Leh to Nubra Valley
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| Reflections from Nubra Valley |
Though not part of our initial plan when we came
to Ladakh and since we did Pangong Lake in a single day we had an additional
day to spare. Given that we were already going to ride till Khardungla; the
idea of continuing to Nubra just popped up in our minds and with two free souls
looking for fun in Ladakh we couldn't resist the idea of going through with the ride to Nubra. And thus an impromptu trip turned out to be one of the best
day’s we had in Ladakh. An amazing 24 hours that we were on the road to and
from Nubra valley was full of adventure and surprises at every turn just
waiting to scare us, excite us, educate us, enlighten us, and I could just go
on…. :). Frankly, one
thing this trip taught us was to go with the flow and just enjoy the journey. Things
will automatically fall in place.
Our Nubra valley escapades began as soon as we bid
goodbye to our fellow friends from the YHAI Mountain Biking Expedition to Leh. Our
major task for the remaining half of the day was to descend down to Nubra
valley from Khardungla pass and reach Diskit which is the capital of Nubra. The
Shyok River meets the Nubra or Siachan River to form a large valley that
separates the Ladakh and Karakoram Ranges. The Shyok River is a tributary of
the Indus River. In order to reach Nubra valley we had to loose about 8300 ft
of altitude since Nubra is at an altitude of 10,000 ft compared to Khardungla pass at 18,380 ft. Add to that we had to traverse a major junk of that route
till North Pullu on a bumpy, dusty and rough road.
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| View of K-Top on way towards Nubra Valley |
To add to our worries the fuel indicator was showing some weird readings. At Khardungla it showed a half tank which scared the hell
out of us since we had only traveled 50 odd km. But then it became alright and
started showing close to full tank again. An errant fuel indicator clubbed with
a non functional speedometer and you get the idea of the kind of problems we
were into considering the fact that the only place we can find petrol in this
region is at Leh. So, our strategy from now onward was simple. We wanted to
conserve our resources and we made most of the downhill till North Pullu. We
rode the bike in neutral and made use of the brakes to control the bike. After
about an hour we finally reached North Pullu from Khardungla pass covering only
about 15-16 km. You kind of get the idea now of the condition of the road since
we could only travel 15 odd km in one hour on a downhill road!!
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| Signboard @ North Pullu |
After reaching North Pullu we decided to halt at
the army check post. All the way down we were really frozen from the cold winds
and since we were descending into the valley there was hardly any sunlight. North
Pullu gave us the opportunity to unwind and soak ourselves in the sunlight. To add
to that we decided to have the Himalayan staple diet “Maggi” along with black
tea. At North Pullu we had to fill up a tourist form similar to the one we
filled up at Karu on our way to Pangong Lake the previous day. We submitted the
form with the officer at the check post and went back to the parking lot to
take out our bike. This is when a new problem decided to show up. Our side
stand became loose and it would not hold up on its own. We couldn't continue
with a hanging side stand and so came another quick fix. We found a piece of
thread and tied the side stand and from here onward we had to use the main
stand.
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| On the way towards Khardung village |
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| Another view |
Our next target was to reach Khardung village. All
the way through we kept looking out for the Diskit milestone but to our
surprise there was no sign of it. We found it quite baffling since Diskit is
supposed to be the capital of Nubra. The road from North Pullu to Khardung was
pretty good and there were no problems on this route apart from the fact that we
were still looking out for the Diskit milestone. We finally reached Khardung village.
There were not many people around. It was probably too late in the evening for
the locals. We tried inquiring for some mechanic to at least get our fuel meter
fixed or at least let us know how much of petrol is still left in our tank. But
all this was in vain as the village offered a deserted look. We decided to move
ahead and reach Khalsar which is the next village on the route towards Nubra
valley.
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| On the way towards Khalsar |
On the way towards Khalsar, we came across a patch
on the road which was being freshly laid. Tar was being applied and there was a
partial road blockage. The roads here are maintained by BRO and this is where
we met a BRO jawan (Mr. Bisht) who was helping control the traffic. He was
really helpful and gave us some useful information on how to reach Diskit, plan
for the next day and look for possible options to find petrol in Diskit. After
about 15 minutes the road was opened and we bid good bye to Mr. Bisht with a
promise to meet him on our way back tomorrow.
