Off the beautiful, beaten track

Nam Co (Lake) is a big attraction for tourists and Tibetan pilgrims alike.

Tibet's natural beauty leaves Bidisha Bagchi awestruck as she moves away from the crowds to discover crystal-clear lakes and winding mountain roads.

To understand and feel the beauty of Tibet, you need to venture out of the city - far away from the maddening crowd - to explore the wilderness on the "rooftop of the world".

We woke up to a crisply cold sunny morning and we were ready for our day trip to the Yamdrok Co (Lake) - one of the holy lakes of the Tibet autonomous region and one of the largest freshwater lakes in the foothills of the mighty Himalayas.

Driving along Quxu county, with the graceful Yarlung Zangbo River meandering by our side, was a visual treat. In fact, this was the old route to reach the lake, which is far more scenic than the new expressway.

En route, no one can miss the colorful carving of Nietang Buddha on the mountain cliffs of the same name. The carving is that of the Sakyamuni avatar of Buddha, painted bright orange and decorated with hundreds of prayer flags.

We stopped to take some photographs before continuing our drive.

The scenery along the Lhasa-Gyangze-Xigaze route changed at every turn.

Sometimes it was only the rugged peaks around and sometimes it was the jade-green water of the Yarlung Zangbo River flowing quietly through the rocks.

The steep and winding mountain road climbed higher and higher until we reached the Kambala Pass, one of the highest passes in Tibet.