A brief outline of the dull bit: arose as planned at 05.20 for 06.00 start, to travel 475 miles, estimated 15hr journey. Went straight to bed on arrival, climbed in at 05.18. No breakfast, lunch or dinner at all! Pretty stressful day. However, we travelled through amazing scenery. The first section, via Miran, Donglik and Bashkorgan to Huatuguo, led first across a lengthy plain, seemingly pure white sandy desert but in the dark! In daylight we began to climb through beautiful, warm, rounded bare rock mountain scenery, with a mostly frozen river trace running beside us; in summer it must be spectacular, flowing in full flood. We climbed to reach 7,500 feet by 1pm, where there was a police throatpoint. The scene at that point, sadly, beggared belief – the filth and chaos was simply indescribable,
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