#Ladakh, presently famous as the newly formed Union Territory after the revocation of Article 370, is also famous as The Land of the Mystic Lamas, The Land of High Passes, and The Land of Mysterious Mountains.
Road Trip to the Leh-Ladakh is considered amongst the toughest road trips in world for obvious reasons.
1- Approximate riding of 300 kms per day
2- You'll have to cross some of highest motorable passes in the world with very less or no roads at all
Trust me, it's not for the faint hearted as you'll cross some of the world's highest passes with cold blistering wind and lack of oxygen. Do not to forget the Top 3 World's Highest Motorable Roads with actually no roads, just water, mud, ice, pebbles, rocks, and what not but definitely no road.
Trip Planning and Cost-
Planning a road trip to Ladakh not only requires dedication and time, it also digs a giant hole in your pocket. A simple bike trip to Manali-Ladakh-Manali will cost you around nothing less than INR 40k.
Things To Remember Before You Leave For Ladakh
Baggage - Pack your bags as light as you can and try to limit the items to not more than 2 per person i.e. a rucksack to carry clothes and other essentials and a backpack to carry the handy items such as power bank, camera, etc.
Camera - If you are going on a bike trip then take a GoPro with you, else you'll regret later. If you don't have it, you can easily rent it online. I rented GoPro Hero 7 Black from Bragpackers, which I think was the cheapest deal after scrolling through almost all the vendors supply the GoPro on rent in Pune
Clothing - Since, you'll be crossing altitudes upto 18,380 ft, hence you need pack for layered clothing inclusive of 2 set of thermals, a light inner jacket, a windshield jacket, and rain coat for any possible surprises.
Some of the World's Highest Mountain Passes You'll Be Crossing On Your Way:
1- Rohtang La Pass (13,058 ft)
2- Nakeela Pass (15,547 ft)
3- Baralachala Pass (16,040 ft)
4- Lachung La Pass (16,616 ft)
5- Tanglang La Pass (17,582 ft)
6- Changla Pass (17,688 ft)
7- Khardungla Pass (18,380 ft)
My Day-wise Itinerary:
Day 1 - 7th September - Manali
We left Delhi around 11 pm on 6th Sept 2019 via a private volvo bus service and reached Manali the next evening. Thanks to the poor bus service. So I'll recommend you to opt for Himachal Government Volvo Bus Service, if you do not want to waste your time in bus rather than exploring Manali.
We received our bikes in the evening and remember to get a tank-full the same day as you'll have to leave early morning and you won't find any open petrol pumps till 6:30 - 7 am in morning. Do remember to check your bikes for any faults and let the concerned person know beforehand.
We ended the day relaxing and preparing for our road trip the next day.
Day 2 - 8th September - Manali to Sarchu
We started from Manali at 5 am in the morning and headed towards Jispa which was around 135 kms from Hotel Japika. On our way to Jispa we crossed Rohtang Pass. We stayed there for around 30 minutes to click some pictures. Post that we continued to drive and stopped at Sherpa Dhaba, just before the Koksar Check Post for breakfast. Once done, we continued our ride to and got bike tank fueled at Tandi Fuel Pump, 30 kms before Jispa, which is the last petrol pump before Leh. The next petrol pump you'll find is around 335 kms from Tandi. If you are travelling without a backup vehicle, then do not forget to carry fuel cans with you, as you'll need it later.
We freshened-up at our Jispa camp to get ready for our next stretch of our ride to Sarchu, which was around 85 kms from Jispa. The terrain from Manali to Jispa was moderate with a very few muddy patches.
But as we went for ride briefing for our next stretch, we could smell some nervousness as this was amongst the most difficult terrain full of water crossings, and off-roading.
On your way to Sarchu, you'll be crossing several water crossing, the one just after Baralachala Pass was the most complicated one during our entire trip. After crossing all the hurdles we reached Sarchu Camp by 6 pm in the evening. Take care of your health and eating habits in Sarchu, rest as much as you can as from here onwards you'll feel tiredness and restlessness. Consult your trip leader in case of any medical urgencies as there is a military medical camp near Sarchu.
