Leh .. on Bikes

 

Leh..  It was dreams come true for 8 of us after days of adventurous riding, superb landscapes and most importantly, the AMS.

Day 1:

On 18^th June 2011 at 8 AM, 6 of us assembled near Coffee Day at BIAL to embark onto a journey of lifetime – to Leh. Off course the most prepared, expensive, discussed about, convinced about and planned journey. One more teammate was preparing to fly from Chennai at the same time and another was busy packing things at Delhi.

Landed in Delhi 11.30ish and Kitti from Chennai and Sudhi from Delhi joined us there. A Tempo Traveller was arranged for us and we requested the driver to take us to a hotel. Even after seeing us, he took us to a hotel which charged 80 rupees for a plain simple roti. So now you can imagine how much would have been the rate for other items. We googled on the price first and decided on the cheapest edible item J.

After lunch, we had to decide what to do till 6 PM. We zeroed on Akshar Dham temple.  When we saw the crowd in the unbearable heat, we understood that our choice was wrong. But we had no options left and we decided to move along with the crowd. It took two hours for us to come out of the temple complex drenched in sweat. Requested the driver to take us to some place where we can eat Delhi chats, and he happily took us to Connaught Place and told that we can find everything there!!!!

After painfully killing a few hours there, we were dropped in the HPTDC office to catch the bus to Manali. After an hours’ wait, we boarded the bus and started rolling towards the starting point of our biking trip, MANALI.

It took a couple of hours to exit Delhi and finally we were on open roads. I don’t know when I fell asleep watching ‘Ready’. Woke up when the bus stopped for dinner at a good restaurant en route. Had plain north Indian thali and the journey continued. Was half asleep and could remember the bus passing through   the narrow roads on the edge of deep gorges with lot of hairpin bends.

Day 2:

Woke up when the conductor shouted ‘Good morning! bus will stop here for 30 minutes’ . It was dawn and we were at a small roadside dhabha with still 150 more kms to Manali. After a quick fresh-up and a cup of coffee, our bus started again towards Manali.

We reached Manali around 8.30 AM. As soon as we got out of the bus, we were surrounded by the ‘helping hands’ for transport, accommodation, food, guidance and what not. Aravind had arranged transport to the hotel. We loaded the entire luggage on two vehicles with the help of drivers and moved towards our hotel in log hut area. The hotel was a 3 star property and was pretty neat and functional for a day’s stay.

Hotel staff was courteous and gave us early check in and not to forget, the much needed breakfast.  The open space adjacent to the front desk facing the snow caped mountains was a big plus and it helped us to spend time till we got our rooms. Kitti and Prashant tried their hands on the basketball while the rest of team settled in the chairs facing mountains with a cup of coffee.

Freshened ourselves and we were ready for the local site seeing in Manali. We went to Hidimba Temple and Rorich Museum. Had lunch in the cafeteria at the Museum.

 The ‘Real Trip’ began once we moved to collect our respective bikes. We were dropped at Anu Auto Works, who had a host of bullets at our disposal. We were asked to test the lot and select our bikes. After a lengthy test cycle, we selected 3 Bullet 500’s, 2 Bullet 350’s and a Pulsar 180. We tested them again and again and noted some minor repairs to be made. The mechanics there were very competent and they completed all the repairs by 6.30. It was dark and all of us left the garage. I was at the end of line and had Harsha as my pillion. It was the first time I was riding the BulletJ. Could not kick start the Bullet for 5 mins. I lost all my energy in the process of starting the bike and started panting. The mechanic came to rescue and taught me how to start a ‘Bullet’. After the advice, I started the vehicle and we moved. It was dark and I noticed one strange phenomenon in 50 meters. Whenever I pressed the rear brakes, the parking lights in the front used to come up and whenever I switched on the headlight, the break light used to glow. Called the mechanic again and he fixed the issue in 30 minutes. Now headlight was glowing when switched on and break light was glowing when breaks were pressed. In the meantime Aravind found that even his headlight doesn’t work. He came back to the garage and got it fixed.

