Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Cycling: Aug-Sept 2009 – “The Prologue”

Snow on way to KhardungLa Pass- the highest motorable road on the planet

There was snow everywhere. All the mountains, valleys, roads…. were covered by snow. I was struggling with virtually everything around me. At this altitude, the air was thin; breathing was a struggle. The final gradient was steep, climbing was a struggle. Snow and hardened ice on the road had robbed me off my traction, biking was a struggle. I summed up my resources, another sip of water, another banana eaten and I was again pedaling. I saw a milepost, KhardungLa 5 km.

I heard the air horn and looked back. An army pickup truck was climbing. It was skidding madly on the hard ice and snow and the driver waved me to get off the road. I instantly knew the guy would not stop. On one side of the road was a sheer drop of 3000+ feet and I had no option but to jump right up to the edge in knee deep snow with my Trek 4300 bicycle.

It was becoming impossible to ride my bike now. There was no question of biking on the vehicle tire marks as it had turned the flaky snow to hard compacted ice which had no traction whatsoever. The option of biking on the snow mass was insane and finally half a km from the summit I just had to give up pedaling. I got down from the saddle and pushed my bike through a maze of stuck vehicles.

The point where I gave up biking and pushed it to the top- 500 meters from KhardungLa Top

I knew that the summit presents itself at the end of a right hand bend. All these days, I had dreamed of biking up the summit and seeing Mausmi, my wife, greeting me on completing the trip. This was not to be. As I took the final bend, I saw the prayer flags, the army outpost, the medical camp, the tea shop and the small shrine of all faiths. It was all covered with snow. But there was no Mausmi.

I was at the KhardungLa top; the highest motorable pass on planet Earth at 18380 feet. It was 5^th Sept 2009, 2 pm and I had reached the summit on my mountain bike.

I took a couple of photographs to record the feat and began the descent. It was a lonely descent from the world’s highest road. The pass was closed to vehicular traffic and all vehicles bound for KhardungLa were stuck at South Pullu, 14 km and 2500 feet below the pass. I was the only person allowed to go ahead as I was on a bike, but not before the army guys had given me an astronomical number of warnings and another astronomical number of wishes at the check post the same morning.

Reached the KhardungLa top 18380 feet- Dream of Manali-Leh-KhardungLa mountain biking fulfilled

As the downhill unfolded and I again negotiated the treacherous snow, ice, melted ice and water, exposed boulders and gravels I strangely felt a sense of loss than being jubilant. The dream that made me tick for last 11 months was now accomplished. I was there. I had been there, done that. As one switchback after another presented itself I looked back at how this amazing trip played out. It all began when I had a dream.

Part I: I had a Dream (Oct. 2008)

Global economic meltdown had made people alter their plans worldwide. I was no exception. My plans to do a month long European backpacking trip in summer of 2009 with Mausmi had bitten dust. The option to participate in a Himalayan car rally was open but was an expensive call. My plans to learn flying came crashing when I was told that I would need some recommendations from high ministerial berths. In short, I was looking for an avenue to do something.

That was when one day I chanced upon a blog in the internet which told about an amazing bicycle trip from Manali to Leh, the highest roads on the world and then from Leh to KhardungLa, the highest motorable pass on the world. I was immediately bought into it. I had been to Ladakh, Leh and KhardungLa before and knew it was an amazing land. The prospect of biking there was just exciting.

Next day, I announced this to my friends in my office and naturally drew quite a laugh. They were right in a way of course. It would be no child’s play. You have to be physically fit and in top form to be cycling around 600 km with around 300 km of uphill through some bad roads, treacherous weather and most of all at altitudes in excess of 15,000 feet with very little oxygen to breathe. Later I was to learn that one extremely important part was to be mentally fit to take up such a task.

Despite the seemingly tall odds, I went on and purchased my first mountain bike, a Trek 4300. It was a decent bike but most importantly a bike that I could afford.

Now I had a dream and had a bike to ride through the dream. It was autumn 2008 and I was up for a long haul through many Ups and Downs.

Part II: Ups and Downs (Feb 2009 – July 2009): Preparation Time

From October 2008 till Jan 2009 I used to ride my bike alternate days for some 15-20 km in the evening after the office. Somehow, I managed to forge a group of 4 guys all interested in biking and finally we all coalesced to do our first 50 km+ ride on Feb 1^st 2009.

We huffed and puffed to complete the 54 km ride in some 5 hours, all in flat terrain. I had a great doubt after this trip whether I had bitten more than I could chew. But one downer did not completely set me wobbly.

I continued my daily rides of 15-20 km on flat and good tarmacs and supplemented it with 50-70 km rides in weekends. I was the only guy who would show up for all the rides whilst someone or the other was always missing.

Then after one month of this routine, we embarked on our first long ride. We went to Nahan from Paonta Sahib (to and fro 96 km) with last 7 km of dramatic climb (climb 1500 feet in 7 km). We somehow clawed our way to the top and were completely spent. My doubts persisted about my state of preparedness for the big challenge.

Then we did some more hill work. We went to Kasauli from Kalka (read the blog here) which was an uphill climb of 4000 feet in 24 km. Then we attempted Chakrata (read the blog here) which was a 104 km ride with 5600 feet climbing.

Gradually, I saw my strength grow. I was now a better rider than what I used to be. The ups were encouraging. We all agreed on the final dates when we would attempt the Manali-Leh-KhardungLa circuit. I took care of all the logistics.

By June 2009 I was riding daily for some 40 km. If I felt good I would extend it by 10 km. I would complete my morning ride and then show up at my workplace. Weekends would see longer rides of 60-70 km. I concentrated on a constant pace biking and my legs became stronger and I became fitter on the bike.

The downers hit us again in July 2009. Suddenly everyone was gone and I was the only guy left standing up to take the challenge. I was undeterred and continued my conditioning rides. The last ride took me to Kasauli once again (read the blog here). This time I came back with a truckload of confidence. I was quick in the climb and was feeling perfect. As I kept losing people like chips in a poker game, the only person who hung with me all the time was the woman who has been in life for one and a half decade now, my wife Mausmi.

