Manali_Leh_Khardung-La

Congrats to the Entire Team of the Manali -Leh - Khardungla Expedition 2009!!

Its been 3 weeks after the tour is over but i am sure each of us are still feeling the fresh air of the Ladakh & the sense of achievement that we had experienced at the top of the Khardungla pass. The cycling expedition took us over the Himalayan range of Manali in Himachal Pradesh to the arid high mountain desert of Ladakh. The journey took us over the 6 high passes, such as Rohtang Pass, Baralacha La, Nakee La, Lachulang La & Tanglang La. Tanglang La is the second highest motor able pass in the world. The most revered part was to finish the journey by cycling to WORLDS HIGHEST MOTORABLE ROAD POINT – KHARDUNG LA’ – 5602m / 18380 ft.

The practice sessions started from 26 April 09 to Pabe Ghat & ended with 15th August 09 at Lavasa. These also included every day cycling on individual level. Approximately these sessions covered a distance of 2000kms in & around Pune.

The Tour :

19th & 20th Aug -Flag off from Deccan Gymkhana Club & the Rail Journey to Chandigarh by Paschim Express....

All of us assembled at Deccan Gymkhana Club at 5am including our Captain Sachin. All were very eager to board the bus & get going particularly after the tension of SWINE FLU.

The Journey for which each of us was preparing & dreaming was to begin !!

Family members, friends, PCP members & few of the Last year's Ladakh members were all cheering us for our tour.

Two 16 Seater mini buses of Girikand Travels were loaded with 23 smiles along with their Backpacks & the dreams of Crossing the Himalayas :)

We started with the guidelines & wishes from Captain Ashok ( Start Slow ) , Manish Sabade & finally with the blessings of Rathi Kaka & other stalwarts in Pune Cycling Circuit. It was very thoughtful of the members from last year’s cycling expedition to meet us on express way to serve breakfast. Train Journey was fun with lot of interaction between all us. All enjoyed playing cards, reading books & eating varied food items. Most of us got down on each station that the train halted to get a good snap & refreshing tea or coffee. We reached Chandigarh station to receive a warm Welcome from Bhuvan of Countryside Adventures. Bhuvan turned out to be a great help for many in days ahead. This guy completed Khardungla 40 kms in a day & on 2nd day again from South Pullu, he did this just to be support for our group.

21st Aug Welcome to Solang Valley & set your bikes...

Iceland was the Beautiful Hotel at Solang Valley, we reached @ 6:00 am & everybody was busy in clicking snaps of the beautiful snow covered peaks. The favorite place in Hotel Iceland was a wonderful wooden furnished dining hall with some mouth watering recipes. We also hiked to Anjani Mahadev Temple to seek blessings of the Almighty. It was a very beautiful temple with a waterfall directly coming down on a SHIVA- PINDA.

22nd Aug Ride to Rohtang & Back...

This day was reserved for Acclimatization. We traveled to Rohtang Pass by jeep & descended again to our cozy rooms at Iceland Hotel. Believe me riding by cycle is much better than the jeep ride. Few of us went to Manali for the final shopping for the tour.

In the evening we all did final settings of our bicycles & the bag packs

23rd Aug Cycling Day1 Solang -Palchan - Kothi - Gulaba - Marhi 29 Km...

Finally the D-day arrived for all the 28 members. Morning arrived with rays of hope. Day started with Ganesh Prayer some slogans followed by the Flag off & Blessings by none other than MAA-SAHEB ( Bhave Madam age-62yrs).
Our cycling started with a journey downhill till Palchan @ 4 Kms , but all had their spirits high & vision was to cycle on high passes. Gulaba was halfway & most of us had our breakfast @ Gulaba .We had our camp site just near the Marhi Market. Reaching the camp everybody just forgot the pain by seeing the beautiful location .At camp site tents were waiting for their occupants. In the evening all were happy to sight white clouds rising up from the valley below, in different formations Few had even done shopping at the Marhi Market.We started at an altitude of 8400 Ft at Solang & reached @ 11500 at Marhi

24th Aug Day2 Marhi - Rohtang Pass - Koksar - Sissu. 52kms...

