So we had just a couple of days in Srinagar which was a good thing because it was bloody freezing! Braving the cold we went for the compulsory Shikara ride on the lake but opted for a shortened one hour version which in the end we shortened still further! Anyway it was all very pretty, here are our feet relaxing!

That’s the last picture of my boots, the next day the sole fell off one of them!

The lake was certainly scenic and must be a dream in Summer:

Anyway after fifty minutes we decided we’d be warmer walking and had the Captain drop us off, here’s the Captain:

After the lake we went to the Old Town:

 Spot my glove finger!

The next day we went to see the most famous of Srinagar’s several mosques:

Non-Muslims were only allowed to look through a small viewing window but the sight was amazing:

We left Srinagar at about 10.30am for the drive back down the valley, all went well for a while but then it started to snow and suddenly we were caught in a huge traffic jam:

We soon discovered that although many Kashmiris don’t speak English they all know the word “Jam”! We went from one jam to another, the common feature being that everything stops with vehicles completely filling both lanes (so four lanes of vehicles in two lanes!) and then ensues a prolonged period of jostling vehicles to create small gaps to release the jam. This is happening all the way up and down the jam at the same time. An aerial view would be fascinating!

Eventually you reach the front of the jam and head off to the back of the next one – all day long! In the end the police closed the road completely and said that everyone would have to stay where they were until morning!

Luckily we were well equipped so we just put the roof up and made the bed! We also enjoyed a couple of wonderful cups of tea courtesy of the Pifco mini water boiler our dear friends Derek and Tillie had the foresight to lend to us.

The next morning came the morning meeting during which I discovered that many people had spent the last two nights stuck on the road so we were lucky!

Then, at 8am, we were on the way again – but only for a few kms before we hit the next jam!

You can see in this picture both lanes taken up with southbound traffic and, just ahead, both lanes taken up with northbound traffic! The pile of bricks on the right became a serious block to progress so I manhandled the entire pile off the road. The Kashmiris remained enthusiastic spectators throughout whilst Leishia wisely stayed in the car with the heater on reading her Kindle!

We managed just 30kms in four hours but eventually we reached Patnitop where the worst snow had fallen:

We crested the pass and were soon on our way down to warmer weather, and no more jams – so things were looking up.

Or were they? On the way down the pass there was a massive bang and the left rear wheel locked up. Two very kind guys, Tariq and Zeeshan, kindly gave us a lift the twenty kms into Udhampur where we set about finding a solution:

So there we were back with Mrs Anoop for another night, luckily she had excellent contacts and the next morning I was on the way back out to the vehicle with a repair team. I did consider this place but ruled it out!

Another guest, Tanveer, offered to translate so he was in the team too! Here he is midway through the fault diagnosis:

The first problem was the locking wheel nuts (you might remember the Southampton rogue had relieved us of the special socket). In the event they came off with ease and the problem revealed itself (non-techies please switch off here):

 a cracked brake disc

 a loose piston in the calliper

 and a stripped brake pad

We’re not sure why the failure occurred, the most embarrassing possibility is that the pad was just worn down and the metal backing damaged the disc but the other pad still had lots of life in it.

Whatever the cause the problem is the same – we need new discs, new pads and a new calliper or at least a new piston. So now the fun starts, sourcing those parts. For now the left rear calliper has a new home in the back of the vehicle and we plan to hobble to Amritsar to talk with the Toyota dealer there.

So while all of you are with Family and Friends enjoying your Christmas lunch we will be sourcing spare parts! What Joy! Fortunately it’s not Christmas here!

So best wishes to you all.

And a very special wish for little Samuel and Roman, my new Grand-sons who were born last week weighing just 3lb 9oz and 1lb 13oz!

 Samuel Roman

Congratulations to Debbie and Christian, their very proud parents, who themselves will be spending Christmas day in the High Dependency Unit!

Ian & Leishia

xxxxx