[saikarthik]

Leh! Everyone knows the name in the touring community, everyone’s dream to ride the paradise, the destination & the path. With this dream, I always wanted to ride to Leh, on my own bike, which came true after long years of craving and 3 months of planning. Myself and one of my friend started on the heavenly trip on our bikes CBR 250R (mine) & Impulse.

I was so excited & hesitant at the same time to write this up here, that is because I had a 14 day trip record hand written journal with every awe-spiring moment & I lost it. In time, the excitement overcame the hesitation and here am writing this travelogue as in my memory.

We started preparing for this trip 3 months back from the date of Journey, and well I have said that already, haven't I? Despite all the preparations, my bike had an engine problem just 2 days before the day of departure. With great difficulties got the bike ready, just the eve before the D-day. Phew, I felt RELAXED! Boy we were so excited, that we knew it’s difficult for our brains to avoid thoughts bombarding and get deep sleep. I told my friend that we need to leave as per planned time to avoid Delhi traffic. So, alarm up.

Next day morning, my saddle bags on the bike & ready to leave. I started ringing him up, he doesn't pick up. The bugger slept off. Arghhhh.. We started an hour late.

Finally everything in place and we rode 10 kms from our home and tak takkkk tak. My gear shifter link-rod came off. Panicked me, trying to see what the problem was, by god’s grace it was just the thread of link rod which came off. I tightened it (cursing the service mechanic tough). And we started again. Our plan was to reach Murthal for Breakfast. We reached there at 10: 30 AM, had some nice paranthas with desi makkan and left for the road.

No pictures on day 1 as we were late already. We took few breaks just to hydrate & de-hydrate and of course food. We came across beautiful roads once we entered Punjab, people were nice, started asking about our trip and few of them even invited us to their homes to have tea seeing us like this,

Yup that's the friend I was talking about who slept off!

Hmmm, let me get back to where I left. Our target was to reach Jammu on day 1 (From Bhiwadi), but we made it only up to Pathankot. It was getting dark and we had to purchase few stuff, so we took it as a day.


DAY 2:

Target - Srinagar
Start - 6: 30 AM.

We woke up and had a quick breakfast and tea. And at the night we had shopped off what we needed, so we started the journey again. We were expecting good day as we were about to enter the northern most state of India. We took a decision to bypass Jammu and reach Udhampur using a short-cut. Locals said the road is good, they were right. It was good road according to them, but it was full of trucks carrying quarried rocks and we lost precious time in that road. When we were almost exhausted, there was a tea shop out of nowhere. We stopped by and had some tea and a quick smoke for my partner. That place was so green and remote with just one shop, quiet. PEACEFUL!

After the tea, back in business. Ride on. We got out of the shortcut & got to the highway. We were picking up some pace and reached Batote, where we took our vehicles into a garage and got fixed my gear shifter leaver and some brake adjustments.

The mechanic we met was like a nomad, who would reside in a town for few months and move on to another and repeat it each year. He even had an Enfield modified as R1, strange but good job though.

We closed in on Anantnag was good twisty climb, and we saw the first view of Kashmir valley. From this moment we were awestruck and words fall short, even photographs.

Panorama of a turn. Nice apex(s).


Beauty at first sight

We passed through a 5 km tunnel, was a wonderful feel seeing our flags every 200 meters which opened us to Srinagar. We reached late, found a decent hotel and went off to sleep, as we need to get ourselves ready for the first pass on the route - ZoJi La.


DAY 3:

Target - Kargil

Day 2 just gave us a teaser of what Kashmir would be like, with lot of excitement, we started day 3. 1st stop was Sonmarg beside the river stream crossing a wonderful forest block. Had nice breakfast -> softest bhatture ever had, and tried local delicacy called "Kashmiri Kuzhur" Wah!

This time I started writing my logue, sitting by the side of a flowing stream, cold but bright whether with tummy full.

Me recording the moment!

