[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by bblost

What an absolutely lovely trip. Took time to read thru fully. Fantastic, felt like was riding along thru the mountains and lakes.

Thanks man. I find it equally therapeutic to write.

[Red Liner]

The next morning was spectacular. Crystal clear blue skies with the mountains in the foreground. A fresh powder of snow the prior night completed the picture. I had no problems occupying a front row seat to watch this visual orchestra.

The hosts we were staying with were good friends now. He had a friend visit, and in their traditional cowboy-esque outfits made quite an impression with the rugged Himalayas in the background.

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These guys were sons of the lands they were born in. They knew every little thing about the geography, the wildlife, the weather. Its almost like these things are etched in their faces. Their lives and the lives of their loved ones depended on this carefully honed intuitive intelligence. A city slicker wouldn't make it past a few days in such tough places.

Breakfast was served. We started with a bit of tomato soup, but the piece de resistance was the Tsampa Porridge that followed.

Tsampa or Tsamba is a Tibetan and Himalayan staple foodstuff, particularly prominent in the central part of the region. It is glutinous meal made from roasted flour, usually barley flour and sometimes also wheat flour. It is usually mixed with the salty Tibetan butter tea.

As the flour has already been roasted Tsampa is quite simple to prepare and does not need to be cooked; indeed, it is known as a convenience food and often used by the Tibetans, Sherpas, nomadsand other travellers. While traditional tsampa is prepared with tea, sometimes water or beer is used in its place. It may also be prepared as a porridge which is called a "jham-thoo" which is usually sweet and nutty and prepared with Tibetan cheese, butter, tea and sugar. Tsampa is also prepared in a congee with lamb or yak stock to make a congee which is called "tsam-thug".

Here's how an early traveler to these regions described how you go about prepping Tsampa.

You leave a little buttered tea in the bottom of your bowl and put a big dollop of tsampa on top of it. You stir gently with the forefinger, then knead with the hand, meanwhile twisting your bowl round and round until you finish up with a large dumpling-like object which you proceed to ingest, washing it down with more tea. The whole operation demands a high degree of manual dexterity, and you need a certain amount of practical experience before you can judge correctly how much tsampa goes with how much tea. Until you get these proportions right the end product is apt to turn into either a lump of desiccated dough or else a semi-liquid paste which sticks to your fingers. Sometimes you lace this preparation with a form of powdered milk, made from curds which have been dried in the sun.

[Red Liner]

With breakfast out of the way, we decided to ride up to the place called Mt Katao. As we headed out, we came up to this ancient war horse.

People here make do with simple things. Simpler the better. You aren't dependent on someone else to make things right if it goes wrong. Such as this truck. You could probably fix it yourself, given the time and space. Both of which are probably in plentiful supply around these mountains.

You also tend to wonder, if you actually "need" anything more. I reckon, living in such surroundings, your "wants" tend to automatically reduce. I think many of us confuse wants for needs. And that has got to do more with the environment we are in.

Mt Katao

Sure, you could want the latest gen iPhone. But what the heck would you do with it here? The internet is patchy at best, and even if the phone takes phenomenal pictures why would you even care about putting it up on Instagram unless you're running a business out of it - like a travel company or a homestay of some sorts? And why would you want the next best big adventure bike around here? Where would you even use the full potential of that engine? You would look like an odd cock for riding around something this expensive and flashy while the rest make do with simpler and cheaper transportation. You probably wouldn't even be accepted to be a part of the community. Truth be told, even the little KTM felt way too big and flashy in these parts.

But ride the same thing downtown in the city, and nobody gives you a rats ass. And so then, you think maybe I need a bigger bike...or a bigger car...or a bigger house. You lose sight of why you want it. You "just" want it. And then, you brood over it day and night. And slowly it turns into an obsession, a craving. All those marketing ads, facebook videos and instagram reels don't help much. The bombardment is way more than our puny minds can handle. And pretty soon, that want turns into a need.

So maybe, just maybe, moving to a place like this for a while will help you reconfigure what is really important in life. Things, things, and more things? Or good food, conversations with a loved one, a healthy balanced life, and plenty of time in nature?

I've been through this myself. The times I have found myself in remote places in the mountains, my mind is automatically quieter. I seem to be able to live with fewer clothes, less motorcycle farkles, and way less digital entertainment.

Katao Valley is situated at an altitude of 15,000 ft above sea level. With the panoramic view of snow capped peaks of the Himalayas, it is a rival to Yumthang in beauty. The valley is covered with poppy, primula and rhododendron. The month we visited however had none of these flowers blooming. I reckon that happens right after the monsoons. The roads that swept up to Mt Katao more than made up for this.

A military check-post is nearby as you climb up the towards the mountain. We half expected to be stopped there, because we had no permissions to visit. This valley sits right on the border with Tibet, now occupied by China. And things are always tense between the armies of India and China.

Luckily for us, the checkpost was deserted. We skipped past the barrier quickly, scanning the horizon for anyone who might stop us. Nada.

We sped up past the walls of snow and quite suddenly came up to the actual military base camp. One of the captains looked at us, quite shocked at how we made it past the checkpoint and wanted to know what we were doing there. After a bit of banter to and fro, we were offered water, chai, and anything else we might want. Ofcourse, photography was prohibited, which I respected. Obviously, we weren't allowed past that base station, though I do read in some places that with an active permit one can visit the actual Katao valley.

Anyway, it was time to celebrate with an ice pop for having made it this far!

[Red Liner]

We were looking forward to riding back down these wide sweeping trails with the fantastic Himalayas for company.

The border roads organisation, a part of the Indian Defence establishment is in charge of all these "roads". And their motto, along with the Indian Army is what you see here.

There were a few dogs after the checkpoint. We stopped for a round of chai and biscuits, and I couldn't help but feed the lot of them.

We weren't done with the day yet. Our host had organised a little hike and camp up in the mountains. For which we had to be back quick, get out of our gear, pack a few things for the night and off we go into the woods!

A trifle late into the day - still blisteringly cold though! I walked right past this dude having a cold bucket bath right out in the open. I got introduced to the Wim Hoff cold plunges right after this, and every time I take a cold one I remember my friend here. No expensive bathrooms, you take a shower in the open and off you go about your day. Just bloody brilliant.

The short hike up the mountains took us across a few make shift bridges. None of these will probably exist when the rains are in full spate in these places.

Would you ride your moto across that one?>>>

[masterChief007]

Nice travelogue !! It is so detailed that it is going to be my tour guide once I plan my ride/drive there. Excellent descriptions and photos of your travel.

[Turbosailor]

Hats off Red Liner. And your are a blessed writer too. Very well documented and every pictures have a story to tell about that devine region. Appreciated for taking the effort for sharing with us. I have read the entire travelogue time and need to say our North Eastern states are a must visit places for every Indian, what a magnificent land. Now it became even more clear why Chinese are always eying to concur this region.