Part 1: Introduction – Planning – Preparation

First of all, I would like to thank BCMT, with the help of whom and only through them I got my co – bikers to join our debut ride to the Mecca of bikers – LEH. We started with our trip to Leh on 20th July and were back in Delhi by 31st July, a real short span of time but I enjoyed it to the fullest as my longtime dream of a visit to Khardung La had come true. The credit to make this dream trip possible goes to my three fellow riders; who were not known to me till the day of the trip but now are my best buddy riders. The fellow bikers who explored Ladakh with me in Old Monk style were Neeraj Chaturvedi, Arun Kumar and Vijay; there was also a guy named Shailendra Singh Chauhan who happen to join us just before Srinagar but later took a diversion and went to Upshi and we headed for Pangong Tso. 

Before the trip I used to read through all the travelogues and forums to gain more information on the trip and would also check the images posted by the fellow riders who went to Ladakh; had to prepare for the trip both physically and mentally.

Knowing your fellow riders is the most important part of the trip, though we used to talk and chat about the trip almost every day via the phone. So a day prior to the trip I first met Neeraj and accompanied him to pick up Vijay and Arun who were flying into Delhi on 19th July. They were to land at around 1pm in the afternoon but did not; they had missed their flight as they were late by a mere 5 minutes and were not allowed to board the flight. But crazy as these guys were they paid a further amount of Rs.10, 000/- and got tickets on the next flight, because they knew that the experience gained on the trip that they had decided to embark on would be priceless. They somehow managed to reach Delhi.

Everyone knows that Delhi is famous for its traffic and mouthwatering street food, the first thing that we did was to give our fellow friends a taste of the mouth – watering food, we gave them Gol Gappe as they needed some spicy snacks to eat. 

On the way to Lakshmi Nagar from IGI airport they experienced the worst traffic jam, which for me and Neeraj was habitual. After reaching Lakshmi Nagar the most important thing to do was to collect their bikes as it had already reached Delhi through Gati courier. Once we got the bikes collected we parked them in the parking space of Lakshmi Nagar metro station and went to drop Vijay and Arun to the hotel which had been booked for them for a night stay.

Finally the D Day had dawned; we had planned to drive off during the night, so early that morning I took Vijay and Arun for a metro ride. We went to Karol Bagh to buy bungee cords, chain lubricants and some other necessary accessories. After having purchased most of the stuff required for the trip we went back to the hotel room. Later I and Arun went to Carabin Adventures at Okhla Phase 2 to rent sleeping bags and tent. We took a 4 pax tent and 2 sleeping bags as Neeraj and Arun had their sleeping bags with them. We gave them a security amount of Rs.5000/- as the charges for the tent was Rs. 80/- and the sleeping bag was Rs. 20/- per day. 

After lining up everything for the journey I went back home, freshened up and got ready, bags were packed earlier itself. After a little prayer with everyone at my home I headed to the hotel room where Neeraj, Arun and Vijay were waiting to embark on this dream journey. As for every rider this is a moment of excitement overflowing in them as it was the debut ride to the world’s highest motorable road.

We started winding up everything, geared up with our safety armors, a final check up on all the machines. While installing our saddle bags came the first hurdle, Arun’s bike started behaving crazy as its accelerator throttle was working towards the opposite direction. With the help of Neeraj’s friend we managed to work on it and got it repaired. Now we were all ready to hit the road.

 

Part 2: Trip Begins – (Delhi – Jammu – Srinagar)

We topped our fuel tanks at Delhi itself and our first halt was at Karnal to have a midnight dinner of spicy parathas and chai. Later we took a break at Ambala as we were dehydrated, after having some glucose water we chit-chatted for a while over the bridge, rested for some time and then again resumed the ride. 

Early the next morning we were in Punjab, how can one avoid the speciality of that region stuffed parathas and chai.  In Ludhiana we stopped for breakfast which was none other than the traditional parathas with curd and local pickles accompanied with a steaming hot glass of tea. We realized that we were riding too slow and taking breaks quite often, so we decided that there would not be any major breaks from this point on, we would stop only for lunch and then directly in Udhampur which was our first destination. 

 

I always love to ride through Punjab as it gives you a feeling of how rich this state is, its lush green farms spread through miles and miles are really amazing.  But driving the whole night and throughout the entire day under the sun is really tiring, we reached Pathankot at around 2 o’clock and Vijay was really exhausted so we halted at a dhaba for lunch and had some dal, roti and sabzi; there were a few truck drivers too. As we were tired we rested in the dhaba for a while, I sat outside the dhaba chatting with the truck drivers discussing about the route and road conditions further ahead. 

