Himalayan Odyssey Motorbike Tour

The second day is when the real ride begins as the riders ride out from Manali to Jibhi, which is a quaint little village on the outskirts of the Great Himalayan National Forest. The 110 km ride usually takes about 4 hours accounting for the halts and pit stops for photography and snack breaks. Jibhi offers the riders an opportunity to go for a small hike in the adjoining jungle and have evening snacks by the little pond situated about 30 mins hike away. The accommodation is arranged in Tents/ Guest House.

On day three the ride begins with crossing the first high altitude pass on the route, Jalori and heading through little towns with scenic views and beautiful road onto our destination Sangla. The expected ride time is 7 hours and we expect to reach Sangla valley around early evening. The accommodation is a guest house.

Chitkul, the last Indian village near the Chinese border provides the backdrop for our first stop on day 4. After a short ride from Sangla we stop at Chitkul for some snacks and tea at the last Indian “Dhaba” before we head back through sangla, Rakchham and reckong peo to our next stop, the majestic village of Kalpa. The village provides breath taking views of the adjoining Kinner- Kailash mountain range and has been reffered to as one of the most scenic places in India by the lonely planet magazine. Overnight in Hotel/ Guest House.

The ride on day 5 is one of the shorter ones but the riders get to witness the changing landscape as we leave the greenery of kalpa behind and ride through semi desert conditions to Nako, a small village with a hilltop lake. Nako is a village where many photographers from all over the world visit just to capture some shots of the beautiful nightsky. Overnight in Guest house.

The highlights of the ride on day 6 are Tabo, which has one of the oldest budhist monasteries in the world, Gyu Gompa, which houses a 500 year old mummy of a monk and the beautiful Dhankar monastery. A day that would surely keep the shutterbugs busy. By evening we reach kaza, the main town of spiti valley and enjoy a stroll through the local market which is quite a welcome change from the last 5 days.

This is the day when we ride to hikkim, komic and Langza, to the highest post office and village in the world. As you would notice that in seven days we have packed in quite a few highest points in the world, so this day also offers a chance to relax and reflect on the journey so far. Overnight in Hotel.

On day 8 we ride to the moon lake, one of the most beautiful lakes situated after Kunzum Pass and in the midst of Himalayas. The lake has religious significance and is believed to be the place where local deities come for their holy bath. The view is mesmerizing and the fact that we camp near lake side offers the group abundant time to spend by the tranquil lake and we end end the day with a hot dinner at campsite.

The ride so far has largely been through tarmac roads with occasional bad roads where the never ending construction work goes on. Day 9, from Chandertal to sissu, the road would be mostly gravel and dirt and offer different challenges to the riders, ones they would be more likely to encounter as we head into the Zanskar and Pangi valley leg of the tour. The distance of 130 kms takes roughly 5 hours and we reach Jispa early in the evening and check into our hotel.

The road from Jispa to darcha is mostly tarmac and it is from Darcha that we take a turn and head towards Padum, the main town of Zanskar valley. The road between Darcha and padum via Shinkhu La pass has only been recently opened and is surely one of the highlights of this Tour.

This is a day with a very limited 20-30 km ride around Padum, to visit the local gompas and the market. A day to be spent getting familiar with the amazing local folklore and getting a cultural experience through interaction with locals.

After exploring Zanskar, we ride back through Shinkhu- La for an overnight stay at a hotel in Keylong

On day 13 we cover the 135 km distance between Keylong and Killar via some very remote villages and dirt roads. Enroute Killar we stop at the triloknath temple which is a holy place for both Hindus and Budhists alike and a great example of religious diversity and bonhomie amonst the local population.

On this day we ride through the mighty sach pass, often listed amongst the most dangerous roads in the world. The roads are carved out of rocky mountains and the steep gorges line them. The depth at times cross 600ft mark and a ride along this road is one that the riders never ever forget. We settle for the night in scenic chamba. Overnight in hotel.

On the penultimate day of the tour we ride in the lower ranges of Himalayas when we travel from Chamba to Dharamsala, the capital of Tibetan govt in exile and also the home to his holiness the Dalai lama. We aim for an early start so we can reach dharamsala around mid day and have the evening at our leisure. We encourage the guests to visit the many monasteries in Dharamsala.

The last day of the tour has a ride back to Manali planned. The roads shall mostly be a mix of tarmac, gravel and lots of dirt so an apt summary of the conditions we faced and overcam over the past couple of weeks. The evening is reserved for a team dinner where we get to share memories and pictures and say a goodbye to all the new friends made through the shared adventure.