29/04/2015
DAY 1
ARRIVAL IN DELHI
When you arrive at the Delhi airport, a Ride of My Life team-member will pick you up and check you in at a hotel where you can unwind from the long flight. If you are already in Delhi before this date, a taxi pick-up will be arranged for you. Please ensure that you are in Delhi before 4 PM Indian Standard Time on this day.
DAY 2
BUS RIDE FROM DELHI TO MANALI
Since Manali lacks a proper airport and because it would be a waste of time to ride the traffic-snarled 390 odd miles (625 kms) from Delhi to Manali, you're taken to Manali in an air-conditioned private bus with your co-riders and the Ride of My Life team. We check into a hotel after a 15 hour journey and your acclimatization to high altitude starts from this day, in the Himalayan hills of Manali.
DAY 3
GETTING USED TO THE MOTORCYCLES IN MANALI
In the morning the road captain briefs you on the entire tour and day-wise ride plan. Maps and information on places that we are travelling to are given to you along with a tank bag. After the briefing, you are taken on a ride so you get comfortable with riding the motorcycle in India. Here, we ride on the left side of the road. The ride would be on smooth roads and also on dirt tracks, giving you a feel of the adventure in store for you. This day, we want you to get the hang of riding a Royal Enfield on the varied terrain of the Himalayas and be ready for the ride of your life. If you need any adjustments to be done, the mechanic can take care of it once we return to the hotel.
DAY 4
MANALI TO JISPA
This is the day that you have been waiting for. You wake up early in the morning to ride on the world's highest road - the Manali-Leh highway. As soon as you leave Manali, the climb for the 13051 feet high Rohtang Pass starts. After about 32 miles (52 kms) of continuous ascent amidst lush green Himalayan mountains and roadside waterfalls, you reach Rohtang Pass. After Rohtang, the road descends into the Chandra valley, passing through Khoksar and on to Tandi, where the Chandra and Bagha rivers meet. Tandi is the only place on the Manali-Leh highway that has a petrol pump. About 20 miles (32 kms) from Tandi is Jispa where you end the day's ride at a hotel.
DAY 5
JISPA TO SARCHU
This day, it's adventure with a capital A, what with bad roads, streams, freezing temperatures, small mountain lakes and breathtaking landscapes. To reach Sarchu, you cross your second high altitude pass - Baralacha-la - at 16,500 feet.
The whole Manali-Leh highway experience is about riding up and down from one high-altitude Himalayan pass to another. After the descent from Baralacha-la pass, the landscape opens up and you will be in the plains of Sarchu. Since Sarchu is snowbound for most of the year, there are no permanent structures here, so you stay in Swiss tents with attached toilets.
DAY 6
SARCHU TO TSO KAR LAKE
The best ride on the Manali-Leh highway starts after Sarchu. After Sarchu, the state of Jammu and Kashmir starts. You ride on the Gata Loops - a succession of 21 hair pin bends - that lift you 1,500 feet higher. And soon after, the Lachlung-la (16,616 feet) and Nakee-la (15,547 feet) passes follow before you reach the More Plains, a 26 mile (42 km) extension of the Changthang plateau. At More plains, you cut across to a dirt and sandy track on your right leading you to the Tso kar lake. The Tso Kar basin has kilometers of meadows and marshy land. It has both a fresh water and a brackish lake, several natural springs and streams. Tso Kar is also used by a lot of migratory birds as their breeding ground. Apart from its sheer beauty, Tso Kar basin is also a very important region for the Indian and Tibetan nomads who live here in the winter months. Your camp resort for today is close to one such nomadic campsite of Pongunagu.
DAY 7
TSO KAR LAKE TO TSOMO RI RI LAKE
The 60 odd mile (100 kms) ride to Tsomo Ri Ri lake today will exhaust your idea of space. If Ladakh and its landscape has not left you speechless yet, it will on this day. Not one or two but three pristine lakes, two high altitude passes, Namshang-la (16,500 feet) and Pologonka-la (16,300 feet) combined with sand and stone tracks will eventually make you realize how beautiful mother nature is. The landscapes and the beautiful lakes of the Himalayas will force you to stop every once in a while to either photograph or to absorb the unbelievable scenery you behold.
