Aid worker Andrew receives an apparent business letter by mistake and finds himself threatened by a mysterious group with a deadly objective. He and his English girlfriend, Kate, go to Sadananda, an old Hindu holy man, for help. The old man sifts through bazaar gossip and makes an alarming connection between a shadowy Englishman and the secretive group.
Meanwhile, Sadananda distracts them with tales of the ancient  Himalayas:  a vast lake that vanishes; the trials of the Buddha's chief disciple in the Great Forest on his way to the high Himalayas; and a fugitive Nepalese prince escapes death in Kathmandu and persuades the great king of Tibet to help him regain his throne.

Christmas 1959, Calcutta. Gerry is stranded in the Salvation Army Hostel. He meets Geoff, an eccentric loner. Only a few pounds between them. How to get to Europe overland? No money for a plane; no internet; no social media; no guide books; no useful maps; no ATMs; no clear options. Across  Asia to Europe by land. But  how? There are no hippies, no Hippie Trail. Nobody will even hear about hippies for another five or six years.  It’s all a bit chancy, really. But they give it a go.