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124 KMs Trip Meter 16401 KMs
Its the big day. Feel like resting more but will loose time then. I secure the petrol cans on the rear foot rests with the bungee cords first placing them on the rear footrests. Then use rope to support from above from the grab rail and then tie a round on the side with the pannier to avoid it stepping out of the foot rest. Looks firm when parked but will have to see how it goes. Start from kargil at like 9.15 am. Ride towards sanko and in no time is bad roads or roads with just the some layers. This is really irritating form of offroad. Progress i slow. All the while i am worried about what am i getting myself into. The previous day a couple of locals said that i can make it to Rangdum in like 3 hours and then to padam from there in 2 hours. Yeah right, the locals are so very optimistic. Dunno how they achieve such speeds. Meet a french guy coming from opposite direction on a bullet. We chatted for some time and he was pretty visual about the state of the roads and told me about a couple of water crossings before padam and how tough it was and that he got 2 punctures on the way back. He fixed it himself. No way i can do that. This scares me shit. But like always i want to go till the last possible point. after couple of hours to cover 40 kms stop at sanko for some food. Get some half cooked omelet and dried roti. kinda cross between roti and bread, supposed to be dip eaten in tea! Try that any way but cant have much. Fill in one more liter of fuel from a shop near by just in case.
Bike is showing the weight of the additional 10 liters of fuel. Kinda wobbly. The path after sanko is even raw. Going gets real slow. Average speeds in teens now. The thought of reaching Rangdum by 1 pm looks far fetched. Next couple of villages there are a teasers of blacktop roads just for couple of KMs. Then its back to offroading. Kinda worried about the fuel cans holding up. Kinda worried of the long offroading days ahead and how i will fare. The thing with offroading is that you hardly get to observe around and have to fully concentrate on the path ahead. Reach Panikhar by like 3 pm thats a good 3 hours for 40 kms and i have 40 more to go so three more hours. Was hungry but eating would cost me some time so skipped. Met threesome of locals and they said the road ahead of Rangdum should be good. Based on feedback of many people i was looking forward for the good path ahead. I should have known bettor from the Muktinath experiance. Speaking of Muktinath, this was a lot bettor than Muktinath. Was concentrating on the path so hard that i almost missed something intersting. There it is out of no where the Nunkun Glaciar. Very strange at then pretty rough, white at the to top and almost black at the bottom. But still beautiful. All the pains vanished and it was a happy moment. A lil ahead i see a long slush crossing. Time to get the shoes into the Gaitors. Make it through. Ride ahead slowly taking a few breaks. Liked to stop for long breaks at many isolated places but i have to save time. 20 kms to Rangdum sign boards of distance from Rangdum starts appearing. Though helpful it also make realize how slow i am going. Nearing Rangdum the path worsens with lot of loose stones on the path. I see a fast moving water crossing prolly 5-6 inches on cement flooring. Hmm... take it smoothly. After a couple of kms its a big one and a murky water flowing in force. Just take a pic and ride in. And i am out with the whole engine wet and smoking! 5 Kms to Rangdum, there is one more murky fast flowing water crossing and a big one at that. I mean a big one! Was scary. Take a pic and with out thinking much ride in and the bike goes in more than a feet and a couple of feet from the exit the front wheel gets turned by a rock underneeth and i kinda loose it and stop mid water crossing! The bike starts to tip over! i scream in fright and some how my left hand managed to pull it back up right! Kinda felt like a power helped me!! was in shock, the clutch held firmly and throttle revving at 7k rpm!! Now that i am standing witht he food in the water the gaiter allows water into the shoes. Come to senses Some how manage get the hippo butted bike out of the water and ride on. I have a cramp in left hand but hope its not big. It takes me some to realize that my trip could have been over then and there had the bike tipped over in the water! It would be quite some to to get help and by then the water would have ruined the bike and all the things! But now cant really breath relief cos have to do it again!
