My days with myself.... - Ride to the Land of Lamas http://raahi.fotopic.net/ 11 rows en-gb 60 Images of the whole ride from my cell phone... 3rd July to 24th July. However, most of them wont have captions. Pls go thru the other albums first. http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1053855.html Images of the whole ride taken on my cell phone - a 2 Megapixel camera - Nokia 6270. Due to it's limited functioning of 2 MP, some of the pics had to be tweaked a little, however most of them are just the way they were shot.. Sunday 2 July 2006: Images of the whole ride taken on my cell phone - a 2 Megapixel camera - Nokia 6270. Due to it's limited functioning of 2 MP, some of the pics had to be tweaked a little, however most of them are just the way they were shot..

That's Meher and Subash coming up Jalori La At Rohtang Pass - there just wasnt any snow..!! Subash figuring out where's the snow at Rohtang Pass..!! Some farmer sure was brand conscious...!! Looks like a Thumbs Up sign to me... At the entrance of the Patsio Army camp

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]]> Sun Jul 2 2006 Sarchu to Manali and some more pics http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1040722.html The LKM ride was coming to an end... :-( Manali would mean crowds and that was something we'd hardly ever seen on this ride. Sarchu - Killing Sarai - Bharatpur - Baralacha La - Zing Zing Bar - Patsio - Darcha - Jispa - Keylong - Tandi - Sissu - Khoksar - Manali Saturday 22 July 2006: The LKM ride was coming to an end... :-( Manali would mean crowds and that was something we'd hardly ever seen on this ride. Sarchu - Killing Sarai - Bharatpur - Baralacha La - Zing Zing Bar - Patsio - Darcha - Jispa - Keylong - Tandi - Sissu - Khoksar - Manali

Sarchu plains View from Sarchu plains, i stayed at Antrek Tents Bharatpur, the ascent for Baralacha La starts after crossing this nallah enroute Baralacha La, the water for this nallah was flowing on the road making it a big mess to drive on and to top it off, there were army trucks rolling on behind me... view of Surajtaal on the way back another nallah the confluence at Darcha Enroute to Keylong Near Sissu Just after Khoksar.. i saw these clouds coming over the roads and crossing over to the other side.. i thought that it would be pretty nice to drive thru the clouds to reach Rohtang top... was I ever going to be proven wrong..!!! Had to ride thru freaking 50 KILOMETERS of clouds and freezing rain.... thru the clouds, i reached Manali late at night at around 9.45, bloody took me 4.5 hours from Khoksar to Manali...!!!! very very scary though... imagine having to drive thru dense fog... at 8 in the night... bloody cant see more than 5-8 feet away... without headlights...and finally having to do it WITHOUT GLASSES...!!!! After leaving Manali Before Aut... After this, it started raining so no more shots... Good Bye... thanks for visiting

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]]> Sat Jul 22 2006 Sumdo to Sarchu via Tso Kar, More Plains, Pang, Kanglajal, Lachulung La, Nakee La and Gata Loops http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1040571.html Sumdo to Sarchu via Tso Kar, More Plains, Pang, Kanglajal, Lachulung La, Nakee La and Gata Loops Friday 21 July 2006: Sumdo to Sarchu via Tso Kar, More Plains, Pang, Kanglajal, Lachulung La, Nakee La and Gata Loops

The The dirt track to Tso Kar I'd begun thinking of names for this dirt track.... finally decided on Machine Gun track :-), logic is simple.. you ride slightly fast and your whole body begins going dhad dhad dhad from the way the road is formed... Tso Kar in the distance The dirt track finally reaches Tso Kar in the distance... it's a diffrent story that even after reaching Tso Kar's beginning, you have to ride for another 12-15 kms of the Tso Kar finally... I like the way the mountains are reflecting off the still waters of the lake... Crossing the lake bed to reach the camps on the other side and then move on to More plains I met a few people from Chandigarh here in a scorpio... they had gone to Tso Moriri and their scorpio's tyre burst there, they started back and near Sumdo their other tyre got a flat..!! Talk about bad luck, abt 8 kms from More Plains their air pump also conked off..!! I loaned them the air pump and rode with them till More plains, there they got help from passing truckers... They later helped me out in getting a hotel in Chandigarh.. At the end of More plains, just before the descent for Pang starts... I had wanted to stop here when we were going... now, solo, i had all the time in the world... I parked my bike here and had the packed lunch of Bread pakoras and fruit juice that i'd gotten from Sumdo There I was, having bread pakoras at More plains :-) when a bus full of Indian tourists stops just a distance away for the tourist to take a photo shot :-) they were absolutely gawking at the lone biker ... ;-)) You can see a better shot of this here :-)), http://www.60kph.com/miff.html it was also my inspiration to try this shot. Even though not actually wanting to.. but moving on The valley for Pang Towards Kanglajal the wind formations again, playing hide and seek with the sun... The road back home :-), view from Lachulung La Before Gata Loops Reaching Gata Loops The Gata Loops and also their short cuts Just before Sarchu At Sarchu bridge... Bye Bye Ladakh... till we meet again... The dreaded Sarchu Nallah...!! Now totally dry... the moment i saw the dry nallah, i thought Subash and Meher would have smiled when they would have seen it... later i confirmed with them that it was true..

