Pokhara to Muktinath Via Jomsom

I wouldn't have dreamt that, journey from Pokhara to Muktinath would become integral part of my memory before I took it . Only word to explain it would be 'Phenomenal !' 

Surprises started at the outset. Imagine. A six foot or more , black African american towering over you, introduces himself as, ' I am Milind Joshi, incidentally I am Gujarati Brahman and would be driving you to Muktinath !'  I had said, 'Just imagine', but in Nepal it could happen. A young youth in his mid twenties with cute smiling  face introduced himself as our driver, and came out on his own that , his name was Anil and surname Bisht and by caste he was 'Bahun', that's Brahman in Nepali. Absolutely flat face face , definite yellow complexion, slanting eyes to the extent that they were only slits with typical epicanthic [ flap on the inner corner of eye] fold, so typical of Mongoloids ! The racial mixing in Nepal is so complete that many  a time it becomes difficult to categorize ! May be, the Biharis coming from India, settled in grass lands of Terai in south east Nepal, got so assimilated with mongoloid Tibetans from north mountainous areas that probably a new race came into existence, 'Nepalis' which braced Hinduism leaving Buddhism away and so the Mongoloid Hindus with Brahman surnames !
This is apart from the subject I know , but I can not resist to put it down.  Just to push the conversation on, I asked him , 'Whether he eats meat or not, or being Hindu Brahman it's a taboo for him.. What he answered was very practical. 'Yes he loves non veg food but while eating it, he puts away his sacred thread  to avoid the bad omen !'

The one who said' It's not the destination but the journey that matters !' should be or is it must be, as in punishment, made a bus driver on Beni - Jomsom route. We always say' No news is good news!' Here there is no road, but here it's, 'No road means no road !' Period. The 70 or so kilometers of stretch between Beni and Jomsom is nothing but tract for 'Cross country Himalayan car [Mixed, as motorbikes too abound .] Rally ! The entire course[ My pen does not dare to write word, 'Road' !] goes through Kali Gandaki basin cajoling steep  mountains on one side and deep valleys on the other. It's never two lanes, manages hardly one vehicle at a time. And by chance if two come from opposite directions, then one has to retreat on extremely narrow path, minding deep slope on the side, one mistake, even the smallest one, and you may be swimming in Kali Gandaki ! But the drivers plying on this route are polite to the core along with being expert in their craft, so no ego tussles here.The one in better position stops, reveres and allows the other one to negotiate ! Brought up in Mumbai driving culture , this was unseen, unexperienced and last but not the least, Unfathomable ! To top  the scenario,like icing on the cake, two wheeled Motor bikers too, wait, watch and give the way to the one who deserves ! I felt like saluting them because two wheelers in Mumbai.... well,less said the better ! But humans being humans every where, some times the situations are created.

The driver of white bus was extra smart, [might have learnt his driving skills in Mumbai, quite probable and possible, both because there  are more than 4 to 6 million Nepalis in India] , did not pay heed to the bus coming in from the opposite direction, so got stuck up ! And we kept on watching the scene with long held breaths ! The driver of Green bus got down, arranged the stones below the tyres of white bus and like a toddler taught to take his first few steps, helped the other driver to ease out of the situation. [ Picture aside]. Even then he probably did not learn his lesson and was driving in front of us for miles together with  a gait of 9 months' pregnant woman,  absolutely wobbling, at times with 45* inclination  !

The path has different moods every 12 kilometers like what they say about the language. Initial stretch, as it is at lower altitude, is more rocky, laced with stones from the sizes of pebbles to rocks to even boulders at places.Himalayas as compared to other mountain ranges in India are made of extremely loose earth, so 'land slides' is a rule ! We could see one, where entire village was buried in loose soil and debris!

The accompanying Himalaya also changes its face too often.The trees are initially usual rain forest type, dense and tall with different species. As the altitude mounts the pine trees and others from the species take the place of these trees. And contrary to common belief Himalayas are not equally afforested all over,at places it's bereft of even a single tree , absolutely barren ! 

The road is so uneven that even the bikers can not hold on to their seats, so have to drive, standing all along. Many bikers driving such, in a row could be a slice of footage from any Hollywood western flick !. All were dressed appropriately for the drive, with headgear, shades and mask on the face,as the dust on the road was much more than the waters in Kali Gandaki ! Where there is no road even to call for, one has to drive through dry river bed of Kali Gandaki, full with sand. At times when it too becomes non existent, you just go through the waters of Gandaki ! And there are Buses plying on this route regularly !!

Kali Gandaki is a major tributary of Ganges coming from the Left and boasts of passing through the 'Deepest Gorge in the world'. It's known as 'Andha Galchi' in Nepalese. Lined on one side by Dhawalgiri[ Dhaulagiri in Nepali] and Annapurna on the other, when it passes through valley near Lete, it's the deepest ! We did pass through Lete in Tukuche tehshil, but could not appreciate the depth as the height  or depth of gorge [canyon] is counted from the highest points on both the sides and we passed through the middle ! Though the waters of Kali Gandaki are Himalayan crystal clear, it's called Kali [Dark] because the sand of the bed is black. Another explanation, as usual, may be, after incarnation of Goddess Parvati, Kalimata! The river bed is famous for having well rounded stones considered by Vaishnavs as incarnation of Lord Vishnu, 'Shaligram' !

Few years ago there was this western flick, 'Mad Max Fury Road' and I had seen it in 4D format in Viviana Mall,Thane. In 4 D format your chair jumps when the vehicle on the screen jumps , dives, speeds whatever. I endured the jerks for 10 minutes but as the novelty wore off I felt like shouting ' Enough,Stop this chair from shaking, now !' It was that gruesome.

