Participants: Shyam Khandelwal & Varun Choukhany

Category: Reliability Trial

Car: Hyundai Viva 1.60 ABS (Petrol) (Front Wheel Drive)

Breakdowns: Nil, no punctures

Driving 300 odd kilometers on Himalayan roads every day is not easy.. but its fun!! There are some stretches of road enroute to Leh that would put Delhi roads to shame and some roads that come straight from Mars.

On the whole RDH is worth doing once (or maybe more). This is an experience that will recharge your dead batteries, but at a cost. The rally ain't cheap, both in terms of money and time involved. The downside is that you can't act like a tourist and miss out lot of places that needed to be seen. Also Khardung La, which is the highest road/pass in the world is not in the path of the rally. When you go to second highest road/pass in the world... you would naturally want to go the highest point as well.

A word on volunteers: Crazy RICH guys. They all come in flashy SUV's, wake up at 4 am, to go to various points in the course of the rally to setup check points, so that everything goes as per the plan. Seemingly, they don't get paid.. but do it for sheer pleasure and adrenalin rush.

Enjoy the Photo Essay of the majestic Gompa Land!!

Day 0 (Scrutiny)

Day 01(Shimla to Manali)

Day 02 (Manali to Tabo)

Day 03 (Tabo to Tabo)

Day 04 (Tabo to Patseo)

Day 05 (Patseo to Leh)

Day 06 (Rest Day)

Day 07 (Leh to Kargill)

Day 08 (Kargill to Srinagar)

Day 09 (Srinagar to Delhi)