The Ladakh trip was being planned for many years since 2015, but couldn't happen due to one reason or another. The starting point of this plan was a Bullet riding destination. Myself and Archana saw videos of people travelling there to enjoy long serene bike rides. This attracted us to study and plan for a trip.
The idea of this blog is to help the prospective tourist who are keen to do a Ladakh trip. Also, to create a good memoir for us to refer ourselves. I also feel like giving an account of the trip for the near and dear ones who are generally curious to know what's going on in my life. I will make sure to add generic photographs to make this blog more interesting to read.
Multiple plans failed due to Archana's knee surgery and my office commitments as an excuse. At this juncture, a bike ride was not looking comfortable and possible as we became used to comfortable living and hence the purpose for the trip was getting viciated. We than thought of a car ride from Mumbai and back. Even this didn't look practical as we lost petience in the busy and running life. Having said all this, we all still wanted to do this trip. Even the 16 year old Maitri wanted to go Ladakh with whatever she had checked and heard about it for years. The TsomoRiri lake, Spiti Valley, Jispa, Pangong Lake and many more attractions with our near and dear ones instilled the interest. To make it more like a pilgrimage or the TeerthYatra, we also thought of visiting the Sindhi Indus River flowing through Ladakh and the Amritsar Golden temple on our way back..One of the thing that our curiosity towards an apt education model was the Sacmall school founded by well-known scientist Sonam Wagchuk.
The Kelkar family Padmanabh ji and Kavita ji, who were with us on the road trips of the Narmada Parikrama and Omkareshwar trip, were keen to join even this one.
Our last plan was to do this in Aug 2024 in our own car. Even this didn't work as we were told that the weather is not great especially this year. Also, the roads are not good due to the water logging after a short but heavy rainy season in ladakh. So, after all the thinking, we decided to postpone the trip to September 2024.
We finally booked a 3 tier train Paschim Express to Chandigarh staring on 15th September 11:25 am from Mumbai Central. We decided to take a car from there and follow the Manali Leh route onwards to Ladakh and come back from Srinagar to Amritsar. This is considered a bit offpeak season and cooler one. Rain water would have receded and roads would have maintained back. Also, tourist spots would have lesser visitors making everything around it cheaper. The plan still had an element of biking adventure around Leh on rent. Specially Archana is a great lady biker and wanted to not to miss this chance. We decided to take this Manali route as we read that the snow may hinder this route by end of September and we may have to go back from Srinagar if at we take that as starting point.
Hot woolen clothes are the must in this season. Be prepared for facing zero degree sometime during the trip. You can buy hand gloves and smaller stuff from the locals as well but have it before you feel helpless with cold. Archana got a whole separate bag full of the woolen clothes.
We carried Thepla and Chatni all the while. Also dry fruits, farsan and laddoos were part of the package. Being vegetarians, it is important that we have for ourselves if things don't work out or on the anif we are delayed for one of the meals.
Apart from that. We had all possible medicines for acidity, cough. cold, fever and so on. Both Ayurvedic and Elopathic as per the need. I didn't see any medical shops after Manali.
Day 1:
The Paschim express train was unusually on time till 16th morning when it crossed Bharatpur in Rajasthan and move towards Mathura. We had nice hot Chole Kulche at Ambala Cant station to start appetite of authentic North Bharatiya food. After getting down at Chandigarh, we started immediately for Kullu on 16th September 2024 evening. Chandigarh although pass through, left an impression of a nice planned and green city. Temperature was 31 degrees at 4pm though against out our longing for the cold climate. There are a lot of tunnels and the road is buttery smooth with more than 10 mostly brand new tunnels on the way. Our only greviance was the loss of beauty on the hills due to these tunnel roads. It took only 6 hours to Kullu. We were right at Kullu by 10am with one break on the way.
The stay was planned by a local connect of Kelkar ji at the Dev Dham Hotel. The Dev Dham restaurant was right on the banks of flowing Beas river.
