jammu-srinagar-kargil-leh-manali road?

I might be in Jammu during the first/second week of July'09 and was planning to do a circuit of jammu-srinagar-kargil-leh-manali road.

Assuming i start from Jammu on 7th july, I need to be back in Delhi by 12 July. I do not intend to stay in Leh and Manali; but would very much like to spend a few hours in Kargil.

Having said that i wanted to know more about the mode of transport there. is it easy to get buses in the said circuit.
I am on a show string budget and would like to travel by buses or shared jeeps whenever possible.

Venkat, you should have no problem finding buses and shared taxis on that route.
If you take a morning bus Srinagar-Kargil, you'd have the evening free at Kargil.
Next morning you could do Kargil-Leh.
There are shared 'cannonball run' taxis between Leh and Manali. That's the fastest way. Manali-Delhi is best done by the night buses.

@anupmathur : 'cannonball run' - as in??

As in near non-stop travel, LOL! These cabs do not stop overnight at Pang or Sarchu. They start 0200 or 0300 hrs from Leh and carry on till they reach Manali 1600 or 1800 hrs.

If you start from Jammu on 7th July, lets see....

7th: Jammu-Srinagar
8th: Srinagar-Kargil
9th: Kargil-Leh
10th: Leh-Sarchu
11th: Sarchu-Manali
12th: Manali-Delhi

Sir, please don't mind, but this is a himalayan car rally. Three cheers for it.

Though you need to intend to stay in Leh or Manali....I am afraid you have to, as I dont think you want to travel overnight in the high himalayas.

You're right in a way, but he obviously is on a different agenda! He does not plan to stay at Leh or Manali but wants a few hours at Kargil. How many people do you know who have had such an itinerary?

Now, if you factor in the cannonball run Leh-Manali taxi followed by an overnight Manali-Delhi bus journey, he can actually take a whole day off at Kargil, LOL!

I have done this trip, the reverse way, with a group of 40 people (mostly retired people) in a bus. It had a huge windscreen and I was seated in the driver's cabin. This made me photograph everything properly. My route was

day 1 mumbai-swaraj exp
day 2 reaching jammu and katra
dat 3 vaishnavdevi
day 4 reaching srinagar (by road)
day 5 Srinagar sightseeing
day 6 Sonmarg and reaching baltal
day 7 Amarnath and back
day 8 Baltal to drass
day 9 dras to Leh
day 10 Leh local Sightseeing
day 11 leh-nubra-hunder
Day 12: return, via Khardungla
day 13 Leh-PangongTso-Leh
day 14 Leh-sarchu.
day 15 sarchu-manali
day 16 manali-chandigarh
day 17 morning chandigarh sightseeing. 1130 train paschim exp to Mumbai
day 18 reach mumbai at 2:30 pm.

My observations and suggestions:
* If u r making a round trip, do it from jammu side. (i.e. clockwise)
* If u just want to reach Leh and get back, then dont miss Keylong and some treks nearby. (baralachala, and a few days to Kye monastrey (I missed it))
* cross the kangri nallah jal (some 20 km south of Pang) before 2 pm. Else its impossible for bikers to cruise.
* from leh side, the screnery starts from Upshi (or shakti?) the last inhabitation of >100 people before u enter Himachal (i.e. around 260 kms)
*after Upshi next petrol pump is at keylong ie. gap of 365 kms.
* Start early from Leh (4 am or so) so u can do with Tanglangla before 10 am. The scenery of orange rays of sun kissing green, chocolate, violet mountains is just amazing. Green color is that of the stone, not greenery.
* Carry lot of food, water, oil, pertol with u. Except for some igloo shaped millitary hutments, theres literally NOTHING.
* More plains come the next in scenery. U can do with moore plains by noon.
* Try having late lunch (2 pm) at Pang, dats descending the huge desert, into a valley.
* Pang to Sarchu is 4 hr affair.
* sarchu to Keylong is 3 hr affair.
*Beware of construction works going on, the HUGE NUMBER of oil tankers coming from opposite sides and sudden rockfalls.
* Theres good facility of resting in Keylong.


*Keylong to manali is 8 hrs or so.
*Have break at Rohtang pass. The scenery is before Rohtang (Starts at Sissoo). (i.e. where baralacha la ends and a branch road goes to Kye monastery)