Now that the road condition was better we decided
to pick up speed since the light was also fading and we were riding in the
twilight. After about 25 km we finally reached Khalsar and we again started inquiring about Diskit and possible accommodation options. The locals here were
quite helpful and they gave us directions to Diskit and also mentioned that we
would easily get accommodation options in Diskit.
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| The elusive first milestone for Diskit |
Now it was getting really dark and we were playing
catch up. Ahead of Khalsar is where we finally saw the first milestone for
Diskit and this gave us a relive that we were on the right route. We reached a
T-junction after Khalsar with the straight road going towards Panamik and Sumur
while the left turn going towards Diskit. We took the left turn and started
speeding as fast as we could. The road condition was also good and the most
amazing part was a straight road for about 6 km. Since it was pretty dark we
were missing out on all the views. But we knew that we can cover this stretch
at leisure the next day. On the way we met a tourist car which guided us on the
final stretch towards Diskit which was goes through a winding ascend. We had
finally reached Diskit.
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| Racing towards Diskit: Shyok River flowing besides us |
To be precise we were 2 km short of Diskit but since
we saw some signs of civilization we could not resist stopping here. We were
tired and exhausted from the ride. All we wanted is to check into some hotel or
guest house and take rest. There were two options available there just opposite
each other. I went and checked the first option which was a hotel with rooms
available for Rs 900 and 1200; but the rooms didn't seem worth the value. Then
I went to the Kharyok guest house we had stopped initially and there was a
group of 4 people from Bangalore already in discussion with the owner of the
guest house Mr. Tashi. From their discussion, Mr. Tashi appeared a very helpful
person and so we inquired with him for availability of rooms. Rooms were
available and for a reasonable Rs. 800. I went ahead to check the rooms while
Akhilesh parked the bike. He showed us rooms on the ground floor as well as the
first floor. The ones on the first floor appeared to be better since we had an
attached balcony and the rooms also appeared far better than what I saw at the
hotel. So, we finalized the room and checked in.
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| Kharyok Guest House |
Tashi checked with us on our preference for
dinner. The only issue here was that we could not get hot water in the bathroom
since the geysers were solar powered and we desperately needed a bath to feel
fresh. It was good on the part of Mr. Tashi who arranged 2 buckets of hot water
for us and we felt really fresh after the bath. We had initially requested
dinner in the rooms but Mr. Tashi requested us to come to the dining area which is convenient for them to manage. So, after a nap of half an hour post the
bath we felt nice and so decided to go to the dining area. Here is where we met
our fellow guests in the guest house. There was a group of 4 friends from
Hyderabad who were also on a road trip and another gentleman from Delhi Mr.
Rawat. We had a round of introductions and started the dinner. The dinner was
simple and organic in the literal sense since the vegetables were straight out
of Mr. Tashi’s garden and into the kitchen. During dinner we started talking to
Mr. Rawat who was kind enough to guide us on how to spend our day tomorrow in
Nubra valley and what all places to check out. Post dinner we went back to our rooms
and in about 5 minutes we were already snoring J
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| On the mountain behind Kharyok guest house |
We had a sound and peaceful sleep. Though the
guest house was very close to the road leading towards Diskit; there was hardly
any disturbance in the guest house. We woke up to a pleasant misty morning.
There was dew on the windows and since we didn't want to waste any time today
we got ready as quickly as we could and came down to check with Mr/ Tashi for
breakfast options. But Mr. Tashi was not around. He had gone to office (he
actually works for the education department in Diskit) and the guest house is
his side business. There were only parathas available for breakfast so we
decided to skip the same and check for some more options in Diskit. Since Mr.
Tashi had told us that there is no curfew on the check out time and we could
leave by noon we decided to leave the luggage in the room itself and check out
on the way back. We reached the main market at Diskit and since it was early
morning there were not many shops open. We went to the first shop available and
checked for breakfast. And here too we had the similar options of parathas and
omelettes. With not many options available, we decided to have the same along
with tea.
