A Month before: (Planning, Planning and more planning): This was something that I had been planning since a very long time but actual planning started probably a month before. So many things had to be arranged for and the biggest of them was the second bike. We have Bullet Electra but we had to arrange for a second bike for my bro to ride. Aman promptly agreed to lend his 10 months old Thunderbird twin spark; Hats off to him for this. It takes loads of courage to lend your bike for Laddakh trip. So bike was taken care off, now it was the turn of getting the carriers fitted. My friend Luvir offered his cramster which I accepted almost instantly. We had decided to get the metal carrier fitted on the TB and carry cramster on Electra however the mechanic told us that it will take few drills to the TB fender for the carrier to get installed so the plan of getting the metal carrier installed on TB was dropped and instead was installed on Electra. A lot of spares were purchased; right from the air pump to cables, plugs to foot pegs. This took a lot of time and numerous karolbagh visits as finding spares for a newly launched Twin spark was difficult. After sorting out the carrier we decided to carry fuel, sleeping bags and few clothes on Electra and carry the spares & rest of the clothes on TB. After this; it was route finalization. Both of us had downloaded a lot of maps and we discussed lot of routes. Finally we decided on an off beat route till Manali and post that the usual route till Leh.
Day one : ? (Delhi - Parwanoo- Arki - Sundernagar- Manali):- We got up at 3 AM hoping to leave by 4 but there was no electricity. Much to our surprise our relatives showed up at 3: 30 and decided to accompany us till Panipat in their car. Finally after the bye byes and take cares… we left home at 4: 30 and 2 minutes in to the ride it started to drizzle. We stopped under a flyover and changed to rain suits. Post this it was non stop riding till Panipat; from where relatives took a u turn and we continued towards Manali. Our first halt was around 7 at Jhilmil dhaba some 130 odd Kms from Delhi. The rain had stopped by now and weather was pleasant. We decided to eat light so few parathas were ordered; gulping down the same didn't take much time or effort. After spending some time at the dhaba it was time to move on. We rode till Zirakhpur and took right turn for Parwanoo. We stopped at a very small market place with barely 3 shops ( 2 pickle and 1 wine ) drank a lot of water with ORS powder in it and moved on . Stopped at the next fuel pump; topped and asked for directions to Aarki . Now aarki is Gurkha regiment's training center and they have maintained the area pretty well. We were amazed to see well paved roads in the middle of nowhere. We stopped at a small shop; had biscuits & water and we are on the road again. The moment we exit the cantt area the condition of the roads started becoming bad and within a matter of 5 kms it was a no road situation and we were left searching for a road that could lead us to the national highway. After few more kms in to the wilderness we came across cab drivers who told us about a route which will take us straight to sundernagar . We wasted no time in hopping on to that road and were heading towards sundernagar. We reached sundernagar at around 3 PM and halted for lunch at a Dhaba. Just as we stopped bro's helmet slipped and fell down on the road breaking the visor, it was soon fixed with duct tape. He would ride like this for the rest of the trip as we could not find a helmet repair shop anywhere during the trip. Manali was about 140 odd Kms from our halt and we were pretty sure that we will reach Manali by 7 pm however something else was in store for us. As soon as we started from Sundernagar we saw dark clouds looming large upon us. Rain suits were out again and the luggage was repacked. It started with a light drizzle and soon it was coming down heavily on us. The average speed went from 60-10 in no time and we were ducking for cover. We stopped at a makeshift petrol pump and waited for the rains to slow down. Bro was finding it particularly difficult to see with the broken and sealed visor. Finally the rain slowed down and we resumed our journey. It was getting dark pretty quickly and by the time we reached Kullu it was pitch dark. With slight drizzle still on it was becoming very difficult for us to ride in pitch dark. After riding for about 30 min we came across 4-5 cars traveling in the vicinity, we started trailing them and reached a check point5 km before Manali. By then we were completely drenched and very cold. We paid the taxes stared riding again but to our horror we ran in to a huge Jam. It seemed as if the entire world was visiting Manali. The hotel owners were making merry, asking for crazy prices. It took us more than 2 hours to find a place to stay for the night. We had to shell out 800rs for a hotel room which on a regular day would not even have commanded Rs 150. But since it was already close to 10 in the evening and we were drenched and cold, we decided to take it. The place was really bad and we had to sleep in our sleeping bags. We dumped our stuff in the room and went out for dinner. Came back and dozed off.
