The next day , we woke up quite early as it was pass crossing day. It was not raining although we were under cloud cover that could burst into rain anytime. The cobbled roads started again and it was tiring after one point of time to climb and pedal slowly. Traffic due to sheep gave me an opportunity to step down and breathe a bit while making the way out to start pedaling again. The cycle felt heavier than before, the thin air, faster heart rate made me go slowly. The view of waterfalls and side valleys gave more energy and mental strength to proceed further and further. We saw a tent with an old lady making some tea. She saw me and asked if I had anything to eat. We had packed some paratha and boiled eggs for the day and we shared our pack of boiled eggs with her. She smiled and blessed our pass crossing with good weather. Just before we reached the checkpoint we decided we would split and meet up later after the pass crossing as I decided to rest a little and proceed. We took a photo together before splitting apart. It was a moment to remember and we split the sleeping mat, Peter ditched the tent and it was tied to the bike itself. I was wondering for a moment, how he is going to survive just with a sleeping mat.
Peter went way ahead running, I noticed lot of rocks and terrain quickly climbing up and i was struggling and pushing myself to pedal. Soon a local of Udaipur who was driving past Sach pass, saw me moving like a snail and said if you go at this pass you wont cross this pass. The top of the pass is not in good shape, there are landslides happening often, and he offered to let me drop at the top where there is a small shrine. We took the bike and tied it to the top rack of jeep with a harness(he was well equipped) and we went ahead. Inside there were 2 guys who thought i was crazy enough to climb Sach pass by bike in this weather conditions. Soon we reached the checkpost, where we did the verification and I noticed my friend. We agreed upon meeting at the next village. The official at the check post saw my ID and asked “are you from the town of Sundhar Pichai?” (as he noticed I was from the south) and wished me luck with the cycling trip. The climb to the pass by jeep was quite interesting as literally there were broken rocks, piles of stones everywhere and the whole vehicle was jumping and at one point midway the exhaust broke. I was like, maybe i should get down and start biking again. We went outside the jeep and realized everyone was freezing. The smart driver took a steel wire (jugaad way ) tie the pipe to the vehicle and started riding. We reached the top soon and the views were stunning. It is customary for the locals to stop at the shrine, visit it and start to make sure they cross the pass safely. Soon after small descend, we noticed lot of vehicles piling and a small traffic jam due to landslides was present. I realized it just took 15 min to go up, better just take my bike and start riding again. It took like 1 hour or more to clear the landslide, they were arranging the rocks and flattening it out to let the vehicles move.
I was out looking at the beautiful ranges on the opposite side. I couldn’t do much rather than wait until things are cleared and start biking again. So i was talking with the co-passenger who was local from Udaipur and asking him about different villages, routine life etc. He used to drive on regular basis from Udaipur to Chamba by crossing Sach Pass on regular basis. He advised to explore Udaipur town and some nearby villages and temples. He also said Spiti was a better option for cycling, which I just registered in my mind just in case I want to explore. There was no sign of my running partner , but I was sure we will reorganize again at the base to start towards Pangi. As the roads were cyclable without any landslides or steep elevation. We were at the dhaba, where I had my lunch.
They soon asked me whether to wait or we will let you stop by in Killar where I can reorganize. I was new to Himachal and I agreed as it was supposed to a big town to reconnect. The route to Killar was out of the world with magnificent landscapes. I was hoping to meet Peter the next day as according to plan he was supposed to reach Ghanjit in the evening. I took my bike off the jeep and bid goodbye to them , started cycling back to see the remote village. It was steep climb back again to killad and it welcomed with a bus stop on the right and mini market street ahead. I was looking for a place to pitch a tent, but it was a big town and difficult to find a place. I had evening food, packed some food just in case and went ahead to find a camping spot with no luck. So there was an old construction site, where I put my tent.
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