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FaiyazSultan

Hello People,

I would like to take my time to share something very dear to me.
[ Return 2 Himalayaz ] Is something that I had been involved with for several years now and every time we visit Himachal, there is something better or something new to explore. Be it Lahaul Spiti or Kullu. Love with Himachal is something that I cannot explain.

Please read on to know how my trips were:

Return 2 Himalayaz IV


Trip Log : Ride Report :

|- DELHI - MANALI - KEYLONG - PANG -|
4 DAYS OF HARSH TERRAIN AND EXPERIENCE ZELT OF LAHAUL

June 15th 2008

Guys chip in & post your trip log.

here is mine:

Day 1:

0230 – Get the Bags packed and got ready, called up Crack and asked if he needed anything extra. He was ready as well.

0300 – Checked the bike for any problems and found the front Disc break is way too loose. The breaks were just hopeless if in case of emergency. Got the tools and tried to fix it but the hydraulic Piston would not open. I didn’t want to risk the left over breaks and decided to leave it the way it is. Got all the essentials but left Diomax by chance which nearly cost us our lives.


Speedo Reading: 00662 kms
Tacho Reading: 000 Kms
Reset at the Petrol Pump



0330 – Left home and got the nearest petrol pump but found that there was no fuel at the petrol station. I was running out of Fuel and had just 1 litre of fuel left on. Also had to get cash out of ATM, once again disappointment as there was no cash on the nearest ATM Machine. Called up Crack and asked for suggestion. Near his place the petrol pump was open and also had ATM close by.

0345 – Left to Crack’s place and some how managed to get there with fuel running almost empty. Got the cash out first and got the tank full on my bike. Crack was all ready for the Tour and very excited. Informed him about the front breaks and he promised not to over take me by any chance as it would mean asta-lavista if he did and I would not be able to break on time.

0400 – Started riding the city roads and started cruising down to National Highway 1. I was trying my best to get use to the front breaks as it felt much unsecured while I was breaking. Some how managed to get the best of the breaks in worst case scenario.

0430 – We finally crossed over the borders of Delhi and reached the highway and the sense of Chilling feel of Mountain was getting into me already. We started cruising at clean & clear roads at 80 – 90 kmph without any problems. The Traffic was at minimal and was wonderful early morning.

0500 – Cracks first experience at really long ride was getting him more and more excited as we had crossed 50kms mark from Delhi and averaging speeds of 75kmph. We took our first break just before Panipat. We had few cups of Tea and got some mineral water for the ride.

Early morning sunrise and we started riding at good speeds. Started noticing some dark clouds as we were nearing Kurnal, we didn’t bother at that time but all of a sudden a huge down pour drenching us instantly. We stopped at the next Dhaba to get out of this unexpected down pour from skies above. Sat at the Dhaba for almost an hour before the rain slowed its fury, we got our selves some Poly bags as our electronic items were naked without water cover.






0700 – Started our ride from Kurnal to Chandigarh and faced no issues with either the Traffic nor with the weather, few drops of rain here and there but did not manage to slow us down.

0900 – Crossing Chandigarh was not that easy as there was heavy traffic within the city. First time in my entire touring experience did I see no traffic police on the roads of Chandigarh. We stopped at a Dhaba after almost 2 hours of constant ride through traffic & chaos of the city after crossing the main city. The morning rush hour on Friday was expected but this heavy, well no comments on it as its still nothing when compared to our daily experience on Delhi roads. Almost 5 hours to reach Chandigarh with a good break thanks to Rain is not bad. We covered approximately 250kms at an average speed of 50kmph.

0930 – Had good heavy break fast and tea and was refreshing. We had few Butter Parathas and few cups of Tea. Started riding towards Kiratpur Sahib and the ride was a little too lazy. We were doing constant 60 – 70 kmph but after that heavy food were feeling sleepy on the way. We decided to take regular breaks as sleep was catching up. We did not sleep for last two days.

1000 – Finally we reached the bottom of the hills. That was it for the sleep, bye bye sleep welcome exciting ride up hill. The feeling of ripping the rubber on turns and accelerating hard on steep straights to heaven is a feeling which cannot be described. It’s just that you need to feel it with your own ride. No one can show you how to do it. The feeling of this start is chilling and still reminds me of my first ride through hills. Not long after we were really racing time now as we were just enjoying the ride up hill. Crack following me was a little too concerned about his new bike as he was hesitant pulling the throttle. I understood his feeling and decided to slow myself down a little as I needed the pump of Adrenaline in me. Crack had an amazing bike as this is the second bike after Karizma which could match the performance of Pulsar 180 head to head. Not a single minute did I manage to loose Crack from my rear as he did have the talent of riding on hills and also carried loads of AR experience along.