Day Two : ? (Manali -Rohtang pass - Darcha - Tandi- keylong):- Got up late after the last evening's adventure with the hotel search. Checked bikes for any problems, found none, topped up the engine oil and headed in to the market for breakfast. Went in to a small dhaba and had really bad omelets. The guy had some talent; it takes a lot of talent to ruin a simple dish like omelet. While bro was loading the bikes up I headed in to the market to get the helmet repaired but surprisingly could not find even a single shop for helmet so we decided to continue like that. We tanked up at the base of rohtang pass and got the fuel cans also filled up. We did a mistake of overestimating the need for fuel and took 30 lts of fuel in two 5lts and two 10 lts cans attached to my bike. We started with the climb and soon realized that one of the 10 lts can would not be able to hold up. We tried putting wooden planks and crushed water bottles at the base and were hoping against hope for that can to hold up. Once halfway we got stuck in huge jams in Rohtang , Fresh snow, lot of Mud and water were not helping either. Due to the jams, steep incline and the road conditions my bike's clutch started to heat up and had almost become free. I picked up big chunks of snow from the road and kept it on the crank case to cool off the clutch. And then the first incident happened. Stuck in the jam I was waiting for the traffic to move when suddenly an Indian oil truck, completely ignoring my presence decided to move forward full throttle. I had to dive to the left and into the snow to get out of the way of the speeding truck. Well… picked up the bike and started again. It took us more than 2-2.5 hrs to navigate through the jam and reach the top. What we saw there was really disappointing. There were hordes of tourist there, the place was brimming with people and the garbage they had left behind .We decided just to have food and push off. Had some Maggie along with chai and Parle G and moved on. The moment we crossed over to the other side trouble hit us. One to the 10 lts cans had ripped off and fuel had started dripping out and to top it all it started to Snow. We tried pouring fuel in our tanks but they were already full so we decided to stop moving cars and ask for empty water bottles. We some how managed to get some empty bottles and started pouring fuel in to those bottles - Big Mistake. It was already snowing and we took off our leather gloves. Freezing petrol made our hands nearly numb. A helpful truck driver offered us a sack to put all the fuel bottles into.
Just as were about to start we discovered that my leather gloves were missing so we decided to drive with the nearly numb hands and in the snow. Driving bare hands caused excruciating pain in my left wrist and for the next 3-4 days I would find it very difficult to hold even a spoon in my hand. What we saw after driving for about 1 km really ran shivers down our spines. There was no road, a steep decline, was snowing and there was water flowing at a very rapid speed along with huge chunks of snow and ice. We stopped and looked in to the valley, the entire 10-12 kms downhill stretch was like that. I was not sure if we will be able to make it but guess bro had already decided to jump in so I followed. And what flowed after that was surgeon like precision driving. It took lot of time to negotiate that stretch. We were about to reach the valley floor and were a bit relaxed when we saw a huge water crossing on the road. Since it was snowing and raining the puddle had transformed in to a pond with floating ice. Now this was the first real water crossing that we had come across and with no real experience we dived in. Luckily no falls, Bro's TB sailed through like a ship and I had to put my foot down in to the water once. Now my feet and hands were both freezing. We stopped in lahul valley for few minutes and took a few snaps. Since this was army area the roads thereafter were good for the next few Kms and we made good speed. This however this was short lived and soon we were back on the rocky and muddy roads trying to stop the bike from skidding and drifting. And to make the matter worst it was drizzling every now and then. We reached Tandi late in the evening, decided to tank up next morning after getting new sturdy cans so headed straight for keylong to halt there for the night. We checked in to a small guest house (highly recommended) right at the beginning of the town and dumped our stuff. Talked to few riders and figured out that jerry cans were available in the market and so were gloves. We came across this British traveler who was doing the entire route on a bicycle. He was fairly impressed with the Electra and after a few failed attempts to start my bike gave up the idea. We headed straight to the small market and bought fresh set of cans, gloves and few other things. Dinner was one of the best that we will have on this trip. There is a small hotel by the name of Jispa , the food there was heavenly and dirt cheap . Since it was already 9 in the evening we headed back to the guest house and dozed off.
