Further posts coming up pretty soon !!

Gulmarg

We started out for Gulmarg early in the morning.  The 40km road from Srinagar to Gulmarg is bestowed with nature's abundance. Just as we leave the streets of Srinagar, one is greeted by the Jhelum river which flows along the road for a few kilometres of the road. On both sides of the road, the mountain ranges crowned with their snow-capped peaks stand guard. No wonder its called 'the Valley'.

The first feel of snow can be an exhilirating experience. We were as excited as 6-year old kids getting their first bicycles. There are many spots to visit in Gulmarg. Soon, we were surrounded by guides with their ponies. After some bargaining, we agreed on what we thought was a good deal (only to find out later that we were fleeced). Not being the types of those who grew up riding horses, I found the ride on the malnourished ponies pretty bumpy. But it was fun and offered many opportunities for Orkut-able pics (maybe Facebookable nowadays). Now, it seems pretty easy in the films, but believe you me, skiing is not for the faint-hearted (or for the weak-kneed either). That's what we found out the hard way by taking a few nasty falls on the slopes of Khillanmarg. In English, it means 'a place to play'. This place used to be the summer capital of the Prince of Kashmir state. It has some pretty bungalows made of pine wood. After a few cups of hot tea, we moved further on horseback (ok...ponyback). It was a trail through the pine woods with snow laden bushes along the way. Strange as it may seem, a church lies in the middle of a vast meadow here. Renovated in 2003, it exemplifies the adage that beauty comes in small packets. One is tempted to think that there couldn't be a more peaceful on earth. Only to be reminded by our guide that right across the fence at some distance is a heavily fortified military base of the Indian Army.

As afternoon turned to evening, we knew it was time to be on our way back. By nightfall, we were back in Srinagar, which wore an even more deserted look than during daytime. Under the suspecting eyes of the military patrols, we reached our hotel. It was now time to recharcge our batteries as had been on the go for quite some time now.

Patnitop

I forgot to introduce my friends in the earlier posts. Puneet, Prathamesh and Sumeet - my school-friends.

Never had I experienced such cold in my life as that at Patnitop while rushing to the hotel entrance. I was shivering for about 5 minutes non-stop. Finally, got into a room with warm blankets. Did not realize when I fell asleep while discussing the day among ourselves. As always, Puneet woke up the first and woke all of us too. The view from the hotel was just amazing (pic). We got ready and started towards our next destination - Srinagar !!

On our way, we stopped at a beautiful, lush green meadow in Patnitop and took some photos there. Also visited a temple which our driver (also our guide - Bunty) recommended that we must visit. Our feet were still sore from the strenuous climb down the Vaishnodevi mountain. Soon, we were on our way to Srinagar on the national highway NH-1A.

NH-1A

The national highway NH-1A is the most dangerous road I have ever travelled on. It runs along a river valley for most of its length. It has some of the most treacherous sections of narrow, one lane mountain road. It is maintained by the Border security force. The scary part is that - there is no compund wall or barrier along the valley side of the road. And with the road getting narrower by the minute, it meant that one wrong manouvre by Bunty and we all would be on our way down in a free-fall towards the river with razor sharp rocks waiting for us. To add to the fear-factor, there was this constant threat of land-slides and rocks falling along the mountain slopes. At times, the valley was so much near the road, that I was able to stretch my arm outside the moving van and take a pic of the valley below - not more than two feet away from the tyres of our Omni. It was exhilarating as well somewhat scary experience at the same time.

After about 3 hours of drive and after taking some bio-breaks along the way, we soon reached Jawahar tunnel. It is one of the most heavily guarded tunnel in the world. It gains its strategic importance from the fact that it connects the Kashmir valley with the rest of India. The landscape started changing slowly after we crossed the tunnel. We could now see snow-capped peaks at a distance. The number of watch-posts were also increasing as we progressed. There was an armed guard keep a watch after almost every 2 km along this road. While we were closing in on Srinagar, we now saw bright fields of Sarson along our way. The surroundings too were getting more and more beautiful as we progressed. There are many shops along the way which sell cricket bats.

By nightfall, we reached Srinagar city and checked in to our hotel. We ventured out in the city at around 7:30 pm to look for a place to eat. Only later we were told by the hotel staff that we should not have gone out on our own. We met a chubby and cheerful autowalah called Irfan who took us to a decent veg eatery. This guy was one chatter-box. But, a nice and friendly person. We returned to our hotel and went off to sleep. Tomorrow, I was going to experience snow for the first time in my life.