Category:Leh

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About

Enroute to M-Top
Enroute to M-Top
Diversion from Pangong Road to Phobran
Diversion from Pangong Road to Phobran
More Plains (that's the name!)
More Plains (that's the name!)
Sarchu: the tent camp
Sarchu: the tent camp
View from Khardung La
View from Khardung La

Well - we call it Leh. The capital of Ladakh, which is the real trip. And the journey winds through Lahaul and Spiti and Kinnaur too if you take the road less travelled via the Hindustan-Tibet Road (actually the NH running along the Sutlej).

Lingo

A few local words and some adaptations for well known ones to start off with

  • Julay - thats hi/good morning/eveneing/aftnoon/see ya/bye - anything. You wave to complete strangers and shout "Julaaaay" at the top of ur voice as u ride past. In ladakh/Spiti alone. In Kinnaur or Shimla people will stare at you strangely in response.
  • La - mountain pass. Khardung, Taglang, Zoji, Chang, however, do not sound like the real deal without the "La". Rohtang, however, is "Rohtang Jot" - u're not in La territory yet
  • Tiri - local breadug
  • Thukpa - kind of noddle soup
  • Gugur Chai - butter+salt in it - acquired taste
  • Lama - priest
  • Gompa/Gonpa - monastery
  • Chorten ("Chhurr-ten") - not 'stupas' but those numerous minor 'temples' u see everywhere
  • Tso - lake. As in Tso kar, Tso morriri etc
  • Pizza - v expensive food in Leh
  • ATM - what ? unless u have an SBI card
  • Petrol Pumps : a few sighted. No guarantees of petrol availability. none for 365 km between Tandi - Leh
  • AMS : Acute mountain sickness. minor to life threatening if you climb > 300 mts between nights. The shimla-kinnaur-spiti route helps you acclimatize better.
  • Mechanic. haha. maybe you.
  • River. between a bucket of water to an unfathomable torrent - varies with time of day depending on snow melt
  • Sarchu - extremely expensive tent acco
  • Pang - dont sleep here - AMS attacks common. Bad food. Tough river crossing (depending on the state of the water levels).
  • BRO : the dudes who make it all possible
  • Kibber : used to be the highest village connected by a motorable road. Kaumik now
  • Maling Nala - take the shimla route, u'll know - check out this gallery

Notes

  • Mobile Phones: Leh being a border area, prepaid phones do NOT roam there. With BSNL/Airtel postpaid connections, one can easily roam. Here is the latest status of the network:

http://www.airtelworld.com/22/new_area_covered.htm

Routes

  • Manali-Leh Highway - The preferred route given that J&K is suffering many attacks on *tourists*. We don't know of anyone targetting bikers, but hey, this is mad! The route goes via Manali-Rohtang-Keylong-Sarchu-Pang-Upshi-Leh.
  • Pangi Valley Route - Preferred should you wish to ride in virgin areas without the tourist traffic at Rohtang! The route is such: Chamba - Sach Pass - Udaipur - Keylong and then joins the manali leh highway.
  • Lahaul/Spiti Route - Prone to flash floods but is extremely beautiful and a good ride. The route is such: Shimla - Narkanda - Rampur - Karchcham - Peo - Tabo - Kaza and then Keylong over Kunzum la.
  • Srinagar Route - Extremely Beautiful and Treacherous, this route goes through the Kashmir Valley - via Jammu - Srinagar - Drass - Kargil - Leh over Zoji La. Unlike other passes, Zoji La opens in one direction for only a few hours a day, so timing is critical.
  • Zanskar Kargil Route - Currently only fit for the trekkers and mountain goats, this road when completed will link Nimmu on the Kargil-Leh highway with Padum in Zanskar region, from where one can proceed to Leh via Rangdum-Kargil. It will become a new circuit to do once completed. The route will be Srinagar-Kargil-Rangdoum-Padum-Zangla-Nimmu or the other way round. Currently, one can visit Zanskar only via Kargil, over non-existent roads!

Preparing your bike

  • Service: Thorough checkup at a trusted mech, especially check timing.
  • Lean-ness: Advance timing can make the engine rich. The air is rarefied, meaning that oxygen is less, thus making air-fuel mixture rich by default. In the higher altitudes, make the engine lean and take the airfilter out, so the engine breathes easy.
  • Toolkit: Shouldn't be the original barebones kit. Replacing a tyre with that crap at high alti would be painful. A good set of spanners with a plier n insulating tape should be helpful. Another good thing would be a small puncture repair kit, needed to open the tyres and seal the tube. They have these round patches that can be stickered onto the tube easily! Add in a electric pump as using a foot pump can deflate you :)
  • Luggage - This is a touchy issue. The choice ranges from panniers (as used by bulleteers), Metal dabbas and Cramsters. Cramsters (Approx 2-3k)are mostly weatherproof and take some amount of volume. Should you wish to carry your world with you - panniers it is. Any which way, a tank bag is good. Else, the center of gravity of the bike shifts to the rear, making it unstable!
  • Toolkit: Covered here. Alpine tents are unnecessary unless one wishes to camp in remote locations. Most places enroute have tented accomodation.


Acute Mountain Sickness

What it is

AMS or Acute Mountain Sickness can sometimes be caused due to the high altitude. It is normally caused due to the body not acclamatizing to keep up with the rate of climb. Many riders to Leh report this, so don't worry you are not the first one to get it. If you want to read more about it :

Precautions

  1. acclamatize - takes time, so give urself a day in Manali or even better, Marhi. The shimla or srinagar routes give u more time to do this
  2. Try not sleeping at/near the high passes - descend a little
  3. Diamox helps acclimatize better, quicker. Its not a substitute for descent if AMS still strikes.
  4. If symptoms occur, lose altitude - most imp. Sleep etc will not solve it, neither will diamox - HACE/HAPE are scary stages if it progresses.
  5. Truckies will help to get to the nearest acco if u're on the road someplace.
  6. Water doesnt really help AMS, but takes care of dehdration which will cause massive headaches anyway
  7. Try not to push too much and unnecessarily tire yourself.
  8. Chewing gum helps when ascending or decending.

If you plan to cut short the trip

Normally it takes a couple of days to acclamatize. However, if that is still not happening and you feel the need to ditch the trip, here are a few things you can do :

  • You can take back a flight from Leh airport. However bikes cannot be parcelled by air.
  • For bike, contact the TCI (Transport Corporation of India) office (next to the Polo grounds). It would take around a month for the bike to come back.
  • If flights to Delhi are packed, fly back via Jammu

Links

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