Day 8, Landslide area, Kah, 11,801', H.P., India	©Bill Holter

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8) 8/25/99 Start ride: 7:45 AM Chango to Jangi Ride: 7.25 hours total Miles Ridden: 47 Start Altitude: 11,998 ft. End Altitude: 7,500 ft. Up at 5:30 am, and on the road by 7:45 am. We climb up for 10 miles through landslide zones, high above the river. Dawa is worried about the area and wants us to keep rolling. We stop and carry the bikes across a rushing stream that crosses the road. It is a very dangerous spot for trucks or cars, because of the shear drop-off to the valley below. A few months earlier, just beyond this spot half of a village disappeared down the mountain! Suddenly there is fresh pavement. Twenty miles of downhill switchbacks, into the steep-sided narrow canyon below. I tuck and blast down the mountain with a top speed of 38mph. I could have gone faster, but the switchbacks are treacherous, full of broken rock, and if I miss the turn, I better have a parachute! We pause on a corner to allow everyone catches up. As we wait, a jeep pulls up, its occupants get out, take a seat, and politely stare at us from twenty feet away. The circus has come to town, and it is us! Below, the road is carved out of the side of the mountain. The river is black and boiling. Just around the corner another river cascades down from a snow peak that is shrouded in clouds. The road surface has been warmed by the sun and my tires make a sucking sound as they leave an impression in the tar. Soon, serious headwinds hamper our progress. I come out of a side canyon at 25mph, turn into the main valley, and am suddenly pedaling furiously to maintain 8mph on a steep downhill! The wind is like hitting a brick wall! At one point, it is like a hidden hand that grabs my front tire and pushes it to the side, as if I turned it that way! The ride ends with some uphill sections. I begin to see trees again. We camp in an orchard between the road and the river.