[swift_zing]

History

The thought of going to Ladakh was in my mind for quite some time (years )…never had I thought that I would give it a shot on a bike and that too solo…but it was destined to happen so it did...sometime around June I discussed this trip with a few friends with whom I have traveled earlier ..although everyone was interested in going to Leh but no one wanted to do this on a bike..so I started giving it serious thoughts that somehow this year I have to do this…

Preparations

Surfed the net and read plenty of blogs / travel tales by fellow bikers who had done this before either in groups or solo…during this time found BCM Touring with so many experienced veterans. Joined in and got valuable feeds from fellow members…got the bike serviced (Pulsar 150 cc feb 2003, borrowed from a friend) …bought the required spares n other stuff and I was ready to ride.

My Skill set - not a very fundu rider ..i know the basics and always ride with in my limits

Photographic skills - Very basic..carried an Olympus 710 mu for this trip

Itinerary

Got my leave approved from 14th august to 24th of august and had plans to ride as under

14-Aug Delhi to Manali
15-Aug Manali to Sarchu
16-Aug Sarchu to Leh
17-Aug Rest day (Permits)
18-Aug Leh - Pangong Tso - Leh
19-Aug Leh to Nubra (Deksit - Hunder)
20-Aug Nubra to Leh
21-Aug to 24 Aug – Leh to Delhi either through Srinagar or Manali

The D – Day

Well 14th of august finally arrived. Actually could not catch much sleep on the 13th night as I had decided to start early morning from Ghaziabad. Got up at 3 in the night and loaded the bike with the luggage and was ready to roll. A friend from office made it up to wish me farewell and happy journey. Finally the ride started.

Started a bit cautiously to have a feel of the bike loaded with the luggage and trundled along the NH towards Noida mode and then hit ISBT and then the GT Karnal road. GT Karnal road was a mess at 4 in the morning with loads n loads of trucks moving towards the border. Somehow managed to find my way through and got ahead of them. By the time the highway was slightly clear for a smoother ride I had reached Rai. As soon as the thought of speeding up hit my mind it started to rain. Took out the raincoat and started the ride towards Chandigarh. What I had thought to be a passing shower turned out to be a consistent rainfall. I drove al the way up to Mandi in consistent rain. By the end of the day I was some 110 km short of Manali and totally drenched. The clothes in the bag despite the tarpal were also wet. The highlight of the day’s ride was a landslide some 7 km before Bilaspur which had stalled the NH for almost 18 hrs. I got stuck here for some 2-3 hrs and thus could not make it up to Manali. In fact the entre stretch from the toll near Himachal border before Swarghat to this Bilaspur has plenty of landslides.

I checked into Vishu Resorts in Mandi. It is right on the highway and has wonderful service. It is slightly on the expensive side (got a room for 900/-)…did not try my luck by searching more options as I was very tired and wet.

Pictures - No pics for the day as could not find a single dry patch where I could have clicked a pic.

15th Aug – day 2

Got up aaaram se as I had only 110 kms to ride up to Manali. Also it was raining through out the first half of the day in Mandi. Called up a friend in Manali and he told me that it was bright and sunny up there.

Finally after lunch of Rajma Chawal I packed my bags to start for Manali at around 3 in the afternoon. The ride from Mandi to Manali is one of the best. The view is fantastic with the Beas flowing next to you. This road has been my favorites on previous trips to Manali either in car or a bus.

The ride was pleasant with no incidents other than the first soft falls which I had just after Bhuntar. I took a wrong turn just and while was turning back could not manage the weight of the bike and despite all the efforts could not save the bike from touching the ground. No one was hurt i.e. either the bike or me (this was the first fall. In all I had four such soft falls through out the ride)

Pic just before the Pandoh dam..the reservoir was open and I could see this rushing jet of water coming through.

[tmookherjee]

What happens next? (Aur Aage??)

[KurtRules]

Another one of those solo enthusiasts!!! ... Wecome to the brotherhood too! And continue posting, we are a bunch of eager readers....DONT like waiting!!!

[hiambuj]

Wonderful start of narration Anuj... BUT just one pic ??? you said the beas view was beatiful so why its not clicked & if clicked why not posted... such serious offences can lead to severe punishments... furthermore, the adam-teasing is soon going to be banned on BCMT... Anupji is in very furious mood,... he has almost madeup his mind to ban the admin for 1 week, to give him rest so that he can compile all photos & post in one go...

Do not dare now to continue teasing...

[swift_zing]

The ride after the fall was event less and I reached Manali at around 6.30 in the evening. Checked into Hotel Anupam at Circuit House Road. Just behind Jonhson’ café. Got a good room with TV and geyser for 200 bucks. (Contact details – Rakesh Thakur – 9816023367).

A friend was also visiting Manali for the long weekend so had dinner with him at Johnson’s. Called it a night at around 11 so as to start early for the challenging task of climbing Rohtang.

Aug 16 – day 3

I had plans to start for Rohtang as early as 6 in the morning but it rained through out the night in Manali. Got up at around 5 and checked out of the window to find rain falling, so tucked back into the quilt again. Finally it stopped raining at around 6.15 and by 7 I had loaded the bike to start the day’s ride. I had ridden only for some 5 minutes and found the very first water crossing just before Vashist. It was a small water crossing but somehow I managed to screw it up. In the middle of it I lost my balance and could not manage the weight of the bike. It kissed the ground and my feet were all wet with icy cold water. (they were to remain the same till the end of the day’s ride till Sarchu.)

The ride to Rohtang proved to be very tough. The road was slippery and at places there were lot many landslides and mud puddles which made it very difficult to ride at a consistent pace. But the high point of this ride was the weather which was cloudy with fog all around.

The miss of the ride to Rohtang was that I could not click the pic when one actually arrives at Rohtang. I could not see the board in case it was there.

Few pics on the way to Rohtang.

[KurtRules]

Pretty cloudy...low visibility...can imagine how it tough it mus hav been for u...

BTW the board is like 300-400m up from where the Maggi vallah's camp....The location frm where the descent begins...But i dont blame u..in such a weather its hard to spot roads, leave aside the board

[swift_zing]

The ride after Rohtang to Keylong and then Darcha was a mix of bad roads, bad roads and more bad roads. At stages there was no road at all it was all dirt, rocks or mud puddles. The only saving grace was that it was slightly sunny and not rainy. I lost a lot of time to make up to Keylong. The target of the day was to reach Sarchu before the daylight fades. I made up to Darcha around 4 in the evening and made the final push to climb Barlachala. Deepak taal and Vishal taal were crossed over. The snaps were taken but did not come out very well.

Barlachala was crossed some time. The road after ZingZing bar to the pass is a smooth tarmac. This was the best on any of the passes through out this trip. Bharatpur was crossed and then the final push to Sarchu was made in fading day light. The road between Bharatpur and Sarchu was as smooth as a runway. I managed to hit sarchu at around 7 in the evening. Found a dhaba tent and settled down for the night. The highlight of the day’s ride was that I made to Sarchu with in daylight and was luckily not feeling any signs of AMS. (thanks to lot of water and electral which I threw inside me through out the day). It rained through out the night at Sarchu and it was bitter cold. The next day when I got up in the morning brushing the teeth seemed an effort.

Few pics on the way to Sarchu and early morning at Sarchu

[anupmathur]

Anuj, your log is fantastic!
Even with few photos, the picture is coming through quite clear!

[hiambuj]

Enjoying it Anuj... keeping posting more ...

[KurtRules]

Nice Writeup Anuj!!....

"The next day when I got up in the morning brushing the teeth seemed an effort."....

Well, u shudnt have made the effort!!!!!!