Today is the day! We would be leaving the Sutlej valley and entering the Spiti valley! This is the pointy end of the trip! WOOHOO
UTHO REY! UTHO REY! 
Kinner Kailash in the distance
A hearty breakfast...
...and off we go! 
This scenic valley is famous for its apple orchards
The story of how apple farming started here is quite fascinating. Check out the section on Satyanand Stokes and his remarkable story
An unexpected adventure starts...there was a landslide on the road and the highway was blocked, so the locals told us of an alternate road. 
'Its a small road...' they said casually 'But bikes will go...'
So we set out innocently...
And enjoyed the views...the views on the small roads are always better than on the highway
But then we realised the meaning of the words 'Bike will go...' 
It means that the road is insanely screwed! 
This was when the road had become 'easy' and we could stop without falling into the river! 
What a ride that was! 
It was bloody scary at the time - but in retrospect it was the best part of the ride. 
And you have to wait for the big boys to clear the landslides...
What a relief to get back to the highway! And ironically the landslide had been cleared and traffic had started by the time we hit the highway. 
We kept climbing and crossed the tree line, and finally rode into the heart of the mountain - the sangam of the Sutlej and Spiti! What a ride! 
The grand canyon of the Sutlej valley. What a powerful experience
We stopped to take it in
You can see the landscape changing - from the friendly green Himalayas to the ominous bare brown. We are above the tree line
This is the bridge at Khab above the confluence of the Sutlej and the Spiti rivers
One of the most powerful places ever
The locals worship this confluence and tie prayer flags for blessings. 
Just see this river! Photos cannot capture the magnificence of the view
The gorge is simply amazing...see the markings on the rocks? They have the same markings in the Grand Canyon on the Colorado, and they call them 'Indian writing' 
This is the Hindustan Tibet road...if you continue on this road you will come to the high pass of Shipki La where you will enter Tibet. Unfortunately you can't go there now as the border is closed - so we turn off into the Spiti valley and follow the Spiti upstream
Once you are out of the confluence point and enter the Spiti valley, you come to one of the most magnificent roads in the world - the Kazigs! It's simply the best ride you could ever have. One of India's best kept secrets. 
We stop at the top for an impromptu interview
We follow the road to the beautiful lake village of Nako
Things have really changed since I was here last... they have a Helipad here! Adi immediately ran to take photos
And more photos...
And even more photos...
The beautiful village of Nako. They have a perennial lake here which enables them to farm in this arid area
We meet a solo biker with a big-ass flag. Hope it doesnt wrap around him in the high winds
We planned to reach Tabo today, but its already late in the day
We decide to stay at the very next place we can find - and so we stay in Tsumdo village
It turned out to be a magical experience
We came out to drink some rum in the dark of the night and saw the most amazing meteor shower! 
This is rum - we couldn't photos of the meteors, so this will have to do