The First Seventy Years: 117 - Oppressive Heat
...We resorted to waking at 4.30am and be on the road by 5.15am just as day broke. By 9.00am it was starting to become uncomfortable as we followed the River Indus upstream. We took advantage of the many small waterfalls and pools but by 1 pm we called it a day...
Eric Biddulph continues his bike ride along the Karakoram Highway.
Eric’s book The First Seventy Years can be obtained for £10 by contacting http://mary@bike2.wanadoo.co.uk or telephoning 01484-658175.
All the cash raised by the book goes to a water aid project in Malawi.
Despite the steady climbing each day to higher altitudes the heat continued to be oppressive. The solution was to rise very early and stop riding late morning. We resorted to waking at 4.30am and be on the road by 5.15am just as day broke. By 9.00am it was starting to become uncomfortable as we followed the River Indus upstream. We took advantage of the many small waterfalls and pools but by 1 pm we called it a day.
In the hotel we stood with our bed sheets under the shower and then lay on our beds under the fan, such was the heat. The next few days saw this daily pattern repeated. To add to our problems we experienced two punctures and I developed the 'runs'.
We eventually arrived at Karimabad in the beautiful Hunza Valley. Situated at 2500 metres above sea level and surrounded by 8000 metre mountains we were at last able to enjoy pleasant temperatures. Now able to avoid the early morning starts we continued to the small settlement of Passu at 3 000 metres. We were now in the land of glaciers. Chills rather than heat exhaustion were the order of the day. Arriving at the border town of Sust we learned that it would be difficult to ride into China over the Kunjerab Pass at over 5000 metres above sea level. Although the Pass would present a major challenge it was the refusal of the Chinese authorities to give us licence to ride which was the main obstacle.
Accepting defeat we hired a jeep and driver to take us to the summit and rode our bikes back down to Sust. Although disappointed we accepted that the only way we were going to get into China was to store our bikes in the hotel in Sust and catch the daily Chinese bus on its two days journey to Kashgar.
The drop from the top of the Pass into China was largely uninspiring until we reached the overnight hotel at Taskurgen. We had read about Lake Kalikuli as being worth a visit. Our request to be dropped off met with a firm "it is not possible" response from the receptionist at the government owned hotel. We made a pact that if it proved at all possible we would get off the bus at the Lake with or without permission.
