[wanderernomad]

The first break was the comfort of his home. A blisfull day with doting parents and a loving daughter put the spirits back in him and he once again began to look forward to the joys of life.

On 16th Aug he started on the trip to the land he had fallen in love with. The roads this time were bad even made worse by the continous downpours. The road as he remembered till Narkanda was just not there. Bad patches and the stretch from Matiyana was hell in itself. Broken tarmac, potholes like indoor swimming pools, boulders and slush mad going tough but then who cares for such things when you are chasing a dream!!

As the eyes looked around for familiar landmarks the dissappointment began to set in as green lush hillsides had been replaced by huge craters made into the now barren rock face. The Hydro projects had left the hill faces scarred for life. The town of Karcham had turned into a massive dam complex and once where you could sit by the side of the confluence of the serene Bhabha Khud and a turbulent Satluj, today was just a roaring torrent of muddy water and the howl of numerous construction trucks groaning under the weight of Human Progress.The roads had been turned into a mud bath and the trees had all but dissappeared.

The first night halt was at the forest guesthouse at Shongtong, about 10 kms short of Powari. The caretaker served them a piping hot Mutton curry and the things were begining to look up indeed. The guesthouse is on the banks of Satluj and is a study in art itself. The roads had been bad but the going had been smooth till now without any interruption due to the fearsome rain gods.

Morning the journey started once again at 8.30 am and the breakfast was served at a Dhaba in Powari. Aaloo Paranthas with butter. As they made their way closer still to the first expected bottleneck numerous Obeisance were paid to the dieties enroute. Tea was had at Dubling Bridge. The road and a small temple at Khab was no longer there and the road had been slightly elevated at this confluence of the mighty Satluj and the Spiti rivers. The distinction between the two river waters had dimmed due to the silt being carried by both the water bodies. The spirits soared as the Kazigs were climbed and as soon as they came on top at the village KA the romance had begun to set in.

The first sign of trouble came when a steady convoy of vehicles appeared in the distance. Upon enquiry it was told that the Malling Nullah is once again blocked since last 2 days and would only open a day after. The son decieded to make it upto Malling and see for himself if he was once again going to be denied the crossing.