I head down for breakfast and poke my head into the kitchen to order.. There on a bed in the corner is the entire family. It's very common for people to sleep in their workplace. We also do this at Airways.. but only under the ATC contract - ATCs get a seperate room though! (unless you work at WN Tower).
We're away at 8am with a bumpy 6km flat before saying goodby to the Spiti Valley and climbing a side tributary up to the Kunzum La pass at 4551 metres ASL.
A small dog adopts us at Losar, and accompanies us on the climb.
We break at the top for a team photo - minus Adam who had left two hours earlier.(Adam does not own a watch - so simply gets up and rides when it's light).
The dog is still with us at the top - so we name him "Kunzum" after the pass we've just climbed.
Leaving the top at midday we head down the zig zag 9km all the way to the valley floor on the other side. Progress is slow, with the road being a classic bumpy 4WD track and people being consious of the fact that some of our equipment had already been broken by the constant pounding.
At the base of the hill we turn right off the main road and head for Chandra Tal (lake). The road surface instantly improves. Still gravel 4WD this section sees no heavy vehicle traffic so while not flat is at least smooth between the boulders.
We follow this track 13km, with a steep zig zag climb at the last up the moraine wall and up to the lake.It is a very long 13km.
Adam is here waiting for us. He's had an adventure of his own. At Cunzum La he took a wrong turn, and followed a foot track from the top of the mountain all the way to the lake. At times forced to take all four panniers off his bike and do multiple trips carring bike and gear
across steep scree slopes. He was however awarded with some of the best views of the trip - which the rest of us missed out on.
Chandra Tal is a very beautiful spot. Beside a lake, surrounded by Glacier fed rivers.
Unfortunately tonight we're really too tired to care. Maybe we'll feel different in the morning.
Kunzum (dog) is still with us. When we stop he instantly curls up in a ball and takes a power nap.
After pitching tents Adam and Richad cook us a Dehy dinner. It's getting cold for the first time on the trip, and some of us climb inside the tents to keep warm.
A local.. yes there is a shop (tent) up here at 4300 metres.. tells us that he's seen our dog several times. Always in the company of foreign cyclists.
Kunzum appears to be dislike this local Indian a lot.