Chapter 14_Zero Point

Chapter 14

Zero Point

Rocky bhai! He was a native of Lachung, but had spent a few years in Kerala – Attingal, Trivandrum, 15 kilometers away from my house, to be precise – some time back. Thorappan was delighted to hear Malayalam. The Tuborgs had kicked in and he flipped over Rocky bhai’s bits and pieces of Malayalam. We had roti, rice and anda curry for dinner. The food was delicious and Rocky bhai’s service added to the taste. Dinner was followed by a round of tea and we went to bed soon after.

We woke up at 5:15 AM, the next day, to a very cold Lachung morning (definitely not the coldest though). The view from our balcony was one of the best that one could wish for. The Himalayas spanned out in front of us, revealing its colours as the sun brightened up. Mahesh, who didn’t dare to expose even an inch of himself outside the blanket, declared in a feeble voice that he was going to stay back in the room. We didn’t persuade him either, as we felt that the cold might put him at risk.

Wake-up scene in Lachung…

Deedi served us tea. She assured us that Mahesh would be taken care of. The three of us started off at around 6:30 AM. A few kilometers ahead, there was a check post. During the verification, the jawans asked us the name of the hotel we stayed at; none of us knew it. They then gave us a piece of advice that it was important to note such things while travelling. True that.

The cold was bearable now. We had our full gears on. I had five layers of material covering my upper half – a t-shirt, thermal vest, rain coat, jacket (thermal vest and rain coat came with the jacket; detachable), and another rain cover. A couple of kilometers from the check post, we were right at the foot of a range of rocky mountains. They were so huge that I felt a little scared, seeing them in front of me all of a sudden.

Mighty, mighty, mountains…

The roads were the toughest we rode on this trip so far. However, we enjoyed every bit of it. After all, this was what we came for; this was the challenge that we were looking forward to. There were landslide debris and water crossings – both small streams and ones with strong currents. Khan led us, as he was the experienced one among us and his Himalayan was the one that was better equipped for these roads. It seemed that the vehicle did enjoy exploring the natural wonder after which it was named! It galloped ahead in full vigor, even as the terrain became tougher and rougher. Thorappan’s rear tire got stuck at one point. He did manage to pull himself out, with some effort. I had never in my life imagined that I would be riding a bike through such terrains. It all felt like a dream. In fact, it was the realization of one.

Off-roading…

After about an hour of off road adventure, we reached Phuni valley. Against the backdrop of huge mountains was the Phuni lake, with jade green waters. Another fifteen minutes ride, and we were at the much heard of Yumthang valley. There were a few shops on either side of the road and then the valley spanned out in front of us. One could see different shades of green in a single frame of vision – the thick forested mountains were dark green, while the grassy valley had a lighter shade. Colourful prayer flags adorned the valley. A little stream flowed through the center of the spot.

Phuni Lake…

The three bikes (and their riders) amidst a dozen or more of white taxi cabs were a matter of curiosity to some of the tourists in Yumthang. A few even wanted to click pictures with our bikes, which we readily and happily agreed to. The little stream did beckon us. We decided that we would explore the valley while returning back from Zero Point.

Yumthang Valley…

The line of shops in Yumthang had numbers, and we were to have breakfast at shop number 41. Because, that shop belonged to our deedi’s mother. When we asked a shopkeeper where to find shop no. 41, she nodded her head and asked us to go into her shop. For a moment we thought that hers was 41, but then saw no. 39 painted in a corner of the shop. The next was 40 and then came shop number 41. It was a busy little shop and a few people were seated inside – sipping hot tea, slurping noodles and warming themselves at the fire place. We introduced ourselves to the lady who was preparing tea – “we stay at your hotel in Lachung; Deedi asked us to have breakfast here”. The lady recognized us; we three dumb heads didn’t! She was deedi’s mother, to whom we had even engaged in a conversation the previous night. Along with her was deedi’s cousin, who helped her run the place.

Shop No. 41

At the center of the shop was a fireplace, with three kettles warming themselves on top of it. The smoke from the stove was guided out through a metal pipe. We huddled around the setup and exposed our palms to the fire, in an attempt to bring our numb fingers back to life. The latter half of the shop had beds to sit on; jackets and snow boots were stacked up on the wall cupboards. The wooden floor creaked as we walked across to the beds and settled down for food.