Today was a big day as all had to make it to the First Pass on our Journey - Rohtang Pass. The Day started with Flag off by Viresh . We had to climb approximately 16kms to reach Rohtang Pass , the Road condition was bad as compared to the previous day & a road widening work was in progress throughout the patch & the road then descended to Koksar( @ 22 Km – Not a joy ride due to Road Conditions). At Koksar we crossed a Bridge where the road was heading ahead along the banks of River Chandra .The Camp of Sissu was @ 14 Km from Koksar & the ride was simply great .
This was the best Camp on our route .It was just off the road along the banks of Chandra River. The tents were pitched in the tree plantations. We would easily walk up to the river & enjoy the serene beauty of Himalayas. To add on to this scenic view was a majestic Waterfall on the opposite side of the River.
The Altitude was 11500 ft at Marhi ,we crossed Rohtang at 13500 ft, decended to Koksar @ 11100 ft & came down to Sissu at 10500 fts.

25th Aug Day3 - Sissu -Gondla - Tandi ( Chandra & Bhaga Sangam) - Keylong - Stingri-Jispa 43Km...

Bidding farewell to the Sissu campsite with the Flag off by the birthday boy Rajoo Desai, we traveled along the river bank till Tandi , the Sangam of Chandra & Bhaga Rivers. We Left the Chandra River & continued journey on the banks of River Bhaga. En-route we passed small villages of Keylong along Bhaga River, Stingri village to reach our camp of Jispa. During todays ride we came across few patches where we felt that it was a flat road or down slope but in reality we had to climb. This camp site was just before famous HOTEL JISPA. Evening we celebrated Rajoo Desai’s birthday with a delicious chocolate cake made by our head cook Dharma. It followed by a small song sessions with Rajoo singing - ‘ Aa chalke tujhe mein Le ke challoo ek eise gagan ke tale ….’Followed by songs from Ganesh , Anand Hatwalne Gayatri & Viresh
This was the last camp we had our baths before Leh. Sissu was at 10500 ft & with total ups & down Jispa was at 11300 ft.

26th Aug Day4 - Jispa - Darcha - Patseo - Zingzingbar- Baralacha La Base Camp ( Camp Site) 39 Kms....

From this day onwards we were supposed to stay on average height of 13,000 feet for next 3-4days. Cycling to Baralacha La Base was our target for today. Started with a Flag off by Ajinkya Udane the Youngest member of our Group . We cycled through picturesque mountains to reach Deepak Tal at Patseo – a very beautiful clear water lake in the mountains. We had a long & refreshing halt at Patseo. Then on we cycled to cross a huge military transit camp at Patseo to reach ZingzingBar. We cycled ahead of Zingzingbar to reach our camp. The Road condition from ZIngzingbar was really good. Some of us had lemon tea in Parachute Tent Hotel near our camp & tried cycling on local kid’s cycle. They had brought a river fish for their dinner. All rested well for a next day’s Big Pass – Baralacha La. This was the first pass to cross a height of 16,000 + Feets.
Jispa - 11300 ft - Patseo - 12750 fts - Zingzingbar 13740 & Campsite - 14340 ft.

27th Aug Day5 Base Camp- Baralacha La- Bharatpur - Sarchu - Brandy Nullah - 6Kms....