On the way back to the hotel, entire Manali was chocked with return traffic from Rohtang pass. It gave us a good reason to why we should start early next morning. On the way back, we were getting charged with the imagination of next day and the thumping bullet. Initially it was a bit difficult for me to navigate my 500 through crowded Manali roads, but got used to in in minutes. Reached the hotel, had dinner and over dinner decided to leave at 6AM next morning. We were already tired with early morning flight and night journey of previous day. We all returned to our respective rooms and hit the bed dreaming about next morning. Next morning I came to know from Harsha that I started snoring immediately after hitting the bed.

 

Day 3: Most awaited day!

Alarm woke us up to a beautiful morning. After the morning routines, quickly finished the last minute packing. Everyone had two bags, one large baggage which goes to the support vehicle and one small day pack which comes with the bike. Hotel gave us packed breakfast. Our Guide, Mechanic and the Support vehicle with the driver were ready. Loaded all bags on to the support vehicle with the help of guide and the mechanic AND we were ready to roll. All of us assembled in a straight line with our bikes in front of the hotel for a group photograph.

Now, with the thumping heart, I kicked my Bullet. Nothing happened. Harsha asked to kick slowly with more torque. I thought ‘OK’ and then kicked it as per his suggestions. Yet again – Nothing Happened. I tried his technique again, then mine, then his, then mine and I could not kick anymore. By the time everyone except the support vehicle had left the hotel premises. Mechanic came running and tried again, bullet did not oblige. He did some minor changes to the air and petrol flow and the kicked the bull for life. I asked him if I can switch off and try again. And upon his ‘Yes’, I switched the Bullet off and kicked again, voila, it started contradicting Harsha’s expectations. Soon enough we joined the rest of the team. We reached the main road which would take us to Rohtang pass, our first high pass of the trip.

When we reached the bridge, Aravind and Ashwini suddenly remembered the day pack, which they had left in the hotel lobby. It took almost 20 mins for them to get that. We started our ride immediately after their return and it was a smooth road with snow gear renting shops on both sides. With occasional ‘black smoke vomiting’ tourist vehicles, the road was relatively traffic free for first 500 metersJ. After that it was a continuous line of tourist vehicles.  My past experience of riding in Bangalore helped me a lot to navigate through the traffic and keep going. After about 90 minutes of riding, we stopped near a bifurcation for a short break. Spent about 20 minutes there and started again. All this while the roads were good and I was thinking about the blogs and the travelogues I had read during the preparation stage which told that he road and the traffic is unbearable till Rohtang Pass. During our last stop at the bifurcation, we had decided that we will assemble again in a small seasonal settlement Marhi  for breakfast.

Guys leading the pack stopped at a dhaba which was slightly away from the road and we promptly missed them. We were still thinking that they were ahead of us and we kept on riding. Suddenly the roads switched over from good to bad and very bad roads. It all started with a crater like pothole which was one bullet deeper and 3 bullets wider. I stopped thinking what to do and took a couple of seconds to prepare myself to cross that crater.  I was shaken by the shrill horn of a DL registered Scorpio behind me and I released the clutch. With a jerk, the bullet moved ahead and only after I got into that pothole I came to know that it was also filled with knee deep slush and loose mud. It was an icing on the cake. I did not have any option other than opening up the throttle and navigate through that slush. Bullet did not let me down, but I had to keep my legs down to balance the bike and the new pair of ankle length shoes from Decathlon were covered with thick black mud paste all over. After crossing the crater I noticed that little bit of ice cold water also seeped in. Few hundred meters later the traffic was standstill and the local taxi drivers were telling that there was a traffic jam ahead. We were still thinking that our leaders have gone ahead and kept riding through narrow gaps between stationary trucks and other vehicles. There were also other biking groups doing the same.

Entire stretch was slippery with ice cold water streams flowing across and slush. Some places the slush was ankle deep. After some distance I started feeling the power loss, even after opening full throttle the bike was hardly moving. After a few meters there was almost a feet deep loose mud and slush and the bike refused to move even an inch. I thought of using the same earlier technique and opened up the throttle and started releasing the clutch slowly. Defying my expectations, the bike did not respond even after realizing the clutch completely. Engine was running, bike was badly struck, wheels were not moving and it was the first mechanical glitch of the trip. I asked Harsha to get down and push, bike did not move even a mm. I got down and both of us pushed the bike to the side with great difficulty. We were almost 500 meters behind the broken bus, which caused the traffic jam. Our support vehicle was 2 kms behind us struck in the jam and started raining suddenly.  All the while my Bullet was parked on the edge of the gorge and even a small touch would have sent the bike 500 meters below. After waiting for 30 minutes, we heard thumping noise and within no time we saw rest our team led by Kitti. Without bothering about water entering into his shoes, Kitti got down and helped us to push the bike to a safe place. It took a lot of effort and it was very tiring due to the altitude.

