Across The Singge- La Pass

Wide plains draw

Rays down from wider skies.

The daylight, rising higher,

Burns through thin air to grass;

At night globes of green fire

Float on the pastured pass.

Cold, shivering like a duck

I watch the Eastern sky:

A shooting star brings luck;

A satellite swims by.

The Silver River flows

Event less, through the night.

The moon against the snows

Shines insular and bright.

Here we three, each, alone,

Me, Myself & I

The Singge La (Singge-Lion, La- Mountain Pass) is the pass one has to cross between Photoskar andLingshet during the Lamayaru - Zanskar trek in Leh & Ladakh) walking through the broad and lush Photang valley. A gentle trail leads through this beautiful landscape, where villagers graze their yak/dzo and horses.

One of the most fascinating things about the Zanskar trek is the ever-changing landscape. Every time you turn a corner, or cross a pass, a new world appears in front of you. Passing through the deepest of gorges and meandering through the greenest of fields, the majestic Zanskar River assume a fascinating form and life of its own.
With ever changing colored and the cloud shadows changing with the sun, one never gets bored!

A Trek To The Sainj Tirath Valley

Toyotas and cars get us to Sainj.

At last we’re almost in touch with our range.

So onwards and upwards with porters galore,

Towards Denga and Shakti and even Maraur.

When camping at Kudal some people got ticks,

On their arms and their legs and even their dicks.

At Parkachi Thach we settled the mule train

But the afternoon was spoiled by a misty rain.

Don’t worry my friends,

I am in top form,

‘The weather will clear with a really good storm.’

The cook gives us chai each morning at seven,

This isn’t a trek, it’s much more like heaven.

I’m getting twitchy to get at a peak,

So up to Camp 1, an objective to seek.

To recce we set out in three separate ways,

And agreed on a summit to fill the next phase.

The weather’s not perfect but still, off we set,

And it’s not very long ‘fore it’s hailing and wet.

But I am still hopeful and true to form:

‘The weather will clear with a really good storm’

It snows on the tent until it all sags,

And, oh no, some people are starting to flag

A couple and I set off in a bit of a hurry,

While the rest of them wait trying hard not to worry

When we return safely, much to their relief,

With a point on the ridge successfully reached.

Back down to Shakti to get some food

Some of the porters are beginning to brood.

Rain the next morning but on with phase two,

Slogging up and then down, we carry on through,

Dhel was so pleasant we stayed there two nights,

And then towards Ghumtarao we turned our sights.

The route was not certain and caused so much chat.

Should we go this way, or should we go that?

In the end we went 'that' way and what a descent.

I'll swear that my knees are now permanently bent.

To even things up we climbed at such length,

By the end of next day I'd used up all my strength,

You know the saying, 'What goes up must come down,'

Well, the descent to Tirthan just went on and on.

Just a short day to Gushaini should hold no fears,

And the sooner we get there, the sooner there's beers.

So there’s a memory of forests and flowers and ridges,

Of mountains and gorges and torrents and bridges,

Of singing and laughter and new people I’ve met,

T’was a trip that will prove hard to forget.

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