DAY 8
TSOMO RI RI LAKE TO LEH
Korzok, the village on the banks of Tsomo Ri Ri, is also home to the largest clan of nomadic tribes in the Ladakh region. The Changpa nomads live in Yak-wool tents and make a living out of rearing sheep and goat. In the morning, you visit one of the Changpa nomadic campsites to get a first hand experience on how these amazing human beings have been living in perfect harmony with nature for centuries. After spending time at the nomadic campsite, you ride alongside the majestic Indus river to the ancient city of Leh.
DAY 9
LEH
Today you take a breather from the grueling ride you have had. After a half day's rest you explore various parts of Leh, such as the Namgyal Palace, Tibetan market and the Shanti Stupa.
DAY 10
LEH TO PANGONG TSO LAKE
Arguably the most breathtaking region of Ladakh, the 18,500 square mile (30,000 sq km) Changthang Plateau, is where you ride to on this day. Changthang is a unique landscape compared to to other parts of Ladakh. Its great plains have some of the most majestic grasslands and meadows in the world. But to reach Changthang, you have a long and steep ride through the third highest motorable pass in the world, the Chang-la pass at 17,586 feet. After the descent from Chang-la, the magical plains of Changthang open up and you will see nomads with their flocks of yak, sheep and goat on the various grasslands.
But the real treat is the 84 mile (135 km) long Pangong Tso lake. A lot of migratory birds come here during this time of the year. Today, you stay with a Ladakhi family as their house guests. Home-stay is a concept developed by the Ladakh authorities wherein locals are empowered through tourism. The home-stay will be on the banks of the Pangong Tso lake and you are treated to traditional Ladakhi and Tibetan cuisine.
DAY 11
PANGONG TSO LAKE TO SHAKTI
Till about 2009, foreign nationals were only allowed to travel till Spagmik. But now, you can ride another 12 odd miles (20 kms) along the banks of Pangong Tso to Merak village. We are including this 25 mile (40 km) round trip as this would be the ride that will make you feel as if you are riding towards the end of the world, or on a different planet altogether. And with the clear blue Pangong Tso by your side all the time, you will wonder how much of your world has changed in the past 11 days. From Merak village, you retrace your ride back to Chang-la pass and descend into Shakti village for the night. Since there are no places to stay in Shakti village, the Ride of My Life team will set up your very own Himalayan campsite, complete with kitchen, dining area and bathrooms for you.
DAY 12
SHAKTI TO HUNDER
For various reasons, this day's ride is arguably the best ride one can do in the Ladakh region. For one, this forgotten route has no traffic at all. Amazing switchbacks for 12 miles (20 kms), mesmerizing views of valleys, the 17,000 feet high Wari-la pass, narrow snaking roads along the mountains, stream crossings, riding on flat river beds and finally entering the Nubra valley - a unique landscape of desert, rivers, snowcapped mountains and farms. Hunder town in Nubra valley lies amidst big sand dunes and small streams. You stay at a resort camp at Hunder.
DAY 13
HUNDER TO LEH
We have saved the best for the last. Today, you take the road to the highest motorable pass in the world - Khardung-la - at a dizzy height of 18,380 feet. In spite of the altitude, today you ride on the smoothest roads so far and the landscape also becomes grand. After celebrating at Khardung-la pass, you descend into Leh for a bigger party in the evening.
DAY 14
FLIGHT FROM LEH TO DELHI
You bid the Himalayas and the adventure goodbye as you take the early morning flight to Delhi. A Ride of My Life team member will accompany you on the flight and will put you up at a hotel in Delhi. The room will be reserved and paid for until noon the next day. We will also arrange an airport drop from the hotel to Delhi airport for your flight back home.