I was simply checking my mobile for any traces of signal and a line appeared. We tried calling our guide and voila, his phone started ringing. We explained him the situation and he said that he was just a kilometer behind us. By then Indian army troops started dozing off the slush and clearing the jam. There were a couple of trucks which got struck because of slush and overloading. Army dozers pushed them as if they were a bread box.

By now the guide and the mechanic reached us by walk. They did not have any tools and they returned in one of the bikes to get the tools. They came back with the tools and the problem was diagnosed as a slipped clutch cable. They fixed the issue and we were all set to roll.  While the mechanic was fixing the bike, we were joined by another biker gang from Bangalore. They requested for some help to fix minor issues with some of their bikes and our Mechanic agreed to work on them till the support vehicle arrived.

We moved on, leaving them behind and soon enough we were in Rohtang pass. Our first high pass was achieved with a lot of drama. It was full of tourists and everybody was playing in ‘black’ snow. Temperature was sub 5 degree centigrade and our riding gear was holding good. We did not stop at the Rohtang point and we continued our ride another 500 meters. We first sighted pure white show, spread as far as we could see. It was very chilly and wind chill factor also was adding to the difficulties. We stopped there and played around for few minutes. After the group photo, we moved from there. It started raining and riding became difficult. To add to that the road conditions worsened as we advanced.

After a few photo shots on the way, we reached a fresh roadblock. A huge chunk of snow had settled on the road blocking the traffic. Excavators were at action when we reached there. After some time, road was cleared.  It was very scary experience to ride on the ice. It was very slippery and sometimes loose. With great difficulty, we crossed that icy patch.

I looked into the watch for the first time in the day. It was showing 2.30 PM.  After seeing the time, I started feeling hungry.  Aravind said that there is a small settlement approximately 30 kms away and that will be our lunch stop. Slowly roads improved as we descended and riding a bullet through those winding curvy roads was fun. We reached a small village by name Khoksar and stopped at the first ‘restaurant’ for lunch. The hotel was a small warm tent with some broken wooden furniture inside. Menu options were chaomin, veg / chicken momos and Maggi. We ordered our respective dishes and the food was served shortly. It was nice and after a couple of plates we moved to the nearby government office for inner line permits. We got our permits without any delay and we proceeded towards our destination for the day, Jispa. The road towards Jispa was winding downwards along the side of River Chandra.

Our next stop was at Tandi, where rivers Chandra and Bhaga meet. And also this little town boasts of the last petrol bunk for next 365 kms. We re-fueled our bikes and filled 2 jerry cans of 40 L each with petrol, for our journey till Leh. After a group photograph, we moved towards Keylong, which is the last major township till Leh.

The next 30 kms ride to Jispa was an unforgettable one. Most of the road was well asphalted and almost zero traffic from opposite side. Road was winding through a green valley between sky scraping mountains with ice cap reflecting orange sunset hues. It is a biker’s delight. I, Krishna and Prashanth raced against each other for some time and it was a fun. In the meantime it was dark and Aravind’s headlight fused. Two of us moved in slow pace and he followed us with his parking lights on. We reached our destination of the day, Hotel Ibex, Jispa by 7ish in the evening. Parked our bikes and checked in to our rooms. Rooms were good considering the location. After a hot bath and nice food we slept for the day.

Surendar, our mechanic, serviced all bikes and fixed all issues we had reported.

Day 4: Toughest day, Most beautiful views, challenging terrains, AMS and many more!!!

When we woke up, we noticed how beautiful the surroundings were. Mountain peaks behind our room were shining with early morning sun rays and the Bhaga River in front was almost frozen. It was very cold and the hotel had no water. When asked, hotel staff told that locals cut the pipeline due to some disputes. We finished our breakfast and left the hotel at 7.00 AM (off course without bath!!) with packed lunch. We had to cover ~200 kms on second day.