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]]> Fri Jul 21 2006 Hanle to Sumdo via Rhongo, Nyoma, Mahe Bridge, Sumdo , Tso Moriri and back to Sumdo http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1040568.html Return journey from Hanle. Route Hanle - Rhongo - Nyoma - Mahe Bridge - Sumdo - Tso Moriri - Sumdo Thursday 20 July 2006: Return journey from Hanle. Route Hanle - Rhongo - Nyoma - Mahe Bridge - Sumdo - Tso Moriri - Sumdo

My breakfast... :-) The audience who had collected while I was packing up At the entrance of Hanle there is this board I reached the Hanle Palace and had heard that there were old manuscripts and sculptures and was looking forward to seeing them... to my surprise there was only a snarly looking dog at the top and nobody else there. Everything was locked up. At the base of the climb for the palace, i met a lama on my way back who said that he stays there and he had gone for his bath...!! Inside view of the Hanle Palace At Tsewang's place, this baby was born while we were having tea inside his rebo my hosts, the Wanchuk family View from the Hanle Palace of the Hanle River basin. I had a tough time getting upto the palace, the road is half built and then had to climb up..!!!! That day i realised that the oxygen is actually less at 15000 feet..!! :-) I was panting like anything... The desert merges with the river basin or vice versa View from Hanle Palace The dirt tracks that you see are the roads coming to Hanle from Rhongo Another view of the Hanle river basin On the way down from the Hanle Palace. On the way back to Rhongo from Hanle Tsewang with another new born On way to Nyoma, windstorms in the distance I got caught in one of the windstorms in Hanle Just before Nyoma on the way back Dust storms Dust storms raging ahead Rains falling alongwith the dust storm The town of Muth on the way to Nyoma The dust storms and the clouds finally cleared up a bit for me to stop and take a break here.. On way to Mahe bridge after Nyoma. Just before reaching Nyoma bridge and the turn off for Tso Moriri After crossing Mahe bridge, the road towards Sumdo rides next to the river A small lake enroute to Tso Moriri. Dont know it's name though and frankly didnt stop and ask the locals Distant view of Tso Moriri Tso Moriri is a natural reserve and is fenced ( the gates are open though :-) ) Tso Moriri is beautiful.. i'd reached at around 6 in the evening and strolled around, decided against waiting for sunset though, since it was cloudy... Last rays of the setting sun... on way back to Sumdo, didnt stop much here coz had the raging nallah which I had to cross on my mind the setting sun created a sort of a halo around this hill... and the colours of the sky were absolutely tempting... i had to stop and click this.. the bad bad nallah on the way ... bad coz it involved a very boring excersice... get off the loaded bike, park loaded bike, remove shoes and socks, tie the shoes and socks to the bike, cross nallah delicately with loaded bike, again get off the loaded bike, park the loaded bike, dry your feet, wear shoes and socks and push off again... at 15000 ft.. this is definitely very tiring :-)). I stayed at the

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]]> Thu Jul 20 2006 Rhongo to Hanle http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1040558.html A distance of approx 60kms... only thing.. NO roads... but some of the best landscapes that I came across on the ride. Spent the morning with Tsewang looking around at the life of Chang Pa Nomads of Ladakh, learnt about their tough life and constant fight for survival.... Wednesday 19 July 2006: A distance of approx 60kms... only thing.. NO roads... but some of the best landscapes that I came across on the ride. Spent the morning with Tsewang looking around at the life of Chang Pa Nomads of Ladakh, learnt about their tough life and constant fight for survival....

