Bike Hire for Ladakh - Tips and Tricks

When we planed this trip, we relied on other blogs to carefully and smartly plan the bike hire process and unfortunately, we still learned a lesson - a hard one. So here is a blog giving the real picture of the ground scenario:

The first question: SHOULD WE HIRE BIKES?

The Answer is a BIG NO. Avoid it until and unless you have no option! 

Reasons:

1) Bike Hire guys are there for the loot. They will milk your money however smart you may be. Remember that Delhi is the logical place to hire bikes and delhites - especially in Karol Bagh; the ONLY area where you get bikes are very good at talk and even better at looting! 

2) Whatever is the agreement - whatever loopholes you plug - you will still end up paying a lot more than the agreed amount.We have seen people there and we ourselves experienced this!

3) No bike is more reliable than your own.

4) Cost of moving your bike up and down from your hometown to Delhi will eventually be cheaper.

For those to whom the above makes sense and have their own bikes this is the end of the blog. Others who still want to hire, read on!

Ques 2) Where to hire the bike?

Delhi, Karol Bagh is the ONLY logical place.

Reason:

1) Chandigarh doesn't have a market.

2) Getting bikes @ Manali is not sure shot. Quality is another issue and getting things fixed there is almost impossible. Its a small town!

3) Drive from Delhi to Manali is worthwhile.

Quest 3) Whom to hire bikes from?

I will rephrase this:

Avoid:

1) Stone Head Bikes

2) Tony Bike Center

Go for:

1) Lali Singh

else try your luck wherever you get the bike :-(

Note: The guys are very good at talking and can convince Eskimos to buy ice. No exaggeration.

Quest 4) Required Bike Accessories:

Very important:

1) Luggage carrier with nylon elastic ropes having hooks at the each end

2) Bike spares - spark plugs, cables, tool set, puncture kit, bulbs, tapes and ropes (to pull bikes)

3) Helmet - VERY VERY IMPORTANT. With both day and night visors (Very important)

4) Raincoat - good quality one to protect from rain but MORE IMPORTANTLY FROM DUST.

5) Tarpaulin for covering your luggage

Optional:

1) Petrol Cans - simple ones - you will need this from Tandi to Leh (365 kms without petrol bunk) - if you bike mileage or tank capacity is limited. We had bullets and they went on full tank from Tandi to Khardungla (400+ kms) without requiring a refill..

Yeh Delhi hain meri Jaan...

This blog looks long and boring!


On the 26th of June 2010, we awoke to our first sunrise in Delhi. The reason for this first and rather vague line is - Delhi is or at least was VERY HOT when we were there. The heat sure burned a spot in our memories ;-)


Our morning alarm call was from Kaushal aka Anna who reached Delhi bang on time! He then navigated through the Gallis of Pahar Ganj, and yet an another adventure began! He finally did reach the hotel and we both were on the same floor and yet neither could see the other! With Morning Blues and no other clues, we finally realized that we were altogether in different hotels. Our Anna had crept into the hotel besides ours :-) Reminded me of a scene from Johny English!


So finally the corrections were made and the ram-milap happed! A few hugs and thodi si bakar put us right back in the bed for few winks which were overcome quickly when we were reminded of the free unlimited buffet breakfast in the rooftop! 


Gupta and his voracious diet ensured poora paisa vasool experience and along with Anna they did create a eating record of sorts! 


In the meanwhile our friend Kaju aka Cash also reached Delhi - Delhi Airport to be precise after of course an eventful nite @ aamchi Mumbai! 
PS: Mumbai is Cash's favorite hang out!


Getting into action to pick our bikes from KST --> CEO of StoneHeadBikes.com from whom we had planned to rent our bikes, we quickly hit the road and got our first taste of Delhi when all the 4-5 people whom we asked for directions gave us completely different view points!


We finally did some inky-pinky-ponky and headed for the Metro Station! Delhi Metro, besides the historical monuments is undoubtedly the BEST PART OF DELHI. The elegance and charm that it carries is something thats worth revisiting the city at every opportunity! And this is definitely sounding exaggerated but it is not.


Towards the end of an long journey we didn't learn much about the route but added a new word to our bakar  - a rare phenomenon! 'Bakwas Chod raha hain' - an hilarious moment of exchange of words/abuses between our cycle rickshaw and another one taught us this word!


Fast forwarding, we quickly tested the bikes - The shining red Karizma was a treat to look and drive! Bullet with right gear was little painful and the pulsar was a nightmare! After managing to get cash from various ATMs (we did enjoying ripping on the Karizma from ATM to ATM) in the scorching sun, we finally worked out the accounts and got to know why Delhi is also called the city of Thugs! 


We had to pay for the worn out - semi punctured Pulsar despite not taking it - Guys Delhi is a city of Thugs! Experience it to believe it.


With one bike short, we headed for Plan B - Karol Bagh - Tony Bike Center where we had booked the stunning looking Thunderbird. Little did we realize what the look was going to cost us! The journey from Vivek Vihar (thats where we had to go to get our bikes) to Karol Bagh itself was an adventure! 


Gupta and Anna on the Bullet and I on the karizma started off together but lost each other within a couple of kms! I then went on to pick the furious Cash (the long wait in the heat would do that to anyone) and eventually we all met in Karol Bagh.


