Leh - Khardung La - Leh
Distance Covered: 85 Kms
After the tiring ride to Pangong Tso yesterday we stuck to the plan of doing a day trip to Khardung La. We had initially decided to move by 9 AM so that we can spend some time at the Leh market in the evening. Few of the folks were in two minds whether to join or not. But, I was determined to do this ride even if I had to go alone. Afterall, this is ride of a lifetime to the Worlds highest motorable road. I got up at 8 AM as usual as was fresh and ready by 9 AM. By, the time everyone had go up and even they wanted to do this ride. Everyone got ready leisurely and we were all set to start the ride at 11 AM. First all of us headed to the Leh Filling station and got the bulls tanked up. One need to take a right turn for the road to Khardung La just after the Leh Gate. The climb starts almost immediately.
By the time we got started people were already coming down from the Top. It is usually advised to start this trip early in the day as BRO starts road widening by 2 PM and it is a tough task to wait at that altitude in case you get stuck. Anyway we reached South Pullu by 12:30 PM and were stopped at the checkpost as blasting work was going on at the top. We registered ourselves at the checkpost and had our b'fast cum lunch at the canteen. Again it was just plain Maggi.
Finally we got the go ahead after we saw vehicles coming down from the top. The road (if you say so) detoriates after crossing South Pullu and is in the same state for the next 14kms to the top. We saw some brave souls who in bicycles coming from the top. After riding up a few kms we were again stopped as JCB was clearing the road. Had to wait a good 30 mins again here. You skip a hearbeat when the JCB pushes the massive rocks downhill, the sound itself is deafining. Finally we were given the go ahead and started to move up. It was already 3 PM now and my back was taking the toll due to the bad roads. Had to slow down my speed to 20-30kms.
Finally after huffing and puffing we reached the top. It was a different feeling seeing the world underneath from the roof-top. Went berserk with my cam and clicked umpteen photos. The other side of the Khardung La top leads to Nubra Valley. The valley has a charm of its own with snow covered peaks looking down over sand dunes. But, I knew this was going to be some other day. Tried the souvenir shop as I desperately wanted the Khardung La T-shirt, but they were out of stock. We further went to the military canteen and had the hot black tea.
By this time it was 4 PM and the pass had started getting colder also started feeling breathless due to lack of oxygen. We decided it was time to get back to Leh. Hardly had we left the top there was another JCB which was now clearing the road, so had to wait for a good 1 hour to pass through.
We rushed down from the top and reached Leh by 6 PM. I headed straight to the Leh Market to grab a few souvenirs and T-Shirts. Got back the guest house by 7 followed by dinner and playing cards. It was 2 AM by the time we slept. Tomorrow we hit the Manali highway and the most adventurous and beautiful roads.
Distance Covered: 85 Kms
After the tiring ride to Pangong Tso yesterday we stuck to the plan of doing a day trip to Khardung La. We had initially decided to move by 9 AM so that we can spend some time at the Leh market in the evening. Few of the folks were in two minds whether to join or not. But, I was determined to do this ride even if I had to go alone. Afterall, this is ride of a lifetime to the Worlds highest motorable road. I got up at 8 AM as usual as was fresh and ready by 9 AM. By, the time everyone had go up and even they wanted to do this ride. Everyone got ready leisurely and we were all set to start the ride at 11 AM. First all of us headed to the Leh Filling station and got the bulls tanked up. One need to take a right turn for the road to Khardung La just after the Leh Gate. The climb starts almost immediately.
 |
| Trip Meter |
 |
| Climb starts.. |
 |
| South Pullu |
 |
| K-Top still a long way to go |
 |
| Waiting for the go ahead at South Pullu |
 |
| Waiting for the go ahead at South Pullu |
Finally we got the go ahead after we saw vehicles coming down from the top. The road (if you say so) detoriates after crossing South Pullu and is in the same state for the next 14kms to the top. We saw some brave souls who in bicycles coming from the top. After riding up a few kms we were again stopped as JCB was clearing the road. Had to wait a good 30 mins again here. You skip a hearbeat when the JCB pushes the massive rocks downhill, the sound itself is deafining. Finally we were given the go ahead and started to move up. It was already 3 PM now and my back was taking the toll due to the bad roads. Had to slow down my speed to 20-30kms.
 |
| The Brave Souls |
 |
| JCB at work |
 |
| The Wait |
 |
| Your's Truly |
 |
| The road that brought us up. You can see South Pullu from here. |
 |
| Stok Kangri peaks on the opposite side |
 |
| Nearing Top |
 |
| One more stop before the Top |
 |
| Dream come True |
 |
| Bolt Style :) |
 |
| The Other side |
 |
| With Amit |
 |
| The whole gang :) |
By this time it was 4 PM and the pass had started getting colder also started feeling breathless due to lack of oxygen. We decided it was time to get back to Leh. Hardly had we left the top there was another JCB which was now clearing the road, so had to wait for a good 1 hour to pass through.
We rushed down from the top and reached Leh by 6 PM. I headed straight to the Leh Market to grab a few souvenirs and T-Shirts. Got back the guest house by 7 followed by dinner and playing cards. It was 2 AM by the time we slept. Tomorrow we hit the Manali highway and the most adventurous and beautiful roads.
No comments:
Post a Comment