After an hours ride, the road conditions deteriorated and Prashanth felt that his rear wheel is wobbling too much. Myself and Harsha were with Prashanth at the end of the convoy and we pulled aside to wait for the backup vehicle. Backup vehicle arrived in 10 minutes and Surendar started his work. He found that the rear bearing was the culprit and replaced that. The whole process took about 40 minutes and in the meantime a huge herd of sheep crossed us. It was covering the entire road and was at least 500 to 600 meters long. We moved ahead and we were on the way to Baralachala climb (16000 ft) The roads were good and some of us zoomed ahead, myself and Kitti lead the pack and were ahead by a few hairpin bends, somehow one of us noticed that the rest of the team was not following us. We stopped and noticed that all of them had taken a stop few curves behind us. Tried to exchange the information by few shouts, but nothing was clear. Finally they passed the message with some other biking team that Prashanth’s bike had the wobbling problem again and the rear bearing had to be replaced. This incident took another good hour from our schedule and needless to say, we were behind the schedule.

Few more kilometers and some more hairpin bends and we were riding in a narrow road with huge snow walls on both sides, few more meters and it was beautiful scenery unfolding in front of us. Suraj Tal. It was heavenly. Sorry, I do not have words to explain the beauty. The photos will do only 10% of the justice.

We spent about 30 minutes there for photo sessions and to have our packed lunch. We left the place with heavy hearts and everyone took an oath to themselves that they will come back for sure. We rode few kilometers downhill and reached a plateau  and stopped. Now we realized the mistake we did, AMS had started taking its toll, Prashanth was the first one to feel nausea and giddiness.  Prashanth chose to travel by backup vehicle and Surendar (Our mechanic) rode his bull. Kitti, Myself (and Harsha) and Surendar lead the pack and we reached Sarchu ahead of rest of the team. Had Maggie, Roti and Daal in a tent and we took rest there till rest of the pack arrived. The team took about an hour to reach the tent where we stopped. Later we came to know that they went to a resort en-route to have light refreshments.

We left Sarchu post lunch, and it was bright and sunny. None of us were in our best spirit. After riding hours through all sort of roads we reached another plateau at around 6 in the evening. Even this place had some tents. Again Kitti and us were leading the pack. We waited in the tent for 30 – 40 minutes and there were no signs of anyone from our team approaching us. Finally we heard the bikes and came to know that even Sudarshan is down with AMS. Since there was no one to ride the bike, it had to be loaded on to the jeep and that ordeal took them sometime. As per the suggestions from local people, we took Sudarshan to a nearby military camp for treatment. There he was given oxygen for an hour and some tablets. This was at ~13000 feet altitude and we were panting like dogs, but still could not get all the oxygen we need.

We should APPRICATTE THE HOSPITALITY SHOWN BY INDIAN MILITARY TOWARDS TOURISTS. They provide emergency treatment, stay and guidance to whomever in need. Salute to our friends in INDIAN MILITARY.

The story of the day is not yet over. Our destination of the day was about 40 more kilometers from this place.  We bid adieu to Military Camp and stared our journey. The road ahead was taking us to higher altitude in loops. Soon we were in More Plains, the world famous plains. But none of us were in a condition to enjoy the scenery. Soon it became dark and al turns seemed to be the same and our guide was guiding us by his sixth sense and intuition.

Because of the thinner air and reduced oxygen levels, I was not even able to think properly and my reflexes were below zero. I was blindly following the red light of the bike in front of me. Road ahead of me had two different levels, I took the lower one and Kitti in front of me took the higher one. I tried to follow him by going to the higher level and bang, that was the first fall. Backup jeep behind of us took a screeching halt and I saw the driver and guide getting down and running to us.  It too 20-30 seconds for me to realize what happened. Then I saw Harsha slowly getting up and checking himself. Fortunately no major damage, both of us and the bike was ok. Surendar started the bike for me and we continued.