With our faces full of grin, and at the same time *Gulp* thinking about the Zoji la, we geared up and cranked the engines. we reached ZoJi La and mid-way of the climb, traffic Jam. What???? Yup there was rock fall and some ice on road, dozers were clearing the road. there were so many cars, stuck and we waved past them till we could. There we met few bikers, some were kids with passion but no gear, funky helmets, some were impatient.

Traffic jam

But noticeable were F650GS and Africa Twin. Two Europeans were touring the world and we met them, they were interested in our impulse and we had some similar interests on which we talked about. We waited there 2 hours, so we got along well. We were touring with them for next 2 days catching up once in a while.

Finally the traffic was clear and we topped the first pass on the circuit and the feeling of being on the pass is wonderful even if its a difficult climb.

ZoJi La humbly let us pass.


On route to Drass.

The roads started getting bad and then worse, breaking our backs. I was foolishly carrying a spare Michelin front tyre strapped on to saddle bags which kept poking my back, and wow the migraine started playing its part the altitude, dust, bright sun just tested me. Suddenly, my friend honked heavy and I stopped, he then pointed out the saddle bag was rubbing against tyre when the suspension is on full travel and the petrol can (plastic one) started leaking from the saddle. We emptied the can into fuel tank, arranged bags and kept going.

Reached Drass and I learnt the Kargil memorial is just on route, so we took a break and went in. As soon as we started seeing the stories on the walls, names of the martyrs on board, we were emotional, and I forgot about the headache. Lost into a deep feeling and respect. Looked upon the Tiger Hill.

The memorial

We started our ride to Kargil with different mindset now, was confident and at the sometime roads got better, well laid tarmac, marked with reflectors and barricaded sides. I was sweeping the corners in dark and my friend switched off his useless low beams (just parking lamps for the safety of being visible to others) and followed me blind. We reached Kargil in no time and found a bed and bunked. Had a tablet after dinner - Diamox & Vasograin, slept off!

[saikarthik]

DAY 4: Kargil to Leh

Finally our destination is just a couple of passes away (no disrespect), yes we started late after nice bread toast knowing that it’s another 250 odd kms. After a short ride for an hour we met the European guys again we took a tea break and had a nice chat. We started ahead of them and kept going when we saw a nice road, we thought of taking few pics, so we stopped at edge of the road, again foolish me parked the bike on sand & it fell. This time, it was the coolant hose to radiator which came off. We fixed it immediately and thank goodness only a little coolant was leaked and it was not that hot.

This was the spot.

Now gently riding ahead towards Namika La, and past we reached Fotu La (Highest pass in Srinagar-Leh route). To our surprise we met another biker, this time fellow countryman "Leo". He had travelled to Leh from Coimbatore on his modified RE for the 7th or 8th time. We got amazed and even stunned when he said he toured China in a car & about his plans to conquer the world on this modified RE.

Mod using imported parts

After a brief chat and sharing some snack, we head towards Lamayuru. A distant view of a monastery looks barren and dusty. We got our prayer flags there and continued forward.

Lamayuru!

Then came the land of epic emptiness, dry, mile and miles of aloneness. We experienced crosswinds like never ever before. Scary but stupendous.

This is the screensaver on my phone till date

And then at the end of the epic road was the epic city of Leh, visible and taunting us. Every mile we ride closer, the feel of reaching the destination you waited for long grows restless. Am unable to put that in words. One has to feel it.

Farther side of Leh!

DAY 5: Leh

Take a day off! Yup, that's right. We took a day off to rest & acclimatize for the Khardung La. Found a nice hotel with Wi-Fi, contacted our parents and friends, ate some nice food, and repaired the bikes for the minor things. Roamed around in Leh palace, had nice street food in the evening, my friend did some impulsive shopping - a traditional dress he never wore till today. Just relaxed!

At the Leh palace

[saikarthik]

DAY 6: Leh - Khardung La - Shey -Leh

Big day, I'd rather say high day.