We started as usual with Ganesh Prayer & Flag Off by Mrs.Vasanti Joshi doing the Ladakh tour for the third consecutive year. We passed another beautiful lake – Suraj / Vishaal Tal on our way to Baralacha La. This pass is at a height of 16500 feet & both Chandra & Bhaga River originate from this pass. Then we climbed down to one of the most fascinating routes – The Sarchu Plains via Bharatpur. We had our regular breakfast with addons of Maggi ,Omlete , Tea & Lemon Tea at the Parachute tents at Bharatpur
All members enjoyed the ride from Baralachala down to Bharatpur & the Sarchu Plains to cross over the boundary to enter Ladakh region. Till this point all the road work was done under project name “DEEPAK”. After this point road work were carried out under the project name “HIMANK” – The Mountain Tamers. We came across some very interesting structures formed due to winds flowing on high river banks for past many years. It was superb to pedal through the plains !!We reached our campsite off the road near the river at Brandy Nullah.The Sarchu Feast was not free , we were heading next day towards the toughest ride of our tour (except Khardungla !! ) Campsite-Baralachala - 16500 -Sarchu 14720 -Brandy Nullah 14180 fts.

28th Aug Day6 Brandy Nala - GhataLoops Start - Ghataloops End- Nakee La Pass - Wispy Nala- Lachulanga La - Campsite. - 37 Kms....

Today was going to be a Tough Day. All started with high spirits to conquer 2 passes. The Flag off was done by the 3 A’s of our Team - Anand Hatwalane , Anand Kumbhojkar & Anand Saha.
The Ride started with Ghataloops a total of 21 loops reaching an Altitude of 13780feet. It took a lot of mental strength rather than physical strength to climb these loops & reach to Nakee La Pass that stands 16,230 feet high. Then we climb down again to Wispy Nullah & start our ascent to Lachulang La pass to reach a height of 16,616 feet. We descend down to reach our campsite which was before KanglaJal. @ 4 Kms after Lachulangla . We had to camp at this site as our Camping Truck got stuck in quicksand. A Herculean task lay ahead for the support team to get the truck out of this pit. We also pumped some steel to get the monster out. The more we tried the more it went in the pit that it created for itself with every rotation of its tyre. With the help of another truck finally we pulled it out. But it all had a sad ending as our racer cyclist Shreya's Tale met with a freak accident while pulling the truck. This guy did less talking & more smiling with cycling. He was pushed off to Pang Military Hospital in Qualis accompanied by Ulhas & Santosh Dagade with the most experienced & well known person Tikamji. We all prayed for Shreyas & tried to sleep hoping that he will get well soon. Physically & mentally it was our toughest day.
Campsite - 14180 - 21 Ghata Loops end 15300 ft -Nakila Pass -16360 - Wispy Nullah 15500 -Lachulangla -16760 Campsite - 16480 fts

29th Aug Day 7 Campsite - Pang - Moray Plain - Tsokar Lake Diversion - Tsokar Lake 67 Kms....

The day started with hope & prayers for Shreyas. The Flag off was done by Birthday boy Vishal & Bhawalkar kaka .We climbed down to our previously planned camping site at Kangla jal & further pedaled to reach a transit camp at Pang. Here we met Daya from support team who told us that Shreyas was doing very well & had been taken to Leh for further treatment. A wave of relief & joy passed in everyone’s heart Little Further we had a breakfast break again at a parachute tent .

All cycled ( Climbed ) from Pang to reach Moray Plain with vigor. Moray Plains was a magical experience for all. With miles & miles of flat plains all cycled to a point that never came ( The plains are spread @ 45 Kms ) . But with determination we reached to Tso Kar Lake. ( we had to take a diversion of @ 7 Kms to reach Tso kar Lake – a salt water lake)
A very scenic camp site , refreshed all of us. Ulhas & Santosh rejoined our group after admitting Shreyas in Leh hospital.
At @ 3 pm we had rains & little snow fall for couple of hours & then what followed was the heavenly magic which was beyond any words to explain
Enthusiasm overflowed from Tsokar Lake as we sighted a complete half round Rainbow over the lake in the evening. All of us jumped out of the tents & ran for the cameras & later crunched ourselves into the 2 support vehicles( mostly mahindra commanders) for a ride near the Lake which was @ 1 Km from our tents.
Everyone celebrated Vishal’s Birthday with another Hot Chocolate Cake. Heavy rains in the afternoon had our tents drenched in water & this made the temperature drop to make our tents a Cold Storage as rightly said by Vishal.