Day Three : ? (keylong - Jispa - Zing zing Bar - Barcha la - Sarchu) :- I got up really early the next morning at 4 am and came out of the room, It was freezing outside. The location of our guest house could not have been better. It was facing a valley and the peaks were covered with snow and there was a stream right at the valley floor. It was simply amazing. I clicked a few snaps and went back inside and started getting ready. Checked the bikes and topped up engine oil. We transferred petrol from the old cans to new and sturdy cans and this time we put card board pieces under the cans to make them sturdy. The owner was very helpful and emptied sealed cartons to give us the cardboard. After light breakfast at the guest house we headed back to tandi to tank up and headed towards Bracha la . The ride soon became a wet ride with constant drizzle. And since it was all dirt roads drizzle made it really difficult to ride. We somehow crossed Jispa and headed for Zing zing bar. We stopped at the army check post had some tea and dried up our gloves at the shop. Standing inside that small shop we could see the dark clouds gathering but not realizing the implications we decided to continue towards Barcha la. 10 kms into the ride it started to snow a bit and we decided to take shelter in a small tent and the moment snow stopped we resumed. Now we had Himalayan odyssey guys for the company but since we wanted to miss the rush we decided to move ahead of those guys. By now the snow had stopped and sun was out, we took this as an ominous sign and continued only to encounter an enormous water crossing. The water was gushing down on the road and in to the valley. We stopped for a moment; sized it up and Bro dived in and sailed across like a boat. I however was destined for something else I tried following Bro's path but got suck right in the middle. My bike was not able to get out of the small ditch hidden in the middle of the crossing I had to put my feet down and eventually the bike to. Bro came rushing and had to push the bike out of the pond .Just as we were about to start again we saw Odyssey guys coming in and we immediately realized that this guy will not be able to make it so we dived into the water again and helped the guy out of the water. What followed was a complete rescue mission helping out Odyssey guys and few foreigners on big bulky BMW bikes. Since Sun was out we decided to halt for sometime and dry out the clothes ? big mistake.