Finally, the D-Day arrived. On August 21^st 2009, a day when all hell broke loose in Central Delhi due to a thundershower that uprooted countless trees and threw the traffic off gear, I and Mausmi were on a Volvo bus to Manali with my Trek 4300 safely packed up in the luggage trunk.

I had varied messages from colleagues, friends and family. Many thought I was just crazy. Some were sure I was not going to complete it. Some wished me luck and I knew they were rooting for me. Some looked at it as a suicidal trip. The best comment came from a colleague of mine: “Why go to a place on bicycle where the planes can fly you?”

I wish I knew the answer. I knew the next 10 days would be tough. Very tough. But they also promise exceptional rewards. I knew I would be biking with some more guys, all from foreign lands who have come here exactly for the same reason, to cycle the highest roads of the planet.

I was eager to meet the gang.

Read on: The Mountain Biking Trip Begins from Manali- Day 1 – Manali to Marhi – “Meet the Gang”

All Links:

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….

Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Cycling- Day 1 (Aug 24th 2009) : Manali to Marhi – “Meet the Gang”

I have never been a fan of waking up early and would laze on my bed as much as I can. But, the cycling business had taught me to get up early all these days. So, no problems in showing up at the meeting point with all stuff packed up at 8 am.

I had contacted Raju guide (http://www.magicmountains.com) for the trip and he was arranging all of the equipments, tents, food, vehicles etc. As I walked up the iron staircase to the office room I saw two familiar faces; Ian and Russell. We had had a practice ride the previous day till Palchan and knew them for last 24 hours.

From Left: Russell, I and Ian

Ian is a Brit with an accent that screams of Lancashire (those who pronounce every U as U, so “luck” is pronounced as “look” and so on). He and his wife Jean, are in India for decades together and they love India. He had been a sales executive and now he and Jean were starting their own venture (http://www.cyclemanali.com) . He was cycling with us to Leh whilst his wife Jean would join us at Leh directly. Ian was the favorite of all when it came to pinning jokes and he was some sport.

Russell was a colorful character. His bearings were complicated but I mostly figured out that he was an Australian with a dual citizenship of Israel. He was a marketing associate but had done everything from being a chef to an archaeological restorer and was now touring the world till he spends every dime he had once saved. He was a live wire and kept the mood upbeat with his constant pranks and jokes.

Sarrah

Sarrah was a city designer and another Brit. She had done a lot of international work in many African and Asian countries and was now planning to go hiking in Nepal post this cycling expedition.

from left: I and Tom

Tom was by far the most inspiring characters of all. He was, hold your breath, 70 years old. Yes, you read it right, 70 (as in 7 multiplied by 10). He is an American and an English teacher who knew many languages including Spanish, French etc. He has had a highly decorated career as a professional English teacher and had done a huge number of international duties in Europe, Africa and Asia.

Masusmi and I at Manali Mall before the ride began- could not have imagined doing this trip without her anyway...........

I bade goodbye to Mausmi who remained in Manali with the support group and we set off from Manali finally at 9:30 am. Our luggage and belongings were packed up in a support vehicle which would pick up the rations from Manali and join us en-route for lunch. It was a great day with clear sky and we went through the old Manali road, a detour of 6 km, just to treat us with some scenic routes.

Bautiful route from Old Manali to Palchan- See different colored vegetation at different heights on the mountains

And scenic it was. There was beautiful greenery everywhere with the river Beas all along with us. The tree shades were chilly whereas out in the sun it was warm. You could see the different shades of trees at different altitudes clearly on every mountainside.

Russell's attempt at getting high on marijuana

Then we found a place abundant with marijuana plants. These grow naturally here and Manali therefore has the dubious distinction of being one of the hot spots for addicts. In fact Malana, a little hamlet near Manali is famous for its potent “Charas” or purified hash. Russell could not resist the temptation and chewed on a few leaves but to no avail.

We kept on climbing and as we soared up the valley, the temperature soared too. Soon we were past Palchan, a small settlement at the bifurcation point of main highway to Rohtang and Solang valley. We could see many shops selling almost everything to tourists but predominantly warm clothing which looked fit for wearing on an expedition to Mount Everest. Not sure why the tourists rent them where all of us were sweating as the temperature was nearing 30 degree Celsius mark.

After Palchan the roads became very beautiful with green valleys and tall mountains. We could see an occasional para-glider too.

Junta resting in shade-just past Kothi on way to Gulaba

Finally the backup vehicle caught us up near Gulaba, some 25 km from Manali and we stopped for our first day lunch stop. Since it was our first day and the kitchen was not fully functional, we lunched on omelets, maggi noodles and paranthas.

Post lunch the climb seemed hot and more tiring. The temperature had soared to 35 degrees Celsius and it was very warm. The surface quality dropped hugely and all incoming trucks would smear us with powdery dust and thick black diesel fumes. Shortly we passed the 10,000 feet mark and I knew next time I see any altitude reading below 10,000 feet would be when I am back to Delhi a fortnight ahead.

Russell was having troubles with his bike. His rented bike has developed some snag and the last minute substitute was living up to its dubious distinction of being a Hobson’s choice. It made his troubles with heat and climb much more magnified.

On the road, a series of switchbacks took us quickly up around 600 feet in almost no time. I ran out of water here and had to flag down a vehicle from other side to beg for water.

Look closely- you should see 6 layers of roads below. Each layer climbs on the previous one through a switchback loop

Finally, I came through the Marhi Nullah to the first pit stop for the tour. The tents were pitched and our luggage neatly arranged inside the tents. Warm beverage at arrival felt like elixir.

The Tents: Our mobile homes for 10 days

The night sky was brilliant and you could see numerous stars and the entire Milky Way.

The day’s stats were not so bad either:

day's progress highlighted in red

day’s progress highlighted in red

day’s progress highlighted in red

Total Distance	46km
Total Climb	4300 feet
Total Time on Saddle	4 hours 30 min
Sleeping Height	10,900 feet
Oxygen	67.5% relative to MSL (mean sea level)

I knew our next day was a big one. We were slated to go over Rohtang pass known for its treacherous weather. Rohtang means the corpses in local dialect. I slept like a corpse the whole night for the big climb up the Rohtang Pass.

Read on: Day 2 Marhi to Sissu – “The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass“

All Links:

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….

Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Biking- Day 2 (Aug 25th 2009) : Marhi to Sissu – “The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass”

The next day began at a bone chilling temperature of 8 degrees Celsius. Hot tea and steaming hot breakfast alleviated a lot of troubles. I am not a breakfast person and give them a miss with mathematical certainty but when I go biking, I deck up on a lot of calories. The breakfast was good. We had porridge with loads of honey, muesli and milk again with honey and then we had eggs and bread with jam/peanut butter.

Mausmi and I at Marhi- People just admired her patience of being in the support vehicle while I biked. She just smiled- I knew she would always be with me.

Well fed, farewell exchanged with Mausmi and high spirited we began the climb to Rohtang Pass. Mausmi had found her own routine once we were gone. She would sit in the warm sun and read one of the many books she had brought while the support group would wrap up the stuff at one place.

Coming back to the ride, I have never really enjoyed myself in the first few km of any ride when I am not warmed up and still reeling under the loss of the snugness of the comfy bed and this was no different.

The road conditions worsened quickly. Tarmac was gone and was replaced by loose gravels, stone chips, mud and slush and a lot of running streams. This was one of the worst mountain roads I had seen in some time. And it continued for next 18 km, all through the climb. It was cruel to be riding on such a bad surface. Some places it was so muddy that I had to stand up on the bike and put in all that I had got to tame the terrain. I never liked the idea of standing and pedaling as it is an inefficient maneuver and causes a spike in the heart rate but there are places you have to chuck the medical journals and do what is required.

Real bad roads to Rohtang Pass

As I neared the top I felt the drop in temperature. The beautiful green hills and many waterfalls dotted the scenery. I would stop frequently to take pictures and then continue my ascent through the torture road. Later Ian told me that excessive load on this roads owing to Rohtang’s status of being a tourist magnet is directly responsible for these shambolic conditions.

my bike at Rohtang Pass

Finally, I reached the Rohtang pass at 13,100 feet, a climb of 2200 feet in 16 km through the worst roads. This is a must visit for all Indian tourists coming to Manali in search of snow. I found it a dull place though. The support vehicle caught up with us here so I quickly got my helmet and wind proof jacket for the upcoming downhill. One photograph for the memory and I was off again.

the couple photo at Rohtang, very different others who would have those rented colorful extreme winter wears and would ride those hapless ponies

If the uphill surface was bad the downhill was worse. Never during the entire downhill came a moment when you could just effortlessly roll under gravity’s influence and gaze at the snow peaks enjoying the view. The road from Rohtang till Khoksar was all rutted, no tarmac, gravels and potholes and many places were just pure stone chips. Apparently, the roads were being doubled laned and therefore all the construction frenzy has resulted into miles of stone chips’ laying.

But there was no dearth of beauty. All it called for was a stoppage and so did I.

View from Rohtang

We stopped at Khoksar for our packed lunch. Juices, resins, eggs, potatoes and warm tea made a nice lunch.

From Khoksar to Sissu was super smooth silken tarmac. After taking a hell of a beating in the bumpy downhill this gradual downhill on silken tarmac felt like a cruise. To add to the charm, the river Bahga flowed with us all the way through.

Khoksar to Sissu: Beautiful Road, Beautiful View

Buoyed by the tarmac I and Ian indulged into some friendly racing and we cranked up 70km/hr on our bikes. It was a great ride that ended in a great camp spot, a place with lots of tall trees at the bank of Bagha River.

Mausmi on Bike

Enthused by our biking Mausmi also did a small stint on my bike though it was clearly many times over her ideal bike size.

Campsite at Sissu

The dinner was a fabulous affair with pasta, fried mutton, finger chip and some warm tea.

The day’s stats were:

day's progress highlighted in yellow

Total Distance	45 km
Total Climb	2300 feet
Total Time on Saddle	3 hours 45 min
Sleeping Height	10,100 feet
Oxygen	69% relative to MSL (mean sea level)

The next day was a relatively moderate day with no high passes on the menu. The gurgling Bagha seemed like a sweet lullaby and I slept nice and warm under the wraps of the sleeping bag.

Read on: Day 3- Sissu to Jispa- “A Cold Windy Day“

All Links:

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….

Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Cycling Day 3 (Aug 26th 2009) : Sissu to Jispa – “The Cold Windy Day”

I woke up with my barometer indicating possible bad weather. It was not as chilly as the day before but was windy. Yesterday night our guide had arrived. He was Bikki. He would remain with us for the remaining of the tour. He had arrived with Russell’s original rent bike.

Last night Russell, Ian and Bikki had taken the support vehicle to Keylong to meet up with the RedSpoke’s group, another cycling operator who had promised help to us, to get Russell’s bike repaired. Russell was therefore in much better spirits this morning.

I don’t know why, but I left my rainproof jacket back at the campsite despite my barometer warnings and embarked on my biking. The road climbed steadily to Gondla, some 800 feet above Sissu through some patchy surfaces. At Gondla you could see that you have climbed significantly from Sissu which was at the river bed to now I was at a vantage point and could see the meandering Bagha below.

River Bagha's view near Gondla

From Gondla it was again smooth tarmac downhill to Tandi, again to the river basin of Bagha. During this downhill, I was caught in a light rain that lasted may be three to four minutes. However, it gave me some serious chills as the wind was strong.

Bagha basin near Tandi

The view was magnificent. The Bagha flowed with full vigor through the valley and tall grayish mountains with a hint of greenery on the rolling slopes flanked it from both sides. The wind was very strong here and it was all headwinds which if did not slow me down, as I was on a downhill descent, kept me from feeling warm.

As I was reaching Tandi, I met a Portuguese traveler who has been walking around the globe for last 19 years. The meeting was short but I was full of admiration for this man’s spirits. Soon I reached Tandi and was flagged down by army who thought I was a foreigner. Clarifications tendered, I continued and saw the legendary last gas station before Leh.

The legendary gas station of Tandi, the next one is at Leh

I did not any fuel for sure, but this picture was a must have. At Tandi I stopped for some delicious mutton dimsums and hot tea and continued to Keylong.

