Asia

[Visited: March 2024]

Starting out from Bomdila in the early morning for the drive to Tawang, I am looking forward to the literal highlight of my visit to Arunachal Pradesh: driving up to Sela Pass. We start out at around 2400 metres altitude, and the weather looks OK. Through clouds, we see higher mountains with snow on their slopes. We make a brief stop at a memorial for the Sela Warrior, with slogans about sacrificing one's life for the country, and see patches of snow on the ground around us. Higher up, we take a turn to the right: the last stretch of Sela Pass. The road is narrow, and the snow cover on the roadside quickly grows thicker. There is snow in the middle of the road as well: we follow the two tracks, and are just behind another car. Two motorists come down the road, and warn us to go back. But how could we, on this narrow road?
We pass a first bend, where we see all colours in the snow as it is Holi. At the next bend, the tracks in the snow stop. There are only footsteps in the snow, Sela Pass is just under ten kilometres from here. It is clear that we will never make it up by car today. I am baffled: why was there no sign at the turnoff that the pass is closed for traffic? My driver is able to turn around, the other car gets stuck. I help push it around on the slippery snow. On the way down, we see a row of vehicles, also vans, trying to drive up, and we tell all the drivers that they will never make it. Just a few weeks before, the Sela Tunnel was opened, and apparently the authorities don't bother to clean the road anymore. We follow the new road to the tunnel entrance, and drive through it - and find out there is a second tunnel. We make a quick stop at the Nuranang Falls before continuing to Tawang.
On our way south from Tawang, my driver tells me he will try to reach Sela Pass from the north. Soon after continuing straight at the turnoff for Sela Tunnel, we are surrounded by snow again. We see several small lakes, and a new layer of snow on the trees in the valley. To my surprise, the road seems clear, and indeed, we drive higher and higher - and reach Sela Pass at 4170 metres. There is a touching love story to be found here. The pass is named after Sela, the Monpa girl who was the lover of Jaswant Singh Rawat, a famous Indian war hero. Together with her sister Nura, she helped him in his solitary standoff against the Chinese army for three days. Eventually, Sela was killed by the Chinese, Nura was captured, while Jaswant died either at the hands of the Chinese, or because he ended his own life before they could capture him. The Nuranang Falls are actually named after the sister of Sela. I take my time to enjoy the enormous amount of snow which is higher than myself, and walk down the pass to a viewpoint of Sela Lake. I have to thread through a thick blanket of snow before the lake appears below me. All frozen, all covered in snow. With the cloud cover and the snow-covered mountains behind it, the views are truly magnificent. I meet Indians who have never seen snow before, and share their utter excitement. We end up driving down again (the south side of Sela Pass is still covered in snow), and take Sela Tunnel once more.

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Sela Pass (India)

Sela Pass > India > Asia

[Visited: March 2024]

Around the World in 80 Clicks