[motomaverick]

which month did you go last time that there was so much snow on K-top? Also the road to Turtok looks asphalted and wonderful. You did not try the resort in Turtok that the IPHE team stayed if i remember correctly.

[aviorp]

Originally Posted by motomaverick

which month did you go last time that there was so much snow on K-top?

It was around the same time, last year too. Friday, September 16th 2011 to be exact. I might probably never forget this day.

Also the road to Turtok looks asphalted and wonderful

Absolutely. Its only till Khardung, say about 20-25kms from K-Top, its muddy and slushy at some places.

You did not try the resort in Turtok that the IPHE team stayed if i remember correctly.

I stayed there the last time but staying in Turtuk is a problem if you're planning to visit Pangong. Its around 320Kms. This was a mistake I did last year. I should have come back to Leh and then gone to Pangong. So, this time came back to Diskit, so I can go to Pangong and come back to Leh. This saved a day, that I lost during the landslide in Tiyari.

[Shandy1981]

Originally Posted by aviorp

Here is the video.

Watched it all the way and thats about the only way one should watch this

Great travelogue and some pretty good driving and photography skills you guys have got.

Couple of questions, is a 4x4 must for the route you guys took and, that road, is there ever any oncoming traffic

Also, great job by those people manning the land movers, thankless job and they still do a exemplary work given the conditions

cheers!

[aviorp]

Originally Posted by Shandy1981

Watched it all the way and thats about the only way one should watch this

Thank you.

Great travelogue and some pretty good driving and photography skills you guys have got

Thank you

Couple of questions, is a 4x4 must for the route you guys took and, that road, is there ever any oncoming traffic

No, 4x4 is not a must, but it might be an advantage. Having done Leh twice, 2WD is good enough. Nope, dint come across any vehicle in the opp. direction. Lucky I guess.

Also, great job by those people manning the land movers, thankless job and they still do a exemplary work given the conditions

[aviorp]

Day 15 : Sep 1st, 2012

Route : Diskit - Khalsar - Agam - Wari La - Shakti - Chang La - Durbuk - Tangtse - Lukung - Tangtse - Durbuk - Chang La - Shakti - Karu - Leh -> 410 Kms

Couple of pics of the hotel we stayed in Diskit





We left Diskit around 6.





Stopped at Khalsar for breakfast,



Few pics enroute to Wari-La!













When the sun comes out,



This place just turns blue!



One of the straight stretches before Agam,



Time for a group pic,



It was boring to see these barren places,



So, we decided to have some fun



This is no fun!



I was telling them,



this is how it looked last time,



This bridge is still under construction. Not much a difference since the last time,





This place was completely covered with snow,



Here is a video of the same stretch, the last time

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EmEn...ature=youtu.be

Then, the place where I got stuck. It was terrifying the last time,





What a contrast!



Final good-bye to the place that scared me the most.

[aviorp]

Through HVK sir's forum, came to know Suyash and his friends were travelling to Leh as well. I met them in Diskit. Since, we were all tired, we decided to catch up the next day and what a place we found to hang out



Suyash (squatting) and Gaurav with 2 others had come from Jabalpur (MP). This is what I so love about travelling. Divided by borders but united by passion.



This board is gone too



Enroute to Shakti,







The famous sign boards at Shakti,





As we were having lunch,



We met another traveller, Chris, who was from Switzerland,



This is what he has done so far in the past 3 years that he has been travelling. An unsung Hero!



After bidding goodbye to Chris, we headed to Pangong. Enroute to Chang La,





The famous Z



Chang-La!





Huge set of prayer flags,



Not much snow this time.



Bangalore boyz! Feels so good to talk to someone in Kannada in a place like this



He loves kissing the beauty,





Sati, lost in thoughts. He always wore a t-shirt that resembles the place. Quite a fashionist.



4 shades of Pangong and 2 beasts!

[aviorp]

We must have seen about 5 to 6 shades of Pangong this time. If the sun goes behind a cloud or hill, it looks like this.



So, we decided to drive further,



and I decided to do some offroading



My favourite pic of the lot. Thanks to my wife.



The blue we love the most,



Failed attempt to click those birds,







Looks spectacular from far,









Its all barren on this side,



but its just beautiful on the other.



I dint quite know that this would end up being our final group pic,



Heroes stuck in IT,



You can never get tired admiring this,



One way to take pics,



Heaven on Earth? This is it,









One pic for our album,



We bid goodbye this beauty around 6,



We had our dinner near Karu and reached Leh around 10. Badari, Sati & DJ, decided to leave the next day due to their personal commitments. It was quite a sad end to this wonderful day for me. I dint quite expect that, as I was hoping they would do both Hanle and Tso Moriri together and we would part ways near Gramphoo as originally planned.

Badari then came with an idea that he would drive back via Srinagar and go via Rohtang pass. I told not to, as he would end wasting a couple of days and there was no fun in going back in the same route. Since, I knew how Rohtang is based on my previous experience, told him not to worry as there would be someone or the other to help him even if he gets stuck. He did get convinced and decided to go via Manali.

In all this drama, I noticed my wife wasn't feeling too good. So, I decided to take an off the following day, roam around Leh and see the Ladakh festival. However, nothing went according my plan.

[aviorp]

Day 16 : Sep 2nd, 2012

Route : Leh - Upshi - Kumdok - Chumthang - Mahe - Nyoma - Loma - Rhongo - Hanle -> 290 Kms

The dynamic three left Leh around 7 in the morning. After having spent nearly 2 weeks together, it was a weird feeling not having the Dzire around. The more concerning factor was my wife's health. She din't look all that well even after a good 12 hour sleep. Luckily, a couple of tablets did the trick after breakfast and we decided to head to Hanle.