30th Aug Day8 Tsokar Lake -Tanglang La Base - Tanglang La Top -Rhumtse - Campsite ( 10 km s Before Upshi) 62 Kms...
We were dropped off at Tanglang La base by truck to save on time & distance after 2 long days of cycling. The Flag off done by the trio – Vaz , Shrikanth & Ganesh. A gradual climb took us to a height of 17,582 feet to reach Tanglang La top. Reaching at top the Pass all were charged up on their achievement. Everyone assembled for Photographs & started to descend on a very rough road. The down hill ride was almost 30kms .We halted for a hot tea & maggi at the base of Tanglang La. What followed on the road ahead till Rhumtse was a treat to eyes & the team was forced to pedal slowly by the nature around ! We cycled on the road that continued on a narrow gorge with some amazing display of colorful mountains on both the sides. Literary all the adjectives in vocabulary were not enough to describe those enchanting sites. Finally we reached to our campsite in plantation just before Upshi. It was a beautiful site along banks of river. Most of the members were busy getting back in Human Look. The razors found the hair & soap found the body after a long break, new clothes breathed in fresh air after they were freed of Backpack jail. It was a picnic mood as Leh was near. All shared their feelings about the entire cycling experience at the soup meeting . Followed by dinner was a Camp Fire since it was our last day in tents along with a round of Antakshari of Even V/s Odd roll numbers , but with Vishal in Odd nos. team the Even nos. team was an ODD one there. Everyone had only one thing on their agenda a hot water shower after reaching leh hotel & of course Khardungla.

31st Aug Day 9 Camp Site - Upshi – Leh - 60Kms. via sindhu darshan site...
The Flag off was by the entire Countryside Staff . Today we started late from our camp since it was decided & also we had little rains in the morning .
Crossing Upshi as we were approaching Leh , small villages lay ahead with Thiksey Monastery & Shey Palace on route where we stopped for some snaps. We visited a War Memorial at Karu @ 32kms before reaching Leh. Various items, weapons, snaps, history charts were exhibited there. It was really an eye-opener for all of us. Our army men face challenges everyday in all smallest of things there with some impossible tasks like staying at Siachen Glaciers. A thought crept in that all this blood shed & fighting for boundaries must be stopped for men defending the border in war or insurgency have to face death in most cruelest form. Our heads bowed in honor of these spirited enlightened souls. We moved forward with mixed feelings towards leh to stop for lunch at SindhuDarshan. A well constructed site on the banks of Sindhu River. Finally we reached Leh only to find out that we had to cycle a steep unending climb to our Hotel Chubi. All had welcome tea & retired to their rooms for a much wanted bath.
The weather on this day was bad & it got worst in the evening. All had only one thing on mind Khardungla Pass on next day. With weather playing the spoil spot all had worried minds. Vasanti kaku took a decision and lead from the front & it was decided to be ready for the assault in the morning without worrying about the weather.

1 Sept Day 10 – 39kms Leh Hotel Chubi to Khardung La Pass....

Dawn broke with new hope & all punters were ready to pedal their way for what they had dreamt of for past 3-4 months. Just one target in mind we all cycled up the hills, onto the loops, passing a Stone named as Khardung La Frog, Passed the India Gate point, Siachen Gate point & reached South Pullu for a cup of tea. With some amount rainfall & snowfall all cycled up from South Pullu & hoisted the Flag at Khardung La Pass. Standing tall at a height of 18,380feet all the efforts taken seemed very small. Handshakes, thumbs-up & bear hugs were followed by celebrations of Hot maggi & tea at Hotel Khardung La. On our way up we were cheered up all the passers by. All lived this moment for the fullest.
Everyone descended back to Hotel with a full Backpack of wonderful memories & proud feeling of the achievement. !
All left Leh promising each other that next year again all of us would meet for cycling in The Mighty & the Magnificent Himalayas. ............