The bakri line up :-)) My thoughts at that point were.... Rocky would have been soooo happy to be here :-))) LOL Goats being milked The herds are getting ready for their daily grind The herds begin to get up. That's Tsewang's Rebo in Black, My tent and the tent of his daughter They tied this sheep like this and then Tsewang single handedly removed all it's wool.. I have a video of this in case anybody is interested in watching. The amazing part is even after all the movement that it made the sheep did not get even a single cut due to the scissors..!! Tsewang's grandson :-) He wanted his photo to be taken anywhow Spot the odd man out :-)) me with Tsewang's family The rest of his family leaves on their way to lead the herds to grass, while Tsewang, his grandson and I are left at the campsite these small ones had to be left behind.. they were too young Rebo, Tent and tent.. Inside view of the Rebo That's Tsewang in action.. clicking me with the camera Gaurav had sent him, while I try to click his pic that's us Finally all packed and on way to Hanle The road to Hanle is just a dirt track in the middle of a desert.. Boy.. was I going to have fun...!! :-)) that's Raahi.. On the Two roads diverged into the desert..... Finally, mereko thanki.. I was carrying a tripod..!!! Pretty smart that I am... Just before reaching Hanle, infact you can see the Hanle Palace in this pic My Host at hanle - the Lamatdar ( village headman / sarpanch ) at Hanle Can you spot the rainbow in this picture....?? I can... maybe... if you look closely.. you'll see it in this one :-) View from the Hanle observatory. That's the Hanle Gompa that you are able to see. .... a better picture of this is available here : http://www.60kph.com/photos/wallpapers/images/hanle_palace_1024.jpg View from the Hanle Observatory At the Chandra Astrophysics Telescope Laboratory - the highest observatory in the world..!! Best part is that it's totally controlled from Bangalore..!!!!

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]]> Wed Jul 19 2006 Leh to Rhongo via Chumathang, Mahe Bridge and Nyoma - My Solo ride starts... http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1040505.html Starting of my solo ride in Ladakh. Subash and Meher started for Delhi via Tso Moriri and Tso Kar, while I would ride to Hanle and then return to Delhi via Tso Moriri and Tso Kar. Route Leh - Karu - Ranibagh - Hyemia - Chumathang - Mahe Bridge - Nyoma - Muth - Loma Post - Rhongo Starting from here, I think I found the real Ladakh that I had been looking for. The landscapes and also the local people that I saw and met were absolutely heartwarming and fantastic. Many of these pics dont have captions... simply because I found them toooo beautiful to be titled...!!! Tuesday 18 July 2006: Starting of my solo ride in Ladakh. Subash and Meher started for Delhi via Tso Moriri and Tso Kar, while I would ride to Hanle and then return to Delhi via Tso Moriri and Tso Kar. Route Leh - Karu - Ranibagh - Hyemia - Chumathang - Mahe Bridge - Nyoma - Muth - Loma Post - Rhongo Starting from here, I think I found the real Ladakh that I had been looking for. The landscapes and also the local people that I saw and met were absolutely heartwarming and fantastic. Many of these pics dont have captions... simply because I found them toooo beautiful to be titled...!!!

Final shades off the clouds before the sun sets Tsewang - a Changpa with a heart of gold... I had a humble yet sumptous dinner of Curd and Roti with his family Tsewang's grandchild Tsewang's daughter and grandchild Tsewang's youngest son and Tsewang's wife... The final take of the LKM06 Mamas togather... we split up that day, Subash and Meher would ride to Tso Moriri ,Tsokar and then back to Delhi, while I would head for Hanle The meetup of Yulsa gang, LKM Mamas and Nikkhhill in Leh - Meher, Meeta, Vinod, Amit, Sanju, Subash, Myself and Nikkhhiill This is Juma, Juma is a greaat guy who runs an enfield repair shop on airport road in Leh. Great Guy Near Kiari, on way to Rhongo The road to Kiari, this is the road that i came on... On way to Kiari This is the turn where Meher had his fall, he slipped out from under the bike and remained on the road, while his bike went crashing down 20 ft..!!! 10 kms out of Chumathang, on way to Mahe Bridge The road to Mahe bridge and Heaven.... you'll soon see why... Just after crossing Mahe bridge, it's just so beautiful... One HAS TO STOP and admire the surroundings This is like a fantasy picture, the clouds, the mountains, the river... all in perfect harmony Raahi stands tall on the dirt tracks Perfect A view of the river and the mountains... A lone flag greets those who are heading for Loma Dust storm in the plains outside of Nyoma Just before Loma Post, totally love this image, the river running, the sky reflecting off it... Just before Rhongo, herds make way home In Rhongo, ppl who stay next to the PWD guest house On way to meet Tsewang, I'd decided that I'll camp near his Rebo. These are actual shades of the sun that were reflecting off the clouds The setting sun