As soon as we stared; it stared to snow and it grew in proportions, what stared out as mild snow fall grew in to a snow storm and we could see nothing on the road. Bro was finding it very difficult to see with the broken helmet so we stopped; we soon realized that stopping was not a good idea as it didn't take more than 2 min for us to get completely covered with snow. We again started moving at a very slow pace; came across an odyssey rider who had met an accident and was being looked after by their backup crew. We were about to reach the top but the road got blocked with a truck meeting an accident due to the snow storm. Once again we were stranded in snow storm with no were to hide, we experienced the whitewash for the second time. Soon the army came to the rescue and cleared the road and we reached the top. Stopped for a while clicked and moved on. It was one of the most difficult situations that we had ever been in. On our way down we stopped in a tent at Bharatpur which is at the bottom of the pass. Once again it started to snow. We decided to move only after the snow stopped and ordered Maggie , soup but were not able to eat anything due to the altitude and storm. We bought fresh pair of socks and tried to get warm by holding warm water glass between palms. Soon the snow fall gave way for another snow storm and the tent owner feared that the tent would collapse because of the snow. With no other option left, we decided to head towards sarchu. We came out of the tent and it was still snowing heavily, we cleared the snow off the bikes and tried starting then but they just would not start and it was really difficult to kick start the bikes . We struggled a bit but were somehow able to start the bikes. Next stop was Sarchu. Now sarchu is situated along the valley with flat ground stretching for kms. We approached one of the tents and the guys asked for 2000 rs. Perhaps trying to charge premium as it was still snowing. We approached another one and it was the same story there also. Then we decided to ride till the J&K border and look for a particular tent which one of our friends had recommended. This was right next to the police post and was charging modest 100 rs. So our night halt was finalized .We dumped our stuff and headed straight for the kitchen tent. Sat next to the stove and dried out clothes. In the mean while the guy made nice tea. Once again the hospitality was at its best. The guy noticed that we were in very bad shape due to snow storm so he arranged for a stove exclusively for us to dry our clothes on. The guy prepared dinner for us but we could hardly eat. Just took a few bites and decided to sleep. We were not able to get proper sleep as the tent was close to the border and there was lot of truck activities through out the night. The entire tent was filled with smoke and we were left gasping for breath. Altitude and snow was making the matter worst. By 4 am , we realized that the entire tent was filled with smoke; we quickly opened the windows and moved out of the tent.
Day Four : ( Sarchu- Pang-Rumste - Upshi - Leh) :- By now we had become a bit wiser and decided to start early and began packing. By the time it was 7 we had packed; now it was the time for morning rituals but since there were no toilets, the wide open spaces were utilized. With the whitewash yesterday still fresh in our mind we decided to water proof our feet, we wore polythine bags over socks and then tapped our shoes from outside also to make it water proof and this really worked for the rest of the trip. We were not feeling good so decided to skip breakfast and pushed off from our tented accommodation. Removed snow from the bikes, checked them for any problems, topped the engine oil and resumed our journey. The road from there was in better shape and it was really beautiful. Next were the gatta loops, now the thing about the loops is that one doesn't realize the altitude that one gains while going through the loops. From 11500 ft we go to 15000 ft in a matter of minutes and that really takes toll on the riders. We suffered from acute mountain sickness; experiencing difficulty in breathing. Bro with broken and sealed visor was finding breathing particularly difficult so we stopped for a while to catch our breath and started again. Soon we were standing at Nakeela Pass @ 15,500 Ft. The wind there was chilling and we didn't dare to take off even the helmets. After clicking few photos we moved forward. The roads disappeared again and were replaced by gravel, stones and snow. Passed through some very rough terrain, beautiful valleys and streams and reached Lachungla @ 16,500 Ft. once again chilling winds welcomed us and we did the same … didn't take the helmet off , clicked few snaps and moved on towards Pang . We stopped at the Army check post and were informed about heavy snow fall at Thanglang la we kept moving till Pang and decided to take a call there.
