Been There, Done That – Ladakh Diary – I

In the movie ‘Dasvidaniya’, Vinay Pathak makes a list of “Things of do before death” and proceeds to tick off each item on the list en route to certain death. The 2007 Hollywood release ‘Bucket List’, starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, echoes similar sentiments. Though the movies are strictly average, I was curious of what my list would look like. "I don’t need to wait till I face certain death to start making my own list" – was my logic (Its amazing how I can justify everything I want to do with crystal clear erroneous logic). I decided to make the list. At the outset, I decided not to restrict myself to ten or any such number and categorize items under sub-headings, such as – ‘Must travel places’, ‘Must eat food’, ‘Must experience thrill’ and there was a random category – simply labeled - 'Must Experience' (included all things that I couldn’t categorize under one sub-heading, for example – switching from Windows to Mac laptop or experience climbing the pyramids in Egypt or even experiencing the Hammam in Turkey).

The Must travel places had two sections – India and abroad (I hate being managerial even in fun activities… it’s sick… but I think it’s too late to change myself now). The India section had some very interesting names – Wayanad in Kerala for instance, where you could climb up a mechanically pulled plank (equivalent of an elevator) to reach a machaan/tree-house almost 60 feet high and overlooking the adjoining forest (wow) or the swampland - Sunderbans on the Eastern border (infested with the man-eating tigers). Leh, Ladakh - like all things associated with region – was perched high and mighty in the list. Somehow, this place has been the bugbear for many. I know so many people who forever want to visit the place and never make it. Almost everybody wants to go there on a motorcycle. So did yours truly (‘yours truly’ is such an outdated phrase with a Dickensian feel to it, it should be banned).

Leh the capital city of Ladakh is something else. For one the altitude is unlike anything you would experience in any part of India. Second, it is accessible only during a narrow window in a year, again unlike most places in India. Third, if you are a motorcycle enthusiast, then the preparation is unlike... well……it's different.

I wanted to do the Delhi-Leh trip on a motorcycle – and what better than Royal Enfield ‘Thunderbird’ to give me company. I checked out the time it would take to reach Leh from Delhi (Both Delhi-Manali-Leh route and Delhi-Srinagar-Leh route) and found out that the 900+ km odd journey would roughly take 2½ days to 3 days. After that, riding the motorcycle from Leh to Khardungla en route to Nubra Valley would take another 2 days (335 – 375 km round trip), to and fro from Pangong Lake (340 km round trip) would take another 2 days, one day spent probably local sightseeing in Leh and 3 days back – so in all it would take a minimum of 11 days of non-stop riding in hilly terrain, along some of the most dangerous but divinely beautiful routes. It was exhilarating, no doubt. This time I didn’t bother to ask my friends to join me. I knew the plan would never take-off with the ‘more the merrier’ paradigm. So I tried to find trip organizers who arrange for motorcycle enthusiasts to travel in groups. Alas, their charge was too much. One such Delhi trip organizer plans a 15 day extravaganza, and the charge without the bike rental is 35000 INR ‘only’ (and with the bike rental it goes up to a cool 50k). The organizers were definitely out. So it meant either shelving the plan altogether or going alone. Now, going on solo trips, is nothing new to me. Ya, been there done that, but this was different. This was not some ordinary trip. I didn’t know the routes, didn’t know what to take with me, didn't even know what problems I might encounter or anything of this sort. It looked like I would have to shelve the plan. But luckily, I met this guy, who had traveled with 5 of his closest buddies to Leh only last year. And like in the mythological serials, he said “thatastu, all your questions will be answered. Just log onto w, w, w bcmtouring.com” and off he went…poof…vanished into thin air (super-exaggeration is good for health, I was told by my doting grandmother).

http://www.bcmtouring.com/travel-guides/ladakh-travel-guide/index.html

BCM stands for bikes, cars, and motorcycles and it is truly an awesome website, especially for planning a trip to Ladakh. Research the above website thoroughly and believe me it will answer all your questions (and I have no stake in the website). It has all the skinny on distances, routes, tips on motorcycle-maintenance, information about high-altitude sickness and medicines to counter the same, and stuff like that. So, I started preparing myself. I have a Pulsar 150, which is gr8 bike but I really wanted to do this on the Enfield Thunderbird.(Inset picture: Royal Enfield "Thunderbird")
I decided to first learn the mechanics of bike maintenance – changing the spare tire (this little maneuver itself requires you to carry so much equipment – a small hand pump, spare tubes etc.), setting the chain, replacing a snapped clutch wire and so on and so forth. While I was deep into this, I happened to chance upon this guy again (reappeared from thin air). And he said in true mythological serial-style “Vatsa, don’t do this alone”. And he vanished again. He is one mythical character, I’ll tell you. Almost everybody I met from thereon echoed the same sentiment - 11 days of traveling alone would be tough – the motorcycle will guaranteed break down and I would have to lug it up and down the slopes to faraway mechanic garages, which doing alone would be an effort.