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]]> Tue Jul 18 2006 Leh - Phobrang - Marsimek La also referred as Marsimik La - Pangong Tso - Leh The day we reached THE HIGHEST MOTORABLE MOUNTAIN PASS IN THE WORLD - MARSIMEK LA http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1040323.html Ride from Leh to Marsimek La to Pangong Tso and back to Leh. Original plan was to ride from Pangong Tso to Rhongo. However, Meher had a slight fall at Chumathang and hence we had to turn back to Leh for getting his bike into shape. Route : 13th July - Leh - Karu - Sakthi - Chang La - Phobrang 14th July - D Day - The day we reached THE HIGHEST MOTORABLE MOUNTAIN PASS IN THE WORLD - MARSIMEK LA - MARSIMIK LA - Phobrang - Lukung - Spagmik 15th July - Spagmik - Man - Merak - Tangtse - Durbuk - Tsultok (Near Changla Base Camp) 16th July - Tsultok - Chang La - Sakthi - Karu - Upshi - Kiari - Chumathang - Meher's fall - Chumathang - Upshi - Leh Thursday 13 July 2006: Ride from Leh to Marsimek La to Pangong Tso and back to Leh. Original plan was to ride from Pangong Tso to Rhongo. However, Meher had a slight fall at Chumathang and hence we had to turn back to Leh for getting his bike into shape. Route : 13th July - Leh - Karu - Sakthi - Chang La - Phobrang 14th July - D Day - The day we reached THE HIGHEST MOTORABLE MOUNTAIN PASS IN THE WORLD - MARSIMEK LA - MARSIMIK LA - Phobrang - Lukung - Spagmik 15th July - Spagmik - Man - Merak - Tangtse - Durbuk - Tsultok (Near Changla Base Camp) 16th July - Tsultok - Chang La - Sakthi - Karu - Upshi - Kiari - Chumathang - Meher's fall - Chumathang - Upshi - Leh

