[adc]

Chitkul-Rakcham-Chitkul

Next morning we set out to explore the surroundings of Chitkul and the different gravel roads that go down towards the river.





This day was thus spent exploring and lazing around and seeing out our last night in Chitkul - thus we spent 2 night in chitkul. For all, chitkul is not to be missed - sure will be back here some day later.










There ends the day, Oct 2, Tuesday and we set out now for Kalpa and Roghi.

[jkdas]

Mesmerized the pix. Great Pix.

Let me start reading now.

[sj_koova]

Wow. Beautiful pics adc.
Waiting for more.

[adc]

Chiktul-Pangi-Kalpa-Roghi-Kalpa - Oct 3, Friday


Next early morning we checked out from the hotel in Chitkul for Kalpa. The motorable road goes up to Roghi, which is beyond Kalpa.

Checking out of Chitkul


Dam construction on Sutlej and look at where those fellows working, sheer drop beneath





There are two roads in Kalpa, one for longer vehicles like buses and trucks and that goes way around, we took that while going since did not know much about the other road. We also by mistake went up to Pangi village, as we missed the turn for Kalpa.



While going to Kalpa, one comes across the town Rekong Peo, the district headquarters of Kinnaur.

CHITKUL – KALPA.........(77 km)
Chitkul – Karchham (1899m) ……….44 km
Karchham – Powari (2170m) ………13 km
Powari – Recong Peo (2290m) ……… 7 km
Recong Peo – Kalpa (2900m) ………13 km


We decided to stay in a hotel in Kalpa where the views were great. Again, off season hotel rates. The day and evening was spent going to Roghi and here is the deepest gorge and the road is just enough width for the Safari. There is in fact a signboard saying, "Danger, Teekha More" but again the views were great. Apples were in plenty in all trees and thus got some apples from where they were sorting.

Kinner Kailash Range




Shivling


We stayed in Kalpa for 1 night and then tomorrow we move out to Giabong-Ropa Valley, a very much less travelled route by tourists. People generally go to Nako from Kalpa, but read about Ropa valley being much more scenic than Nako and also totally remote.

[mjothi]

Man, so much beautiful pics. No wonder why this thread is rated 5 star

[sj_koova]

ADC, your camera and you have done an excellent job. I never thought Canon S3 IS can capture such wonderful pictures. Photography is in your blood for sure.
Deserves 5 stars

[adc]

Kalpa-Giabong-Ropa [Ropa Valley], Oct 4, Saturday

After a day in Kalpa we set forth for the other very less travelled road, towards Giabong and Ropa of Ropa Valley.

We tank up at Recong Peo and set forth. Going along the Hindustan Tibet Road, NH22, and before Pooh, comes the Ropa Valley diversion after crossing a wooden bridge and then turning left. The other straight road goes to Nako.



From thereon it is a complete dirt road and totally off track.

YouTube - Towards Ropa via Giabong [Ropa Valley]

We set forth for Ropa, the last point till where one can drive, in order to stay at the circuit house there. From Giabong, the road goes through some army barracks to Ropa. Ropa is the last village, has few houses, and one has to have food ration as there are no shops out here.

After much search we found the caretaker and had the circuit house for ourselves. Very few people come over here and our food ration that we had came into use.

The late morning, afternoon and evening was spent exploring the road at Ropa.







Seeing me putting stones behind tyres on inclines, he also chips in


At night the kitchen at the circuit house had a gas stove though and our LPG cylinder was not used. Had some delicious home made food!!!



Tomorrow morning we travel from Ropa to Tabo, crossing the notorious Malling Nala.

[adc]

Ropa-Malling Nala-Tabo, Oct 5, Sunday

Checking out of Ropa



Stopped for tea at a lonely dhaba just before Malling and views from there








Kazigs before Tabo i.e. you go up when going to Tabo from Nako


Brillant colours of fall




Left Ropa early with the next intended stop being Tabo - of course all depending upon whether the notorious Malling Nala was open. This is active landslide area, the whole mountain is just crumbling and more days it is closed than open. We were really lucky to it open that day, as otherwise would have really been dejected as the Spiti loop would have remained incomplete.

YouTube - Crossing Malling Nala, going towards Tabo

Malling Nala


and vistas beyond



At Tabo we stayed at the circuit house as no govt. official was not coming that day. Circuit house is the best one over there, spacious bungalow type rooms, very cheap, good food cooked by the caretakers, and the views are superb.





My son now totally fascinated about bulldozers, after seeing so many of them


The kite flying monk

The other option is the Tabo Monastery guest house.


Tomorrow we check out of Tabo to go to Kaza but definitely Mudh and Pin Valley is what we have in mind first

[BlackPearl]

simply mersmerising pics. awesome job @adc, truely a 5 star rated travelogue..

[Shakensoul]

Hats off to you, the pictures are priceless. Damn, you made me feel proud to be Canon S3 IS owner, the baby sure can deliver, but kudos to the composer for such a fantastic composition

[adc]

Originally Posted by HappyWheels

And the video's - man, what a place. The drops on the sides are really scary!!! I was expecting some other vehicle from the other side and see what will happen in that narrow path. Did anything like this happen?

Sure it did happen and will happen whoever drives on the rural HP roads.

Like while taking the first real narrow road Hatu Road journey, we faced a Sumo coming down.

Now the custom is that whoever is going down has the right of way, so as we were going up we eased down while backing till where both the cars could pass.

