The roads were fabulous in many stretches but as we got closer to Sarchu, they got really bad. Road work and landslides en route delayed us quite a bit and we finally reached Sarchu well after dusk. Sarchu essentially is a major halt point on the Leh-Manali highway, with only tented accommodation available. We realised this the next morning (after somehow surviving the chilly night in our tents), because as far as the eye could see, there were only tents. We wasted no time in getting out and in a few hours we parked ourselves at a nice hotel at Keylong, our next halt point. While getting there, we drove through Baralacha La, considered among the more dangerous passes with narrow roads prone to landslides. Keylong is a quiet little town, though significant as it is the administrative centre of the Lahaul and Spiti district in Himachal Pradesh.
Keylong to Manali was another relatively quick drive, just 120 kilometres. The roads got progressively narrower, and the traffic got heavier, though the landscape was still a sight to marvel at. As we got closer to Manali, we drove through Rohtang La, whose name apparently translates to “pile of corpses”, referring to people perishing in bad weather while trying to cross the pass. Our stay at Manali was short but pleasant, and we took some time out to visit the well-known Hadimba Temple, which is surrounded by a cedar forest at the foot of the Himalayas.
