Bus journey in unexpectedly brilliant surprise shock!!!! The most awesome scenery ever. Looking out of the bus window, the Himalayas seemed unremittingly huge, and around here the mountains are small in comparison with the Karakoram and Nepali giants. The journey was pretty relaxed, with lots of stops for chi and snacks. Some bits of the road were well scary, especially with a window seat. Plenty of roadside cragging opportunities, which the Indian Army seem to be moving in on. At Kargil, the halfway stop, we slept a few hours in various guest houses before regrouping at 4 am for Day 2, most of which was through barren scenery - we're on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau now.

Note to self: write details to Alexei Sayle and David stafford, in case they ever update 'Great Bus Journeys of the World'. The no. 37 from Barnsley to Chesterfield just fell off the scale.

It's hot in Ladakh, and for a desert, atypically warm at night. The locals reckon global warming is having an effect, to the extent that last July the Monsoon penetrated as far north as Zanskar and Ladakh for the first time ever - they had to chopper out loads of soggy trekkers, stranded mid-trek in the hills. The pattern looks set to repeat again, as the passes opened early this year - there certainly wasn't much snow in evidence en route from Srinagar.

Been meeting interesting people (Mad Ken the Aussie Pharmacist, Jim the Hyper, Five-Year-Photo-Mission-Mike), having fun and good conversation. There are loads of internet places, decent food and no hassle, so reckoning on staying here for a few days and checking out a few monastaries and monuments before going trekking.