In love with Himalayas BY ARTI DAS | NT BUZZ“Somewhere between the bottom of the climb and the summit is the answer to the mystery why we climb” says famous Australian mountaineer Greg Child. It is indeed true as one can never really define in words why one loves to climb mountains. But, once you feel the air of the mountains, then there is no looking back, as mountains will go on inviting you.Such is the case of biker and trekker; Keith Mascarenhas who for the past three years is exploring the Himalayas with his bike and believes that he needs to explore further more. This year, he successfully covered approximately 7133 kilometers from Goa to Ladakh and back, even undertaking a six-day Himalaya trek at Shirgan Tungu base camp and then continued his biking journey up to Khardungla Pass, the highest motorable road in the world. The best part of his journey was that he rode solo throughout. “I wanted to make a solo trip as I find it more enjoyable. After my first trip to Ladakh in 2011, I made a resolution to visit this place at least every alternate year”, says Keith who started his journey from Goa on May 4 and returned on May 27.Keith who loves riding, maintains that his biking stint started around eight years ago, when he went to Pune on his bike. “I had to travel to Pune for the job. So I travelled by my bike. That was for the first time, I went so far. Before that I had not even gone to Mapusa on my bike”, adds Keith.From then on, Keith joined the Royal Enfield Odyssey and made his first trip to Ladakh. “It was quite an organized trip as I along with 30-odd bikers, had to do the job of just riding, everything else was taken care of, right from maintenance of the bike, to the doctor on call, etc”, explains Keith.This ride to Ladakh gave new exposure to Keith which he had not experienced before. “I had done lot of long rides but riding in Himalayas especially in Ladakh, is something different. It is difficult to explain with words. The vastness of the Himalayas, the cold climate and the whole environment which is completely different from other terrains of Himalayas”, maintains Keith. Keith is also one of the few who have crossed international border as he made a trip to Bhutan on his bullet. “It was last year again with Royal Enfield Odyssey. We started our journey from Kolkata on our bikes to Siligudi which is around 600 kms, from then to the border and then to Bhutan. The ride in Bhutan is quite interesting as the country is covered with hilly roads. We covered at least 10 bends within a stretch of just 1 km. Even though this ride to Bhutan was nice, but it was not at all challenging and after my Ladakh ride, I was hoping for more excitement”, says Keith who then took a solo leap to Himalayas by taking up biking and trekking.“When I read about the trek to Shirgan Tungu base camp organised by Eco Treks Goa, I thought of going for it with my friends. But then they dropped the idea of trekking and organised a biking trip with ten bikers. So, then I backed out as this time I wanted to do solo and when you are biking with others it has its own disadvantages—you have to match up with their time, etc. Also I wanted to trek as I have ridden through snow but never walked on it.”Covering a distance of 7000-odd kms may sound exciting but it has its own fallouts. “The ride was fun, but I experienced a few problems at Agra. My bike’s rear tyre was badly damaged and I had to travel 20-kms back to repair it” says Keith, who travels with all bike spares, cables and also has a fair knowledge about fixing the bikes. He maintains that in a country like India, biking is not easy especially on highways in North India. “There I had to go off road, many a times, as sometimes the trucks on highways are just impossible to handle. However, it is not the case in mountains. Here bikers are given way, people are eager to help and biking as a whole is quite peaceful”, says Keith.Keith who is new to trekking opines that clubbing trekking along with biking turned out to be an enriching experience. “On my bike, solo, I first made a halt at Manali and then joined the trekking group next day. All this while I was alone and shared all the experiences of the journey with myself. Now, I was part of the 35-member group. So, it was quiet interesting to share my experiences, listen to various viewpoints, etc. Also, it gave me much needed time to think, introspect and re-start my journey to Ladakh from Manali”, opines Keith.It is interesting to note that before the start of the journey Keith was not 100 per cent sure that he would complete his journey. “All the roads in Himalayas were closed and they open only during the last week of May. So, when I started I was not sure whether I would reach Ladakh or not. But, luckily when I reached Leh, the next day they opened the route to Khardung La. I had the similar experience when I was coming back. I was not sure whether the Zojila Pass would be open. So, when I reached there at 5 p.m. I realized that it was just opened and I had to take a call whether to go or stay back for two days as they were allowing only one-way traffic. I decided to go ahead without realizing the challenges of the terrain. So, as I moved ahead it grew colder and my hands started freezing. But, then I could not even change my gloves as my hands were frozen. Eventually I had to ride without gloves”, recollects Keith.For Keith, all these experiences are part of his journey and believe that it makes such trips more exciting. He shares, “I was a different person, before my Ladakh trip, three years ago and now I am different. These trips have made me more patient, positive and most importantly I learnt to take life as it comes.” navhindtimes.in/love-himalayas/
Posted on: Sun, 06 Jul 2014 04:36:22 +0000
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