Day 2:
Morning was enchanting with the beauty right in our hotel terrace. We had our breakfast at the Himalyan Roots restaurant, again on the bank of the enchanting Beas.
Post the breakfast, it was a great shopping time for graceful gifts at Kullu. Gifts are somethings we have been believing and have been making sure we never miss for everyone who matters!! It was complete off season and the variety was really good at Trimurty Kullu Shawls. It was like an end of season opportunity for both of us the sellers and the buyers!!
Than arrived the most visited Manali on our way to Sarchu. The Solang Valley on the way had a great valley view below while the mountains on the top. Mountainous roads towards the world's highest Atal Tunnel had a lot of landslides as Himalayas by nature are made of the unstable rock formations. Techtonic activity in the Himalayas is said to have resulted from the collision of Bharatiya and Eurasian plates.
After crossing the long and smooth Atal Tunnel road, we went a bit towards Koksar Valley. Rohatang is bypassed by the Atal Tunnel and hence one may miss the beauty of the Rohtang mountain views. So going a bit that side was fun and gave us a feel. We couldn't anyways go till more heights of Rohtang as that calls for military approvals.
After a good hot tea and the most available Maggie, we left chit-chating about the heavenly beauty of this area, towards the Spiti valley. On the way we witnessed Sissu lake in the Sissu Village. After Spiti, we moved towards Jispa Valley. Now we could witness reduced vegetation and shadowed snow peaks around. The colours of the mountains showed a lot variations like the shopkeeper displays his clothes as the day started moving towards the evening. Chilled winds Pearced and we all started covering the maximum body with the woolen clothes.
One of the issues that almost all have covered in their account in Ladakh is the Oxygen drop. Proper in the gang got heavy heads and bit of low pressure jolts as Sarchu approached. We started using oxygen boosters and measurement tools. Keeping your mouth wet with water sipping was one thing that we all followed and it works. Moreover we kept simple vix or halls in the mouth to keep a sugar recharge in the body. Inaction grabbed and we were waiting for a cosy stay.
Sarchu has very basic facilities as we could find with our experienced driver. Only condition we had is to have a clean toilet in the room looking at the tents around. We found two such rooms. The person promised basic food for the dinner. The cost was also very low as the season was on the end. They hardly had anyone coming in these times. We decided to settle there. Kelkars has a bit more of an oxygen issue and nausia due to hairpin bend travel. Can't complain about the roads much but they also played some role in the tiredness. We freshened up and went to take a bite before we sleep. Ultimately all looked used to this high altitude and aclamatised. We all got in to the cost beds although not super comfy but part of the adventure. It was almost a full moon night and myself and Maitri walked for some time to get nourished from the moon while we chit chatted on my thoughts on "why people worry on what others think?"
Day 3:
Night at Sarchu became really cold. We were all awake at 3pm giving various reasons. It was zero degree cold when we saw the outside temperature in the phone. We experienced this in our chandham yatra at Gangotri and Kedarnath which was done around the same season. 
I finally woke up at 6:30am. Climate was as cold -4 degrees, but there was light all around. All were awaiting the Sun, the fuel of fuels to be seen in the sky :-). The old man and lady who ran the entire tent setup were friendly. They were ready with the team kettle on the stove. The old man offered hot water which I am sipping and completing the blog in slow motion.
Most of us felt weak due to lack of required oxygen levels in the area. We were 13500 ft above the sea levels. We decided to move at around 8am from Sarchu towards the most awaited destination Leh. The journey was tough even in the comfortable car for most of us. There was clear lack of enthusiasm in seeing the beauty around and capturing them in the snaps including that for Maitri. The roads were not great 40% of the time and hence the the car was moving like a boat. There were situations wherein there were no roads at all and we were going through the gravels with the experienced driver. Only two of us had dryfruits and dates, rest all were unable to eat due to the altitude sickness. 
The mountains were full of gravel and the snow had reduced. Soon we witnessed them turning more sandy like a proper desert. It clearly looks like that at the bottom on a river or a sea. No vegetation in most of the area except green and yellow weeds showing up. No flaura and fauna could live in such harsh climate and neither there will major microbial activity according to me. All dais and done, whoever was awake found amazement in all possible turns!!