Anyways, attempts of trying to find a gang to tag along were turning futile - 11 days of nonstop riding was proving to be decisive in the “yes/no” calculations. In the end, I was back to square one. Then somebody suggested that I could go by air from Delhi to Leh and do all the crazy riding in Leh. I pooh-poohed the idea, as it meant I would miss the Rohtang pass and most importantly the incredibly scenic Keylong pass on the Manali highway en route to Leh. But coming to think of it, this would save me 6 days, I could still rent the bike, and an Enfield “Thunderbird” at that, and take it to Khardungla (the highest motorable road in the world) and the images I had seen of the Pangong Lake had told me that enough magical beauty awaited me in Leh. In hindsight, this was the best decision I made. Agreed, I missed the beauty of the Manali highway (I did cover some part of the equally beautiful Srinagar highway….more on this later), but what I saw in Leh and the amount of back-breaking riding I did while in Leh, I think in hindsight it was an awesome decision.

So I went to Leh from Delhi, aboard a Kingfisher flight. It takes barely an hour or something like that to reach there. The Leh Kushok Bakula Rimpochee airport at the altitude of ~11000 feet is one of the highest in the world. As soon as you alight, you can almost feel the stare of the imposing ‘light brown mountain range’ (Inset picture: Mountain range welcomes you to Leh)

The weather was pleasant and I didn’t need a jacket or anything. ‘Welcome to Leh’ screamed a nearby hoarding. Finally, I was here and I could almost feel the goose-bumps. I took a pre-paid taxi to the main market. (Somehow, this is always the best bet when you arrive in a city – pre-paid taxi to the main market). I reached at around 8 in the morning and the city was just waking up to tourists. I had a list of possible accommodation options so I decided to try them one by one. Almost all of them were full. Not a great start. A local suggested that I should try the Changspa area as it has some neat options (cheaper than the rates they charged near the market) and is accessible to the main market by foot. So to Changspa I went. I checked into Larchang Guest House at around 9 where I was generously offered “Nun chai” (I was told that “Nun” is Hindi for salt, and, though I couldn’t imagine tea with salt in it, the taste was surprisingly pleasant and didn’t have any acidic after-taste of its sugary cousin). The room charges were reasonable – Rs. 400 a day.

The room had surprisingly no fans or any cooling facility. The owner ‘Shamin’ smiled back saying you wouldn’t need one here. And boy, the whole day, not once did I miss the fan or the AC. It was the most perfect weather throughout the day. If only God had been kind enough to extend his mercy a little south to extend up to Delhi/Gurgaon or even to Mumbai. (Inset pictures: Room at the Larchang Guest house)

One of my neighbors was an elderly gentleman - ‘Dilip Samuel’ who worked as a lab doctor at Steel Authority of India (SAIL) in Chattisgarh. He too had come alone (sans the wife and the kids). Both Dilip and the Shamin advised me to curb my enthusiasm and plan all activities for the next day, as the body needs to get used to the altitude. In my mind, I was thinking, “Go Captain Go” you didn’t haul up your backside all the way to Leh to sit and rest. I was yearning for the motorcycle and some quality riding time. But better sense prevailed.

Been There, Done That – Ladakh Diary – II

I utilized the day to explore the City and check on the motorcycle renting scene. Stanzin Dorjey is the owner of T.S Adventures and runs a business of renting motorcycles and cars. Stanzin informed me that I would first have to apply for a permit if I wish to go to Nubra Valley and Pangong Lake. The permit is sort of a visa allowing restricted access to some of the militarized areas. He said, he could arrange the permit for around 150 bucks (you could do this permit thing on your own and save yourselves around 50 bucks but we decided to get it done through him as a lot depended on it). The cost of renting the Enfield Thunderbird was Rs. 700 a day. Dilip didn’t know how to ride but he agreed to tag along. So we applied for the permit, and, readied ourselves to ride to Khardungla (or K-top as it is called in these parts of the world) next day.