After resting well we decided to continue with the ride and stop at Udhampur only, by evening we crossed Lakhanpur Border and entered Kashmir. The feeling was awesome but soon after a few miles I met with a small accident, there were pebbles on the road and my bike slipped through them. A fellow biker who was riding towards Srinagar helped me get up and a Kashmiri guy who was riding a bullet speeded ahead and informed my friends about the accident, all of them came back to check on me. Since I had worn all the safety gears I dint get hurt much just a few scratches, I checked the bike too and it looked fine; so after thanking all the people who had helped me we continued with the ride. 

The sun was setting and it would be dark soon, we took the bypass road so that we could reach early but the road was horrible with a lot of gutters and manholes around. Juggling through this way we somehow reached Udhampur by around 6:30 pm in the evening. We managed to get ourselves a room at Hotel Kanishka, as we were all tired we freshened up had our dinner and were off to bed. 

We had driven a total of 600 kms in a day to reach Kashmir, my bike started acting weird as it was killing the battery; with a dead battery even a kick – start was not possible. Thanks to my co – riders who pushed me through every time the bikes battery went dead. 

So as per our plans, we had to reach Srinagar that day as I had booked a houseboat on complimentary basis since I work with a travel firm. As we started towards Srinagar we decided to have breakfast enroute as we did not want to waste much time. So after some driving we stopped near Kud and had our brunch, meanwhile we were in contact with Shailendra who was supposed to meet and join us on the ride. At last we meet Shailendra somewhere near Banihal, before the Jawahar tunnel, we took a tea break and then headed towards Srinagar. Around Jawahar tunnel photography was restricted but still Shailender managed to take one while riding. 

 
After we crossed the Jawahar tunnel we got to see the majestic Kashmir valley it was really beautiful, the valley floor was bright green with farm vegetation. Moving ahead one will surely realize why Kashmir is called as a “Paradise on Earth” and I would like to add that no other title will replace this green mesmerizing beauty. 

From this point on there were soldiers at every point, everytime we stopped to take a break in a group, a soldier used to approach us. Most of the soldiers we came across were from Tamil Nadu which was also the hometown of Arun and Vijay, so these guys would always strike a conversation with the soldiers in their mother tongue. Since it was nearing sunset some 55 kms before we could enter Srinagar we witnessed an awesome sunset which we captured in one of the DSLR camera that belonged to Neeraj; but we lost the same and only realized it once we reached Srinagar. Once in Srinagar we got in touch with one Mr. Irfan who was the manager of the New Maharaja group of houseboats, he offered us rooms in their heritage deluxe houseboat at Nagin Lake. The houseboat was amazing but the lost DSLR camera was still on our mind, so after having dinner we drove back to the spot we had used the camera the last time. We reached by midnight but could not find it. We came back to the houseboat by around 03:00am tired and depressed, entered our rooms and fell asleep.

Part 3: (Srinagar – Kargil – Leh)

After a good night sleep our very first morning on the houseboat was truly awesome. The New Maharaja Houseboats was a well preserved heritage property and the interiors looked royal indeed. Well – equipped with carpets and antique products around the rooms, these houseboats will really impress you. The boat itself has a lot to explore and a stay on this houseboat is worth every penny truly an unforgettable experience. After a day’s stay in the houseboat we bid adieu to Srinagar and headed towards Kargil in the afternoon. We halted at Sonmarg and had lunch in a Vaishno dhaba. Sonmarg is really beautiful with its eye catchy panorama. We could not stop ourselves from lying down in the lush grassy slopes and see the mountains kissing the clouds, streams of small waterfall added beauty to the mountains.