We started ascending and got caught behind line of army trucks. To their generosity, they let us pass by slowing one by one and leaving way wherever possible. We reached south Pullu, registered our names in check point and first time I felt my bike losing power due to altitude, on the other hand my friend's Impulse struggled to climb. We took some tools from army guys and removed air box cover; jet modified to lean the mix. Now it starts pulling better. No roads further, were just mud. A mild off-road fun. We reached the top, of one of the highest motor able roads. first things first, a warm black tea (the tea loses heat rapidly). Then back to clicking few pictures.

Not the highest motorable pass, but the highest we have been to. But a lot of people!


Imagine cycling at this altitude! Hats-off.

We spent some 1 hour on top (not recommended but we got carried away) and descended to Shey, attended a prayer ceremony in Thiksey monastery luckily. It was something out of this world. Then back to Leh and our room.

DAY 7: Leh- Pangong lake (Camping)

We left Leh heavy hearted as this was the return leg, but we hoped to enjoy more scenic but tougher Leh-Manali highway.
Reached Karu(Kharoo) and we filled up our fuel tanks, started for Chang La. It was one of the toughest climbs ever, loose dirt, boulders right in middle the middle of a ascending hairpin (U) turn & loss of power made our bikes struggle, especially my friend had to "push assist" (am going to trade mark it) the bike to climb. After enduring such climb, we had juice and tea on the top of Chang la, and then continued towards the lake. All the way one could see the beauty of the blue waters and the mountains.

Best Maggi ever had. Must visit - if it exists today.

We reached there by evening, we waited till the people left, we even assisted a stuck Scorpio out of the sand and then seek permission from a patrolling army soldier to camp on the bank alone. And we did camp where no one was there, but a frightening storm cloud with wind howling and it was cold.

Camping...








Storm clouds trying to swallow our bikes.




Mid-night beauty - Photo courtesy - My friend

The night was thrilling, scary wind throwing sand on the tent, cold as hell. We made instant noodles and tea ourselves. Morning when we woke up, the mountains were not snow capped, they were snow knee'ed. It was an amazing experience. Some passerby said to us - “You two must have big spherical objects of steel". I think, am following forum rules here

[saikarthik]

DAY 8: Chang la to Rumste

The day started with Ice cold lake water face wash, few sips of what had to be a hot tea but turned out to be warm one. Packed our tent & sleeping bags, tied them onto our bikes and started the descent. The ride was quite a different experience throughout the day, as the place and road kept changing constantly, putting our skills to test too.

I am riding in a magical paradise


then, sandy road with probably moon dust


Water crossing

We were relaxed as the day passed it got warm reached Karu and refueled the bikes and were riding slow as we had enough time to reach Rumste comfortably. We came across a sleepy little town with widespread wheat fields, dwarf cows grazing and few houses along the roadside. Then we realized we already reached Rumste.

We spotted a house and asked them for accommodation. We were surprised by the deal we got, 100 rupees per person for bed and food costed Rs. 60. We were given cozy beds with quilts and the room was decent, Food was simple yet homely. We rested the night with their great hospitality. The sun rose early, women were busy with their daily chores and hot water was waiting for us for bath. We had light break fast afterwards, thanked them for unbelievable hospitality.

DAY 9: Rumste to Darcha

The day is going to be tough; we were scared a bit. After all there were 4 high altitude passes to cross and 250 kms of roads which might be almost non-existent. In just few kms we started ascending to The Tanglang La. It grew cold in the morning, our visors get condensed if they were closed and eyebrows get frozen if visors were open. It was a difficult condition, the fingers getting numb, we need to seek heat of the engine to keep them fingers functional. But every km we ride, the views got better and better. There was snowfall on the top of the pass and luckily the road was good to the top (did not touchwood).

Road to the Tanglang La


On top of Tanglang La


My friend treating his eyes. Majestic view it was.

By the time we got down with a good feel the roads started getting gravelly and the rear tyres of our bikes started dancing. My friend spotted a shop, we had second break fast and carried our journey on.