What has to be used, particularly for a big SUV like Safari, is how you go backwards, seeing both the side mirrors simultaneously and also adjusting likewise. It do come up naturally to anyone who drives well.

The real nerving situation came up while going from Gushaini to Bathad, again a remote village journey through a narrow gravel road and coming up in front of a Himachal transport full width TATA bus which was coming down. I had to back up with all that sheer drops and turns for a good 200 metres till we found a big enough place for just the Safari and bus to squeeze by.

Apart from all these, I see couple of photos which I can use as my desktop background image!

EDIT: ADC, one of you photos has been set as my desktop wallpaper! Ah... so beautiful! *** a very happy smiley here *** The color scheme is a wonderful match!
Attachment 62653

Sure that is also one of my favourite pictures. Some selected pics are over here

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/suvs-m...ml#post1020334

and

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/suvs-m...ml#post1020374

and a lots more to come up. That was taken with the Canon S3 IS and most probably all the SUV pictures. Do let me know if you would like any full size picture [around 3-5 MB].

Originally Posted by sj_koova

ADC, your camera and you have done an excellent job. I never thought Canon S3 IS can capture such wonderful pictures.

Originally Posted by Shakensoul

Hats off to you, the pictures are priceless. Damn, you made me feel proud to be Canon S3 IS owner, the baby sure can deliver, but kudos to the composer for such a fantastic composition

Thanks a lot, but first of all I have very minimal knowledge of photography. The weather was so perfect the days that I travelled and because of the fantastic landscape and clear blue sky with zero pollution, any camera will give very good result.

I had 2 cameras, one the old S3 IS 6 MP, with which the majority of the pictures and all the movies were taken.

The other camera that I had was a second hand 400D, was brought just days before the trip from a relative of mine who sold it off to me as he was looking for a newer advanced model. Some of the landscape pictures are with the 400D whereby I used the wide angle and was mostly taken in landscape mode. I did not use it often since I just got it 2 days before leaving and had minimal acquaintance of it.

However you would also find great landscape and almost all the SUV photos from S3 IS itself, mostly in aperture mode. Canon S3 IS in aperture mode do give fantastic result helped with some sharpening in Picasa.

[sudev]

Originally Posted by adc

Now the custom is that whoever is going down has the right of way, so as we were going up we eased down while backing till where both the cars could pass.

AFAIK and have observed the custom if to the contrary the downhill guy should be the one reversing and if fact braking and stopping ASAP so that the uphill guy does not have to break momentum. Good road manners especially if uphill guy is loaded with goods.

It is the taxi guys who try to be smart and force outsiders to back up. IAC if the patch where both vehicles can pass is nearer to you no harm in your backing off. Also many times you will find use of opposite lane. Say a bus driver coming downhill with drop on your left will switch lanes so that he can get better line on the drop and ask you to pass on the inner side so that you get better line on the mountain wall.

But let me not stop the flow of pictures and description.

[sj_koova]

ADC, you got extremely lucky with the weather
Clear blue sky on a cold winter day gives excellent pictures.
And the sky becomes so blue on a clear day after heavy snow fall.
Here is one I had captured with my very basic pocket camera on such a day



I have noticed this blue in all your pics.


Sorry guys I went little off topic.
This has become my favorite thread already.

ADC, it will be really great if you could give a one line narration about every pictures. It will give a feel of we going through each spot.

[adc]

Originally Posted by sudev

AFAIK and have observed the custom if to the contrary the downhill guy should be the one reversing and if fact braking and stopping ASAP so that the uphill guy does not have to break momentum. Good road manners especially if uphill guy is loaded with goods.

It is the taxi guys who try to be smart and force outsiders to back up. IAC if the patch where both vehicles can pass is nearer to you no harm in your backing off. Also many times you will find use of opposite lane. Say a bus driver coming downhill with drop on your left will switch lanes so that he can get better line on the drop and ask you to pass on the inner side so that you get better line on the mountain wall.

But let me not stop the flow of pictures and description.

Yes that was also the case sometimes, e.g. while was going up a sharp u-turn uphill, the other guy stopped immediately or went back a little further up so that I could make the u turn with the momentum.

Also the clarification about the switch lanes for bus is correct and that what we did the second time it happened, once I saw the other person doing in front of me.

I found the taxi, maxicab, and tractor drivers very level headed in the tour of HP. They did give me side and/or stopped as necessary. The worst taxi fellows till date I have encountered are of Darjeeling-Kalimpong region.

[adc]

Tabo-Mudh [Pin Valley]-Kaza - First half of Oct 6, Monday

Today we set forth for Tabo for Dhankar Monastery and Mudh, where the road ends for Pin Valley and the plan was to reach Kaza around late afternoon. While going we saw that weather was perfect and thus did not go up from the road to Dhankar and instead went to Pin Valley [Mudh]. The turning is at Attargoo where one leaves the Tabo Kaza road for Kungri, Gulling, Sagnam, and Mudh.

Checking out of Tabo



Journey across Pin Valley









At Sagnam, bridge and river






Mudh is where the road ends and the trekking route to Pin Parbati Pass.



On road through Pin Valley to Mudh

YouTube - Towards Mudh, end of motorable road [Pin Valley] , a road of pointed rocks and very prone to landslides

It was great decision to drop Dhankar for the time being as the weather rapidly deteriorated just when we were coming back from Mudh. Mudh is very landslide prone and the road treacherous.

Bad weather as we came back from Mudh [These clouds followed up from Mudh and that hastened our return]

YouTube - Checking out of Pin Valley