A place I had hoped to come

The sign outside the guesthouse welcomes us to the last village in India. Outside our window is a glacial river valley, stretching off to high white peaks, and behind them, Tibet. We are almost 3600m high.

There is little vegetation owing to the altitude, and although there it a lot of running water, it also feels quite arid. The air seems to suck moisture from your throat, leaving it dry. Pale rocks litter the mountain sides, fields and terraces down to the river.

The village is old, and many of the wooden buildings must date back several hundred years. There is some fantastic carving on the doors and panels, and the generations of smoke, oil, animal grease and weather has aged the wood into a rich dark patina.

There is both a local temple here, similar to the one in Sarahan, and a watch tower as Suzy described.

We are staying in a traditional wooden house, arranged round a courtyard, with fantastic views up the valley. We ate in a small stone kitchen and are now huddled up in the light of a 40watt bulb.

We are not sure of the exact temperature; we are huddled up in thermals and fleeces so we are guessing below zero, but it is difficult to be sure. Our rooms though are cozy and we have lots of blankets so we will be warm tonight.

It is wild, remote, beautiful and exactly the kind of place I hoped to come.