When the only Indian automobile magazine focused on cars completes a glorious decade of existence, an equally glorious celebration is called for. We do so in style by driving through 10 must-drive-to mountain passes in the Himalayas
Story: Gaurav Nagpal
Photography: Sanjay Raikar
The mountains have for long beckoned to travellers of all kinds, intrepid and fearful too. They have a certain charm, a pull — be it the stark beauty of a bare rock-face in many different shades or of a mountainside draped in lush, green vegetation. They have served as mile-markers of sorts — strategic gateways on key routes, and resting points on others. Their importance has been further heightened also due to our, shall we say, “lively” relations with certain neighbouring countries.
Car India, India’s only exclusively-focused-on-passenger-four-wheelers magazine, completes 10 years of existence this month. Not for us are the “usual” drink-and-dine parties — we are, after all, automobile fanatics with petrol (and diesel for the stingy ones) running through our veins. So it was but natural that we chose to mark the occasion with — what else — a drive! Hill stations have been done to death, so why not do something different? Thus we settled on the idea of driving through 10 of the best mountain passes that we reckon every driving enthusiast must traverse in his/her lifetime. And, with much planning and preparation, finally THE DAY came and we set off from the capital city.
Our first port of call was to be Manali, whose name originates from “Manu-Alaya” or “the abode of Manu” (Manu is said to be the Hindu lawgiver). Heavy traffic, however, conspired to slow our progress down so much that we could only make it to Nalagarh, where we settled in for the night, aiming for an early departure and reaching Manali as soon as possible.