Pang is world's coldest desert but when we reached it was afternoon and was quiet sunny. We stopped at one of the tents at Pang and ordered food but found it very difficult to gulp down even a couple of bites due to the altitude sickness. Since no one was moving ahead of Pang; a lot of bikers had gathered there. Then we saw one guy coming from Thanglang la , we stopped him and enquired about the pass and were happy to hear that the pass has been opened and could be crossed on bikes. We headed for Thanglang la passing through more plains. More plains are as beautiful as it can get. Its 40 kms of flat surface filled with mud and sand; shielded by huge mountains on either side. We had heard stories of bikes getting stuck in the sand and bikers being thrown off their bikes due to sudden depressions and sand pits, so we decided to move at a slow but consistent pace. We encountered many sand pits and rocky patches where the bikes were getting stuck. Due to constant depressions the bikes were consistently jumping and one of the bags tied to my bike fell off. By the time one of the riders could point it out we already were some 5 km away. Bro had to travel all the way back to get the bag which was picked up by some very helpful riders and were looking for the owners .while I was standing there tying the bags a foreigner couple (For whom we had worked as interpreters some time back) parked their pajero next to our bike to make sure that we are ok. Once we started moving they also started and soon disappeared in to the plains. From there It took us about 45 min to reach Thanglang la @ 17300 ft. It was very treacherous and recent snowfall had made it worse. We stayed there for 10 min clicked few snaps and move towards Leh which was 100 odd kms from there. Once we climbed down from Thanglang la and reached rumste we were welcomed by smooth tarmac road and after 3 days we were traveling at speeds of over 70 KPH . We quickly passed very beautiful Upshi and reached karu .We could see huge dark clouds in the vicinity, this made us ride at higher speeds to avoid the rains. We reached Leh at around 7 PM and after an hours search found a guest house which was to be our home for the next 3-4 days. We quickly dumped the stuff in our room and decided to go out for dinner but that didn't happen. I was too tired and went to bed straightaway. Bro mustered courage to go to the market and got us sandwiches but I guess none of us had more than 2 bites each and dozed off.
Day Five : (Leh) :- Leh is a very small town with mostly foreign tourist and the small market place is mostly filled with shops offering adventure tour packages, bikes on rent and restaurants serving all the possible cuisines of the world. Going with the slow and lazy pace of the town, we decided to take the day off and just lazed around the town. Went to German Bakery and had a well deserved good breakfast. Post that we went to get the permits for Khardungla , panagong and Nubra valley . Well taking the permit ideally should take around 10 minutes but here it takes about takes a day. We reached the office at around 11 am and were handed over forms to be filled up with 3 copies; which we did then we were asked to come back at 3 PM to collect the permits. We decided to have lunch and come back in the evening. We were now looking for a place which served north Indian food and we found just the perfect restaurant. This restaurant would become one of our most visited places in Leh. Post lunch we decided to go back to the hotel and come back on the bike as we wanted to get the bikes checked by mechanic. Upon reaching the office at 3 Pm we were told to come back after some time so we decided to enjoy a local football match in a stadium opposite the office. Finally we got the permits at around 4 and then our hunt for a mechanic begun. We took the bikes to one ''Mohan''. Got the air filter changed and with few tweaking of the carb, we were good to go. Bought some extra engine oil and headed back to our hotel. Went out for an evening stroll, had the most amazing pizza prepared in a clay oven; came back and slept off.
Day Six: (Leh):- Once again laziness was the order of the day. We decided to visit Thicksey monastery and Shanti stupa . Thicksey is 20 odd kms from Leh, reaching there took about half an hour but by the time we reached it was already 1 pm and they had closed the Monastery. We clicked some snaps and headed back to the city. We again decided to go to the mechanic and get the bikes washed and oiled. Just then the clutch cable broke but luckily that happened right in front of the garage and the guy fixed it up. Now we had shanti stupa in mind. We parked Electra at the guest house and headed for shanti stupa on TB. Since it is just next to the city it took us hardly 10 min. It is a white structure built on the top of a cliff and the place is so quiet. No wonder it is called Shanti stupa . It offers a perfect hawk eye view of the city and the mountains. We spent good 2 hours there and decided to come back at night for a night view of the town. Went back to the city and had dinner and came back at night. It offered the most amazing views of Leh. Satisfied we went back to our hotel and slept.
