PS - All said and done, the gang, i.e. Anshuman(shahi), Shachindra (panduzo) and Rajarshi (bangaali) have already decide to be there next June on bikes with tents and will go upto Leh/Ladak for sure, come what may. Stop us if you can......

"This was August'2002 when we did our trip to Lahaul. Lines from that article. The prophesy ("The Oracle" of Matrix fame told us) came TRUE. We were THE ONE(s) and LEH has been conqured.

Prologue:

12 days ... away from civilization, covering over 1300 kms on bikes that too Enfileds ...which are unique. Crossing the worlds 1st, 2nd & 3rd highest road passes in the World.... visiting Ladakh, which is just made for biking, phenomenal landscapes of vivid coloured rock marked impressively with Buddhist monasteries and beautiful valleys.

Time to rest, and relive every awesome moment.

Hi All !!

V R BACK and surely with a BANG or should i say 'Bong' who once again had a near death experience. What a pity, 1 billion Indians, and just 1 Article so far on the Heavenly state of Jammu & Kashmir, India. Nonetheless, once this article is up, I am sure you'd understand why......

Well, once again, the TEAM - Shahi, Pandey, Bongs, Newcomers - Wrigh(Bonsai), Navneet(Raja Saab) & Suddi(he hey hey hei) Trip/Duration: 12 Days ..... 5th July - 16th July. Machine: Royal Enfields Shelter: Tents (hired from Indian Mountaineering Federation) Equipments: Butane Cylinders, Head Lamps, Burner, Rugsac, Bungee Cords, Spare parts for bikes, Oxygen Cylinders, etc. Medicine: DIAMOX (for high altitude sickness), IBU-PARA Tabs, First-aid kit, Painkiller ... lots of them....

We started Friday night, 4th July, ex Delhi and reached Manali next morning. Took some rest and then started off with our preparations. Preparations ??? Yes sir ! For the expedition.... bikes ... bungee cords ... jerkins.... bandanas .... gloves..... shades .... caps ...tinned food.. maggi ... lots of energy bars .... chewing gums ... soups. All got arranged but the bikes was a big-big decision. We had decided not to take a Jeep along which is a must and highly advisable and we had to take 4 bikes for six of us so that we had 2 spare drivers at any given time and also 3 bikes in case 1 breaks down. Complex forget it! We all were there at Rajus Workshop (behind old bus stop) till about 1 am taking n no. of test rides telling and explaining ourselves the brakes are on the left and the gear lever on the right and many more instructions Believe me when I say, if you have not driven an Enfield before (ditto us) never ride it especially when you are on your own and when you are on the Manali Leh highway. We kept reassuring ourselves Yes we can do it although deep within we all had no clue HOW .

Same morning i.e. 6th, we started a little late hardly got to sleep but we had the satisfaction that this was a known route not too tough as we had been till Sarchu last year. To our surprise, the guys were doing fine, with a little mix-up someone falling behind someone taking too much of a lead. We did manage to stay together and have regular stops not forgetting at any point, brakes are on the left.