1130 – Reached Billaspur after taking a few breaks for water and tea [of course few fags too]. Ride was enjoyable with a fellow member who knew exactly how to ride on uphill roads. Little did Crack know how he would feel once we reach the far reaches of Lahaul & Spiti Valley and across to Ladakh



1600 – Came to a point of exhaustion and consulted with Crack if he wants to continue. His eyes said it all. He was all ready to go beyond the physical torture. Pants pinching the skin, butts almost yelling out loud, hands were giving up and head spinning around.



1630 – Crossed Kullu and were over taken by loud thumping bulls with TN registration on them. Over took them and found that they were few of my old buddies from SIB [South Indian Bullet Club from Chennai]. Took a short break and had few cups of Tea along with them. Felt reunited with old buddies from South. Bikers United from North and South with one thing in mind, TOURING.

1700 – 40kms from Manali, the destination was not too far but those last few kilometers were longer than life itself. Grilled out of energy we were now on survival mode as our muscles were now screaming out load and mentally we could take on the challenge.
We managed to reach Manali by 6:30pm and get a room. Our condition was just unexplainable. I crashed down on the bed and slept without eating and so did crack as well. We slept like KumbKaran, clueless of outside world. I even forgot to call up home and inform about my arrival at Manali.


--- DAY 1 ending ---
Amazing riding experience. Lack of Sleep almost spoiled the fun.

[PICS HERE]

Distance covered: approx 650kms.
Ride Time: 14 hours.
Petrol: Still had huge amount of Fuel left on my bike, Crack also had enough of Fuel left.
Miles of experience: With minimal of front breaks, managing curves at high speeds was one heck of an experience.
Pulsar 200 was almost giving around 45 kilometers to a litre of petrol which was something shocking for me as my bike pulsar 180 was giving me around 40 kilometers after getting her a new Carburetor.

Day 2

0600 - Woke up early after a good decent sleep without any disturbance. Felt like being in heaven after the sleep. Woke up lazy and sat on the bed and stretching myself to glory if you know what I mean. Had a few cups of Tea and fags and woke up Vikas [Crack] as well. Early sunrise was perfect but Sun rose way too early than expected. Our plan was to reach Rohtang by Sunrise but by 6am it was way too bright and felt like 8am rather. We were fresh for the start of the next leg of our Trip across Mountains. This is the day when we truly start exploring the real Himalayaz. Return to Himalayaz IV had just begun.

0700 - Had breakfast a couple of omelets and bread and got ready by 7am, paid the hotel bills and got down to the bikes. The bikes were dirty and felt like they were yelling at us. We some how managed to clean both the bikes a little and started the bikes. The temperature gauge showed 15 degrees. Way a little cold for a start but when I started my bike up, it started instantly. Thanks to a bottle of Nulon. The engine started and a white smoke out of the exhaust meant that the engine was not burning fuel the way it is suppose to. Kept the engine running for 15 minutes and then the engine warmed up to a healthy temperature. Now it was ready to start off. We started off and hit the nearest Petrol pump. Brimmed our bikes with fuel and also added a 100 ml 2T oil to the fuel as the 2T oil relieves the engine from stressing too much while riding at higher altitudes.

0745 - Left Manali and hit the highway. There on, we had only steep climb all the way till Rohtang Top. We least expected the traffic but unpredictably a very heavy traffic going to Rohtangla Top and almost nil fro traffic. The climb was not hard but tough for any rider as the traffic was dense and we had to over take on hair pin bends only. No commercial load caring trucks going, only Tourist cabs which meant a huge delay for us. Roads were smooth for some first 20 kilometers but after that, as usual rough roads and heavy traffic slowed us even further.



0900 - We reached the Top finally but reaching here was like climbing mount Everest as tourists were flocking in huge numbers. Welcome to Rohtang Top board was no where to be found thanks to the density of tourist in the area. People were flocking there for Winter games as many locals were providing Skies and Snow Scooters. Once we crossed the top, started the decent and the roads were getting worst every mile we covered. We enjoyed every bit of the scenery and took our time to cover the distance till Koksar.




