Leh 2024 - DRE

Part 1 of 6

Start of the ride

The first couple of days of The Great Himalayan Dream Tour saw us familiarise ourselves with the ride plans, unload and prep the bikes, and travel from Chandigarh to Jispa. We crossed numerous tunnels and highways, and the highlight was crossing the Atal Tunnel.

Part 2 of 6

Jispa to Leh

Day 2 of The Great Himalayan Dream Tour saw us travel from Jispa all the way too Leh. The ride took us through high passes like Baralacha La, Tanglang La, and Nakee La, and we reached Leh only by nightfall. The Gata loops and subsequent roads till Pang were treacherous, to say the least. Only when we got to Morey Plains did our butts feel easy. Finally, after a long day of hard riding where we encountered every possible surface that the bike could ride through, we reached Leh and crashed into bed.

Part 3 of 6

Leh - Pangong Pso

Day 3 of The Great Himalayan Dream Tour was about getting acclimatised to the altitude and spending a day soaking in three local cultures. We had the privilege of meeting and interacting with the King of Leh, and were utterly surprised by his humility and passion for bikes. A cultural event showcased the various dance forms from the regions of Ladakh, followed by a 7-course lunch prepared by the royal chefs. Later that evening, we strolled through the local market and cafes before finally having our dinner at @the_tibetan_kitchen

Pangong Tso welcomed us in all its glory with a rainbow. Now that’s a welcome. It seemed unchanged since the last time I was here, but this time we rode far ahead to the other side to a different resort. But before heading the resort, we spent some time on the sandy shores of the lake. I managed to get my bike stuck in the sand and needed help to get it out. 🤦🏻‍♂️ The resort had organised a bonfire to warm us on the cold night. With the entire Milky Way witnessing our bikes parked in style, we got down to some stargazing. The rooms also had a stargazing opening in the roof (cool 😎), but we could not stay awake too late as we had a long day of riding ahead of us the next day.

However, In the morning before we headed out to Hanle, we did manage to wet our feet in the lake and get some cool snaps.

Part 4 of 6

Pangong - Hanle - UmlingLa

The ride to Hanle was anything but regular. Starting from Pangong Tso, we visited the RezangLa war memorial and got ourselves acquainted with the details of the 1962 war with China. A huge salute to our armed forces who keep us save working through such extreme conditions.

The “highway” that connects RezangLa to Hanle is currently being constructed. So we had to ride through gravel, loose sand, water, and mud to reach our destination. It was exciting, the least we could say, as the wild asses who roam the nomadic stretches were certainly a menace, and they took numerous opportunities to race across unannounced.

Hanle has the Indian Astronomical Observatory, and we could see why, as the night skies presented us with the opportunity to view the Milky Way I had never seen before.

At 19024ft, Umling La stands tall as the world's highest motorable pass. The highlight of this trip was the ride to Umling La.

The Photi La road was closed due to maintenance work, so we ended up taking the Gongma La road, crossing Nurbu La top to and fro Umling La. We encountered all weather and road conditions 😁. Rain welcomed us as we reached Chismule (base of Umling La), and as we started our ascent, it started to snow, with temperatures reaching -4 °C at one stage. We had to watch for black ice, but the weather gods gave us a little respite and let us reach the top. After a quick photo-op, we immediately started our descent in similar snowy conditions.

The Gongma La road (if you can call it that) provides an alternate route from Hanle to Umling La. It’s a valley between two mountains and offers an exhilarating ride with a long stretch of gravel and loose sand. You make your own way and ride in a direction which seems to take you to your intended target 🤣.

While going towards Umlingla, we were very careful as this was a new experience for us. But on our way back, we had loads of fun, saddling and ripping the bikes (in enduro mode). Here’s some footage captured from phones and Insta360s.

The place looks like a space movie set where astronauts have landed on another planet.

To top it off, we had coffee in the middle of nowhere.

Part 5 of 6

Hanle - Tso moriri - Manali

Nestled in the high altitudes is another lake, “Tso Moriri”, near the sparsely populated village of Karzok; it offers stunning views. The water's blue and jade colour is mesmerising and provides a breathtaking backdrop for photos and videos. The silence of the lake is eerie, and so is the folklore of the place. Legend has it that you get scary nightmares and sleepless nights when you are here.

There are very few resorts here, but they do get dismantled, and everyone migrates during the harsh winter months. You get paved roads from Hanle to Tso-moriri, so the travel is less taxing.

On the way back to Manali, when you take a shortcut to avoid 5+ Km of bad roads that are under construction. Your heart pounds like a drum, adrenaline kicking in; you want to concentrate and not do anything stupid, because even the slightest mistake could have dire consequences. But all's well that ends well. We survived the 40deg inclination sandy downhill slope that we took, and now we have tales to tell.

Part 6 of 6

Manali - Chandigarh - Back home

We utilised the rest day in Manali to get some much-needed laundry done, and enjoyed the local markets and sightseeing. We had dinner at the famous Ride Inn restaurant and hotel. It's the most common and popular spot for Bikers in Manali.

Our final stretch was from Manali to Chandigarh through highways and proper roads. We had left the mountain passes and were on tarred terrain now. Once we loaded our bikes back onto the transport truck, we were free to spend some time in Chandigarh exploring the local cuisines and shopping.

On our flight back home the discussion still revolved around all the magnificient sights and views and beauty this trip offered us.

Indeed, a true DRE - Ducati Ride Experience.