Second breakfast


Entry to Moore plains

We then encountered different landscape - Moray (Moore) Plains, clear skies and endless land with some rivers and one place reminded me of a grand canyon (a smaller one though). The roads became part of the landscape, there was no path at few places but sand. It was kind of trial riding on sand finding our own path. We were doing good speeds and closed in for Lachalung La. Out of good times, we got our first puncture. My friend's bike's rear tyre got nailed! We tried to repair the puncture on our own, but the tyre irons that we had were too small. So, we waited for help on top of Lachalung la for an hour, no truck or biker passed us. Finally thank goodness an Israeli group of bikers saw us and stopped, they even helped us hands on to replace the tube. They were patient and friendly.

Then we rushed ourselves in tense, because we lost precious time and if it gets dark it will be difficult for us to pass the Baralacha La in dark. We kept gazing on to awesomeness of landscapes and passed Nakee la, just one more pass I thought. And I noticed my friend's rear tyre was losing pressure again, we pumped in some air and kept going till Sarchu for help.

Somewhere near Gata loops

We found few guys from Bangalore on REs and took their tools for fixing the puncture. This time we did it on our own, but the regret was the puncture adhesive tube burst and spat on my head. It was sticky, and I was worried that I may lose my hair (I wasn't married then) and need it for at least a year! I had to wash my hair in cold water 5-6 times, it was tough. Then warmed me with tea and some omelet.

Repairing the puncture @ Sarchu

It was getting late. We were scared a bit about crossing water streams and Baralacha La in dark. But we made up our minds and started.

Baralacha La ahead

We broke our backs crossing Baralacha La, we were too tired. But it was the tiredness which pushed us to find a nice bed for the night and we kept going, only few cars were ahead of us. We used them as safety cars and followed them blind, crossed few streams, it became pitch dark. Was difficult to keep up with the cars and the road seemed to never end. Finally, around 9: 30 pm we reached Darcha and found ourselves a nice stay and had food. Parked our bikes to safety and dozed off.


DAY 10: Darcha to Manali

The chains were too dry and dusty, needed a clean & lube. The day was slow, no more thrilling roads, towns got bigger and closer. But everything was green, mountains shining with mineral filled rocks. Vegetable fields spanned the plains, flowers bloomed. It wasn't cold but the breeze was soothing. We stopped and picked up few rocks of different kind, it was too diverse in a single place!

Then came the Rohtang La, the road ascending to the top was a nightmare. It was worse than Baralacha La, I was struggling to maintain 10 kmph average as it was full of big boulders and mud. But it was better for my friend with his Impulse. When we reached the top, we saw clouds were almost at reachable heights, snowy mountain ranges visible at a distance. The pass was full of flowers.

Rohtang Top


After reaching the top there was a fellow struggling with his new pulsar 150. The engine wont start, so we tried to figure out what’s wrong. After a while we saw all the engine oil was evaporated, and the engine had seized which was again due to locked rear brakes. So, we released the rear brakes a bit and asked him not to start and just call the showroom guy as it was their PDI mistake. It felt good helping a fellow biker. The road further was freshly laid and was awesome, we had lunch there and started riding into the forest. It was well marked roads with pines, just felt like we were riding in some Canadian county.

We reached Manali in few hours and started searching for a good hotel. We took the next day as site seeing in Manali and relaxed.


DAY 11: Manali - Relaxing

We literally did nothing except staying in a nice hotel and eating fancy food, going crazy with the menu.


DAY 12: Manali to Bhiwadi

What we planned as 14 day trip with 2 days buffer, could end as a 12 day epic trip. We started at 8: 30 AM, and the road from Mandi to Rupnagar was horrible, it was tarmac, but the truck traffic was heavy and potholes everywhere. It was a 300 km torture road which took till 3: 00 PM.
After Rupnagar, it was proper plains and we headed to Chandigarh - Ambala, we got too tired, dehydrated, and sleepy. By the time we reached Karnal I almost slept off on bike, it was time to get some nap and coffee. So, we stopped, slept for 30 mins, had some strong coffee and back on boring highway.