The next day, on way to Marsimek La. The first bike you see is mine, then the second bike is Bijoy from Delhi and the last bike and 2 people that you see is Subash and Rajan also from Delhi- we met them on way to M La. This is the first ascent on the way to M-La. At around 14kms from Phobrang. First tough point. The board announcing that Marsimek La was the Highest Motorable Pass in the World. The barely readable board reads : CHAK DE, MAPSIMEK - LA, WORLD'S HIGHEST MOTORABLE PASS, AT ALT - 5590 MTS - 18,634 FEET, CONST BY 6FD COY, 236 C/R CHAK DE, CHAK DE At M-La Top Everybody had said that there was a marble plaque at the top which read : THIS HIGHEST ROAD IN THE WORLD WAS CONSTRUCTED BY B COY OF 1ST BN ITBP UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF SHRI SONAL PALZOR COY COMMANDER THE EVERESTER IN THE YEAR 1983. I was absolutely shattered to find the plaque BROKEN..!!!! I even tried to re-assemble the broken pieces, as if it were a jigsaw puzzle. Finally had to give up. The road coming to M-La the road from P-Tso heading for Chushul Road to Chushul Next day at 8 A.M at Chang La - it was -5, so cold that even the water of the nallahs froze on the mudguard Subash's bike also was experiencing the same At Chang La top, the water on the roads also had frozen up On the way back to Leh, read this sign, somebody in the BRO sure goofed up At Chang La - it's a tough pass and is also called the Mighty Chang La. It was -2 during the day when we were passing through View on the way down from Chang La towards Tsultok A small lake after Tsultok - Tsultok means the land above the lake in Ladakhi The winds were bringing the clouds down due to which there was even slight snowfall that day After crossing Tsultok On way to Durbuk A chorten on the way, there it was standing right in the middle of nowhere..!! Meher riding ahead Durbuk in the distance, me n Meher took this shortcut off the road, Subash was doing the full road, he had to come back and park his bike on the dirt track for this shot :-) View of Durbuk, we were to later get third class adulterated petrol here... Subash just waiting for us to finish our photo shoot On way to Pangong Tso, the roads were pretty bad in some patches, but the scenery more than made it up for that.. After the intersection before Pangong Tso for Phobrang, on way to Phobrang This might look like the road for Marsimek La, it's not.. this is the approach road for Phobrang... just imagining what the road to M-La would be like...! Then again at 19kms from Phobrang, our bikes got struck in the mud. The dark shape that you see in the right hand side is Meher and a really small speck that you see far away is Subash. It was only will power now that would get us to the top. Finally.. MarsimekLa Top. WE HAD DONE IT. Raahi made me proud that day. Meher arrived after some time and we greeted each other with highfives and bear hugs and shouts of we did it man, we did it :-)). He went up and planted our LKM Ride 06 flag on the top, to serve as a memory for us and also to announce to the world that the Mamas had been here earlier :-)) Raahi stands in mute testimony to the broken plague, on the reverse side is the sign board saying M Mekla --> 0 After we gathered our spirits, it was time for us to relish our moment. I'd gotten a poster from Ahmedabad, designed by Anshuman, and we started our photo session :-) Once again desolately i decided to get myself clicked with the broken plaque :-(( The final shots at the top.. almost an hour and half at THE TOP in freezing cold, harsh winds and snow fall had begun taking it's toll on me. My mouth had started becoming numb and I had started stammering The view from Marsimek La. I asked Meher if he was enthu abt exploring the nearby areas, but looking at my condition and also the weather, we decided to turn back. The return journey was to be more relaxed. Gone was the inner sense of urgency. A feeling of calm had settled and the mind was at peace :-)) Meher was riding ahead and I was going really slow, looking and memorizing each and every moment of the road back I found some more company on the way back... and the one going to M-La :-) the dirt tracks of M-La Finally back to our room at Phobrang, the house owners son was peeping thru the window We were totally bushed from the trip, again went back to the ITBP camp and made calls to Gaurav, Amol and family, came back to the room, conked off for an hour and then left for Pangong. This photo is enroute to pangong tso The hills of Phobrang in the background Dirt tracks all the way The first view of Pangong Tso At P-Tso, it was cloudy, yet the water changed colours atleast twice our first line up take at P-Tso the lineup at P-Tso

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]]> Thu Jul 13 2006 Panamik to Leh via the new route of Shyok Valley bypassing Khardung La on the way back http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1040102.html Ride from Panamik to Leh via Shyok Valley route, thereby bypassing the Khardung La. 10th July - Panamik - Sasoma - Panamik - Sumur - Tirith - Khalsar - Deskit - Hunder - Deskit - Khalsar - Arghyam - Tangyar 11th July - Tangyar - Wari La - Sakhti - Karu - Leh 12th July - Chilling out in Leh Monday 10 July 2006: Ride from Panamik to Leh via Shyok Valley route, thereby bypassing the Khardung La. 10th July - Panamik - Sasoma - Panamik - Sumur - Tirith - Khalsar - Deskit - Hunder - Deskit - Khalsar - Arghyam - Tangyar 11th July - Tangyar - Wari La - Sakhti - Karu - Leh 12th July - Chilling out in Leh