It took around 8 and a half hour for us in the car to reach Leh. Roads were very good and planned when we were nearing Leh. There were multiple colours in the mountains. The mountains turned Rocky from powdery as we approached Leh. Also we witnessed vegetation and trees in the vicinity which gave a lot of relief to the eyes. 
Soon approached the once upon mighty Sindhu river sights. Also the military camps and gardens were worth the view. We suddenly found the nausea receding and ourselves more fresh. People started asking for their pending tea and coffee which they didn't dare to have from the morning. We saw a proper city after Chandigarh today again!!
As always, we chose to stay in simple hotel near the market area where facilities are easy to approach. Also the views from the windows of the sunset attracted us to keep up with this place. Wonderland Ladakh was the place we chose. Basic arrangements but spacious rooms and very economical rates.
Day 4:
We continued to stay at the same place in Leh. Temperature was very pleasing around 10 degrees in the morning and sky was clear. Today we kept it relaxed and open. Decided to take ample rest and complete the aclamatisation. We had our breakfast at the pure veg Bikaneri just five minutes walk from the hotel. Idli was unexpectedly nice and also the coffee.
We took a local Eco Taxi from the Leh union as our taxi is not allowed ply within Leh. Wanted to visit the Leh palace, Leh Market, the Shanti stupa and the hall of fame within Leh.
The Lah palace is built by the King Sengge Namgyal, a heritage site built in 1600. It is a mighty fortress like 9 floried building built on a hillock. This is a marvel depicting the Tibetan architectural capabilities. The same has been nicely restored and maintained by the Archeological Survey of India. One can see the whole of Leh city from this palace. Even today there is nothing as tall in the city of Leh and you can see this place from most of the areas of the old city.
The hall of fame has a nice lights and sound show displaying the commitment and capabilities of the Bharatiya Military. It was very motivating to and inspiring show put together. We missed the meuseum aa the timings for the same was over by 5pm and we reached by 6pm, taking into consideration the light show which happens at 7:30pm. The military run cafe is very nice for waiting and refreshments. Myself and Padmanabh ji purchased the highclass waste recycled jackets which was promoted by PM Modi ji.
Day 5:
Khardungla pass built by the Military Engineers Regiment to keep the supplies up in the Nubra Valley. Everyone was having super fun in the first ever snow we got in our hands throughout the trip.
We witnessed black hairy Yalks grazing in the scanty grass pastures grown on the slopes as we started further to the Nubra Valley.
Nubra Valley is like a green patch amidst the dry desert like mountains all around. It is considered to be an Abode of the Seichin Warriors. We saw huge military movements while reaching the Nubra Region.
The Diskit monestry is one of the saught after pilgrimage for the Buddha followers across the globe. The 35 meter Maitreya Buddha Statue is seen from almost 5 kms in the vicinity. Maitreya is said to be the future incarnation of Gautam Buddha.
The environment was serene and silent. For some moments, we forget the entire world and merged in the Shunya!!
We stayed at Moksha, a small bamboo house resort. Nice clean rooms and washrooms with inhouse basic veg restaurant, is all we look for. After resting for 2 hours, we left for the camel ride and other activities in the sand dunes.
The sand was like proper desert. This was the finest sand we saw in the entire trip as yet. Maitri enjoyed the archery and riffle shooting activities. The gang had great fun in the bactrian camel ride. Nubra is the only place in Bharat where these rare furry bactrian camels are found.
After having the most wanted Ghass Pakoda at the sand dunes zone, we left for our stay. Temperature as we saw in our phones was 6 degrees at around 8:30pm.
Day 6:
The morning was very pleasant. Temperature was -1 degree at around 6am.in the morning. We started getting ready for the most popular Pangong Lake which is around 200 kms from Nubra after a short morning walk. I couldn't see the Sun but the Stoney mountains were shining redish vis-a-vis in the evening brownish.