We entered Delhi outer ring road when it was 9 PM, all the horns, noises, impatient owners of the roads. Hated the feeling of getting into a city after being alone for miles.
We crossed Delhi and reached Bhiwadi by 1: 30 AM the next morning, a 16-hour ride. As soon as we entered our society myself n my friend had a smile at each other, high five n no words spoken. It was the best feeling I ever had before going to the bed.

And lastly, it was a trip that we will cherish for lifetime because of the learnings it gave and we were lucky to do it when there were very less paved roads.

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[shastryBLR]

In the world of 25 lakh+ advs, and planning routes with 3* + hotels passing off as adventure touring on youtube, this right here is the true adventure spirit.

Making do with what you have, and hustling through tough conditions for that sweet reward.

Well done- It was a pleasure reading this travelogue.

[SainiAvi]

Amazing and inspiring travelogue!

[gatsby_great]

What a refreshing read. Congratulations to both of you for this wonderful experience. Must have enhanced your love towards your machines. Very very well done!

[saikarthik]

Originally Posted by shastryBLR

I
Making do with what you have, and hustling through tough conditions for that sweet reward.

Well done- It was a pleasure reading this travelogue.

Originally Posted by SainiAvi

Amazing and inspiring travelogue!

Originally Posted by gatsby_great

Must have enhanced your love towards your machines. Very very well done!

Thank you all.

This trip was old (2013), before B.R.O ramped up many roads. So, there will be no such possible ride now and that's why I am fortunate to learn more. This trip boosted my will and skill to go on many rides. Will be posting few more threads on weekends.

[ScorpioYadav]

Originally Posted by saikarthik

This trip was old (2013), before B.R.O ramped up many roads. So, there will be no such possible ride now and that's why I am fortunate to learn more.

Ok, that is why I was wondering why you went via Delhi & didn't byepass it via the Rewari - Panipat highway or the Manesar - Kundli leg of the KMP highway.

Reaching Jammu on the very first day was a very ambitious target. in 2016, we went on the same trip from Jaipur in an EcoSport & reached Pathankot (as planned) by evening. Yes, we did start from Jaipur at 9 in the morning & had byepassed Delhi via the Rewari - Panipat highway. KMP was under construction back then.

[rahulba]

Loved reading your travelogue. It looked very raw just like the journey must have been back in 2013. This made me go back 4 years (in 2017) to memories my own ride to Ladakh on CBR 250 and a friend on RE Bullet 350.

Your expressions looked exactly same as we had during all our journeys. Thank for sharing this lovely memory and wish you many more like these in future too.

Off Topic - Below were the 3 reasons why I bought CBR 250 one year before this trip and the pain your friend had to go through with his bike still makes me feel good that it was the right decision to buy this bike (called Greyhound now) for trip.

1. Fuel Injection
2. Alloys (Tube replacement isn't easy as it may sound like)
3. ABS

[saikarthik]

Originally Posted by ScorpioYadav

Reaching Jammu on the very first day was a very ambitious target. in 2016, we went on the same trip from Jaipur in an EcoSport & reached Pathankot (as planned) by evening.

Yes, very impractical that time. But, it was planned on the basis of a previous trip with another friend where we covered DND flyover to Chandigarh in 2.45 hours and it was irresponsible riding (I was first time tourer in 2012) .

After the Chandigarh ride, I clearly made up my mind to ride safe for my own sake and others.

Originally Posted by rahulba

Off Topic - Below were the 3 reasons why I bought CBR 250 one year before this trip and the pain your friend had to go through with his bike still makes me feel good that it was the right decision to buy this bike (called Greyhound now) for trip.

1. Fuel Injection
2. Alloys (Tube replacement isn't easy as it may sound like)

1. Absolutely, though I was feeling loss of power in my CBR at certain altitude, there was never a situation where it couldn't perform.
2. Yes again. we spent hours to repair the tube, we didn't even take a replacement tube. The leg operated air pump was of no use in high altitudes, but the hand operated one was better.