Hot sulphur spring at Panamik. The water was very very hot. The promised lake, it also has a corner called a wish pond, if you are able to see the coin that you throw in the water, your wish will be fulfilled. A sign at the turn for Deskit and Hunder, I found it ominious... on our next leg of the journey we were to do a new route of Wari La and then attempt Marsimek La. We were succesfull at both..!!! The nallah at 8 in the morning, we shifted my bike on our own, then had to go back to the BRO Camp and call for extra help :-), Subash's bike being pushed across The view of the valley outside of Panamik The Enspa gompa on the other side, there was a festival the previous night. The turn for the gompa is also the last point till outsiders are allowed. Beyond that only Ladakhis were allowed. The small hills seen on the right hand side were said to contain a natural lake between them, we decided to visit them for a look We climbed up this mountain to see a lake- ok actually hillock - but then at 15000 feet even walking a 100 metres on an ascent gives a feeling of climbing Mt. Everest..!! :-)) Our bikes are next to the cars. These ancient rock inscriptions were being studied by some foreigners, according to them they were more than 4000 years old. Raahi posing... Meher Maamu posing The study of contrasts that I referred earlier... lush green spaces right next to the dry river beds At Khalsar bridge, the river comes all the way from Siachen carrying the dirt and waste right from the glacier... On way to Deskit A view point on way to Deskit, on your left is the valley for Deskit and on the right is the valley for Panamik A point where I wished I had a better camera and a really big wide frame lens..!!!! The waters of the rivers in these 2 valleys meet and form the Shyok as we know it.. The road coming up to Deskit After visiting Hunder and Deskit without any sightings of the double humped camels, we returned back to Khalsar and started for Arghyam Village thru the new road on the Shyok river bed Amongst the first bikes to cross the roads, the initial 10-15 kms are tarred roads Quite a feeling of driving on a river bed a lone horn was cemented to a small bridge, a local sign maybe after the initial tarred roads, the route was to be like this for the next 50-60 kms almost right till Wari La top Then we came up to this river crossing which actually had only a small wooden crossing OR we had a choice to get the bikes on top of this new bridge, but with only 1 metal flank laid all the way.... we chose to take the help of the labourers there and cross it over the flank. Tough task it was, we shifted my bike then Meher baba cautiously followed Subash coming thru Just to give you a fair idea as to what we were supposed to cross The bridge that we crossed and the wooden crossing on the side We met a BRO camp at a nallah before Tangyar and we camped there. The night stay was one of the most memorable experiences of the trip. Sun set at Tangyar Our wonderful hosts for the night. From Left - Meher, Myself, Subrat Nath - the Mess Incharge, Bhagirath - actually from the army but on deputation to GREF, Ramesh Singh - Lorry Driver, Amarpal Singh - Lorry Driver, Subash and Rakesh Singh - Medicinal Incharge at the BRO Camp Meher coming up on the dirt tracks of Wari La Landscapes on the way Passing by one of the nallahs on the way. Subash got stuck in this one Wari La top after all the effort Wari La Top - I have some memories of this place, Meher has similar memories of Chang La top :-)) The view of Wari La top was fantastic, the green patch that you see below is Sakthi The bikes lined up Your's truly The running water from the mountain streams had somehow formed a yellow layer on the rocks.. might have been sulphur.. Chembraey village on route betn Sakthi and Karu Fields on the way Our highlight of the trip :-) Met them at Shanti Stupa - they had come in from Dehradun and they asked us if they could have a photo with us. We were all smiles :-)) At Shanti Stupa - Leh in the background Leh

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]]> Mon Jul 10 2006 Leh to Panamik in the Nubra Valley http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1039530.html Leh to Panamik Village Route : Leh - Khardung La - Khardung Village - Khalsar - Sumur - Panamik Panamik is the last village till which outsiders are allowed, there is a small natural lake formed between two hillocks and also hot water sulphur springs in Panamik. Sunday 9 July 2006: Leh to Panamik Village Route : Leh - Khardung La - Khardung Village - Khalsar - Sumur - Panamik Panamik is the last village till which outsiders are allowed, there is a small natural lake formed between two hillocks and also hot water sulphur springs in Panamik.

