PARADISE FOUND: Mandip Singh Soin at Tso Moriri lake

Beer coasters are an amazing invention. If you stare at them and at mountains alternatively, bright ideas will come to you. And if you don’t believe that, you can always ask Mandip Singh Soin and Koko Singh. The two friends had gone to their houses in Ranikhet in Uttaranchal last year, and were generally gazing at the wide expanse of the Himalayas and Nanda Devi for inspiration over glasses of beer, and wondering how to brighten up their lives, when the thought struck them.

And before you could say Jack Robinson, families were informed, like-minded friends got in touch with, bags were packed, and a jeep safari of six families were organised. Of course it helped that Koko had travelled all over the place in his jeep, and Mandip facilitated eco-friendly tours himself, being the founder of a tourism company called Ibex Expeditions.

Last June, the two friends, their families and that of four others, had taken a jeep safari that lasted 12 days along the treacherous terrains of Ladakh. Last week, they decided to talk about their trials and tribulations during the trip to an assembled group of more than a hundred at New Delhi’s International Habitat Centre, and offer suggestions to those who would like such trips for the thrill of it.

With four Qualises, a Land Rover and a Gypsy readied for the trip, and everyone raring to go, the team started out from Manali, and went towards Rohtang Pass that was their first stop. They had planned to go to Leh via a lot of picturesque surroundings, lakes and towns, until they felt like the bravest jeepers on earth, and then to Kargil and Srinagar, and back to where they belonged.

Thirteen adults and eight children, some of whom were going to such heights for the first time in their lives, are not easy business. A three-week med course that two of the ladies, Koko’s wife Anu and their resident photographer, Ipshita Baruah, had taken about six months before the trip was taken, came in handy. The medical team was obviously a great value-addition, for they discovered soon enough what heights could do to plains-dwellers, including turning accident-prone.

Also, they were taking no risks. “We asked for multiple medical opinions and scanned the net for safety precautions for days before we took the trip. We didn’t want to put anyone, especially the kids at risk,” says Koko. Their research informed them that lots of fluids and a carbohydrate-rich diet was the trick to health in the hills, and if that was accompanied with lots of exercise, the altitude didn’t stand a chance of taking you down. Also, they decided to take it very slow, planning two-day halts in most of the places they were camping, which would help them acclimatise better.

However, as is the case when 21 people get together, disaster struck soon enough. After a later-than-planned start from Manali, they realised that that could be quite an unwise thing to do, for the ice starts melting as the sun goes up. At one point down the road from Rohtang Pass to Serchu at 14,000 feet, where they would camp for the night, they were faced with a steady running stream in the middle of the road. And one of the Qualises got stuck in the water, got unstuck again and somehow made it across, only to find that one of its more photographically-inclined travellers was stranded on the other side. After a lot of cajoling, one of the vehicles had to go back and get her, thus losing a lot of valuable time. But everyone felt these were occupational hazards.

But when they got late in reaching Serchu, where they hadn’t even booked tents, and the light started failing, there was enough reason to panic. For one, the terrain, all rock and no vegetation, however fascinating to look at, was extremely inhospitable. And no one wanted to be stranded in a jeep on their first night in the hills. They reached Serchu all right, but the children had all acclimatisation problems like headaches, nausea and disorientation. That’s where the medical team helped them with Combiflam and a lot of comfort.

A subdued lot made their way towards Leh the next day. But the ride was one to remember. For one, the barren surroundings were as fascinating as it gets. And some of the places they visited, for example the famous lake Tso Moriri, with its sparkling waters and green vistas, where they stayed for two days or the brackish-waters of Tso Keh, will remain in their memories forever for their beauty. And the journey to the Nubra Valley from Leh is what everyone would rather pay through their noses than miss, and they did go, despite the extra charges.

Everyone was fascinated by one thing or another. Teenager Himali Soin thought the monasteries were symbolic of the tour they were taking, for she felt that the monks lived like family there, and so did their entire crew of 21. The gumfas and the flat stones with the Budddist mantra “Om Mani Padme Hom” inscribed on them all along the road also caught her fancy.

For Ipshita Baruah, it was a mixed trip as she broke an arm and had it on a sling, and her husband fell off the raft and had to be rescued when they went whitewater rafting. But then, her daughter Troyee had the unique opportunity to celebrate her ninth birthday at 14,000 feet.

Some in the group left at Leh, and others continued towards Kargil and then down to Gulmarg and Srinagar, where the temptation to act like regular tourists was so great that they stayed in houseboats for a couple of days before making their way towards Delhi again.

The group still meets once in two months to ruminate over their trip. “We’re not forgetting this in a hurry,” says Koko as those assembled at the Habitat Centre rise together to congratulate them on their unique adventure.