Just wondering about the big water crossing the french guy was talking about before padam!! Reach Rangdum and go the J&K Tourist Bungalow and a bummer. The only two rooms are taken. He offers me a stay in his home. I was kinda skeptical at the beginning but can check what that heck. Follow him to this home and the room was pretty nice and cozy and i take it. Can get to experiance home stay. Dorji Tsering was very helpful host attending to me. Even put the shoes by the fire to dry it up. Maggie, tea, and food were given to me when i required. The Buddhist people are quite resourceful. This i have observed in this trip. Even in remote places they have houses big one and comfortable ones and facilities too. The only odd thing was the loo. Strange giving a review of a loo :d. Cos it had just two holes in the floor and a pile of sand and a shovel in a corner! There is a reason behind it. They use human waste mixed in sand along with the Zimbo dung to fertilize their fields!! Btw, Yaks they have is not yaks it seems but Zimbo! Basically the ones i had named Yaow:D Yaks are bigger, heavier, hairy ones says Dorji. He tells me there are no big water crossings on the way to padam but for small ones. So guess the french guy was talking about the ones before Rangdum! Ohh man it still scares me. Guess it was one of the close calls i had had in the trip. But then i still have to cross it again. July and august are the months where the water flow is more and get reduced in September. All the people whom i met on the way, i complained just to let my frustration out, were saying that PWD people eat a lot of govt sanctioned money and the the road and tatters. The road is supposed to be handed over to Hemank in couple of years and then may be things will speed up here.
Had dinner of rice vegetable, curd made with zimbo mild and onion chutney. Boy was it tasty. Just conversated with Dorji and crashed for the day in the cozy room.
Bike is showing the weight of the additional 10 liters of fuel. Kinda wobbly. The path after sanko is even raw. Going gets real slow. Average speeds in teens now. The thought of reaching Rangdum by 1 pm looks far fetched. Next couple of villages there are a teasers of blacktop roads just for couple of KMs. Then its back to offroading. Kinda worried about the fuel cans holding up. Kinda worried of the long offroading days ahead and how i will fare. The thing with offroading is that you hardly get to observe around and have to fully concentrate on the path ahead. Reach Panikhar by like 3 pm thats a good 3 hours for 40 kms and i have 40 more to go so three more hours. Was hungry but eating would cost me some time so skipped. Met threesome of locals and they said the road ahead of Rangdum should be good. Based on feedback of many people i was looking forward for the good path ahead. I should have known bettor from the Muktinath experiance. Speaking of Muktinath, this was a lot bettor than Muktinath. Was concentrating on the path so hard that i almost missed something intersting. There it is out of no where the Nunkun Glaciar. Very strange at then pretty rough, white at the to top and almost black at the bottom. But still beautiful. All the pains vanished and it was a happy moment. A lil ahead i see a long slush crossing. Time to get the shoes into the Gaitors. Make it through. Ride ahead slowly taking a few breaks. Liked to stop for long breaks at many isolated places but i have to save time. 20 kms to Rangdum sign boards of distance from Rangdum starts appearing. Though helpful it also make realize how slow i am going. Nearing Rangdum the path worsens with lot of loose stones on the path. I see a fast moving water crossing prolly 5-6 inches on cement flooring. Hmm... take it smoothly. After a couple of kms its a big one and a murky water flowing in force. Just take a pic and ride in. And i am out with the whole engine wet and smoking! 5 Kms to Rangdum, there is one more murky fast flowing water crossing and a big one at that. I mean a big one! Was scary. Take a pic and with out thinking much ride in and the bike goes in more than a feet and a couple of feet from the exit the front wheel gets turned by a rock underneeth and i kinda loose it and stop mid water crossing! The bike starts to tip over! i scream in fright and some how my left hand managed to pull it back up right! Kinda felt like a power helped me!! was in shock, the clutch held firmly and throttle revving at 7k rpm!! Now that i am standing witht he food in the water the gaiter allows water into the shoes. Come to senses Some how manage get the hippo butted bike out of the water and ride on. I have a cramp in left hand but hope its not big. It takes me some to realize that my trip could have been over then and there had the bike tipped over in the water! It would be quite some to to get help and by then the water would have ruined the bike and all the things! But now cant really breath relief cos have to do it again!