Next on our list was Hunder which was about 8 km
from Diskit and famous for the sand dunes and double hump camel safari. Hunder
is a small village with an army base near it. On the way to Hunder we saw sand
on the road which gave us clear signs that we are close to the sand dunes. We
finally reached the view point on the road towards Hunder from where we can get
a panoramic view of the entire sand dunes.
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| Road towards Hunder |
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| Sand dunes view point: 200 M ahead |
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| Sand dunes towards Hunder |
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| Another View |
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| Final stretch towards Hunder |
We rode till Hunder and found an army canteen
offering idlis and dosas as breakfast. We just couldn't resist this and went
inside the army canteen. We ordered for a plate of each and sat down on the
table while our order was being served. During this time we started speaking to
each other in our mother tongue “Marathi”, which is when a group of army jawans
came to our table and started speaking to us in Marathi. They were fellow
Maharashtrians from various parts of Maharashtra. They were really happy to
meet us and also told us that they really happy to hear a Marathi
conversation between strangers after such a long time. Such is the life of our
army jawans. Things which we take for granted seems novelty to them. A simple
conversation in their mother tongue made their day. We were more than happy to
share the breakfast with them and had a jolly good time talking about their
life and experiences. One of the jawans was in Hunder for a special medical
examination for his next posting which was going to happen in Siachan region
which is known for extreme climatic conditions. Hats off to the army jawans for
their dedication and service to the country. This is the thing which I love
about such trips. We strike a conversation with the strangest of people in the
strangest of locations and still find a common bond to share.
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| Akhilesh with the army jawans @ Hunder Army canteen |
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| Me with army jawans with goggles :) |
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| Respect |
We bid goodbye to the army jawans and took pics
with them. They went back to their camp while we finished our breakfast. Just
then the same group of 4 people from Bangalore who were chatting with Mr. Tashi
last night arrived at the army canteen inquiring about the camel safari. This
is where we found our companions for the rest of the day in Nubra valley. They
introduced themselves as Sai, Srikrishna, Kishore and Kiran. We rammed up our
bikes and moved towards the camel safari which was about 1.5 km from the army
canteen. We had to pay some kind of tax per bike for Rs. 20 before entering
into the area where the safari is conducted.
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| Towards Hunder camel safari |
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| Scenic view where the camel safari starts |
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| Double hump camels |
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| Strike a pose !! |
We reached the starting point where the camel
safari is conducted. We could see the camels in the distant background. This
was the first time we were seeing the double hump camels which is a specialty
of this region. We parked our bikes and moved towards the camels. We inquired about the rates for the safari. They were charging Rs. 200 per head for a 15 minute safari and Rs. 350 for a 30 minute safari. We decided to go ahead with
the 15 minute safari with some persuasion to increase it by 5 minutes J. We are Indians after all; bargaining
is in our blood and it comes naturally to us J
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| All set for the camel safari |
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| On the way back |
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| The next lot of tourists |
The person conducting the camel safari picked up
the camels as per heights and helped us sit on the camels. Once we were seated
he arranged the camels in a queue so that the camels do not stray away from
each other. Now that we were set it was time for some pics. We posed for many
pics; solos and group pics. The safari started and we were enjoying the view of
the Nubra valley and the sand dunes. The camel ride was quite funny with each
of us giving an analogy of how they were feeling. We also appreciated the
patience people have who travel miles together in the desert on camels. We
thoroughly enjoyed the experience for the short time that it lasted. We were
brought back to the starting point in about 15-20 minutes. The exercise of
getting down from the camel is also hilarious. Since we were still not
satisfied, we requested the caretaker to allow us to feed the camels. After
much thought he agreed and got some “rotis” in a plastic bag. He was
very careful to hide the food from all the camels otherwise all the camels
would start chasing him. He took one of the camel's into the bushes and
asked us to follow him. Here he let us feed the camel and we really liked the
experience. Post this we paid the charges for the safari and started going back
towards our bike. The Bangalore guys were waiting for sometime so we decided to
move since we also had to check out from the hotel. We told them to meet us at
the hotel.