We first went to the Leh market to do some shopping and went to the Polo ground. However, to our surprise, there was no sight of any festival happening. Dint waste any more time as it was already 1PM and bid goodbye to Leh till next time.

The road and the sceneries made the drive a bliss. So, dint bother stopping anywhere till Mahe. Few pics enroute,















Reached Mahe around 5. The cop at the checkpost said Hanle was another 120Kms. I was hoping to reach by 7, but couldn't help stopping after seeing these,





































Met a couple of brave soldiers.





Well, almost Our Tri-Colour!







We reached the town around 7 and found a super place to stay, though we missed it in the first place. We went about 4-5 kms ahead and a localite helped us locate the place. All in all, an end to a fascinating day.

[SajiNSalin]

Excellent narration along with beautiful pictures makes this a wonderful travelog. The travelogs of Team BHP are very detailed and well written. I have been following this nearly every day and look forward to the account of the rest of the journey.

Regards

Saji

[aviorp]

Day 17 : Sep 3rd, 2012

Route : Hanle - Rhongo - Loma - Nyoma - Mahe - Sumdo - Namshang La - Karzok -> 165 Kms


Finally, a relaxed day as I dint have to do one of those 300Km stretch. Stepped out to see what was around and,

What a sight to start the day,



This is the place we stayed.



No name boards or any phone number.



It was newly built and cost 250/person



First view of the observatory,



This fella dint want to give me the food that he was carrying for us and wanted to serve it himself. Cute



Can't go beyond this point,



Some marvellous views around





We were told that the guy incharge is yet to come.



As we waited, went around the observatory.



It is located on a hill called Saraswathi.



The reason for choosing Hanle was due to clear skies during night, less rain and snowfall, low pollution and also the weather is good throughout the year.



The caretaker then volunteered to take us inside and played a video of the place and around 10 the guy incharge showed us the telescope.



The telescope is around 2 meters and is controlled remotely from Bangalore.









Gamma ray telescope,



Final pic from the top,



A closer view,



Few pics of the beautiful town,

[aviorp]

That's the entry point to Hanle,



Twin town?



Landscape of a massive dimension



Unfortunately, no time to visit the monastery



This looked like a porcupine,



Snow capped mountains all around



Spectacular road,



Even better sceneries,











Vivid colours!







A Lost Kiang,





Astonishing colours,



Rhongo,





Woah!





Never seen a hill of this shade before,



Nor have I see anything like this!







First view of Tso Kiagar



Small but yet beautiful,





Road ahead to Tso-Moriri!

[aviorp]

First view of Tso Moriri,



Not much of snow left,



Another view,



Road leading to Karzok,



Phew, fabulous!





















Not the greatest of welcome boards,



The cop at the checkpost was from Karnataka and spoke to him for a long time. He warned me not to halt in any of those tents and asked to go further,



View of Tso-Moriri enroute



When we enquired in one of the tents, the guy asked for 3K for a night. We then found this guest house. 250 for a person.



View from the hotel



After freshening up, we went a couple of Kms up a hill,





To see this,







After a while, this huge cloud covered the place



Then, we went down to another spot. So, if it start raining heavily we dont get stuck on top of hill.



The lake just turned black for quite sometime,





When the sun popped out, a small rainbow came long too.

[aviorp]

Looks like I missed attaching a pic in my previous post. Sorry about that.

It started drizzling,



Then this huge cloud cover,



We thought it might rain like crazy and left the place but after a few minutes the cloud disappeared..



..Unravelling the mystic beauty,









This is a place where the last known group of Changpas live, I guess?



We came back to a spot near the check post,



Tried finding a spot for a..



..Customary pose,



As close as we could get to feel the blue,



A couple of pics with some greenery around,





Another customary shot,



and a customary kiss,



Huge lake this,



Dwarfed,



We left as the sun was about to set,



Enroute,



As close as I could get,



Never seen a sunset like this one

[aviorp]

Day 18 : 4th Sep, 2012

Route : Karzok - Namashang La - Sumdo - Polakongka La - Tso Kar - Mooreh Plains - Lachulung La - Nakee La - Sarchu - Barlacha La - Zingzing bar - Darcha -Keylong -> 330Kms

It had snowed the previous night and with different shades of light at dawn, it was quite a stupendous sight,















Final pic and a goodbye to Tso Moriri



Drive anywhere!



One for my wallpaper,



Tso Kiagar looked awesome too,





Few pics of the road towards Polakongka La,





The summit I guess,







A short video of the place that depicts the road and weather,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUPdL...ature=youtu.be

First view of Tso Kar, (not the greatest)





The closer we got, we realized how big this one is,







We reached Tso Kar around 10. Had our breakfast and left by 11,



Few pics enroute to Mooreh Plains,

[aviorp]

Couple of pics enroute to Mooreh plains,





Mooreh plains from here,



Some deviations..



..that will let us explore the sandy terrain,



Most part of the plains is well tarred now,



Some glorious views around,







Twisties!



Some crazy rock formations,











This one was all dried up,



One of nature's best,



Boring drive,



Different shades of hills,



Different shades of taste,





I have no idea how I drove these places in the night last time,



Hmm, wonder where I'm suppose to go?



Missed a lot of sceneries the last time, but loved every moment of it this year,





Age no bar!



What a beauty!





Reached Sarchu around 3,