After crossing Sonmarg, we reached Zojila pass, something daring awaited us for the first time. The road was really scary, it felt as though a landslide could occur any moment and ruin our entire trip. From this place we could see Baltal, which is a halt destination for all the religious Amarnath Cave pilgrims. The crossing of the Zojila pass was a herculean task, time was running out and the military people around there had asked us to leave as it would be getting dark soon. We somehow managed to cross this mighty pass and hit the concrete road again, we thought we would reach Kargil safely now but Arun’s bike got punctured. We somehow managed to repair it but unfortunately it was dark soon. During the day time everything seems smooth and nice but the nights out here are like a nightmare, pitch dark and shivering cold. We needed help at this point of time, we spotted a military base camp a few meters ahead and upon requesting them they willingly helped us. It had always been my childhood dream to join the military and serve the nation, so that moment of being amongst these soldiers cannot be forgotten. They offered us an amazing dinner of dal, egg curry, rice, roti, potato curry with tinned pears and kheer. This trip gave us an opportunity of staying at the military camp as well and experience the hardships that these soldiers go through each day to protect the country.

The mornings are even more freezing as Zojila is one of the coldest places on this route. We packed up our stuff, tuned the bikes, changed the engine oil and were off to Kargil. 

On the way while riding we came across many military camps, as Arun and Shailendra were far behind we decided to halt at one of the military training camps. A Jawan approached us and asked if we would want to try rock – climbing with them to which we happily obliged, but unfortunately the training session ended too soon and we never got our chance as they packed everything off. But they offered us a cup of tea alongwith pakoras which were delicious, after chit – chatting with them for a while we started driving towards Drass, still there was no sign of Arun and Shailendra. We stopped for lunch and while placing the order the remaining two reached the spot and we got to know that Arun’s bike had got punctured. We picked up a lots of biscuits, chocolates and milk from Drass itself because just in case anything went wrong on the way we could atleast survive on the food stuff that we had carried as it would be night soon and finding a place to stay on this route was not that easy.   

So after having lunch we headed to Kargil, enroute falls, the Kargil War memorial. Vijay lost his bike keys over here but later found it in one of the pockets of his own jacket. As you step up to this war memorial, you can actually see the Tololing Hill and Tiger Hills in the backgrounds which were captured by the Pakistani army. A visit to this place makes one go short for words on how much we are indebted to the men in the Indian army who laid down their lives to keep our country flag flying high.    

While crossing Kargil we stopped for a while at a village after seeing Kumanis (a local fruit in Kashmir) and apples blossomed on the trees, plucked a handful of Kumanis and resumed our journey. At Kargil we all refilled our petrol tanks and just after crossing Kargil village there started fresh tarmac and the road was awesome, with quite amazing landscape at the background as different shapes of little peaks attracted all of us. After crossing Kargil, you will start noticing the drastic change in the lifestyle, language, housing structures, human race, almost everything changes. The long pehran, Kashmiri gown will give way to the red and yellow monk dress. The Kashmiri and Hindi language will change to Ladakhi. Everytime we met people on the way from here on they greeted us by saying “julley” which means ‘hi, hello, namaste’ in Ladakhi and that too with a smile on their face. The religious belief change from Muslims to Buddhist; the changes one can explore and feel during this journey can’t be explained and the beauty which we experienced can’t be described.

Our next destination was Lamayuru, but we could not make it as we were riding throughout the day and taking big breaks to rest. When we reached Mulbek we took a break and decided to have some steaming hot maggi and tea. During this break we got to meet some fellow riders who were coming all the way from Leh and where basically from Delhi, we discussed our plans of moving further on our way but they advised us against it and told us to stay at this very place for the night. But we were really eager to move further as none of us wanted to stay back so we continued.

It was really scary riding in the dark with not a single person in sight; above all we just could not see anything much around. We thought of hoisting our tents somewhere around but could not take the risk of staying at this unknown location so we rode further. We started feeling sleepy so we were taking regular break to avoid dizziness. Soon we came near a small village named Heniskot; there was a military camp there but nobody in it. We then thought of going back at the entry point of this village as we had seen a small shop there with lights in it. Luckily we found a guy in that shop and he was preparing tea. We had some tea and requested the shopkeeper if we could put up our tents around his place as it seemed secure. He agreed to it but also informed us that after 7pm there was usually no electricity around that place. Meanwhile adjacent to that shop there was another shop which looked like a small building, the shopkeeper told us that it was a small sports club and people used to play indoor games there. When we spoke to the care – taker he let us stay there, so we parked our bikes safely, went inside the room, got into our sleeping bags and fell asleep immediately as we were very tired.

All of us were very excited the next day as we were to reach our ultimate destination, we packed up all our stuff, had some tea and after biding a goodbye to the care – taker we drove towards Lamayuru. As we left quite early we reached Fotu La Top quite quickly. We came across many Army Convoys on this route. This route truly displays the road sense of hill folks. None of them were trying to overtake the other; nobody even dared to try overtaking or blocking the road for the oncoming traffic because they know very well that even if a single person does something foolish, the entire road gets blocked for hours and if the guy is the less fortunate one he will surely rest in peace for acting smart. 