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| Lunch time :) |
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| Second round |
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| Flowers in Tashi's garden |
We raced back towards Diskit crossing the army
post at Hunder. On the way back we stopped at the sand dunes view point. This
spot provided an entire panoramic view of the Nubra valley along with the
amazing view of the sand dunes. We left from there and after about 15-20
minutes we reached the hotel. We met Mr. Rawat just outside the hotel and bid
goodbye to him. Of course we would meet him again at the airport in 2 days since
he was also on the same flight back till Delhi. Akhilesh went to the room to get the
luggage while I went to settle the bill. We completed all the check out
formalities and waited for the Bangalore guys to come. In the meanwhile, the
Hyderabad guys in our hotel were also checking out. They also arrived in
another 15 minutes and we were off. We had plans to head back to Leh and enjoy
all the spots on the way back which we had missed last night in the dark.
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| On the way back to Diskit |
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| Sand dunes |
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| Sand dunes |
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| Sand dunes |
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| Maitreya Buddha against the backdrop of snow capped mountains |
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| Maitreya Buddha: A closer view |
On the way was the Diskit monastery or gompa which
is a 30 minutes trek. Since we were short on time we decided to move on.
However, we did catch a glimpse of the 32 meter statue of Maitreya Buddha which
is located close to the monastery. It is the oldest and the largest Buddhist
monastery in the Nubra valley of Ladakh. Just as we came downhill from the
hillock we saw an amazing view in the nearby pond. The snow capped mountains
created an awe inspiring symmetrical reflection in the water. We just could not
resist stopping for a couple of photographs.
We started our ride towards Leh and on the way
came across the Shyok River. We could not resist going to the river bank. The
water was amazingly chilled. Akhilesh and Sai decided to take a dip in
the water while we enjoyed on the shore clicking as many pics as we could. They
went ahead with the dip and considering the chilled waters the dip didn't last for too long. But they really enjoyed the chilly waters. We returned back to
our bikes and by now it was way past lunch time. So, we decided to directly halt at
Khalsar without wasting much time. We raced past the road and reached Khalsar
in the next 30 minutes. We stopped by at one of the shops to have lunch. There
were not many options available. The usual “dal fry” and “rotis” were available
for lunch. We had a hearty lunch followed by tea.
On the way back we bumped into Mr. Bisht. And as promised
we stopped by to say goodbye to him. We thanked him for this help and moved
ahead. In the meanwhile, the 4 of them went ahead. We finally managed to reach
North Pullu and since we knew that the road from here onwards is going to be
bad, we decided to keep moving to save time. We rode non stop till about 4 km
short of Khardungla top. We took a pit stop here and clicked pics with the
K-Top in the background. As we moved ahead towards K-top, we decided to record
the ride. It was an amazing experience to ride the bike on a dusty bumpy road
surrounded by snow capped mountains with chilly winds blowing into our face. We
finally reached K-top again. That was the 4th high altitude pass for us in 4
consecutive days.
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| One last time @ K-Top |
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| One last time @ K-Top |
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| Shadow riders !! |
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| Natural painting: Snow on rocky mountain |
We reached the bike rent shop and returned the
bike. Being very curious, we wanted to know how much of petrol was still left
in the tank. And to our surprise there was still another 5 liters of petrol
left. We were really pissed off for the faulty fuel indicator. If it wasn't for this
we would have visited Panamik also. We then asked the guy to remove the petrol and give us the same in the Activa which we wanted to rent for tomorrow. He
obliged and gave us the Activa in the night itself for tomorrow with a full
tank. That brought an end to an eventful 24 hours on the road to and from Nubra
valley.
We went to the main Leh market and tried some “chaat”
items for dinner at Neha snacks. Just as we were about to finish our dinner we
got a call from Srikrishna inviting us for dinner as a thank you gesture for
helping Kiran. But since we were already done with dinner; we politely declined.
And Kiran & Srikrishna; whenever you read this post; please remember you
guys still owe us a dinner treat J