Day Seven : (Leh - Panagong - Leh):- We decided to start early as this would be a total of 300 kms. We topped engine oil and fuel in both the bikes and decided to carry the cramster (tools and spares) on TB. We left Leh at 6: 30 and decided to have breakfast en-route. Reached karu in no time and stopped for breakfast. Had light breakfast of bread butter and omelets and met one over friendly dog. Then it was non stop riding till the Chang-La Army post. Stopped at the post; did the mandatory entries and started moving towards Chang-La. Now this pass is particularly difficult to climb because of the terrain, altitude and Snow. The bikes were grasping for air and I was finding it very difficult to get Electra climb, my aching wrist was making the matter worst. We reached a frozen Chang-La@ 17500 ft at around 11 and after the customary snaps pushed on for Panagong . Now, it was easy on the engines as we climb down by 3500 ft in the next few kms however it was bad for the brakes. And soon enough I saw smoke coming out of TB break drum. We stopped and loosened the rear brakes and then onwards Bro rode only on the front disks; using rear bare minimum. Needless to say that the roads were non existent and we were riding on road filled with rocks and sand. I once got stuck in a sand lot and a passing SUV had to come to the rescue. We had to push and pull the bike to get it out of the sand. We passed through some of the most beautiful Laddakh terrain, amazingly beautiful valley stretching for miles. After traveling for another hour or so we saw the first glimpse of the Lake and we were amazed to see the sight of it. We quickly reached the shore and parked our bikes there. It was not a thing to be described; the water is crystal clear. It extends well in to the horizon. It perhaps is the most beautiful lake I have ever seen. After a lot of snaps we decided to eat and ordered Maggie, chocolates from a nearby tent. However the altitude again got the better of us and we were not able to eat anything. We stayed there for about 1 hr and then decided to head back. We started the long ride back and moved towards Chang-la. This perhaps was the most difficult climb. It took a heavy toll on the bikes as we had to climb 3500 ft in matter of few Kms. we had to stop several time to give the engines a bit of cooling off time and after a few stops we are again standing at Chang-La. From now onwards it was again down hill till Leh and was done in short period of time. We reached Leh at about 5 got the bikes checked by the mechanic again, parked the bikes at the hotel and headed back to the market for evening stroll. Once again had a hearty meal and dozed off.
Day Eight : (Leh - Khardung- La - Leh):- This was a no effort day. We had decided to visit Khardung-La today so as to stay fresh for tomorrow's ride to Srinagar. Khardung - La is about 40 Kms off Leh and turned out to be a disappointment. The road leading was paved for the 30 Kms it was only the last 10 kms which was treacherous. We took about an hour to reach Khardung-La@ 18300 ft and reached there pretty comfortably. I was expecting Khardung- La to be very tough and dangerous due to the altitude however it turned out to be the exact opposite. Though the highest; it turned out to be the easiest of them all. We spent about an hour at the pass and decided to come back. Coming back took less than an hour .We went back to the hotel and began packing for the next day. Had heavy lunch and just lazed around the town.
Day Nine : (Leh - Kargil - Drass ):- Since we had packed everything last night only so we started very early. Topped the engine oil, fuel and started towards Kargil. We passed Magnetic hill and reached Khalsi. It's the last petrol pump before Kargil, also the last stretch of tarmac before Kargil. The road after this point is a mess, Infact it should not be categorized as road. It is 200 kms of dirt and rocks and at times even worse. We crossed Fotula pass, the highest point on Leh Srinagar road. We kept riding non stop till could and stopped only for water and chocolate break, we were felling hungry as we had skipped dinner and breakfast. We once stopped for water and noticed that both of us were covered in mud from head to toe. We started again and reached Kargil at around 1 PM. We topped fuel and asked the locals for restaurants and we were told that there are plenty of restaurants on Drass highway; believing them we started on Drass highway. Drass is 60 Km off Kargil and the highway runs parallel to Pakistan border. All along the road you can spot notice boards cautioning not to stop as the highway is monitored by Pakistani troops. We tried searching for restaurants / Dhabas / stalls...anything that sold food but found nothing. We reached outskirts of Drass by 2: 30 and asked army for direction for Srinagar however instead of giving us directions for srinagar the army Jawans advised us to stay at Drass ? Big mistake;. We reached Drass and as per the suggestions planned to stay there. Now, let me describe Drass for you. It is the second coldest place in the world. It's a small town perhaps inhabited by laborers. Small local market with no restaurants/ Dhaba only Butcher shops and few shady very unhygienic bakeries with 4 spooky and dirty hotels. The residents appeared like Zombies perhaps all high on something ? .