Just wondering about the big water crossing the french guy was talking about before padam!! Reach Rangdum and go the J&K Tourist Bungalow and a bummer. The only two rooms are taken. He offers me a stay in his home. I was kinda skeptical at the beginning but can check what that heck. Follow him to this home and the room was pretty nice and cozy and i take it. Can get to experiance home stay. Dorji Tsering was very helpful host attending to me. Even put the shoes by the fire to dry it up. Maggie, tea, and food were given to me when i required. The Buddhist people are quite resourceful. This i have observed in this trip. Even in remote places they have houses big one and comfortable ones and facilities too. The only odd thing was the loo. Strange giving a review of a loo :d. Cos it had just two holes in the floor and a pile of sand and a shovel in a corner! There is a reason behind it. They use human waste mixed in sand along with the Zimbo dung to fertilize their fields!! Btw, Yaks they have is not yaks it seems but Zimbo! Basically the ones i had named Yaow:D Yaks are bigger, heavier, hairy ones says Dorji. He tells me there are no big water crossings on the way to padam but for small ones. So guess the french guy was talking about the ones before Rangdum! Ohh man it still scares me. Guess it was one of the close calls i had had in the trip. But then i still have to cross it again. July and august are the months where the water flow is more and get reduced in September. All the people whom i met on the way, i complained just to let my frustration out, were saying that PWD people eat a lot of govt sanctioned money and the the road and tatters. The road is supposed to be handed over to Hemank in couple of years and then may be things will speed up here.
Had dinner of rice vegetable, curd made with zimbo mild and onion chutney. Boy was it tasty. Just conversated with Dorji and crashed for the day in the cozy room.
My room at Kargil's D'Zojila
The dining area....
Place to hang out...
10 liters of fuel secured on the bike will have to see how it will last....
Parking for bike as well....
Leaving Kargil....
Road being washed??
Entering Suru valley....
There you go...
Its the flower season i gues... full bloom every where....
Landscape changes....
Some village house....
The last distance board at Sanko....
Cute kashmiri kids.... Check out the expression of the girl in pink..
Ride under trees....
The good road to the right is what Yogesh told me not to take and he was right :)
Ride on....
A fork and this time i pic the good looking path....
Goes through this in growth on either side....
Smooth offroad!
Some teaser of roads in between for couple of KMs....
Its all green....
A village on the way....
This time a bettor teaser....
See a lot of these birds but managed to catch one....
School kids ran out of the play ground for the cam....
Pretty villages enrout....
Suru valley....
Bike there....
Yeah the path is still the same....
What do we have here? The NunKun Glacier! i almost missed at i as i was busy concentrating on the road!!
Upclose....
Talk about water crossing!
Looks scary but there was cement underneath so ok....
Pretty mountains...
Road work going on....
Slush to be negotiated...
The valley i have been riding...
Gearing up for slush and water crossing....
One more scary looking crossing....
Wild horses....
Snow topped mountains on either side....
Looks Deadly but was kinda ok to cross.... Water was all over engine and it smoked!
Riding ahead to Rangdum...
Man loved this place.. Nice time spent there....
White mother and black calf!
Just 19kms ehhh? i am averaging about 14 kmph so its more than a hour ahead!
Lake with red algae??
I keep seeing this critters scamper across the path... This one was patient enough to wait for me to pull out the cam and shoot!
Still riding on....
Its only getting bumpy....
Then comes this nasty one... the bike almost tipped over in the water! There was lot of uneven ness under the water and it turned my front wheel.... Lucky to pull back the bike to upright!!
Towards Rangdum....
Then i make it....
I follow the watch man ahead to his home for homestay....
Pretty kitchen they have and thats the host Dorji...
Dorji's brother and Dorji's cute kid...
Now this is their Loo.. with just a hole in the floor... and u use the showel and mud to clean up the mess!
My bike at Dorji's home and its fantastic panorama around....
Thats Dorji's son, Tenzing tustop... it took me ages to memorise his name!
Their fluffy dog....
Cute baby Zimbo... thats what they call their yak or cow or what ever....
Me petting one...
Then the other one...
The home....
Vertical travel from Kargil till some place where the app crashed....
From where i found out to Rangdum...
5 comments:
I have read a detailed writeup on that typical Ladakhi village Loo..but this is the first time seeing the picture.. too good!! :D
Heye yeah, good that i had some tissue paper cos no water allowed :P
That critter thing looks creepy man !
What if 20 of those things surround you? eeeeeKK !
seems you are wearing a customised layer around your footwear to avoid getting wet. a little more description on that would help those who wish to follow your footsteps/wheels.
hi praveen,
i read your travel log it seems informative and interesting.
hats off for your daring expedition.
atleast i don,t have guts to complete this type of journey alone
Regards
Gaurav Dutta
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