Rohtang Pass
| Rohtang Pass | |
|---|---|
 A view from Rohtang Pass |
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| Elevation | 3,979 m (13,054 ft) |
| Traversed by | Leh-Manali Highway |
| Location | |
  India |
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| Range | Pir Panjal, Himalayas |
| Coordinates | 32°22′N 77°14′E / 32.367°N 77.233°ECoordinates: 32°22′N 77°14′E / 32.367°N 77.233°E |
Rohtang Pass (Tibetan: Rohtang La, lit: pile of corpses[1]) (altitude 13,051 ft (3,978 m)),[2] is a high mountain pass on the eastern Pir Panjal Range of the Himalayas some 51 km (32 mi) from Manali. It connects the Kullu Valley with the Lahaul and Spiti Valleys of Himachal Pradesh, India.
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[edit] Geography
The pass provides a natural divide between the sub-humid/humid Kullu Valley with a primarily Hindu culture (in the south), and the arid/semi-arid high-altitude Lahaul and Spiti valleys with a Buddhist culture (in the north). The pass lies on the watershed between the Chenab and Beas Basins. On the southern side of this pass, the Beas River emerges from underground and flows southward[3] and on its northern side, the Chandra River, a source stream of the river Chenab, flows westward.
[edit] Overview
The pass is open from May to November. It is not particularly high or difficult to cross on foot by Himalayan standards, but it has a well-deserved reputation for being dangerous because of unpredictable snowstorms and blizzards.[4]
This pass is an ancient trade route between the people on either side of Pir Panjal. The local name for this pass is a generic name of pass.[citation needed] There are many other passes in Lahaul and Spiti which have specific names (Kunzam La, Baralacha La, etc.). This is suggestive of the fact that this must have been the oldest and most frequented pass in the region, or the fact that it is the main pass leading from one cultural region (Indian) to another, quite different one, to the north.
The road through the Kullu Valley, past Manali and over the Rohtang Pass to Keylong, and Lahul and on to Ladakh, has become very busy during the summer months as an alternate military route, following the Kargil Conflict in 1999 in addition to tensions in Kashmir. Traffic jams are common as military vehicles, trucks, and goods carriers try to navigate the tight roads and rough terrain, compounded by snow and ice at certain points and the large number of tourists vehicles. Partially due to the military significance of the pass, the Indian government began building the $320 million Rohtang Tunnel project in 2010 which promises to create a year-around link which is much safer and faster.[1]
Several episodes of the History Channel's Ice Road Truckers series spinoff IRT Deadliest Roads dealt with truckers crossing the Rohtang Pass to deliver supplies.[5][6]
[edit] Gallery
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A panoramic view of distant Himalayan peaks from Rohtang Pass,May 2009.
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Mountains near Rohtang Pass.
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Rohtang Pass, during winter on Leh-Manali Highway.
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Tourist Vehicles at Rohtang Pass, May 2009
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A view of Dhabas and Leh-Manali Highway on the way to Rohtang Pass, May 2009
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View from top of Rohtang.
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Traffic jam descending from Rohtang. 2004
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Polgreen, Lydia "India Digs Under Top of the World to Match Rival". New York Times. Accessed July 31, 2010.
- ^ "Rohtang pass geographical information". Himachal tourism official website. http://himachaltourism.nic.in/kulu.htm#roht.
- ^ www.himachalpradesh.us. "Beas River in Himachal Pradesh". http://www.himachalpradesh.us/geography/himachal_river_beas.php. Retrieved 2009-06-24.
- ^ Janet Rizvi. (1996). Ladakh: Crossroads of High Asia, pp. 9-10. Second Edition. Oxford University Press, Delhi. ISBN 019564546-4.
- ^ "Crumbling Roads". IRT Deadliest Roads. History Channel. October 31, 2010. No. 5, season 1. Retrieved on November 2, 2010.
- ^ History Channel USA "http://www.history.com/shows/irt-deadliest-roads" Accessed on February 28, 2011
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rohtang Pass |
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