Its time to stop again, and have fun in the snow! And time to have a snowball fight. Snow is falling from the top, and falling from the sides due to the strong winds. There is snow everywhere. We are not exactly in winter clothes, just simple plains winter clothes like jackets, but in the excitement, who cares about catching a cold.
There is snow in my hair, the camera is covered with snow
Its time to have a snowball fight!
After some quick fun we trudge on and on. Rohtang is I think 1km away. No idea. With so much snow all signboards are covered. The winds are howling, and the storm is intensifying.
I decide to start searching for a place to back up. No mood to go back 1 km in reverse to the hairpin bend!
But how do you back up on a track as wide as the car.
As we move on the snow gets thicker. The front bull bar has become the bulldozer. The wheels are spinning, but the white elephant marches on. Finally I spot a place where some snow has melted and start reversing.
The technique is simple. Turn steering fully and accelerate. First the car goes forward, due to the center high rut, the wheels won't climb. With wheels turned, on 2L I am actually going straight, but then ice breaks, and she is over the rut.
Next step is to dig in the front bullbar into the ICE wall.
And ditto for rear bumper. After a 10 point turn, we turn back.
We went almost till the top. If the storm had not intensified, we would not have turned back. Since from now on its the same snow fall scenery anywhere, there is not much sense in going forward
Look at the snow on the rear footstep. Part of it is from hitting the snowwall. With the rear I was gentle, Last thing you want is a cracked bumper!
The front bullbar however can dig in more
A closer look.
The winds are intensifying, and we are enjoying every bit of it!
There is barely any place to stand!
The snowfall lightens as we go down again, and we park again,
the machine which clears snow
All around there is snow. And pure white clean snow. the kind you make into snowballs!
Incoming!!!
The canon is a great tool to stop snowballs. First you shoot the snowball. If it does not stop, the camera will stop it you see
We are having fun, and I can barely contain my smiles!
Its been 20 years since I have rolled in snow like this. The clothes are wet, the shoes are drenched. But who cares!!!!!!!!!!!
But soon nature catches up. And we are feeling brrrrr. Time to head back?
We have to go wayyy down there
But not before a couple of pics!
Another one
As we drive down as cross the same qualis we left down. I ask him permission de di. He just mumbles something, and asks me "Woh chado, agge daso ki hai". I laugh and tell him lots of snow. Where he can't go up, some pushing will help. Since they are 5=6 guys with the driver, I am sure they would also have a blast, but not before some pushing and shoving
After that we drive down to the checkpost. Snowfall turns into sleet as we reach the checkpost. I shake hands with the BRO officer and he asks me whether I met the second set of "Bhagodas". I laugh and tell him yes sir.
I ask him about the zen, and he gloomily informed me that they tried to stop them, but "they ran away".
But he is cool about it all, and tells me once in a while they get such cases, and always laugh about it later. Most of such cases come running down when they see Rohtang. We are the first ones he has seen who can't hide our grins!
And with that ends our day, and in the twilight we head down to Kothi.
Even the white elepthant is feeling happy. Infact so happy that she blinks her disco lights multiple times in glee.
Thankfully she does not want to camp at Gulaba in the night, and we come down to our Yak cafe, and have a quick dinner.
Tomorrow we have to start back to Delhi.Since we are planning to stop at our farm on the way, we plan to leave by 6am, and beat the morning rush. So we have an early dinner. and go off to sleep, keeping our stuff packed...
Tomorrow is going to be a long day!
So yet again, with Rohtang in our dreams, and satisfied, we go off to sleep
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