The road disappeared in front of us. It was knee deep white sand. All of us were struggling to keep the bull in control. After searching for an hour, we found a board that read ‘Pasture Land’. We thought that our agonies are over, but were not. It was a couple of kilometers away from that board. Somehow we managed to reach the camp. Our energy meter was well below zero. As soon as we reached the camp, the caretaker refused entry for us, giving the reason that there was no communications from his superiors about our bookings. After a few minutes of arguments, he let us in with a condition that we will have to pay for the stay by cash next morning. It was around 9.45 – 10 when we reached the camp. Kitti, Aravind and the guide helped everyone with their luggage. They literally carried the bags into every tent. Kitti’ s energy starts when everyone is exhausted.

We agreed and the drama started.  Caretaker refused to switch the generator on, giving the reason that the ‘Foreigners’ will wake up. Aravinda and Kitti gave him ‘full peace of mind’ and asked to switch on the lights, which he did after listening what he had to J. Dinner was nice with Rice, Chapati, Dal and Some vegetables. We had dinner and tried to sleep. It was cold, windy and everyone was feeling asthmatic because of oxygen levels. Don’t know when I slept.

Day 5 : Chalo Leh

Woke up to a beautiful morning. It was 5ish in the morning. Walked out of the tent and it was a sight to die for. Grey colored mountains all around with ice caps shining to the rays of morning sun. Spent some time in watching the scenery around and took some photographs. 

Even this day started without water. Reason was frozen pipelines. The caretaker gave us rationed warm water for the morning chores. By the time everyone woke up, it was 7ish. Prashanth and Sudarshan were still not feeling well. Had our morning tea and settled down on a breakfast table which was kept outside. Camp in charge came again and asked us to vacate the table because ‘foreigners’ like to sit outside. And that’s it, with that he broke Kitti and Aravinda’ s happiness that morning. It took half an hour for all of us to calm down two angry young men who gave complete list of ‘mouthful’ blessings to the person  in charge. Needless to say, he served us breakfast outside.

After breakfast we were ready to move and the third drama of the in charge unfolded. He said that we will have to pay in cash for our last night’s stay.  When Aravind asked him to get the list of booking, there was the name of agency (Wilderness Experience) which booked the tents in our name. But this guy was adamant to agree and he wanted to talk to his manager. Finally Surendar took him to a nearby village / military camp (20 kms) so that the caretaker can call and confirm whatever he needs.

After completion of entire ordeal, we left that sick place forever.  The place was really beautiful. After riding for a couple of kilometers on the white sand, we reached the main road which would take us to the destination of day, Leh. We continued our ride through More plains, descended to an altitude of 10000 feet.  And it was Harsha’s turn now not to feel well and sit in the jeep. He joined Sudarsan and Prashanth, who were already in the jeep.

We reached a place which was still 40 kms away Leh. We had our Lunch (Maggie, Roti, Dal) , took some rest and started our ride. Now Harsha shifted back to the bike.

We reached Leh (Ladhak Sarai) be 5 in the evening. Walked in to the resort like ‘Ghost Riders’ with our helmets in hand. As soon as we reached we were treated be hot Chai and Pakoda. But it took some time for the thumping sound to go away from ears.

What an journey it was, 3 days, 500 kilometers and so many experiences. Would love to do this stretch again (and again) if time and budget permit.  J .

We settled in our rooms and took rest. Had nice dinner. Leh being at 8000 feet, oxygen levels were ok for most of us.

Day 6 : Rest Day

We took rest on day 6. But Prashanth’s condition was not improving.  He was admitted to a local hospital for treatment (to take Oxygen). Doctor said that it’s a common phenomenon and asked us not to worry.

Krishna left to meet one of his friends working in Army and said that he would return after two days. Even I planned to leave with him, but I had a second fall after a couple of kilometers, which broke the gear lever of my bike. Fortunately nothing happened to me. I was shaken by this and opted to return.

Went out to Leh town and got the bike fixed.

All inner line permits were arranged by Aravinda for our remaining part of the journey.

Day 7: Khardung La – The highest pass in the World.

After a nice breakfast, we left to the K Top, which is about 50 kilometers from Leh.  Road was nice considering the altitude, though it was not smooth at some places. Bikes with a pillion (Mine and Aravind’s) bikes were struggling to pull the load due to lack of oxygen in the air. Also they were emitting thick black smoke. In a couple of hours we reached the K Top. It also hosts world’s highest cafeteria and souvenir shop. Took the customary photographs and bought the souvenirs. We spent approximately an hour on the top and returned to the resort for lunch.