The Tandi Bridge

Keylong is an important town in the Manali-Leh highway. Lot of people break their journey here for a night while going from Manali to Leh. We stopped at Keylong and had our packed lunch. Our lunch stop had an odd shaped mountain in the backdrop and the locals told us that it was the wish fulfillment mountain. So we posed for a quick photo and continued our journey.

one pic for wish fulfilment mountain

The road from Keylong to Instingri was mostly downhill with a few spectacular stream crossings. From Istingri to Jispa was a climb of 800 feet through some amazing nude rocky mountains followed by a very technical downhill of 400 feet or so. It was quite dangerous with lots of loose gravels and potholes ready to suck you into the 1000+ feet drops. We negotiated them safely and again waded through a km long stone chip overlay to reach the campsite.

rocky wedges of Jispa

The day’s stats were:

day's progress highlighted in turquoise

Total Distance	52 km
Total Climb	2500 feet
Total Time on Saddle	4 hours 05 min
Sleeping Height	10,800 feet
Oxygen	66% relative to MSL (mean sea level)

Tom and Sarrah were mulling to stay in a hotel for a night but they dropped the idea. We had a lovely post dinner session with a bottle of rum and some beers. Ian, Russell and I stayed up late and talked about anything and everything.

Next day was another easy one. No high passes. We were to keep climbing to reach the base of BaralachaLa to Zingzingbar. We had no idea a shock awaited us there.

Read on:  Day 4- Jispa to Zingzingbar- “Awwww Those 7 km”

All Links:

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….

Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Cycling Day 4 (Aug 27th 2009) : Jispa to Zingzingbar – “Awwww Those 7 km…. “

It was sunny with a clear blue sky in the morning. The breakfast was great as usual and I set off. We all had pretty much the same routine. Get up by 6:30. Get ready by 7:45. Breakfast completed by 8:15. Begin riding by 8:30 so that we reach the next campsite by 3 pm. Our conveniences were also nicely looked after. We even had a toilet tent!

By now the vegetation had thinned considerably from the first day. The mountainsides were all nude rocks and had no green covers. Nude rocks made the erosion carvings look spectacular. We were still in the Bagha basin and therefore some greenery stayed with us.

On way from Jispa to Darcha

The road climbed steadily to Darcha some 10 km away and then the climb to Patseo began. I came across the mangled heap of a car which was an eerie reminder of what mountains can do to you if you were careless. The wreck was quite fresh and it sent chills up the spine.

Chilling reminder that mountains do not forgive the careless

It was a steady gradient and the road was good.

Good roads from Darcha to Patseo

I reached Patseo and was surprised to see its size. I was expecting a few settlements and a few shops. Instead, it was just a parachute tent besides Deepaktal, a man made small sized lake. Patseo was mostly an army base than a settlement.

The DeepakTaal- A manmade lake at Patseo

From Patseo, suddenly the terrain changed its characteristics. It turned to the dry arid Ladakh styled look with a blink of an eye. It was majestic. Barren land all around and some tall snow capped peaks in the backdrop. Aaahhhh that’s the land I love and we took many photographs to capture its vastness and its beauty.

Barren landscapes begin

Majestic mountains....check out the blue sky

The road climbed through an army contentment and my fellow bikers expressed their astonishment that a civilian usable road cuts through an army area. I explained that this road is very closely monitored by the army and therefore its presence on the road is a tactical advantage. In fact till 1988 this was a route where civilians were not allowed at all. Ever since the route was opened for tourism, these army outposts keep a strict vigil on this route.

Russell's freeloading- Holding onto a truck. You will see such games played by destitute children in many parts of India but to see an Aussie do it was so much more fun!

Russell was always amazed by the Indian trucks and their diesel fumes’ toxicity so he went after a truck, probably for an in-depth study and held it on for a while enjoying the freeloading ride and rest of us laughed and followed him.

Another group photo

We all were casual as we knew in next 2 km or so the ride ends for the day at Zingzingbar.

However, at Zingzingbar a shock followed. There was no water at the camping ground and therefore the tents would be pitched 7 km up ahead. We pushed on and were immediately hit on our faces by the gradient.

Zingzingbar is the base camp of BaralachaLa, the 16500 feet pass we were supposed to do the next day. So, from Zingzingbar the climb was up a stiff gradient. The mid day heat was on and the climb was tough. Practically everyone was running low on energy as it was a long time since breakfast. To add to the torture, suddenly the surface became all powdery dust and gravel for next 4 km. Somewhere in the climb Bikki gave up and he walked his bike up the inclines.

A tired Bikki walking up the incline

The site of the camp was a relief and we delved into our lunch boxes like a pack of hungry wolves.

Zingzingbar recorded the highest temperature of the entire trip. In the sun the temperature in the late afternoon reached a whopping 40 degrees Celsius. Everyone unanimously acceded the fact that the last 7 km of uphill was an unexpected toil. Psychology plays a big part in these daily stage climbs and today was one occasion when we were at the receiving end.

The next day was the climb up the 16,500 feet behemoth BaralachaLa. I went to sleep wondering how the next day would play out on such a high altitude. That night the temperature dropped to 2 degrees Celsius.

The day’s stats were:

day's progress highlighted in red

Total Distance	38 km
Total Climb	3300 feet
Total Time on Saddle	3 hours 45 min
Sleeping Height	14,100 feet
Oxygen	60% relative to MSL (mean sea level)

Little did I know that the day I was fearing the most would turn out to be a box of chocolates.

Read on: Day 5- Zingzingbar to Sarchu- “The Box of Chocolates”

All Links:

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….

Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Cycling Day 5 (Aug 28th 2009) : Zingzingbar to Sarchu – “The Box of Chocolates”

I woke up in the cold morning with only one thought in my mind, how I will fare in this climb up to BaralachaLa? I guess all of us had the same question in our minds. Last evening Russell was feeling out of breath and we had a discussion about starting Diamox tablets for curing Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS). However, I was feeling fine and we all started the climb together.

The road was surprisingly very good, a big thanks to BRO (Border Road Organization) who maintain these roads at such extreme altitude and climatic conditions.

The beautiful climb on a dream tarmac to BaralachaLa

All these days, I had practiced to climb at a steady rate which generally comes near to an average of 10.5 km/hr uphill. This day I altered the equation to climbing at a steady breathing rate and immediately reaped rich dividends. I settled to a comfortable breathing rate and worked the gears to retrofit the same. This ensured a 100% aerobic muscle rhythm and I felt great during the climb. The road was scenic with tall peaks at a distance and a dream tarmac which made the climb a joy.