                                
     
    
At Lamayuru we had our lunch as early as possible and continued towards our destination. Near Nimmoo we rode through amazing tarmac, it was a straight long road with astonishing panoramic views. We clicked a lot of snaps there, these roads were a first experience to all of us and we drove through them merrily. This road leads to Magnetic hills, and there is only one board showing the direction, if you miss noticing the board you miss the famous Gravity hills, which is also popularly known as Magnetic hills. Here the layout of the surrounding land produces the optical illusion that a very slight downhill slope appears to look like an uphill slope. 

After that we headed towards Leh, the moment we entered Leh, the feeling was just nostalgic, our long awaited moment had just come true on 24 July 2013. By around 3 pm we reached Leh and immediately rushed to the DC office to get our permits for Nubra Valley and Pangong Tso Lake. We completed the necessary formalities and got our permits, we were now free for the entire day.  We then headed towards Mariyul guest house; this place was suggested by the fellow riders whom we meet at Mulbek. 

Part 4: Leh – Exploring the Mecca of Bikers

Mariyul guest house is located inside the town of Karzoo, a very peaceful surrounding with beautiful flower gardens and the pathway to this homestay is adjacent to water streams, which was quite impressive. After check - in we freshened up; as Neeraj and Arun were totally tired they stayed back at the hotel. I and Vijay went for an evening walk, the local market was flooded with restaurants serving Tibetan and Indian cuisine and shops selling artifacts and jewellery and the famous hand woven pashmina shawls, each stall has something interesting and unique to offer. This happens to be the hang-out place for most of the tourists and the only place in Ladakh where you get to see a crowd. 

We wanted to taste the original Ladakhi dish so went to a restaurant at Changspa Road and ordered the special Skyu pronounced like "Skew" which tasted like pasta made with wheat flour dumplings and cooked with vegetables. After some window shopping we had samosas from the street; luckily we found a café so we went in and started surfing the net and made a few calls back home. It was almost 9 pm and we had completely forgotten about Neeraj and Arun who were waiting for us at the hotel without having dinner. We hurriedly went back to their rooms and found them still sleeping. We rushed to the market once again to get them some dinner but all the shops were closed. We somehow managed to find a small general store which was open so we bought biscuits, juice and Maggi cup-o-mania. After the two had their dinner we chatted for some time and then fell asleep.

Early the next morning, we were ready to explore the highest motorable road. We took only three bikes, I accompanied Vijay; and Neeraj drove with Arun, Shailendra rode his bike by himself. We had our breakfast at North Pullu and then continued with our drive upwards, the view was really awesome. I and Vijay were the first to reach K-Top i.e. Khardung La Pass, Arun and Neeraj reached much later.  At the top there is a military canteen and there they offer a complimentary glass of tea. After clicking some pictures we headed down towards Nubra Valley but because of the high altitude and uneven weather conditions we were tired so rested at a military shed. It started snowing there, as we had left our tents and sleeping bags at the hotel itself we decided not to head towards Nubra Valley because if we got stuck at any place it would be impossible to camp. So we immediately headed towards Leh and by evening we had reached our hotel. We rested for a while and then after freshening up we went shopping and had dinner at a local restaurant.

The next day we were visiting Pangong Tso Lake, but the main road of Leh was blocked as His Holiness Dalai Lama was visiting there so we took an alternate route. We first went to a garage to do a quick service check and to tune up our bikes as mine was having trouble with the battery and the pick – up was very low. Once the mechanic was done with his work we left for Pangong Tso. As we had started quite late we reached Pangong Tso when it was already dark. We could not see clearly because of the darkness but somehow managed to locate a few tents near Pangong Tso, we too installed our tents there but with great difficulty because the winds were too strong. We had picked up dinner from a nearby dhaba, so we had our dinner inside the tent as it was very cold outside. We were successful in lighting up a campfire outside the tent, we sat near it chit – chatted for some time and then went back in our tents and fell asleep. 

Early the next morning when we got out of our tents we realized we had camped very close to the Pangong Tso Lake, the view was spectacular. We wanted to take a dip in the waters, but voted against it as the waters were too cold and beyond our imagination. Later after having some tea and snacks we headed back to Leh and by evening we had reached our guest house. After freshening up we again strolled around the market place and spent some time shopping as it was our last night in Leh, the next day we were heading back to Delhi.