Had a nice breakfast at the Moksha and left at 8:15am from Hunder village for the Pengong.
Pangong approach road from Nubra was very rocky. We almost travelled from riverbeds. No network and habitation in long patches on the banks of the Shey River. We took almost 4 hours to reach the mighty and beautiful Pangong Lake.
The colours of the mountains and the lake were fast changing. We saw military boats of the border security doing patrolling deep in the lake as the lake is majority in China and there is a dispute of area between two countries.
I was contemplating as to how dispute stays even if we are in a physica peace. The peace is state of mind and no external situation can drive it on either sides.
The lake was serene. We could see through the water. We set down on the bank of the lake while witnessing the shadow of the mountains around falling into the lake. My eyes were closed into a brief spell of meditation. A moment of meditation in such places is worth hours back home.
I was wondering why people bring their chaos at such serene places instead of taking back the peace from here.
On the way back towards Leh, we visited the place where the movie "three idiots" was shooted and had a nice time at Rancho's cafe after taking snaps on the props.
Finally we bowed down to the inspiration of the Hindu culture, the river Sindhu. A nice grand ghat is developed and every year there is a Sindhu Festival being organised in Leh to commemorate the memory about the Ma Sindhu. The river is clean and serene. We remembered our heritage and lineage while worshiping the Sindhu.
Day 7:
We started for one of the energy boosters Kargil from Leh at around 9am. The roads were full of brand new coloured mountains like always. We entered the NH1 which is also called the Leh Srinagar highway.
The first stop was at the Zanskar and Sindhu (Indus) Sangham. The two rivers merge to become one at this point. This is very beautiful and serene location. The Sangham is considered very pious in the Bharatiya culture. We remembered all our grand parents and those who are no more with us. We expressed the gratitude towards the creator of this world.
On the driving way, there is a place which replicated the terrain and structure like the Moonland. The mountains turned yellow all around and the terrain was rocky.
One more place which we checked out was the Mulbek monestry where we witnessed 30 feet large Maitreya Buddha carved in large rock.
At Kargil, we stayed at the D'Jozilla Hotel where the Suru River was visible. We started immediately in a local taxi towards the Line of Control View Point uphill. The Taxi driver was descriptive about the way the 1999 war happened and how the civilians played very important role in the Victory.
We reached great height with valley all around. He showed us the Silk Route, the last military bunkers and last village near the border. We also had a chance to glimpse the sensitive places on the Pakistan and Bharat borders.
The Taxi driver was passionate and was describing the situation during the war which he himself witnessed at the tender age or 17.
The wave of patriotism spread within us and discussions changed the colour.
The platue area, we prayed for the peace and prosperity in this area at the Platuenath Baba Shiva Temple. The temple was managed by the Military around and had spiritual vibes.
Day 8:
Our focus today was on the Kargil War Memorial located at Drass. It is around 60kms from the Kargil town.
We reached at the war memorial at around 10:30am. The place is full of memories of war. The Marathas were managing the memorial and hence we felt at home. It is worth noting for those are planning to visit that the memorial is working on Sundays and starts from morning 7:30am to evening 7:30am. The Google maps confused us by showing that the memorial is closed on Sundays and hence we had to stay back at Kargil.
The special attractions were the war display gallery and the documentary show. The huge machine guns were taking our self confidence to the next level.
The Veer Bhumi is the place where we prayed for more than 500 people who gave the highest sacrifice of life.
I was thinking that only a few of us realise the purpose of life and walk towards it. The rest are just following the senses and working to keep them happier with mortal possessions.
After crossing the desert like mountains, we started seeing the greenary of the valley of Kashmir. The first place we came across soon after crossing the Zojila pass and the Zero Point towards the end of Ladakh was Sonmarg. The mountains shine golden when the sun shines on them and hence this is named as Sonmarg. We didn't prefer to the horse riding as the same didn't look interesting without snow.
In the picture of Sonmarg, you can see the Ladakh desert like mountains far behind in the corner and the green pastures in the front. This makes the change of vegetation and terrain evident.
