spinach-tasted much nicer than the photo portrays

 

[RB]

Around Manali
We still visited some temples, drove out to the Solang Valley and sat around enjoying the hotel. Vashisht Temple with the hot running water springs was a highlight
Vashisht Temple and Hot Water Springs in Manali, Himachal Pradesh | Himachal Pradesh: A Complete Travel Guide to Lakes, Temples, Monasteries, Gurudwaras, Forts, and Tourist Places

At Hidimba Temple we noticed it not it now costs less for a photo with a white rabbit and the yaks weren’t seen. The big fines for picking apples from the orchards obviously works as the trees around town are heavily loaded. There seemed to be little activity at Solang Valley - the sorbing wasn’t happening and the gondola wasn’t operating. In downtown Menali there seemed to be more young backpackers but less middle aged tourists. The domestic tourist market has definitely expanded.
Manali has certainly changed & there are a lot more tourist hotels and general development. Everywhere you travelled the devastation of the flooding was obvious & the rebuild is an extensive & ongoing activity.

A different mob heading in another direction




Looking back towards Manali from Solang Valley area. Don't recall seeing any of the boulders in 2013








This hotel is in full operation

 

[RB]

Downtown Manali








These were the yak & rabbits of 2013

 

[RB]

Manali to Jispa
Had a fantastic day of driving and viewing with the amazing construction feat of the Altai Tunnel taking us through the Rohtang Pass instead of over it. This life changing tunnel takes us up 1000 metres in 10 minutes and cuts 4 hrs off the journey - life changing for the people who use this road. We emerge above the tree line to the landscape of the Sissu/Lahaul Valley -a vegetable growing paradise of cauliflower & cabbage that you could smell in the air as we drove past. The Sissu Lake & holiday camp was a visual highlight. The wild natural landscape was speckled by wooden houses with carvings, the Chandra river, hanging glaciers, peaks, willow & poplar trees and previous avalanches. There was no shortage of monasteries, temples, and displays of Hindu/Buddhist cultures.
Our main diversion was when we called into Kardang Gonpa monastery - a pretty extreme road but worthwhile looking down to the Bhaga River and Keylong.


Looking east after exiting the tunnel


Happy to pose for my photo








More cabbages!


Sissu Lake


Waterfall & camp ground

 

[RB]

More of Manali to Jispa


More farming being carved out





We came up on the dirt road in the bottom centre


The elusive Kardang Gonpa







View to Keylong


A truck dumped this on the track while we were up at the monastery- In India you just wait until it is cleared

 

[RB]

I took these videos of our day on the road. First video is of driving through Atal Tunnel. Chander (driver) added the music via the car stereo to the other 2!

 

[RooFlyer]

Now THAT is an interesting exposure!



Two sinistral thrust faults - bringing folded terrain above and below the middle unfolded sequence. Or an undeformed sequence conformably overlying a deformed one, then the lot isoclinally folded and tilted/refolded

But I guess you knew that.

 

[RB]

Now THAT is an interesting exposure!

View attachment 410551

Two sinistral thrust faults - bringing folded terrain above and below the middle unfolded sequence. Or an undeformed sequence conformably overlying a deformed one, then the lot isoclinally folded and tilted/refolded

But I guess you knew that.

Just more complicated than the geography text book explanations.