Fabulous mountainous backdrop

14 km into the climb, I reached the Surajtal, a beautiful blue colored lake at an altitude of 16,000 feet. It was a breathtaking sight and I spent a good deal of time photographing its natural beauty.

The SurajTaal- Beautiful blue colored lake at an altitude of 16,000 feet

Just for the record that my bike was there too

After Deepaktal the climb reaches its crescendo with a few switchbacks with big booming gradients. However, I reached BaralachaLa at 16,500 feet effortlessly. Thankfully there was a shrine at the top and the caretaker was present so I requested him for a quick photo and he obliged. He was a bit surprised to see a lone Indian guy at the top on a bike though.

Finally at BaralachaLa, 16500 feet

The rest of the riders arrived a little later and we had a small party there. Everyone was pleased to have completed the first real high pass over 16,000 feet and we commemorated the occasion by taking a group photo.

The whole gang at BaralachaLa

The downhill from BaralachaLa to Bharatpur, which was incidentally our lunch stop, was an easy affair with acceptable tarmac quality. The view was spectacular and I would stop often to get a slice of it captured in the camera.

Snow peaks always amaze me..........there was plenty of amazement in offering while coming down from BaralachaLa

The view that mesmerized me. See the drama effected by the shadows on the ground and the mountainfaces

Bharatpur to Sarchu, our pit stop for the day, was one of the best in terms of scenic beauty that this route had to offer. It was there I coined this route as the “The Box of Chocolates” as a testament to the beauty of this ride.

For the start we travelled with the Bagha River on its basin and then continued through a very gradual downhill to Sarchu. Near Sarchu Bagha creates a deep canyon with spectacular wind carvings on the canyon walls.

Himalayas are pretty recent in the geological history of the planet when compared to other major mountain ranges. It was once upon a time an ocean floor (Tethys Ocean) which was forced up through a series of cataclysmic collisions between the Indo-Australian tectonic plate and the Eaurasian plate. All the rocks of Himalayas are predominantly sedimentary and some are conglomerates. Since it has appeared on the face of the Earth as recently as 70 millions years back which means natural erosion is still to have its profound effects, the nude rocks have spectacular sharp edges. We stopped periodically at many such tell-tale places and marveled.

Some places the rocks had unusual pinkish-purplish hue along with some orangish and grayish shades. Later Mausmi summed it best at Sarchu camp during the dinner; “We never painted the mountains with these colors when we made drawings in school.”

Here is an assortment of the day’s scenic treat with another quote from Tom; “No matter how many pictures you take, the true scale and the beauty will never come alive in mute photos”.

More dramatic scenery.....

and more.....

and they keep getting better

The fascinating Bagha Canyon starts

The orange hued mountains.............the color schemes were all min blowing

Some more downhill ensured we were again level with Bagha

The Sarchu Plateau. For km together the road was straight as an arrow. There were tall mountains flanking the road. On the left hand side the Bagha Canyons continued

The campsite at Sarchu was very comfortable and Russell brought the news that the meteorologists predicted that the night temperature would drop to -2 degrees.

The day’s stats were:

day's progress highlighted in yellow

Total Distance	41 km
Total Climb	2500 feet
Total Time on Saddle	3 hours 30 min
Sleeping Height	14,500 feet
Oxygen	58% relative to MSL (mean sea leve58)      At BaralachaLa 53%

The next day was a long one with the legendary Gata loops and the hideous Nakeela Pass on the menu. Our kitchen served us excellent food, as usual and I had a great sleep thanks to the extra sleeping bags that I and Mausmi used as cushions and blankets.

I had no clue that the next day would test my psychological preparedness in the most naked way.

Read on: Day 6 – Sarchu to Whisky Nullah- “The Beauty and the Beast”

All Links:

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….

Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Cycling Day 6 (Aug 29th 2009) : Sarchu to Whisky Nullah– “Beauty and the Beast”

The night before was not as cold as predicted but chilly nonetheless. The day was memorable for two very different experiences. An extremely picturesque ride from Sarchu to the top of the Gata Loops which accounts for the “Beauty” in the title and then a brutal uphill psychological test to Nakeela Pass with extreme cold and lashing hailstorms which accounts for the “Beast”.

The morning was bright with cool breeze and a strong sun. I started off and figured out that my front wheel has picked up a wobbly motion which meant that the breaks kept touching the rims. We did not have a truing machine so I knew I will have to live with this for the rest of the trip. Did a bit of tweaking with Ian’s help to minimize the problem.

The first section of the ride took us again all along the Bagha canyon of Sarchu plateau. The canyon walls were spectacularly carved by the high winds and they were magnificent to watch. By now we were in the desert area known for its high winds and no wonder we could see its erosion carvings all around us.

Amazing wind eroded Bagha Canyon walls. Wind erosion happens only where vegetation and rain fall is negligible. This region fits the bill

Sarchu Plataeu and the Striking Red Cyslist

More erosion stories

Himan Faces? Look closely at the two mountains on the right hand side. Erosion has chiseled human lookalike faces on the rocks

We continued to lose height and finally reached the base of Gata Loops. The Gata Loops are a series of 21 consecutive switchback climbs through which one gains 1500 feet in 10 km or so. This is an important feature on the Manali-Leh highway and I had heard and read a hell of a lot about it.

21 loops of Gata begin

I began the climb and realized soon why it has been imparted its legendary status. It seems never-ending. You climb through one switchback and have barely settled when the other one hits you. I remembered the story of Papillon who escaped from the Devil ’s Island prison on a shanty sailboat after counting that the seventh tidal wave used to be the biggest that could take him out of the cursed jail. The switchbacks seemed like endless waves as they continued to batter us one by one.

Layers of switchbacks beloew, many more to come

Soon I ran out of water and was contemplating of flagging a passing vehicle when our own support vehicle arrived. Water refilled, some chocolates downed the esophagus and I was on my way up again. Despite the continuous and seemingly unending climb, the scenic treat was making up for the effort.

I met with Russell at one switchback where he was resting and he asked the question that I guess everyone had; “When this all ends?”

