Expedition India 2:4

Before we even reached the start line, we still had one final journey ahead of us.

The last stretch from Sonamarg to Leh was only about 300 km, but despite the relatively short distance, it took us around fifteen hours.

We drove along narrow gravel roads carved into steep mountainsides, with wrecked cars lying hundreds of meters below.

I remember sitting in the back of our van, genuinely scared, watching the check engine light flash while trusting my life to a young Indian driver who seemed more interested in racing the other vans than getting us there safely.

At one point, a landslide had completely blocked the road, and we spent hours waiting while crews rebuilt the road.

I felt so content, photographing the remote Himalayan landscape and culture outside my window. Every turn revealed something new.

By the time we finally arrived in Leh, it felt like we had already completed an expedition

And yet, the adventure race hadn’t even started.