The moon shining bright amidst the setting sun.. had taken this shot with my cell phone.. am pretty happy with the results On way to K - Top, Leh is seen as the green patch Nearing K Top The Mamas at K-Top View of the Nubra Valley from K-Top View from K-Top The inside of the temple at K-Top I just loved photographing the prayer flags at all the passes, somehow it had a special appeal to me View from K Top View from K Top At K Top, they've changed the layout of K Top and now instead there is this board proclaiming K Top That's Me, Subash and Meher Coming down from K - Top towards Nubra Valley Walls of ice right next to the road K Top in the background, Army trucks coming in from Nubra valley headed for K-Top K Top in the background Meher and Subash had ridden ahead, I finally stopped a Sardarji riding a scooter to K-Top to take this shot :-) Sardarji also went on his way, finally had to start working on the self timer in the camera :-) This structure was on the way, dont know if it was meant to symbolise anything Yaks while coming down After crossing Pullu, the road to Khalsar, the base camp referred is Siachen base camp A view of Khardung village Landscapes after Khardung Village Chortens facing the valley, enroute from Khardung village Khardung village in the background We stopped here after Subash had a slight slip after we tried taking a short cut thru a dirt track :-) Our first view of the Shyok valley, the small strip that you see going thru the river bed was to be our exit route from Nubra valley After crossing Khalsar - at Khalsar bridge We stopped on the side as there was water flooding on the main road Subash decided to add to the problem :-)) Driving along in the river bed on way to Panamik Chortens on the river bed... The sun and the mountains play hide and seek The valley is a contrast of sorts..on one side you have lush green stretches of poplar and on the other we have rock beds A evening view of the valley The route we had comein thru, I guess it was still daylight for Deskit and Hunder Bright sun light on the mountain tops The sun finally starting to settle The last rays of the day settle on the mountain tops We reached Panamik oblivious to the shades the setting sun was putting up behind us, it was only that we turned back for a guest house that we saw these colours..!!! What a sun set.... the shades are all natural, not one iota of alteration in these colours... the moon just coming up...

Published in My days with myself.... - Ride to the Land of Lamas

]]> Sun Jul 9 2006 Sarchu to Leh http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1039510.html Pics of the ride from Sarchu to Leh. Did it in one day. Route : Sarchu - Gata Loops - Nakkee La - Lachulung La - Pang - More Plains - Tanglang La - Rumtse - Sasoma - Gya - Lato - Kiru - Upshi - Karu - Leh Friday 7 July 2006: Pics of the ride from Sarchu to Leh. Did it in one day. Route : Sarchu - Gata Loops - Nakkee La - Lachulung La - Pang - More Plains - Tanglang La - Rumtse - Sasoma - Gya - Lato - Kiru - Upshi - Karu - Leh

A wide view of More Plains Starting from Sarchu, this is almost at the end of HP, basically J&K starts only 4 kms from Sarchu. Crossing the river ravine that you see in the pic sees you in Ladakh :-) Near Sarchu Welcome to Ladakh :-) Formations formed due to the wind cutting into the river banks.. they are found all along this route starting from the Sarchu plains and maximum are found just as you are about to reach Pang Landscapes on way to Gata Loops View from one of the Gata Loops View from Nakee La top, the top on the other side is Lachulung La Nakeela Temple At Nakee La top, Meher all packed up, Subash trying a couple of shots and I wandering around !! :-) Your's truly at Nakee La Subash starts off for Lachulung La Next after Nakee La was Lachulung La View of the road from Lachulung La Kanglajal in the distance Wind formations enroute, just before reaching Pang again a Parachute Tent camping area,also a Police outpost Road descends towards Pang After crossing pang, we climb the slope to reach More Plains Just reaching the top for More Plains, this is the first view that greets you at the entrance of More plains The view at More plains. More plains is actually a part of the Rupshu Plateau At the dirt track of More Plains... soch rahaa hoon ab kahaan jaaun... Finally stopped thinking and asked Meher to take a snap Jhanda Uncha rahe hamaara :-) More Plains The ascent to Tanglang La - one of the most scenic passes in the Himalayas Atop Tanglang La - view from Tanglang La Prayer flags against the wind at Tanglang La top Meher posing against the Tanglang La temple and the Tanglang La board Same pinch...!!! View from Tanglang La top.. the road descends towards Leh On the way down from Tanglang La top After coming down from T Top to Rumtse, the road then passes through valleys which have villages with myraid names like Gya, Lato, Kiri. The road between Gya and Kiri is laced with Chortens and red mountains

