Manali Leh Manali on bike July end - aug

Hi,

I am keen on biking to lih from manali this july end. I have not found any friend who can commit 2 weeks and so it leaves me on my own.
I would like advice on the below
1. is it safe and recommended to do a solo biking though I am a good biker I do not have any knowledge of repairs.
2. Safety in terms of if I suffer from bike problems or AMS woudl i need someones help or I can still manage in dealing with things as there would be helpful people travelling and smaller places where I can get any support if required.

Lastly I am open to bike with people who are travelling on the same dates as long as I do not spoil their trip or vice versa coz I do not want to mess if different people of different likes and dislikes come together. But i seriously hope the beauty of teh place will be larger than to worry about ones likes and dislikes.

Though I am not planning a luxury style I am planning the trip to be a bit better than economy style. I am also flexible with travel dates to change a few weeks if recomended.

Thanks in advance

Mod Note

Hi Traveller. Your two concurrent threads have been merged here into one. Just a gentle reminder as well that posting the same question across multiple threads is not allowed (it causes double ups with replies - as happened with your two threads). Thanks for your help with this.

I don't bike much but I can tell you anyway that you should have a knowledge of how to do your own repairs, carry extras of whatever could break and even though in the most remote parts of India there are still people about, you should not count on them to be able to help you fix your bike in the remote mountains of Ladakh.

Do you have any experience biking at such a high altitude? The terrain is very rough and if you get into trouble with AMS you'll probably be on your own. Depending on how bad a problem you have (you may not have any) you would need to get yourself lower very quickly. So being alone and unable to help yourself could be fatal. But Leh has tourists coming and going all summer by road, so you probably could get some help. It's just very sparsely populated and I don't think people use bikes that much as it's a harsh environment for biking.

I'm not suggesting that you should not do this trip but you probably need to do more research about the road to Leh, bike repair and AMS.

First off relax, if you get a travel partner then good, else don’t worry about it too much. There are just too many tourists on this route and almost every one is helpful, so in case you get into any problems, help wouldn’t be too far.

By bike I guess you mean motorcycle, if that is the case then read Preparing your motorcycle for Ladakh. It contains all the tips you might need for preparing you bike and few basic tips that will help you once you are on road.

As for AMS, its part and parcel of this journey and in some ways makes it more memorable (personal view). If you are too worried about it, then go through the Srinagar - Leh route and come back via Manali route, if you are paranoid about it, then skip the Manali route completely.

never occurred to me that the OP meant a motorcycle. Sorry. Certainly fewer issues to deal with.

Thanks for the suggestions Camelgirl. by bike i did mean a motorcycle sorry i think my lingo was a bit confusing.


Thanks a lot yogesh. I have read a lot many posts by you and you seem to be one of the best one to have all the knowledge of this route. I am not worried about AMS as I know it would be part of the game, I was worried that would i need someone to be with me in case i suffer more than my estimation.
I cant take the srinagar route as I dont think I have scope for more time and budget at the moment. the next time as its said the himalayas will call me back if i go once.
Glad to know I should not worry about being alone on the tour.
One more question to add. I see a lot of people planning to go to leh by roan in june. are the roads open then? I was told july- august is the best time.
Thanks

Roads will be open, weather and condition wise July and August is the best time to go.

Thanks again yogesh
and i read t post u suggested for preparing motorcycle for ladakh. But I intend to rent a bike, I hope i wont need to repair a rented bike as I am not too techie abot repairs.

hi, I am planning a Manali-Leh trek in the month of May-June . If yu are interested, do let me know ?

I am planning a motorbike and a bit later when the whether is ideal as per yogesh :-)
And i am not much of a trekker but thanks a lot for the invite. All the best hope you have a pleasent and wonderful trek.

Greetings New Traveller, I am also going solo from Delhi to Leh starting the first week of July. I am renting a moto in Delhi. I assume you already own a moto so I am curious as to what type of moto you plan to take to Leh?
As far as AMS, you might want to take two nights in Manali to begin to adjust to altitude but you should consider taking Diamox. I have used it many times mountaineering and it works for me to prevent symptoms of AMS if I don't have time to slowly adjust to altitude gain.
Best of luck on your journey.

I plan to come chandigarh and take an overnight bus till manali.I am renting a moto in manali. Probably a bullet for the ride till leh. All the best for your travel.

Two nights is an excellent suggestion. Manali is not an ideal location to start altitude adjustment , being just above the threshold where this starts.You have three possible ways of having a better start to acclimatization before the Rothang :

*Start with a detour to Shimla, which is somewhat higher than Manali.
*Make nightfall in Solang instead of Manali.
*Take a day trip up to the Rothang.

You should be aware of that the tent camps are almost impossible to fit within safe ascent guide lines, coming from Manali: Sarchu is some twelve hundred meters higher than Keylong , which means that even locals may suffer from altitude sickness going there within a single day . I did meet a young Lahauli vomiting outside a tent last time.

The worst consequences I´ve seen from ignoring these safety rules is a person going unconscious , needless to say as a driver he would have been out long before that .

Hi,

I am planning to do the same route at about the same time.

Thanks for the advice vistet, Your words of experience will surely help me.
But my problem is I migth have a tight schedule of 15 days including travel from mumbai back to mumbai. So I plan to skip simla off the tour and go to manali via chandigarh. Not sure if I have enough time to stay in manali too. maybe I can stay a day in manali getting comfortable with the bike and the altitude.

Glad to hear that. Motorbike? and how many of you. and how you done with the bookings?