In Kashmir, we were discussing the development and progress of the state with more democracy and change of outlook of the government. We passed through many towns located on the NH1 including Srinagar to reach Gulmarg at around 8pm in the evening. We could see a lot of BSF and CRPF security all spread across the roads giving assurance and safety to the locals and the tourists like us.
We chose to stay at the Pine View Hotel in Gulmarg. The Lunch was at Bakshi Dhaba. Due to the offseason mood, most things closed down by 9pm. We also retired after a short chitchat by 10:30am.
Day 9
Kashmir is said to have been setup by Rishi Kashyap and has been nurtured by Shankaracharya. It faced a lot of bloodshed and terrorism due to political and territorial disputes. Now again, it has got better days with removal of Article 370.
Gulmarg's main attraction the Gandola ride was closed for three days. Please keep a tab on the Gandola online booking website run by the State, if you are planning your Gulmarg trip and pre book it if possible and planned.
We reached Srinagar after a nice shopping of apples, Akrot and other delicacies of Kashmir, on the way.
The evening Shikara ride was amazing. We witnessed the floating shops and cafes on the way inside the Dal Lake. The Kashmiri Kawa inside the lake was a worth having experience.
Day 10
The morning was calm at the Dal Lake when we wake up at around 7am. Had a nice walk near the banks.
The breakfast was at the Delhi Di Rasoi. We got nice Poha there. It was an election day to our surprise. We were thinking how will be the day at Srinagar due to the election. However the day was normal and everything was working.
We booked a taxi and left to see the Shankaracharya temple.
The place was high on a hillock from where the entire Srinagar was seen. Even at the temple, there were security arrangements to avoid any faul play and make the tourist feel safer.
Maitri came prepared with the popular Stotras of Shri Shankaracharya and sung them here at this place. If such a great sage was not there, we all would have lost our identities as Hindus long back. He was the protector of the Vedas and the Vedanta and made it point to promote them in all four corners of Bharat.
Subsequently, as a part of the Srinagar, we visited the classical Mugal style gardens. The stream of water with fountains flowing from the centre of the Gardens and the flowers on sidings. These are natural streams coming into the Dal Lake being chanelised into the Gardens and ultimately into the Dal Lake. The roses here were big sized with varied colours and the smell. These are the original roses used in the rose water, scents and the Gulkand. We got a few cuttings for Krishiyog and Nakshatra from here with the help of the gardners unofficially.
Again in the evening, we decided to enjoy the Dal Lake and the Meena Bazar inside it. This is the Venice of Bharat. The Dal Lake is a marvel of its time and must have experience for all Bharatiyas.
Day 11:
We worked out the total cost of the trip as a ritual and shared with all the participants for their information. We found that the same is very reasonable and worth each rupee spent.
The women relooked at the shopping they did for themselves and majority of it for the gifting. We all enjoy gifting a lot and can't miss anyone near and dear out of such trips.
We prepared and consolid6the luggage and moved towards the airport after a working lunch.
To Sum Up
I think this is a great experience and one should make it happen so as to be able to appreciate the different colours / terrains / people / climatic conditions of life.
September is a good season for peace lovers. The trip is cheaper as there are hardly any tourist. Also, due to lack of crowd, one can enjoy places and experience the environment at its core. Only issue is in Kashmir, the snow is missing, which is generally available in the April, May and June to its best.
Tips:
1. Avoid the Taxi all across as each place has its monopoly taxi association which doesn't allow the taxi from other state. So your taxi will waste time while you use the local one and pay for it.
2. Avoid hotel booking online in the office seasons as a plenty of bargain is available on the go.
3. Check the holidays and election days atleast couple of days before you are going to reach for a better planning.
4. Keep your business/jobs completely off and emerse into the experience.
5. Unless you are looking for a full-fledged experience, use the Srinagar route to Leh Ladakh and back. This will be shorter clearer and safer than Manali route. The trip can be as short as 7 days in this case and more fun with less cost.
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