The journey over snowbound Tanggula Pass is an
epic in itself, more so coming at the end of a long drive. The
pavement ends at the bottom of the pass and the road becomes a
muddy, slippery, rutted nightmare. A recent snowfall carpets the
ground. Some horses nuzzle the earth, seaking forage through the
thin layer of snow (right). Higher up the snow is thicker, a
white blanket that covers the 20,000'+ peaks of the Tanggula Shan
(left).
A traffic jam blocks the top. The road crews have been working
on the road, putting down concrete. Consequently the road is only
one lane wide at the summit. Northbound and southbound truckers
sit in their vehicles out of the frigid wind, facing one another
about 3 m apart with their engines off. One has placed a
triangular warning sign with a red exclamation point in the
passenger side of the windshield (below right). They show no
signs of being interested in breaking the deadlock; neither one
wants to back up to where the road is wider to allow the other to
pass. The leading northbound truck is towing a trailer and
doubtless the operator doesn't want to attempt to back down the
narrow road, which like so many in Tibet is raised above the
surrounding countryside.
A driver sits reading a book in one of the stopped
southbound vehicles. A woman dressed in a drab olive greatcoat
and fur-lined hat, holding a small red flag, is evidently in
charge of traffic control. She stands beside the road, evincing
little interest in breaking the deadlock.
We get out and walk up to the pass. A sharp cold wind blows
from the empty slopes and the film of water on the concrete is
starting to freeze. Tanggula Pass is 5231 m (17,160') high. While
we take pictures at the summit monument, a chunky granite statue
of an heroic PLA soldier, our Tibetan guide is busy talking with
the traffic control woman and the drivers of the other vehicles.
After a while, to our surprise, the buses start to move. He has
told the drivers that we are an important American delegation and
that it is vital that we get to Amdo. Apparently he also has
informed them that they'd all freeze to death if they spent the
night at the top of the pass. Whatever he has said, it has
worked! The trailer has been detached and rolled back down the
road. The other northbound trucks have started their engines and
reversed just enough to let us pass.