1030 - Our wonderful journey just began and our first stop of the day after riding for last few hours was well worth a wait. Stopped over at Koksar for a few cups of tea and enjoyed the surroundings. The pleasure of being out of urban jungle is something which you have to try out once at least. The streams flowing across the roads and water falls every where you turn was just a glimpse of Lahual & Spiti Valley.




1100 - Our halt at Koksar was brief and worth every minute, started off from Koksar to Keylong.

On the way to Keylong found numerous Water crossings, some as deep as 5 feet ... One of them would be a block for all 4 wheelers and only Trucks / Busses would be able to cross over. We managed to it off the track which was much easier but difficult for a first timer. Crack had no problems crossing but our shoes would obviously be wet after such crossing. A stop to enjoy the surrounding and click some pics to share it with you all. Road condition was none the less the same as last year. No Tar roads, only small rocks and water streams would dig in deep holes which would make it a bumpy ride at times. Top speed would not be above 40kmph and that also would be rare. 60 odd kilometers were covered in almost 2 hours till we got Tar roads.

1430 - Reached Keylong without any issues as smooth as it could get. Our journey was eventful and satisfied with every mile we crossed. Stopped at a local Dhaba and started deciding as where to head out. Either we could go all the way till Leh but have to cross the border before it closes which would be within 90 mins or stop at Sarchu. Took the map out and started deciding the next stop.

1500 - Started off and decided to go as far as long as sun light stays above the horizon. Our ride till Darcha would take most of the time out as the roads got worst to worst ever. It would be as bad as sharp rocks almost cutting the tyre into half. The surface was getting on my mind as bike would fish tail almost ever kilometer and would be highly unstable. More over, the front breaks of my bike was almost close to nil. It was a rising concern to me every minute. Some how managed to reach Darcha by 4:30 pm

1630 - Got the entry done on the check post of Lahaul Spiti police and started off to Sarchu.
As we started climbing to Barlacha La things would get worst, now the surface was filled with stone grains which is usually used for construction purpose. These small stones would not give even a little grip on the roads and would get best out of a riders skills. Balancing the bike and absorbing the shocks even at just 5 kmph is a touch job. If engine stalls or we loose the balance on this surface, it would be very hard to start climbing again. We reached Zing Zing Bar by 6pm. Here we stopped before crossing over the pass for a cup of tea. The guy offered us to stay there and spend the night which was very tempting and the offer was getting on. The temperature was dropping quick and we had no winter cloths. The blankets were offering cozy stay which tempted us to decide if we could pull back and stay over night. The sun light was dim and darkness was crawling fast up the horizon. We decided to stop there and not go further. We parked our bikes on the corner and got the luggage out. Got in the tent and simply dived inside the cozy blankets. Little did we know that we were up for a big surprise.
Drank a few cups of hot soup prepared by the locals and checked the temperature gauge.
It was 2 degrees above zero at 7pm. This meant that the temperature would drop big time during the night time.
With no Warm Cloths, we were already shivering and cold was pinching us like a needle. The breeze was strong and every minute felt like an hour. We started having a good conversation with the locals and they were discussing about their family and culture. How they survive during the winters and what they do. They were adventurer by nature, the guys were trekking experts. One of them was a helper for the expedition Mount Everest by Nat Geo crew. With temperatures dropping down slowly we were not comfortable at all. We could barely talk. I would just nod my head when the locals were talking. They offered trekking lessons but we were not interested. Muscles felt drained out of energy specially due to the fact that we rode worst possible roads. Time passed by and it was 11pm already. I some how manage to lay down and tried to sleep and so did Vikas. But to my misery the so called bed was made up of stones. I felt anger and pain but had no other choice. Laying there cold felt like life was so beautiful yet so harsh at times. We have seen it all but that was just a start for me and Vikas too.