We attracted a lot of unfriendly stares from the locals. We were really feeling spooked by the reactions of the locals. I decided to stay with the loaded bikes while Bro went to the 1st of the 4 hotels. The hotel looked really unhygienic with gunny bags as beds. Surprisingly the owner after showing the room tells us that the hotel is booked and we should go stay in snow view hotel. We decided to try next hotel. The very same thing happened there; despite no guest in sight the owner tell us that the hotel is full and we should go to snow view hotel. Same thing happened in the next hotel too. By now we were a little spooked as to why everybody is suggesting that hotel only. Finally we decided to check that hotel. Let me describe that hotel. It's a huge white building with no soul in sight, dark lobbies, Squeaking wooden stairs, broken windows and holes in doors. I went in to the hotel and found nobody and came out. Just as we were about to sit on the bike I saw a guy running towards us asking if we want to take the room. I asked him to show me the room. The guy took me to the ground floor and we started walking into a dark lobby. We could see nothing, finally we reached a door and we struggled to locate the lock in the dark. Finally we managed to locate the lock. While he was opening the door, I could peep inside the room from the huge holes in the door. The room was in shambles. The guy promised to show me a better room on the first floor. I simply started walking behind him and reached first floor through an old squeaking wooden staircase. It was the same story upstairs but since we didn't had many options I agreed to take that room. I asked Bro to dump the stuff while I went for the ''paperwork''. The last guest entry in the register was 40 days back. Anyways we decided to head into the market and get something to eat. By now we had not eaten for nearly 24 hours with non stop riding. We went to the market and bought some chips and cold drink which was to be our dinner. We bought some candles too for the nigh as there was no electricity. We went in to the room locked the door the best we could, lit up the candles, had '' Dinner '' and slept in our sleeping bags. We tried sleeping but could not as there were spooky sounds every now and then.
Day Ten : (Drass- Sonmarg- srinagar - patnitop ):- Since we could not sleep the entire night we decided to leave as soon as there is some light. And since we didn't unpack we were good to go at 6 am in the morning. By the time Bro packed the sleeping bags, I went down stairs to prepare the bikes. I saw 2 more bikes parked along with our bikes. One was an Enfield and the other was a Honda . The moment I stepped out I saw a guy running towards me. His name was rohit and he was pretty spooked and didn't sleep all night. I was amazed to know that the guy had not even taken off his shoes all night. He asked us if we could move together to which we agreed .We cleared snow off the bikes; topped engine oil checked the bikes and started off at around 7. Once again we could not find anything to eat and the breakfast got skipped. By now we hadn't had food for almost 35-40 hrs. We decided to have food at srinagar and spead off towards Zozila Pass . It was about 40 odd Kms from Drass and we passed through some very beautiful valleys and grass lands. Now we were looking at Kashmir at its best. Soon that ended and we were staring at Zozila pass@13500 ft though this is not the highest pass but it's definitely the most feared and rightly so. It was full of ponds the size of craters on the moon and there were plenty of those. Once we saw an oncoming Scorpio almost disappearing in to one of the water crossing. Yes, the water was that deep and our hearts sank even deeper. How are we going to cross that? We rode right next to the mountain wall and somehow we managed to cross it. During one of such numerous crossing I had another fall. The bike got suck in mud and just would not move. I had to put my foot in to the water and lean the bike over, by then Bro had stormed in to the crossing and pushed the bike out of the pond. Now the actual climb started. It was a narrow stretch carved out of the rock, with a decline towards the valley. Our tires which were already wet due to water crossing began slipping and sliding. Controlling the bikes was proving to be very difficult. We somehow managed to reach a point were army was managing the traffic flow.