Gata loop ends

And just when we thought the loops just won’t come to an end, the next switchback took us to this BRO signpost which declared that our climbing odyssey was over, at least for now.

Soon we stopped for lunch and ate a great packed meal. I had done a good deal of reading in the web which had educated me that Nakeela Pass was at 15574 feet. I was very relaxed as it meant a climb of just 250 feet in next 7 km, a walk in the park. Little did I know that the “Beast” was about to make me pay for my audacity of belittling it.

The 250 feet of climb happened in next 2 km and the pass was nowhere in sight. I kept the tempo up and climbed 500 feet. My altimeter showed 15,800 feet and the GPS confirmed the same but there was no Nakeela Pass! Now, I love my facts and figures and departing from them was a cruel thing. I remembered an Air Peru flight’s accident when the plane’s altimeter and air speed indicators went dead and the flight crashed in mid Atlantic. The episode on National Geographic’s series Air Crash Investigations was called “Flying Blind”. With no more altitude references to aim, I was probably biking blind.

To make matters worse there was a rapid escalation of bad weather. It started raining and the wind was very cold. I was getting very cold on my bike and was wondering how far I had to go and how much I needed to climb. Then things became even worse and it started hailing. I had just a shorts and a dry fit tee on and I shivered violently.

Finally I saw the prayer flags from a distance and knew I was almost there. Russell was biking just ahead of me and I heard a loud primeval “Yawww….” when he reached the top. Pretty much everyone suffered the climb and the climate.

The NakeeLa Pass. The BRO's reading is faulty. It is at 16,230 feet

Finally I reached the top with my altitude readings at 16,230 feet. Took a quick picture at Nakeela Pass, where someone was kind to mark their GPS reading (pretty much same as mine) and I began the downhill in full hailstorm.

I do not remember much in the downhill except the fact that it was hailing and I was almost frozen as a chicken in the refrigerator. I reached the pit stop at Whisky Nullah pretty much as a car-wreck. To add to my woes, a freak incident gave me a cut at the back of my knee. I was glad that the next day was a rest day. So did everyone else.

Day’s stats were:

day's progress highlighted in turquoise

Total Distance	55 km
Total Climb	2500 feet
Total Time on Saddle	4 hours 30 min
Sleeping Height	15,600 feet
Oxygen	55% relative to MSL (mean sea leve58)      At NakeeLa 53% Minimum Temperature at NakeeLa: 4 degrees Celsius

I never loved rains, let alone hails and snow, and thought probably this was the last time I would see them in this trip.

How wrong was I?

Read on: Day 7- Whisky Nullah to Pang-  “How Wrong was I?”

All Links:

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….

Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Cycling Day 7 (Aug 31st 2009) : Whisky Nullah to Pang – “How Wrong Was I?”

August 30^th was a rest day which we spent lazing around the camp. Few of the guys went to a small hike while I, Mausmi and Ian rested the whole day. We met two round the globe bicycle travelers; Stephan (Austria) and Kuku (Spain) at the campsite.

Stephan was from Austria and spoke excellent English. He was touring for last 8 months. We connected instantly. I heard his stories from Europe, Asia and now India. Kuku (read his blogs here at http://thetxatarrillasproject.blogspot.com) was an even livelier character. He hardly spoke English but made up with his gestures. He was a mechanical engineer and was now biking around the globe for 3 years. He would sit on the smallest folding chair imaginable and would stand up as soon as anyone walks into the tent and offer the chair. It was wonderful meeting these guys. We met them again in pang and in Leh.

Stephan, the globe trotting cyclist from Austria and I at Whisky Nullah

The most adorable and lively chap I met in this trip: Kuku Perez from Spain. ON the bicycle for 3 years. Seen the whole of Europe and Middle East and now in India. Planning to go to Far East and Australia and then to Americas. An amazing character!

The rest day was all bright and sunny and we went to sleep with optimism about the next day when we would do some 70 km from Whisky to Debring, the base camp of TanglangLa Pass.

I woke up the morning of August 31^st 2009, the day we resume riding after the rest day, with a constant “pitter – patter” sound on our plastic tent. It was the sound I hate the most, sound of the rains. It was biting cold, 4 degrees and raining like crazy when I went to the breakfast tent hoping that we would call off our day’s ride.

Raju, the real guide of the trip, who had arrived the last night, shocked me when he said we would move in another half an hour. We were camping on a dry river bed with a good chance of flash floods in case of heavy rains. This meant only one thing, either we go back 40 km to Sarchu or we continue and cross LachungLa Pass and reach Pang 32 km towards Leh from here. Going back was never an option.

So, I was riding in rain, a prospect that did not cheer me up at all. I wore whatever I had that could shield me from rain and cold and set off. We had an immediate hurdle of crossing LachungLa pass at 16,800 feet, a climb of 1,200 feet in rain and cold.

Pretty soon it started hailing and the conditions became really tough with cold wind and hails.

Rains....Hails...and biting cold, it does not get worse than this for biking....

I labored and labored and egged myself on to continue the climb. It was sapping and a painful ride. Finally I reached the top of LachungLa Pass where the temperature stood at -2 degrees Celsius.

At the LachungLa Pass (16,800 feet) in the middle of a hailstorm. The temperature stood at -2 degrees!

The downhill to Pang proved the most painful and difficult part of the whole trip for me. I was cold. I was all wet inside despite my waterproofing as water seeped through the hood and went all the way in.

The road on the way down was pathetic with lots of gravel, potholes filled with water and many stream crossings which were overflowing owing to rains. Many motorcyclists had slipped; their machines failed or got stuck in the mud. On one occasion, I and our support crew helped a mo-biker stuck in mud. He was buried so badly that he would not have extricated himself without our help!

There was no sun so I was wearing my normal glasses which were thin. Mountain bikes have no mud-flaps, lor at least I did not have them installed, so all the mud and slush was splashed right on me. Much of it would splash right into my eyes as the thin glasses did not cover my eyes completely. I was tasting mud in my mouth. I did not care much about the clothing but my glasses would be coated with mud in no time. I had no dry clothes so I would clean the mud with my bare hands.  This compromised my visibility by a great factor and I became the slowest of all in this leg.

I had heard so much about the beauty of this ride but we missed all owing to the bad weather. However, I got glimpses that promised an excellent vista if the weather was merciful.