Lights went off and Everyone slept. My mobile phone, iPod & other electronic items were in my bag but I had zero energy to even move few feet to the left. After some time I was lost into a strange world. The Illusion of being in hell was just flapping my eyes. My eyes were open but could see glowing colors. A normal man would say he say an alien ship but I knew that it was more of a Shock to the brain due to lack of Oxygen. I some how managed to get up and go out of the tent. I felt like the ground was shaking and the illusion was so damn real I could barely differentiate. Started feeling a strange sensation on my chest. Felt like a huge load of stones were on top. I knew that I was undergoing AMS [ Acute Mountain Sickness]. Crawled inside the tent and some how managed to open my bag to search for the Medicine box as I needed Diomax. Things got worst as I found out that I forgot to keep the damn medical kit on my bag. It was really annoying, once a person is hit by AMS he should come down to a lower Altitude as soon as possible to prevent an brain cell damage. I sat on the so called bed ideally and wondered how it felt to be in modern world. The luxury of Air Conditioners and cushion beds. It was all over when some light started falling over from the mountain. Some how peeped outside the tent and found out that the sun was about to rise.

Day 3

After the torture that I had gone through the entire night I felt that it was all worth every moment of it. Woke Vikas up and told him what happened with me the previous night, the reply was ME TOO.

Seemed like I was not alone. We did get some sleep but for short periods of time. I got up and took a few shots of the Sky and surroundings. Here it is.






After a While sitting outside and getting the feel to the cold breeze. I felt like it was all worth the pain we had gone through. The beauty of Himalaya surrounding us and an example of true color of Nature.
We had our break fast at the Tent and few cups of hot tea to start off the day. Head was aching but we didnt bother much. We started our climb to Barlacha La pass just for the heck of it. The road up hill was surprisingly decent. It actually was good when compared to the roads on the way.

We reached the Top by 7am. At the top we could see nothing almost, the visibility was too low, fog was so dense that I could feel my hands socking inside the gloves.



After a short stop at the pass we turned back to Manali.

The ride was again as harsh as it could ever be. I will let the pictures do the talking








By 9am we were at Darcha and was pleasant weather by then.





THAT WAS THE RIDE OF " RETURN 2 HIMALAYAZ "

Rest of the story involves: Crack - Vikas's Brand New Pulsar 200 stolen
Day 4 of searching the bike.
Day 4 night we leave and reach Delhi on Day 6 morning
27 hours of riding back from Manali
Slowness due to over load on my bike and extra luggage.
The trip was perfect but the ending was not. I am not writing about Vikas's bike as we don't want to recollect the truth latter in the future.

Catch up with the loads of Pics and entire trip on the forum.


MY FAV PIC

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LADAKH INFORMATION | ADRENALINE RIDER | JOURNEY ACROSS INDIA

vistet

Few comments :

*Hard drive iPods will very often bust at high altitude , I´ve met three owners with jammed hard drives in Ladakh & Tibet.Warranty says 3000 meters , I´ve used mine up to 4000.

*Interesting neurological symptoms, glad your balance remained unaffected (or at least better the next day).

*"weight of stones" on your chest - probably early stages of pulmonary edema.

* preventive treatment with Diamox (which seems the logical choice once you´ve ditched safety guide lines ) starts before ascent , see ismmed.org for the professional consensus statement on this treatment - not that I advocate using it without talking it thru with your doc beforehand.

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high road to ..

FaiyazSultan

*Hard drive iPods will very often bust at high altitude , I´ve met three owners with jammed hard drives in Ladakh & Tibet.Warranty says 3000 meters , I´ve used mine up to 4000.

Its not gonna affect at this altitude, never did. Over 4000-4500 mtrs might be threshold.

*"weight of stones" on your chest - probably early stages of pulmonary edema.

I now am aware of it, thanks buddy

vistet

Agree on the 4000 meter thing , never seen any probs in Leh or Lhasa, the one time I was present when it happened was on the road to Gyantse. Mentioned it to a guy on the road between Losar and Kunzum La , losing the opportunity to fix a more exact tolerance level when he turned it off...

Dilliwala

Hmm, and this trip started in June 2008?? Those were some bikes!!
Time travel and all.

brownboy66

yeah...its was the "back to the future" movie number 4 - the budget version - where a now very elderly marty mcfly time travels on his trusty enfield, and ends up trekking with himself to manali.

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Dilliwala

But then that means, this still being May, the other bike isn't stolen...yet!

brownboy66

as I said....it a very low budget version (and some discrepancies in the script have yet to worked out...)

capt_mahajan

No, no, do not work out the discrepancies!!

This is India. If you do that, the thing may flop

brownboy66

ok then - the script stays as it is! (the second bike has yet to be absconding...)