Wake up with the expectation of hot water. In the bathroom how ever there is no joy from the hot water tap. Soph puts on her angry shoes and marches
upstairs. Not long afterward water strays coming out of the hot tap, warm, but who's complaining when you haven't had hot water for three days during winter. We have aloo pranthas for breakfast at the motel before rolling back down the hill and across the bridge for the third time in 24 hrs. Based upon yesterday we are preparing our bodies for a hard slog. We have decided to shorten our route from Rudraparyag to Shrinigar which is about half the distance of yesterday, and calls a night just before 30km of reportedly nasty up.
We hit our first road works not far out of town at bridge work. Devaprayag is at the confluence of two rivers which then becomes the Ganga, we follow now the right fork whose waters are still green versus brown.
The valleys add to the unpredictability of the route and the gain or fall of the highway. One minute you are looking at one valley and a possible route through a cutting or pass then the next the road had turned you into a another valley altogether.
Start to pass increasing terraced agriculture. Yesterday the slopes were I guess too precarious and rocky versus today there is more arable land by the river shore. A passing taxi and our first actual sighting of a passenger being sick, which hits the road no less then two meters infront and he appears to also have had prantha for breakfast. My breakfast is starting to have second thoughts and I hear Soph groan a little behind me.
The road work starts to add together until it is semi continuous. The sides so coated in fine golden dirt that it has coated the surrounding countryside. Unfortunately for us our bikes and the passing traffic sees us soon covered also. To make matters worse in a couple of spots the road work has either ruptured pipes, misdirected natural water flows or towns people have attempted to damped the dust because we pass long sections of mud and puddles. Though a temporary relief from dust we are soon also coated in mud splatters..
We push on at every new valley expecting the short climbs to turn into long ones. The road is mercifully whole once again.
We pull up before the bridge at.... and following confirmation from locals decide to go into town prior to pushing on, just to refuel prior to the oncoming hill. We pass many smiley, welcoming and interested people and find a small Dhaba that has a good following. Turns out to be both veg and non veg. We head in and wash our hands where the tv is showing the Pakistan / Australian cricket. The food is fantastic, lightly but well spiced and good generous vegetable chunks. We both have second helpings. Then up to a chai store further along the same street and talk with a few more locals.
Across the bridge and up to the left, but still no serious climb. We are passed by yellow school buses driving at bus speed and kids yelling out the window, wave at a couple to the smiles of a few of the passengers. To our left the river bed has broadened into a huge river pebble garden which is currently predominantly dry, but the sections where the river still flows it flows strongly and by the look deeply. Further up the valley we can see serious concrete works which may be another hydro scheme, will have to find out later.
In Shrinigar we ride through inspecting hotels which is not as daunting as last night as, it is still light, we have cycled half as far and I am not trashed. We both do feel like we are carrying the road works with us however, Soph's face is unnaturally brown and I assume my week long facial hair is not hiding the same on me. Outside one hotel we meet a couple of locals who lead us on to the ..... The rooms are some of the cleanest, brightest rooms we have seen in ages and the hotel is well kept. The room has linen, tv and it's own hot water unit. We are stoked. Nearly everything that we own is filthy so we start the hand room cleaning and wringing as the hotel does not have a laundry service. The bathroom becomes a Chinese laundry with clothes hanging from hooks, taps, sink etc etc.
We retire for the evening after two serves of peanut marsala and jeera aloo, I think I am addicted. To bed after catching up on some last season Australian masterchef and Footloose. My older sister had the soundtrack I think when she was still at school. Climb into bed for hopefully a full recovery prior to our next big churn. We are still deciding whether to stay on, to allow our clothes a better chance of drying and maybe seeing the countryside or up to Pauri. I also need to clean the bikes and bob again.