On Beni Jomsom road I experienced more than 4 shows of 'Mad Max Fury Road', continuously without a single break ! It was intolerable exercise testing your patience, your grit and your physical endurance ! As I am tall I always sat in the seat next to the driver but the space was so cramped, that I invariably ended up,banging my knees on the glove box with every bump. I got down with my knees, all bruised and body totally weary ! I really wondered how those sitting on the hind seats endured the ordeal! May be because we all were on the wrong side of 60, SIXTY ! Had we been younger, might have had enjoyed the 'Joy Ride' with surplus splurge of adrenaline !
Even then I would say it's paradise for hikers, trekkers and bike riders , for free flow of adrenaline, all the way along ! Visuals are breathtaking, road is adventurous, air crispy and the people very warm !  

What one squarely misses in Nepal is transport infrastructure. Notably Railways. The reason given is the hilly mountainous terrain which makes it difficult to lay down the rail roads. I may not buy the arguement as India has many such railroads that pass through hilly areas  ,right from ,Shimla - Kalka to Metupaliam - Udhagmandalam [Ooty] to even our own Neral - Matheran. Shimla - Kalka is mammoth with umpteen number of tunnels and viaducts.The planners have built it so perfectly that along with the scenery that accompanies you all along, you reach the plains without any travel fatigue, whatsoever. Is it because Nepal was never under British or for that matter any other white skin rule ?

As we got down at Jomsom, all the strain of 7 hours of tardy journey vanished in a jiffy as we had alighted exactly in front of Nilgiri peaks of Annapurna range.It was glowing in it's evening glory, basking in the golden rays of setting sun ! It then was, 'Click,Click and Click!' But even the 10th of its golden beauty was not captured in that mechanical device,what the eyes could devour !

You turn around and Dhaulagiri treats you with equally beautiful visual feast ! You are in the midst of natures' beauties and there's is dilemma as where to look . Both are that hypnotizing ! 

The air had breezy chill and it was time to put on your warmers. 

After a short sleep of few hours we were to head for Muktinath, surprisingly one of very few abodes dedicated to Lord Vishnu, in the land which is considered to be a gift of Lord Shiva. As the name suggests the devout Hindus consider it to be the step to the Nirvana, total salvation ! Mythology goes, that the eldest of the Pandvas, Dharmaraj, ascended to the heaven, from here. For me the road  to Muktinath and its surroundings only mattered.

Himalaya in this part of Nepal is absolutely bereft of any trees, save few bushes, and presents to you in its absolutely raw Avatar. The patterns on the rocks [?] are so vivid,intricate and mesmerizing that you say 'Wow' even without knowing it ! Again humans, should I say Hindus, won't say betrayed my beliefs, on the contrary went exactly as I had anticipated. The temples around Muktinath were crowded to the capacity, rather overflowed but to devour the bounties of nature, not a single soul was present. Good for me, I always run away from the maddening crowds.  

The pattenrs on this range were so picturesque  and eye catching that it holds you almost spellbound. Probably must have withstood the onslaught of harsh mother nature for millions of years but had not given up and so every groove and crease is still visible in its beautiful form, even today since its inception ! 

Kali Gandaki too, though mostly devoid of any water, well absolutely thin at places, has immensely vast bed that could easily accommodate a small township! 

The last few kilometers of road to Muktinath is a tar road, and for a change, we heaved a sigh of relief.The motor-able road does not reach up to the temple and you have to walk up the hill a few kilometers. The temperature was around 5*C and chilly wind blowing was sending shivers down the spine. Though fully clad in layers, cold was too much to bear. After every few meters of walk every one has to rest for a while otherwise either cold or high altitude lack of oxygen may bring you down. Though not overtly breathless I had to take  slow strides to make it to the top.But I could, without much problem !
The temple of Muktinath, at the height of more than 3000 meters, roughly 12000 feet, is built in a pagoda style and was thronging with disciples.

In pre Tibetan times it was known as 'Thiru Saligramam' there by denoting, one, its strong South Indian Hindu connections,and two,India did have only one culture from North to South even then ! Just behind the temple there are 108 'Go mukhs' [ according to Wikipedia they are Bulls' mouths, but they are not aware that the Hindus have more reverence to the Cow than the Bull] through which flows the sacred water. It ultimately flows into the sacred tanks in  front of the temple. Even in that freezing cold there were many devotees who went through all the streams to have a last dip in the tanks, as a karmic ritual.

There is an advertisement for 'Cinthol soap' by  Godrej  where few ultra  hip youths   jump, similarly in a freezing pool surrounded by deep snow. In principles, 'The act ' is same but both the groups frown at each other for their forward or backward way of thinking !
There are few other shrines on the plateau but by that time hypothermia had taken its toll  on me and I had started lisping ! My wife and a relative kept on asking me about my well beings, though their was no mental clouding or breathlessness I was unable to speak properly as my lips and area around had gone too cold. Taking that as a hint we started our downward walk. On reaching the sunshine lisping disappeared and I could speak normally ! 
Cow slaughter is legally banned in Nepal so when you ask for steak, 'Yak' meat is served. Had our light lunch at Hotel Majestic and started our homeward journey.

After a gap of a day in Pokhara we were supposed to catch homeward flight from Kathmandu.But the parting note was not to be that easy. We started from Pokhara at 5 AM to catch the flight from  Kathmandu for Mumbai at 2 PM. But because of bad roads and heavy traffic, at one point of time we practically were sure that we would definitely miss the flight. Some how we managed, but an advice for those who want to visit Nepal, Keep Kathmandu on your itinerary as the last stop or there is every chance that you may miss the flight !
There is so much more to Nepal than I could write, for want of space. All in all it's a nice destination for varied experiences, and to meet good warm people ! Cheri o !