Oct 1, 2016

Today was it. Today was the encore. The entire concert was magnificent and like any time you get to see your favorite band play, you want just one more song. For me it is and will always be Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing”. So bring on Rohtang La. Belt it out Steve Perry.

Rohtang La is the final summit at a height of just over 13k ft. It is the lowest of mountain passes along the Leh Manali highway, however there is a sweetener. Descending from the north to the south takes you 50km (yes, that’s 30 milezzz) of newly paved, single lane, snaking road, etched precariously into the side of the mountain, waterfalls abounding, only using your brakes because you want to take your 74^th picture of the descent, into Manali, passing through 2 climate zones, more that 6k vertical feet below. If there is a better encore, I’ve never experienced it. Sorry Steve Perry, but cue up “Don’t Stop Believing” anyway.

I stayed up too late. I couldn’t sleep. I was thinking about all the amazingness that I have experienced in the past 10 days since I’ve been in India, and it really is a lot.  The warm smiles, the soft hand shakes, the big hugs, the kind words, and just the overall wonderment that simply is India.   Sure, today isn’t the end, it’s just the end of the chapter and like any good book, you stay up too late reading because you want to see what happens next. That was me.

I woke up with a beaming optimism. I even washed my bike for the occasion. Today is a big day. I hit the road just as the sun was, then left the small village of Sissu and cruised the 10 km up to the police checkpoint to access Rohtang La. I was told by the officer there that there were 2 Spaniards just ahead of me. They must be the 2 that the other 2 Spaniards told me about. I was anxious to try to catch them and compare stories.

The sky was clear, the road was terrible and full of switchbacks…my perfect cocktail. It was the kind of road that would make a local shock and muffler repair shop rich by the carnage it inflicts. After about 40 minutes I caught up to the Spaniards. Like all the bike packing wanderers I’ve met in my life, they were extremely interesting and had amazing tales. They seemed to be in their 40’s and decided to take 8 months off from life while traveling to remote parts of the world to experience awesomeness on their bikes. Weird… They have since been in Georgia (not the place with the peaches), Kyrgyztan, Iran, and India, before finishing up in Nepal next month. I am always inspired by people who have the courage to let their curiosity take them and just…wander. As it would happen, we had plenty of time to chat. Shocking, there was a rock slide that closed the road only about 5km up which lasted for nearly 40 minutes. This time it was real. There were boulders the size of cows that completely blocked the road. One of them may have actually been a cow. For the record, I think we could have gotten around, but the guy with the whistle and the gun who was directing the guy with the bulldozer thought otherwise. Why the bulldozer you ask? Because the way to clear a road in India is to bring in a bulldozer and simply push the cow sized rocks over the edge and down the embankment. Fortunately this part of the road was gradual enough that it didn’t cause a road closure on the next switch back below. Brilliant, I say.

Once the road cleared, we resumed our ascent. Within about 10 minutes, they were nowhere to be seen. I figured maybe a mechanical but later learned that they took a turn off to the Spiti Valley for more curiosity and same type of terrain that we just rolled through the past 8 days. I may need to come back to this…

Because Rohtang La is the closest and easiest accessible pass to Delhi, it is quite touristy, which today was actually enjoyable. I received numerous honks, thumbs up, and general encouragement. It was like being on a ride at Disney World. It was Saturday and everyone was ecstatic for the experience and captivating views. Around each switch back was a better, and somehow different view, that was even more astounding than the previous. Higher I climbed, higher the winds became. I had no place to get to. I was just relishing in this final encore. I could see the top. It was 8 more switch backs. Just as the road was reaching war zone status, it changed to fully, newly paved road for the final 6 switchbacks to the top. I crested the summit just after noon. Jubilation, bluer than blue skies, yaks crossing the road, locals taking selfies, and everything that has been my India experience. As I’m writing this, I realize that this sounds like just another bike ride from some egotistical thrill seeking American tourist with a Go Pro. Ouch…and I hate that. It is so much more. It really is about the gratitude of being in another country, fully welcomed, supported, and appreciated for choosing to visit and the opportunity to experience their beauty and culture, and give a radio interview. Ok, yeah, that last part actually happened, which felt odd…but why not. For some reason a crew came up to me and put a microphone in my face and asked me several questions. How do you like India? What do you think of our culture? Is it your first time? Was it difficult to cycle Rohtang La? Where are you from? After that, the people who witnessed my 2 minutes of fame must have thought I was somebody so I was the center piece of countless photo ops. It was my Clooney moment I suppose.   Hopefully I didn’t sound like that egotistical, thrill seeking American tourist who was…born and raised in South Detroit! (or a small farm town south of Lansing) – and look what there is once you get out there in the world. That song never gets old to me. And for old times sake, here is my friend Jenna and I (and a little help from a friend) in Madagascar, making Steve Perry, and everyone from Michigan…proud.