Ultimate Himalayas

Today we ride from Manali to Kasol via Kullu. After an early breakfast we set off on the left bank of river Beas to a small hamlet called kasol, nestled in the heart of Parvati valley. Kasol is famous for its nomadic restaurants that are quite unlike anything u will find at other places in India. We will also visit the holy Manikaran shrine which is famous for hot water springs. A short excursion to Tosh is also an option for enthusiastic trekkers.

The ride from Kasol to Sarahan would bring us to our first mountain pass of the tour, Jalori Pass. Nestled in the lower ranges of Himalayas, jalori pass (10800ft) is one of the lesser travelled passes but an important connection between the kullu and Sainj valleys. The winding roads of the pass are the first major riding challange as the road is not metalled, but carved out of mountains. Further on from Jalori we cross the town of Rampur and enter the Kinnaur valley, one of the places often counted amongst the most dangerous roads in the world. We haltovernight at Sarahan, which is a small village famous for Bhimakali temple, dedicated to Godess Bhimadevi.

After Breakfast at Sarahan we begin the 85 km ride to Sangla in the Baspa valley. This is the last valley in India and shares its border with Tibet. The Baspa River flows in the Sangla Valley which is rich in apple orchards, apricot, Wall-nut, Cedar trees, and glacial streams with trout. The road offers pleasant views with a valley of flowers running parallel to a stream for a good part of the road. The most significant achievement of this region worth being lauded is that this area boasts of growing the world’s best quality potatoes. Though only 85kms, the journey consumes time as the roads near the border arent metaled.

Day 5 of our tour has a ride from Chitkul to Kalpa planned. We would be taking the same road that brought us to Chitkul till Karchham from where we take a right on to the NH22 and ckimb beyond Reckong peo, the district headquarters for Kinnaur. Reckongpeo is also the place where we get the inner line permits for the Spiti Valley. Our overnight stay is in Kalpa village which has a history of ancient temples and mejestic view of Kinner Kailash Peak.

We begin our travel the next day with a descend from Kalpa village. The road conditions get better as we head to our next stop, which is Nako village. The Village has an 11th century Monastery and a small lake. Nako overlooks the Reo Purgyal which has an elevation of 6,816 metres (22,362 ft) and is the highest mountain in Himachal Pradesh. The village is now near the Nako Lake formed by the slopes of the mountains of Reo Purgyal, compared to the opposite bank across the Nako river where it was located earlier and then shifted because of tectonic upliftment of the site.

The road from Nako to Kaza is one of the better roads we will come across in Spiti Valley. A journey of 112kms is broken by a halt to visit Tabo Monastry, a monastery claimed to be one of the holiest in the world by HH the dalai Lama. The monastery celebrated its millenium anniversary in 1996 and is a must visit. After spending some time at the monastery we would head to the town of Kaza, which is the headquarter of the Spiti valley.

We have kept this day reserved to enjoy the splendour of Kaza. We would visit the Key Gompa and Kibber gompa along with a visit to the the major tourist attractions in and around Kaza, Tangyud Monastery. Kibber village at an elevation of 4205 Mtrs. above sea level, ,Gette Village at an altitude of 4270 Mtrs. above sea level and Langza village famous for presents of marine fossils are also places that we can explore. Also as Kaza has cyber cafes, its a good place to reconnect with friends and families and share the stories.

Day 9 is an adventurous day that would take us through our second high altitude pass, Kunzum pass situated at an altitude of 15060 ft and On to the Chander Taal or the moon lake, situated at a height of 14100 ft, where we would camp near the lake. The ride from Kaza to Chandertal is rough as the road is mostly broken and the terrain tough. The diatance of 65 kms would take about 4-5 hrs.

Today is all about high passes and following a good night’s sleep we continue from Jispa to Baralachala Pass (16,500ft). It’s a steady 67 km climb with a steep ascent to the pass especially that last 18 kms from ZingZingBar. Its important we take extra precautions on these roads as the winds could be chilly and roads dangerous. Our onwards journey to Ladakh leads us across 21 hairpin turns through the Gata Loops to Nakee La (15,547 ft) and Lachulung La (16,016 ft) passes and onto Sarchu, where we register at the police check post. We halt for the night at Sarchu where you will be put up in comfortable swiss tents.

We are now on the last stretch of our journey from Manali to Leh and still have about 250 kms to ride. Be prepared to be amazed by the landscape you encounter. We have one more pass to conquer at Tanglang La (17,440 ft) and enroute to the pass we ride across a plateau called More Plains at an altitude of 15,500 ft !!. The scenic beauty of this landscape is truely amazing and sure to keep shutterbugs occupied. We descend for a while as we move along the indus river to small settlements through Upshi Karu and finally reach Leh.

Day 13 gives you an opportunity to relax and explore the town of Leh at your own pleasure. Meanwhile, we shall be checking on your bikes to ensure a continued smooth ride and getting permits for our onward destinations. For things to do in leh. You can visit the Leh Palace and shanti stupa or sample different cuisines at many good restaurants on the Changspa road. We can also facilitate a ride to the magnetic hill with a halt at the war memorial for those who wish to visit these places. The sight seeing is optional purely because a good days rest is in order considering the journey we have undertaken and still have infront of us.

The day that sure provides the highlight of the tour, as we are all set to ride the highest motorable pass in the world and make a 125 km trip across the Khardung La to Hunder Sand dunes. Not only does this ride peovide you an adrenaline rush but the views remain in your memory forever. Once at Huinder after we check in to our camps, a camel safari is also arranged for our guests to enjoy the white sands of Nubra.

After breakfast we start the journey back from Nubra to Leh and we get a second shot at taking pictures of Khardungla, the highest motorable pass in the world. We would be in Leh by afternoon and have the evening to explore at our own leisure. Also, it would be a good time to reconnect with friends and family as Leh would provide access to telecommunications and internet.

We head Northeast towards the most identifiable water body in the region, the Pangong Tso lake. After a roughly 5 hour ride through a difficult terrain, across the Chang La pass we reach Pangong Tso, a 135 km lake shared between India and China and undoubtedly, the best visual spectacle of the tour. We have lunch and spend a couple of hours by the lakeside before returning to Leh. We make this journey in a tempo traveler or SUV in order to get a break from riding and also run another round of checks to ensure the bikes are ready for the final stretch of our tour.

We have a long ride planned for this day as we head to the beautiful Tso moriri lake. We start early and ride across Chumathang plains to the most scenic and highest sweet water lake in the world, Tso moriri. The distance of 240 kms gives an opportunity to ride through some amazing landscape as well as on few roads less travelled. Tonight we stay in Karzok, the village on the banks of Tso Moriri which is also home to the largest clan of nomadic tribes in the Ladakh region

A comparatively Tougher and Adventurous ride today. Today we have enough time to take in the sceneries around the beautiful Tso moriri lake and head to Tso Kar Lake, the second of thethree lakes to be covered on our journey. We also cross two high altitude passes, Namshang-la (16,500 feet) and Pologonka-la (16,300 feet).We ride the vast expanses of More Plains and head on to 22 hairpin bends down the Gata loops. We halt for the night at familiar sarchu.

The last day of our tour, We cover the 222km stretch from Sarchu to Manali with an aim of starting early and reaching Manali by evening. We halt in Keylong for lunch and expect tough riding conditions from Keylong to manali. A summary of our entire trip on road can be cast in this stretch as we cross water on road, high passes, lush greenery and vast barren lands.