But, to our misfortune, there was a strike in the department issuing the permit and we were told that it would take 2-3 days for the settlement. Now, this little piece of misfortune had the potential of destroying everything I had planned to do. So, when we went next day, we did not get the permit and plus we had already paid Rs. 700 as motorcycle charges for the day. So I decided to take the motorcycle for a ride in the city and see some of the local sights. It turned out to be a good decision. I had never ridden the Thunderbird before. It took me some time getting used to its raw power. And plus I had never ridden up and down nasty slopes. So the day was an excellent primer for me to get used to what I would encounter going to K-top. We took the motorcycle on the beautiful Srinagar Highway and saw some memorable vistas. The beauty was truly breathtaking. We took pit-stops to see the Kargil-Hall of Fame Museum, the Spituk Monastery, the Magnetic Hill and finally the confluence point of the rivers Indus and Zanskar near Nimu. The Magnetic Hill is a small stretch of road on the Srinagar Highway where the vehicle travels on its own without acceleration (apparently a magnetic field pulls the vehicle so that it moves even without engine power). I didn’t believe it – so I switched off the engine of the motorcycle – and swear to God the damn heavy motorcycle moved. You could also do rafting on the Zanskar. The ride was stunningly beautiful and almost everything looked surreal.(Inset pictures: Srinagar Highway, Kargil Memorial, Magnetic Hill and Indus-Zanskar confluence)
In the evening I went to Shanti Stupa and the Leh Palace. Leh Palace is pretty ordinary, but both Shanti Stupa and Leh Palace offer stunning views of the City of Leh (check the inset pictures) and if not for anything else one must visit these places for the vistas.(Inset pictures: views from Shanti Stupa and Leh Palace)
After being on the road for most of the day, we decided to end the day hoping that we get the permit at least the next day. Early morning on the next day, news filtered in that the strike was still on. And that was as bad a news we could get. But, luckily, Stanzin had pulled a minor miracle and managed to get us the permit. I really owe him for that one. So the trip to K-top was on. I quickly rushed to my room, readied the bag, put on an extra jacket (as it would get really cold at 18000 ft), carried gloves and glasses and also took medicine (such as diamox, for encountering any high altitude sickness). I was a shade worried about taking Dilip with me as he is 50+ and I wasn’t sure whether he would endure the stress of change in altitude from almost 11000 ft to 18000 ft. But endure he did. And what an achievement it was. Khardungla or the K-top is almost 45 km uphill from the City of Leh. Just 45 km! But in those 45 km, you move almost 7000 ft up. The ride is ok initially, but later on it gets tough. On one side, you have the deep valley to contend with and the other side there is landslides. So basically, the width of the road is such that only one truck can pass and you have to be extra careful on the turns which are as treacherous as any. The road gets really bad towards the last 10 km or so and you have to contend with driving on stones and gravel (while keeping your balance as toppling would mean a crash-landing of 7000 ft). Reaching the “World’s Highest motorable pass” (18,380 ft) is a moment I won’t ever forget. It was divine. Dilip somehow held up to that point, but he was in no mood to ride an extra 120 km to Nubra Valley. So we had to return. It took us roughly 5 hours to do the 90 kms and boy it was exhilarating. (inset pictures: en route to Khardungla (K-top)


Next day, we went to Pangong Lake. And that is 170 kms one way. The road is terrible and on the way, you go through Chang-la (which at 17856 ft. is the World’s third highest motorable pass), which is also known as the “Mighty Chang-la” as it is really tough to get here. The road is twice as bad as enroute to K-top and for twice as long stretches. This journey is definitely not for those with weak backs. But I have to say, that on the way, you come across stretches which words can do no justice to. Every now and then, the Indus river joins you, the dark brown mountains suddenly give away to greenest of green pastures (and you could even see Yaks grazing), and that coupled with crystal blue sky is truly heavenly. As if the build up to Pangong is not enough, the climax is fitting. Pangong lake at almost 15000 ft is as beautiful as any in the World (you could see seven shades of blue… yes ... seven... its crazy beautiful here). You could camp overnight and be fed standard lunch/dinner or maggi and chai. We just opted for the later. (inset pictures: Pangong Lake at almost 15000 ft)

Last day, in Leh, we decided to do some touristy shopping. Apricots are a rage in this part of the city. So I helped myself to some. The Pashima shawls are famous (didn’t buy them though) but the fabrics are decent and some Leh T-shirts ofcourse. The day was spent relaxing from all the riding of the previous days. In Leh, I made a lot of friends – Dilip from Chattisgarh (the discussions we had about naxal movement and Salwa Judem were fascinating), Shamin the owner of the guest house (he was my guidebook informing me about the life in Leh and his “nun chai” were the absolute best), Stanzin (the motorcycle rent guy) went out of the way to get the permit arranged, and the other “Dilip” the owner of Little Café which served the most delicious paranthas and dal-chawal-subzi-roti lunch. The people here are as good as any you would meet anywhere on the planet and that just adds to the beauty this place has to offer. All the adjectives: beautiful, magical, stunning, heavenly, breathtaking, I think, were coined with Leh in mind.