Published in My days with myself.... - Ride to the Land of Lamas

]]> Fri Jul 7 2006 Delhi to Sarchu http://raahi.fotopic.net/c1039435.html Pics from the Ride from Delhi to Sarchu with Meher, Subash and Preetam. 3rd July - Delhi - Kalka - Solan - Dharampur - Kandaghat - Chhail 4th July - Chhail - Koti - Kufri - Theog - Narkanda (Preetam split for Spiti Valley) - Sainj - Aani - Khanag - Jalori Pass - Shoja - Banjaar - Aut - Bhunter 5th July - Bhunter - Manali - Rohtang Pass - Khoksar - Sissu - Tandi - Keylong 6th July - Keylong - Jispa - Darcha - Patsoi (Army Post) - Zing Zing Bar - Baralachala Pass - Bharatpur - Killing Sarai - Sarchu Monday 3 July 2006: Pics from the Ride from Delhi to Sarchu with Meher, Subash and Preetam. 3rd July - Delhi - Kalka - Solan - Dharampur - Kandaghat - Chhail 4th July - Chhail - Koti - Kufri - Theog - Narkanda (Preetam split for Spiti Valley) - Sainj - Aani - Khanag - Jalori Pass - Shoja - Banjaar - Aut - Bhunter 5th July - Bhunter - Manali - Rohtang Pass - Khoksar - Sissu - Tandi - Keylong 6th July - Keylong - Jispa - Darcha - Patsoi (Army Post) - Zing Zing Bar - Baralachala Pass - Bharatpur - Killing Sarai - Sarchu

First stop of the day, Sobby met us at Azadpur Mandi and we decided to take a stop for a breakfast. Near a place called Ladwa on the Delhi Chandigarh highway, a absolute dream to drive on Starting for the hills, ahead of Kalka Regular photo stop Dusk time, on way to Chhail. We decided to skip Shimla and settled for calm Chhail. Drove thru clouds to reach Chhail A little out of Kufri, after Chhail. While waiting for Preetam. At Kufri Sunset time, after crossing Jalori pass in the evening. Sun playing hide and seek. My panniers broke for the first time at Jalori. Enroute from Jalori to Banjaar On way from Jalori to Banjaar, where we would get my panniers welded, and also the place where I had a minor heart attack :-), but that's another story for another day..!! View before reaching Manali View after crossing Manali. I'd overtaken Subash and Meher who were waiting for me at Nehrukund, while I reached all the way to Kothi and then had to turn back. On way to Rohtang Jot, Rohtang does not qualify for a Subash and Meher trying their hands to capture the first images of snow. Subash met a friend of his here, coming back from the Him Oddy, who told us that Baralacha La was -8 in the day. Fat Claim, that we later found out was totally untrue. at the same place On way to Rohtang First sighting of Snow - Rani Nallah, it was full of dirt and the snow had turned a dirty brown colour, tourists coming to and from Rohtang would stop here and get their pics clicked in the Meher coming in towards Rani Nullah Subash comes next, we stopped here as it was our first close view of snow. the first in Subash's life :-) Meher a.k.a Headlight Mamu posing Before Rohtang Jot Before Rohtang Jot At Rohtang Top - our gateway, there was hardly any snow here and yet most of the tourists were moving around in those artificial fur coats and gum boots. Quite a sight :-) We started from Rohtang at 5 in the evening. First sighting of the Pir Panjal Range range which demarks the southernmost ramparts of the Himalayas and the road then descends into the Chandra Valley This was our first actual sighting of the Greater Himalayas and looks quite impressive after crossing Rohtang Horses grazing on the hill slope Thoda close up Coming down towards Khoksar Sheep grazing on the slopes, on way to Khoksar View from Khoksar bridge, the river is the Chandra river On way to Tandi Wall of ice and streams flowing from beneath The sun beginning to set and we cursing ourself for having to miss beautiful landscapes, you can see the final rays on the mountain top Water flowing in from the melting snow of the mountain tops, this was near Sissu The moon also out around 7.30 in the evening The sun finally making an exit, slightly before we were to reach Tandi - the last fuel station before Manali - 345 kms to be exact. We were the last customers of the petrol pump that day, reached just in the nick of time at 8 P.M. Stayed the night at Keylong at the Tashi Deleg restaurant. Leaving Keylong late in the morning, I had to get my carriers welded :-), their second breakage during this journey Aage bhi neela aasmaan aur peeche bhi Chandra river, on way to Darcha After crossing Jispa, you can see Darcha in the distance Near Darcha Check post After the Darcha check post, the road starts ascending Our first nallah after crossing Manali, the water was freezing cold, that's Subash near the nallah A small water body, there were a couple of tents pitched next to this, very very scenic On way to the Baralacha La, after crossing Patsio and Zing Zing Bar, the roads were absolutely bad in this stretch On way to Barlacha La On way to Barlacha La

Published in My days with myself.... - Ride to the Land of Lamas

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