Part 5: Drive back Home (Leh – Delhi)

After checking – out from the guest house we had a quick sightseeing of Leh including Shanti Stupa, Hall of fame and Leh Palace. Our target was to reach Kyelang but after exploring the Leh city sightseeing we realized we wouldn’t make it to Kyelang so we changed the plan and decided to have a night halt at Debring. It’s a valley, or a no man’s land, nothing in and around this place just plain landscape. We stopped at a dhaba named Urgain, it’s actually a house but they serve meals and also provide beds for sleeping especially for bikers like us. We had a wonderful evening here the old couple were very friendly and hospitable; we had some tea and snacks and rested for a while. Slowly but gradually the temperature was beginning to drop and it was starting to get very cold; at the start of the trip we had all decided that we would not be drinking during this entire drive but the weather was so cold out there, that when the uncle at the dhaba offered us a peg each of Old Monk we guzzled it down quickly and went to sleep immediately.  

Next day after a good breakfast we headed towards Manali, this route is actually barren land with very few inhabitants, only a few villages fall on this route, but the journey via this route is completely calm, serene and relaxed. We had to cross places like More Plains, Pang, Sarchu, Lungalacha La, Nakee La, Gata Loops; these places cannot be described in words but can only be experienced with the naked eye.

With rain clouds looming over our heads we rode continuously for around 4 hours and then halted at Bharatpur for having some tea and maggi. We crossed Baralacha La Pass, the villages of Darcha and Jispa and reached Kyelang. We were all very tired and decided to stop some place and rest but couldn’t get proper accommodation. Somehow we managed to sleep for a few hours in the hotel where we had our dinner. 

We started off early the next day and headed towards Manali. We had our lunch near Khoksar; from here the road is divided into two; one heads towards Manali and the other one towards Kaza, headquarters of the remote Spiti Valley in the western Himalayas, that day itself we decided that our next trip would be to the Valleys of Spiti & Kinnaur and the trip was successfully accomplished two years after the Ladakh trip. Travelogue of the Spiti and Kinnaur trip will be updated very shortly but let me first finish the write – up for this trip.

We were getting closer to Rohtang pass; the road had turned quite bad due to the rains as there was mud everywhere and because of this there was a huge traffic jam too. We somehow crossed the Rohtang Pass, from this point on we saw a lot of families, couples and groups crowding the place, guess they were out for their respective vacations. We stopped at a small village named Marhi where we clicked a lot of pictures. We later crossed Manali; we did not want to spend time here as the place was very crowded, so we drove all the way to Kullu and stopped for dinner there. We had decided that we would not be staying at any place for the night instead would be driving non – stop to Delhi. 

Driving the rugged terrains and driving the smooth highways make up for a completely different experience. A non – stop drive all the way to Delhi was actually not possible as we were all feeling very sleepy, so we were taking breaks at regular intervals. 

As Delhi was getting closer Ladakh seemed to be vanishing away, but all good things have to come to an end. A free bird also needs a home to return too, it was Delhi at last. Arun and Vijay had booked a hotel room for themselves; I and Neeraj went back to our respective homes. The next day we helped Arun and Vijay courier their bikes back to their hometown and then dropped the two of them at the airport, a wonderful end to a wonderful lifetime trip. Back to routine life, back to the busy schedules. It took me eight long years to pen down this blog of mine, the lockdown because of the ongoing Covid – 19 pandemic actually gave me the time to write it all. Now surfing through all the photos and remembering all those bike trips makes me nostalgic. Those were the days, living every moment as it came.

Eight years down memory lane, all that I can say again is,
“The Mountains are calling and I must go”.

 

Hi, am Wilson Tom and I really love to travel. I love writing on different destinations around the world. I started writing blogs in 2010, and have been loving every minute of it. Travel to me is a never ending experience; it’s a personal journey that embarks an experience of new perspective, new realizations and new learning in different places. Here I am providing my experience about Bike Trip to Ladakh. So if you are planning for a Bike Tour or an Adventure trip, Leh Ladakh is the perfect place for you then. We at Trinity World Holidays, offer you Best tour packages to Leh both group and customized. You can call us on 1800 266 5588 or visit our website www.trinityairtravel.com