Deedi’s mother was a chatterbox, who bustled with energy. As she prepared spicy, soupy noodles for us, she enquired about the fourth one in our gang – Mahesham. When we told her that he was unwell, she replied that, back in Lachung, his marriage was getting fixed with deedi. “Not when we’re alive!” the three of us murmured. In the background, all four of us had laid claims on deedi, the previous night. (In fact, each one of us had specific and convincing reasons as to why we were the best suitor for her. However, I am not able to recall any of those reasons now; nor have they been captured in the avalokanams).

Good food, warmth and care – ‘shop number 41’ for you. Deedi’s mother did treat us like her own kids. As we were clicking a few photos near the fire place, she complained that we hadn’t included her. The sportive lady did pose for a few clicks with us as well. We had another round of tea (hot water sprinkled with milk and some tea dust) and left for ‘Zero Point’.

Deedi’s mother with her adopted kids…

The 25 kilometer ride from Lachung to Yumthang had taken us about an hour and ten minutes. The next 25 to ‘Zero Point’ would require about the same time. However, the latter stretch wasn’t as challenging as the former. There were proper roads, though quite narrow and we reached ‘Zero Point’ at around 9:45 AM. The road ends there, which is why it is called the ‘zero point’. We had reached the final destination, the farthest point, and the end of an Indian roadway. After 10 days and 3000 odd kilometers, we were there!

A panoramic view of Zero Point…

Khan and I were the first to reach Zero Point. Thorappan arrived a few minutes later. On his way, he had seen some garments lying on the road and stopped to pick them up. In fact, he had seen a rain coat first, ignored it and moved further, when he saw a pair of rain pants lying a little ahead. He then collected both and proceeded further to find a pair of shoe covers as well. If you are wondering why he picked up all these random stuff lying on the way, they all belonged to me. I had been carrying them pillion from Yumthang, as it wasn’t raining enroute, and hadn’t realized that my fellow passengers had fallen off on the way. (Thanks Thorappan!)

Unlike Yumthang, the mountains of Zero Point were barren. There was not a single tree in sight. It was just boulders and pebbles all around. There were huge mountains in front us, at a distance; perhaps many more behind them as well. Like in Yumthang, a stream flowed through the valley. A small bridge had been made across it at one point; a major attraction for the visitors. We ventured out into the valley. I walked along the stream, dipped my hands in the water and washed my face – it gave that same refreshing feeling that the waters of Rangpo River gave in Padamchen. Behind us, the clouds split apart like the curtains on a stage, revealing snow clad mountains at a distance. That was the first sight of snow in our trip; in my life as well!

The Zero Point click…

We too clicked a few pictures on the bridge. There was another gang of bikers around; four chaps on two Dukes, registered in West Bengal. They had the Indian flag with them, with which they posed and took photos. Poor Khan looked on enviously. We assured him that we too would have flag poles on our bikes in the next trip. After about an hour of exploration at Zero Point, we headed back to Yumthang. We were among the last few to leave the place. We had to hurry up.

A few kilometers after we started back to Yumthang from Zero Point, the mist suddenly cleared off and there, right in front of us, were snow clad mountains. This time, the snow-capped peaks were clearly visible. An otherwise composed Khan, became exhilarated all of a sudden. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was so beautiful. The sun glittered up the snow and I sat down on the road to just breathe in and freeze the frame in my heart. Thorappan was trailing behind, and we couldn’t wait for him to see this sight. A couple of minutes passed by, he was not to be seen. Khan and I sat on the roadside, recording with our eyes, as much of the scene as possible. However, tension started mounting in our minds, with every passing minute – Thorappan hadn’t reached yet. There was no network coverage to contact him either.

Surprise snow-cap…

After about fifteen minutes, we decided that Khan should ride back and look for Thorappan. The guy turned up just in time. Apparently, he had seen the snow peaks a few meters back, and had stopped there itself! Bloody Thorappan!

We clicked a few pictures there. During an attempt to capture the full figures of Thorappan, Khan and the mountains in a single frame, my body got paralyzed for a few seconds – reasons I know not. It did give me a scare though!

It was a quick ride back to Yumthang. The place was deserted when we reached there. Most of the tourists had already left from there. The shops were also closing for the day. Zero Point and Yumthang wake up to tourists and go back to slumber as they leave. It was just about mid-day then. We had tea and bread omlette, yet again at shop number 41.  We bought a few prayer flags from the shop as Sikkim souvenirs.

A jubilant Thorappan posing in front of the snow-capped mountains…

We soon left for Lachung. A few kilometers from Yumthang, there was a long line of cars in front of us. All those tourist taxis that had gone ahead of us were there. We were quite puzzled at the sight. We enquired and got to know with a shudder that there had been a landslide and the road was blocked with debris!

(to be continued...)