Getting Leh-d

Ladakhi style of course.

After soaking in the vibe of Leh town proper for a few days I figured it was time to start doing something Leh-ish, so I embarked on a bit of an adventure. My destination was Pangong Tso, a pristine lake sitting 4300m above sea level in the mountains of Ladakh. It's a 144km trip from Leh to reach Pangong, and aside from some real nice tarmac sections nature has pretty much taken back almost a 1/4 of the road there. Rocks, potholes, streams, dizzying heights, and insane Indian taxi drivers are just some of the things you encounter on route. Perfect learning environment for a first time biker don't you think?

I consider myself a fast learner, but conditions on the way back over the 5360m Chang La pass proved  almost too much for my rookie motorcycle skills. Six inches of fresh snow and blizzard like winds tested both me and my fellow motorcycle in arms to the limits. Yes, I was not foolish enough to embark on this journey alone, on the jeep up to Leh I made good friends with a Swede named Hans, and it was over a beer that we conjured up this idea. His motorcycle credentials assured me I was in good hands though! The plan was to drive 8 hours to the lake, find a place to sleep (which turned out to be in a fantastic Ladakhi home stay), then return to Leh the next morning with all of our limbs in tact. That was the plan anyways and it all worked out well health wise, but mechanical troubles and a relentless Summer snow storm gave us a pretty good mental and physical beating.

But it was almost as if it was all to be expected. I was so nervous the night before because I somehow knew we'd encounter troubles on the way; but with the same confidence I was positive we'd both make it back in one piece and laugh about it over a Kingfisher. And laugh we did.

Next up something a little less risky, a 6 day home stay trek through the Markha Valley. I'm really enjoying these nights spent in local villager's homes; as if the journey to these destinations isn't awesome enough, ending off each day eating home cooked meals in Ladakhi kitchens just makes it all that much more memorable!