The beauty that was largely enveloped by cloud, mist and rains

I reached Pang, a settlement of not more than 5-6 parachute tents, as a riot surviving refugee. I was cold. I was wet. I was miserable. I was numb.

Reached Pang. Not exactly in the best shape to go for a ballroom dance, but happy to have survived the inclement weather

The hot soup and maggi at the parachute tent along with dry clothes made me feel much better. In fact so cold I was feeling that I had no sensation in my right thumb even if I bit it real hard. I got myself a cup of tea and stuck the right thumb straight into the hot liquid and it came back to life!

We did not pitch tents at Pang. Rather we stayed in one of the Parachute tents owned by some really happy bunch of Ladakhi women who would serve the customers hot food and continue to dance on some peppy local music.

The short day meant only one thing, we would have to do a long next day and do Morey Plains and TanglangLa Pass in the same day, that is if and only if, the weather clears up.

The stats for the day were:

day's progress highlighted in red

Total Distance	32 km
Total Climb	1200 feet
Total Time on Saddle	3 hours 05 min
Sleeping Height	14,800 feet
Oxygen	57% relative to MSL (mean sea leve58)      At LachungLa 51% Minimum Temperature at LachungLa: -2 degrees Celsius

We all prayed that tomorrow be a clear day so that we can get back to our plans again. A very long day was on the cards.

Read on: Day 8- Pang to Lato -“The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter”

All Links:

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….

Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Cycling Day 8 (Sept 1st 2009) : Pang to Lato – “The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter”

Sunshine……………………….

Bright Sunshine……………………….

The day’s start was exactly what the doctor ordered. We got up at an unearthly 5:30 am and at 7 am we were out on our bikes. We did not have much choice after the rains, so no complaints. A short 10 km climb ensued and we hit the Morey Plains at an altitude of 15,600 feet.

The next 40 km we covered the Morey Plains which was infamous for its bad surface quality and high head winds. However, we were pleasantly surprised to find the surface quality pretty fair. On top of it, there was hardly any headwind except for the last 9 km stretch.

The visual treat was again top of the draw here. It is anyway difficult to believe the vastness of this plain at this high altitude. It is like a 40 km long and 50 km wide belt with mountains flanking it from all sides but it still maintains its billiard top levelness all though.

Many photos were taken on this and here is a small assortment:

The intriguing Morey Plains spreading 40 km at an average altitude of 15, 300 feet

Me at Morey Plains. See army vehicles behind. We were passed by a huge army convoy of some 50 vehicles. I waved to the brave soldiers and they all waved back!

Cyslists at Morey Plains

Beautiful blue sky and see the cloud shadow on the mountains

One of my close ups..........

stop for water refilling. Mausmi on the extreme left hand side

We stopped at Debring for our lunch at around 11:30 am. We had covered some 50 km already and were at 15,000 feet. The Morey Plains is a gradual downhill in the 40 odd km but it is so gradual that you do not feel it at all. From our lunch stop, we had 21 km to the final pass that stood in our way to Leh, the mighty TanglangLa pass at 17,580 feet.

TanglangLa was very unlike any other passes I had done so far. It would not give you an option to gain altitude in switchbacks but would tease you with long-long-long sections of constant gradient climb that went on forever. You would be able to see the destination at all times and it may fool you with a sense that it is just a touch away. The reality is- it is a long hard laborious climb from the base.

Long climb sections of TanglangLa

An edited illustration of the climbing conditions. The picture shows a section that gains some 600 feet in 3 km.

See the pictures above and you will notice how long and laborious the climbs are. This was the picture of a section which gained 600 odd feet in 3 km, akin to a 7% gradient. I have just added some lines and figures to aid the understanding of how the road to TanglangLa climbs. The surface quality was quite acceptable here so did not face many issues.

I again employed my constant breathing rate climbing and reached the top without an iota of a problem. The TangLangLa top was absolutely deserted when I climbed up there. It felt strange as no one was there and I had it at my personal disposal. For next 20 minutes I was the only human atop TanglangLa and it felt surreal. Few of our colleagues suffered from the altitude sickness but all made it to the top finally.

Reached the 2nd highest motorable road on Earth, TangLangLa at 17,582 feet. I was alone there for some 20 minutes and it felt amazing...........

When you got it, you flaunt it............

The whole gang, including the support crew, at TanglangLa

It was a long, very rough and bumpy downhill from TanglangLa but the visual bonanza swept me out of my feet. Many people have mentioned that the downhill towards Leh treasures the best scenery of the route and I could not agree more to it. It was just an amazing spectacle and my camera had a very busy time. It snowed a little while coming down but we were far too elated to have completed TanglangLa to take serious notice of it.

Some of the guys decided to take a steeper and faster downhill route to the next campsite but I was not sacrificing the scenic platter for an adrenalin rush. I am Tom rode together marveling the majestic mountain vistas that unfolded in front of us at each corner.

Amazing mountains

Nature mesmerizes you at each corner while descending from TanglangLa

Witness to an absorbing drama enacted by the clouds, shadows, the snow peaks and the sun

Hail the plate tectonics, otherwise this place would have been an ocean floor and this beauty would not have existed............

Great mountains of Himalaya.....just amazing!

Soon we swooped down to the Indus’ tributary’s river basin. Pretty much the same time, we again started seeing signs of civilization strewn all around. As we carried along the route we passed Rumptse, Gya and a few small villages. We started seeing gompas(monasteries), stupas(prayer structure) and chortens(direction structure)  dotting the route. Domesticated cattle also made a welcome reappearance.

End of bone jarring bad roads, smooth downhill to Rumptse, Gya and then to Lato

My kind of downhill...... Just roll under gravity's influence and keep enjoying the scenery

More drama ahead with fleeting cloud shadows over mountain faces

Horses grazing in the backdrop of Himalayas

The first Stupa (prayer structure) on our way........

Our campsite was a great deal. It was just on the bank of a fast flowing river on a great green grass bed with tall mountains flanking us from all sides. Being the last night of camping, we had a fine camp fire and a great dinner. There was again rum and beer to accompany the good food and we had a great time chatting by the fire.