What was anticipated to be a  happy re-union arouse a new problem! The haathi ka baacha bullet with its right gear was simply not drivable! We all tried only to realize that we were one more bike short! In the series of events that followed, we decided to pick up 3 bikes from Tony and went to return StoneHead's bikes to yet another corner of the city!


The journey was nightmarish again as the Karizma refused to start towards the end and had to be dragged! Delhi Thugs then looted us again and we returned towards the hotel, a lot more poorer.


Well the day finally ended after the close-shave incident at the railway station about which I will blog later!

The Flight to The Capital City

Finally the Friday Morning that we were waiting for - for almost 700 days had arrived! An anxiety but otherwise uneventful morning quickly passed away and thanks to the 'Hari Sadu' @ office, the clock soon struck 4 pm and the smile started its journey of a mile!

Ofcourse I forgot to add - as an ex-Accenturite - I am always impressed (its present continuous tense) by the facilities that the great organization has and had not expected the current organization to have a Cloak Room! Come on! How could I be so wrong :-) This great organization had a cloak room and much bigger! Yahooo :-)

So bags picked and byes told, I rushed to reach one of my favorite destinations in Bangalore - the Gupta Castle in Marathalli! A few bites munched, photos clicked, bakar (again in past, present and future continuous tense) and we were off on the road with the truckload of luggage. We were going to ride on the pride of Bangalorean Roads - The BIAS service of BMTC is a ride you cannot miss in the city of Volvos :-)

It was near about 5 pm and Mr. Gupta - the genius who had the Contacts - called up the Bus to find out where it was - YES - BIAS service is State-Of-The-Art and we reached the Bus stop well in time! Time for the ADVENTURE to begin!

Like us, many had plans to visit the BIA and the crowded BIAS bus - a rare sight proved it. So the opportunity to make our first DECISION! With less than 2 hours to reach the 50 km far airport with the traditional Bangalore Traffic - we decided NOT to board the bus!!!!!

Well - we were not lucky enough like Mr. Kaju so we did reach the airport by smarter means - And Well in time :-)

Fast forward to the flight:

For all those who thought Indian Airlines was #@$%^@! - here is an eye-opener --> After travelling in every operator including the famed Kingfisher (Not RED) - I undoubtedly agree that Indian Airlines is the real Maharaja of the skies. They have the best in-flight entertainment system, amazing food (Gupta got to eat twice) and really comfortable seats. It was unlike anything we had anticipated and the experience was a eye-opener --> Hats off to the Indian Airlines. I had recommend every flier to try their service once to believe it.

PS: I am sure Mr. Gupta will vouch for that - he was seating next to an mesmerizing beauty who I am sure enjoyed her flight more than we did :-) --> Thanks to??

Ofcourse - our Bakar :-) The bakar was so gooood that we could bakar on the bakar itself!!

Soon it was time to land - Sonam was waiting down there humming yeh Delhi hain meri jaan... And we finally landed in the City of ***** (you will uncover it for yourself towards end of the blog)

What I missed:

Wrong subtitle actually -> Amidst the bakar, I forgot to add that Mr. Kaju missed his flight and didn't reach Delhi as planned. Well Mumbai is such a city that missing a flight is after all - missing a flight! Big Deal :-)

To the Hotel:

With the few glitches we finally boarded the Marcopolo AC bus to Pahar Ganj where we had to find ourselves a hotel to stay. The bus ride was an experience in itself thanks to the Conductor who spoke and conducted himself - well nothing less than a DUDE. Come on, imagine a conductor with jeans, Shirt and Goggles :-) The ride it have the Delhi Bakar but thats too delicious to blog --> it needs to heard... not read.

Well thats the end of the day, we found ourselves a neat 3-star hotel with a plush comfy bed and well -- had sweet dreams!

Road Trip to Ladakh

Blog Contents:

This blog gives a complete overview and is a perfect ready reckoner to plan a trip to Ladakh. It lists all the necessary information required to make a successful trip. Its a culmination of exhaustive research on other blogs and information sources coupled with the experience of completing the entire trip.

Background:

It all started with a friend's friend posting the photos of his trip to Ladakh on Orkut and when four enthusiastic, adventure seeking guys saw the pics together - they mind was in chorus with one thought - We should be there.

Work and Normal routine life kept us going and the dream continued to elude us and time kept passing by - days to weeks to months and years! But the Dream lived on.

The spirit never subdued. We never let it.

Finally - after about nearly 2 years we finally were able to fulfill the dream we all saw together.

In spite of working in different companies, staying in different locations - On the 25th of June 2010, the moment of truth finally came. We embarked on our journey to the Land of Gamas - Ladakh! From the Silicon Valley to the Kashmir Valley - by Road (though not entirely :-)

Acknowledgements:

The sheer time it took to materialize this dream itself speaks volumes of the kind of effort and team work that went in to embark on this voyage spanning 16 days. Kudos to Abhishek Gupta, Bhawani Shankar Kaju aka Cash and Kaushal Sarathe for their sheer grit and determination that made this dream live on to become a reality. Well taking off for 10 working days amidst your promotion cycles or within days of joining a new organization isn't a child's play after all!