We ended our day 2 taking ample amount of rest.
We ended our day 2 taking ample amount of rest.
Day 3 - 9th September - Sarchu to Leh
Sarchu is amongst the most popular halting destinations on the way to Leh-Ladakh. The place is still disputed as it is situated on the border of Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh and has tented accommodations. This place will make you feel the effect of Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) and temperature here drops significantly in the night, so prepare accordingly. So we were advised to sleep well in the night as we had to cover almost 260 kms on this day.
Since you would be entering Ladakh as soon as you'll cross Sarchu, so you'll start seeing some iron bridges connecting two ends and loads of army convoys. Trust me, these army convoys wave you back, and that gives a wonderful feeling that is not possible to describe.
So after riding all day, we reached Leh at around 4 PM, and headed to our hotel, Hotel The Kaal, with fabulous wooden infrastructure. So
We rested overnight to get ready for the next exciting morning ride to Pangong via some of the World's Highest Motorable Passes like Khargungla Pass, Talang La Pass, among others.
Day 4 - 10th September - Leh to Pangong
On this day, people were sleeping, and me being a sleep monster wake-up 6 in the morning to take a walk to the nearby streets and enjoy my morning tea with sunrays kissing my face and a cool breeze. But soon our briefing started as today was the day when we would be crossing some of the highest and challenging motorable passes. And by 9 am in the morning, we started our journey to Pangong Lake, where our first halt came after 40 kms, and the wait was completely worth it. We were at Khardungla Pass at a height of 18,350 ft above sea level.
After clicking ample of pictures and having tea in the world's highest restaurant, we were back on our way to Pangong Lake and reached there by around 4 PM to enjoy the sunset and witness crystal clear and freezing water of Pangong.
We camped late night with a view of Pangong Lake and rested overnight for the next day's journey to Nubra Valley.
Day 5 - 11th September - Pangong to Nubra Valley
We enjoyed our breakfast with a mesmerizing view of the Pangong Lake, and left for Nubra Valley around 9:30 AM. On our way to Nubra Valley, we met this gorgeously cute Himalayan Marmot (They are quite lazy and extremely friendly, but be aware that do not give them anything to eat as guided by the Forest Department).
And after a 200km journey, we reached Hunder, Nubra Valley at the time of sunset to witness Double Hump Camels, which is one of the major attractions of Nubra Valley apart from white sand desert. After spending some time in the valley, we started moving to our hotel for overnight camping.
Day 6 - 12th September - Nubra Valley To Diskit Monastery To Jispa
After an overnight rest and morning breakfast, we started heading to Jispa, but on our way we went to explore Diskit Monastery, the oldest and largest Buddhist monastery in the Nubra Valley of Ladakh, Northern India.
Day 7 - 13th September - Jispa to Manali
Next day was the most saddening part of our journey, as we were packing our bags to leave for Manali. I wish if I had an option of staying back and be free. We left for Manali and reached there by 2 PM, relaxed a bit and later boarded the bus for Delhi.
And that was the time I realized that the trip was over and its time to go back to the routine 10 to 7 life... :(
But I promised myself that I'll visit Ladakh very soon.
I hope this blog will inspire you and help you in planning your trip to Ladakh. Do write in comments in case of any queries, I'll try my best to solve them for you.
Signing off
Sanchit Goyal (aka Ek Awaara Musaafir)
Stay safe, travel and make memories.
See You..!!
Then we headed directly towards Jispa due to unfavorable weather conditions in Sarchu. We reached Jispa by 8 PM and later relaxed in the night with a bonfire. All the group members started unloading their bag full of memories and experiences, and shared their other travel experiences. That 6 day journey might be tiring and challenging but if someone asks me, I am ready to go there again.
Day 7 - 13th September - Jispa to Manali
And after a 200km journey, we reached Hunder, Nubra Valley at the time of sunset to witness Double Hump Camels, which is one of the major attractions of Nubra Valley apart from white sand desert. After spending some time in the valley, we started moving to our hotel for overnight camping.
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