In the evening some of us decided to roam around Leh Town. We visited the Hall of Fame and a couple of monasteries.

Day 8:

Went for a boring rafting in Zansar river for approximately 10 to 12 kms. It was more of a boating in Ulsoor lake than a rafting.

Returned to Ladhak Sarai by 2 PM and had lunch.

After some rest and a quick chat post lunch, we left for shopping in Leh town. Went to some shops and bought few items for people at home.

After the shopping we went to a local tea shop to have tea, samosas and hot jilebis. It was good and had different taste.

Prashanth had returned to the hotel by the time we returned and was raring to go to Pangong next day.

Came to know that our friendly manager at Ladhak Sarai had cancelled the booking at a resort nearby Pangong Lake by mistake and we had no accommodation for the next day. After a quick discussion we agreed on a plan B, which turned out to be far superior to plan A.

Plan B was to carry camping material and camp near Pangong Lake.

Day 9: 8 idiots to Pangong Lake.

All camping material was loaded to our support vehicle and two more people (a guide and a cook) joined us in the same vehicle.

We left in the morning after a good ‘South Indian’ breakfast. Pangong Lake was approximately 120 kms from Leh. We passed through some grass lands, dry planes and winding roads. Had our packed lunch en route and continued.

Prashanth was in full swing and Kitti gave him a good company. It was hard to catch them when roads were good. We had the first glimpse of Pangong Lake around 4 PM. It was a sight to see. It was looking like a mirage from distance. We rode further and arrived at the 3 – Idiots spot. It was heavenly. Our camping site was still ahead and as it was nearing sunset, we were hurried to move on and we started riding after few photographs. We started from the lake and road started disappearing slowly and at a stream it disappeared completely. From now on, we started riding on the tracks left by other vehicles. Even these tracks were full of boulders and it was very difficult to ride on them. After a couple of kms on such terrain and many stream crossings, we reached a small village and found a camping site. One of the home stays there let us camp in their courtyard for a small fee. That place was nice and more importantly, had a toilet.

Our guides, driver and the cook setup the base tent by the time we reached the camp and they were ready with hot tea and pakodas. We finished them to the last piece and started exploring the place. Area was still bright and sun was about to set. Lake was shining in front of us with the background of huge grey mountains. All of us took our Facebook profile pics and roamed around. Our guides were setting up the North Face tents and 4 tents were setup in total.

It was an electric environment, sunset painted the whole surroundings in different shades and Lake was promptly reflecting the entire drama. All of us returned by just before it was completely dark. Our cook had prepared hot soup with some paapad and all of us assembled in the main tent and settled in a corner. We spent time in chit chatting about the trip so far and pulling each other’s leg.

Had a nice dinner of roti, daal and vegetable curry. Spent some time in enjoying the nature around. Whole village had no electricity and it was pitch dark with few solar powered lights here and there.

Went into out tents and slid into our sleeping bags and it was a good night’s sleep. Sometime during night we felt huge water drops falling on the tent accompanied by strong currents of wind. But it did not stop us from enjoying the warmth of our sleeping bag.

Day 9: The last day!!!!

Woke up with the heavy heart as this day would be the last active day of our trip. Packed our things and had a breakfast of bread and fruits. Guides and the rest of the team folded the tents and packed everything into the backup vehicle.

Few photos and we were back on the same gravel filled track. We stopped near the lake and spent a couple of hours in photographing the scenery. Took some group photos and started back. Stopped near a green patch to have lunch. And rode back to Leh in one stretch.

Reached Leh by 4 PM and checked into Hotel Kaal. Surendar immediately started to dissemble the bikes to load into the pickup truck.

Had dinner in the same hotel and retired for the day.

Day 11 : B2B – Back to Bangalore

Normal non-exiting and gloomy day. Omni drops us to Leh airport. After a super heavy security check, we were inside the airport. Boarded the flight to Delhi. Landed in Delhi. Took a flight to Bangalore. Landed in Bangalore. Took a Meru cab. Dropped Harsha en-route and reached Whitefield.

 

So …. The trip is over, but the memories are so strong that I am able to pen down a travelogue even after 14 months.