Our campsite at Lato captured by Mausmi. It was an amazing place with fast flowing rivers, flowers, green grass and tall mountains all rolled into one package

Lato campsite. The grass felt like dream after stepping on hard rocks all these days

The stats for the day were:

day's progress highlighted in yellow

Total Distance	106 km
Total Climb	3000 feet
Total Time on Saddle	7 hours 50 min
Sleeping Height	13,400 feet
Oxygen	61% relative to MSL (mean sea leve58)      At TanglangLa 50%

The last night at the camp was a mixed feeling. I knew I would be reaching Leh the next day and that this great group of ours that gelled so well would not be doing any other camping together. However, I was elated for now nothing seemed to stop me from completing one part of the dream that I had had.

I will reach Leh…….

Read on: Day 9 – Lato to Leh -“I will Reach Leh”

All Links:

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….

Manali-Leh-KhardungLa Cycling Day 9 (Sept 2nd 2009) : Lato to Leh – “I Will Reach Leh”

70 km…………….

That is all what stood between us and Leh, the destination of the first part of the dream that I once had. It would be 15 km downhill to Upshi and then a 50 km undulating terrain to Thiksey and a final 800 feet climb in 5 km to Leh.

The highlight of the day’s ride were the first 15 km downhill to Upshi along the fast moving river dotted by some amazing rock formations all around. The rock color was stark purple which bewildered us. The rocks had clear erosion marks that were carved out by moving ice as if someone had scraped the mountain-faces with colossal nails.

Me in the backdrop of Purple mountains

Fabulous color scheme, pupple mountain, blue sky, clear blue water, grey tarmac.........

Giant erosion patterns carved out by moving snow. See deep alleys etched into the purple rocks

Tom: the most inspirational character of the trip

I was riding with Tom and we stopped almost every 100 meters to enjoy the surreal purple colored rocks dissected by the clear blue river. The road was very well maintained and had copious BRO messages that made for some hilarious readings.

“After whisky, driving risky”, “drive on horsepower and not on rum power”, “don’t gossip let him drive”, “don’t be a Gama in the land of Lama”, “Be Mr. late than late Mr.”, “This is a highway not a runway”, “He who touches 90 never sees beyond 19”, “Darling I like you but not so fast”, “I am curvaceous, be gentle on my curves”…… The last ones had us in splits.

On this route, our friend Russell met with a small accident and he toppled over his bike. Luckily he was unhurt and continued his journey nonchalantly.

As we continued downhill, vegetation became more common. We would pass many small villages and kids would line up to give us fives as we rode past them touching their extended palms. Everything seems cheerful and I enjoyed the ride.

Soon, we reached Upshi, a major army base and had our first encounter with the mighty Indus River. I knew, now on we shall be travelling right with Indus till we reach Leh.

Say Hello to the River Indus at Upshi

The road after Upshi was again deserted and there were no villages. Tall mountains flanked us from both side and the road continued through many ups and downs along the Indus’ bank. There was an occasional hint of greenery but overall the landscape was still very barren.

The ups and downs were a bit tiresome but did not take the fun away from us. Thankfully, the tarmac quality was superb and it helped us maintain a steady pace.

The undulating ups and downs continue to Karu from Upshi. River Indus flows just besides the highway

We stopped at Karu, another area with a heavy military presence, for lunch. Karu is the place from where you reach the 3^rd highest pass in the world ChangLa and then the road continues to Pangong Lake, a huge brackish lake at over 15000 feet. Not far from there is the volatile China border. Therefore military presence was no exception but the rule in these areas.

My barometer suggested a drop in pressure which meant only one thing, my nemesis- the rains! I packed myself with rainproof stuff and continued while I saw storm clouds gather in the direction we were to go.

Mercifully, the weather held up and we continued unabated. Soon we reached the town Thiksey famous for its monastery or Gompa in local language.

Thiksey Monastery.....an important landmark

The next big town was Choglamsar, 6 km from Leh and the final ascent began. Now we were well and truly back to urban locales.

Reached Leh. 490 km in 41 hours of riding

Government buildings, shops, schools, playgrounds all started bombarding us after almost 10 days’ of absence. Mobile phones started to work again and we I saw more people in next half an hour than I had seen in last 10 days.

Finally, I made my way to Changspa in Leh where we were about to spend the next few days.

The day’s stats were:

day's progress highlighted in turquoise

Total Distance	71 km
Total Climb	800 feet
Total Time on Saddle	4 hours 20 min
Sleeping Height	11,600 feet
Oxygen	65% relative to MSL (mean sea leve58)

It was a strange feeling completing the trip from Manali to Leh. All the passes, the geographical features, the important landmarks, their altitudes, that were very much a part of my life for last 11 months, were now behind me. I don’t think I felt any special achievement completing it, but the happiness was true.

There would be two rest days to follow when it would rain like hell. So incessant the rains would be that all flights in and out of Leh would stand cancelled, that KhardungLa would receive 4 feet of snow and would be closed for vehicular traffic, that I would sit indoors and hear the sound I hate most, the “pitter – patter” rain sound……………

But, when I parked my Trek 4300 that day after completing the first leg of this marathon mountain biking, I never knew about all these. I had one thing only in my mind, when will the time come when I get to go to Khardungla and do my final hurrah!

Read on: The Last Leg of the Cycling : Day 10 – Leh to KhardungLa-“The Final Hurrah………”

All Links:

Prologue (Khardungla and My Conditioning): https://manasij.wordpress.com/2009/09/13/manali-leh-khardungla-prologue/

Prologue : Khardungla and My Conditioning

Day 1 (Manali to Marhi):  Meet the Gang

Day 2 (Marhi to Sissu):  The Big Climb up the Rohtang Pass

Day 3 (Sissu to Jispa):   The Cold Windy Day

Day 4 (Jispa to ZingzingBar):  Awww… Those 7 km…

Day 5 (ZingzingBar to Sarchu): The Box of Chololates

Day 6 (Sarchu to Whisky Nullah): The Beauty and the Beast

Day 7 (Whisky Nullah to Pang):  How Wrong Was I?

Day 8 (Pang to Lato): The Longest and the Best Day- Size Does Matter

Day 9 (Lato to Leh):   I Will Reach Leh

Day 10 (Leh to KhardungLa):  The Final Hurrah….