Day 8

Headed out of the Chandrataal camp in sub-freezing air, back onto the dirt and rocks and river crossings. The Lahaul Valley was otherworldly: glaciers feeding grey braided rivers across wide flat plains, sheer rock walls on both sides with the occasional bus thrown in, the road barely a thread in the fabric of the landscape. Difficult to appreciate fully when you're focused on not dropping the bike in a water crossing.

Several cars not meant for off-roading kicked up black exhaust smoke trying to navigate the rocky, uneven inclines. It seemed like the dirt roads would never end until we reached the area just north of Rohtang Pass. It marked the transition back toward greener slopes and eventually the first proper town in two days. We stopped in Koksar for lunch, then rode down toward Sissu, where the mountains eased back and something resembling civilization reappeared.

200 km over two days of dirt, altitude, sub-zero nights, and a wrist that had miraculously recovered. When the group sat down together in Sissu, someone poured drinks and everyone raised a glass. The hardest stretch of the trip was behind us.

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