They would allow one vehicle at one time from one side, once that vehicle had reached the other side then another vehicle was allowed to move. We were really amazed by the army Jawans; they were sitting on small cliffs and rocks holding big guns. One slip could take them done by several thousand feet and still they were sitting there fearlessly. Finally we reached Sonmarg, its beautiful, heavenly however since Amarnath yatra was also on it was jam packed with Tata sumos carrying pilgrims. We stopped for a while clicked and moved towards Srinagar. We were wearing 4 layers of clothing as the temperature was very low in Drass but the moment we entered Srinagar we realized that it's going to be really hot. The temperatures perhaps were close to 32-33 degrees and we were boiling. We stopped near a stinking Dal lake and tried to change the Nathu's washrooms but decided against it due to heavy rush. We stopped at a petrol pump to top up and decided to change there however the pump didn't even had a loo. We met a family on the petrol pump which advised us to stay at patnitop for the night. We were still looking for a place to eat food, by now it was over 48 hrs without food and we were starving. We stopped for water and I saw a Dhaba across the road, we rushed like crazy and ordered huge quantities of rajma rice, dal makhni and roti. We ate whatever we could and started towards Patnitop. The journey towards patnitop was painstakingly slow, we were dogging crazy Tata sumo wallas, getting stuck in Jams due to the Yatra . We reached patnitop at around 7 in the evening and took a decent hotel for 900 rs a night. We were parking our bikes when we saw oil drops under TB's stand. Crazy thought crossed our mind, is it the clutch packing? Is it the engine oil? torches were drown out and further checking reveled that it was coming from the clogged air filter. Sense of relief! We headed back to our room and took a hot shower, ate and slept like logs.
Day Eleven : (patnitop- Pathankot- Amritsar ):- Mornings are very beautiful in Patnitop; our hotel was situated in a valley off the highway and offered a grand view of the valley. Slopes dotted with pine trees and cold fresh air. We ordered parathas for breakfast, they perhaps were the worst looking parathas ever and could not muster enough courage to eat them, so breakfast again got skipped .We started off at around 8 in the morning. Now we were back to our t-shirts and denims. This was all downhill now and we were doing good speeds. We took a shortcut which took us from a wildlife sanctuary though barren broken roads but saved a lot of time. We stopped at a dhaba and had our fill. The guy was very helpful; he made lemonade for us and even packed it for the road. Next stop was few Kms after pathankot , the sun was at its harshest and we were we searching for water but surprisingly none of the shops in that small market had bottled water. We somehow managed to buy some water from next market and aimed for Amritsar .After numerous water stops we reached the out skirts of Amritsar at around 5, we had missed the ceremony at wagah border by half hour. Decided to go near Golden temple and stay there. Reached Golden temple at round 6 and checked in to perhaps the best hotel of the entire trip @ 1200 rs a night. Freshened up and went to golden temple. I was amazed to see the temple all done in gold; it shone like anything under lights. Spend few hours there and now it was time to visit the highly recommended Kesar ka Dhaba . Trust me it's heavenly. Naan and phirni are out of this world. Happy and satisfied, we slept off.
Day Twelve : (Amritsar- Delhi ):-The day started early and by 7: 30 we were moving towards Delhi. The plan was to reach Savoy greens before 1 and stay there till 3 to escape the heat. Did just that, rode at a constant 70 KPH and the first stop was Mc donalds for breakfast. Rest of the ride was uneventful and after numerous water stops we reached savoy greens at around 1. Called up home and had lunch. Started again at around 4 and reached home by 7. Happy and satisfied.
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Riders:
Akhil ( Bro) ? Royal Enfield Thunderbird twin spark 2009
Nikhil ( Mua) ? Royal Enfield Electra 2004
Total distance? 3100 Kms
Number of days ? 12
Route ? Delhi - Manali -keylong - Sarchu- Leh- Kargil - Drass- Sonmarg- Srinagar - patnitop- Amritsar - Delhi
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