Royal Enfield trip - Ladakh 9th to 23rd August 2009

 

For the second year running I organize the trip to Ladakh, India, with Royal Enfield motorcycles. I organize it as a charity trip to raise money for the NGO Amigos de Tara which helps children and has a literacy programme for them. Their school is in the City of Joy district in Calcutta .

My role is limited to organizing and accompanying the group, without making any profit, to one of the regions with some of the most spectacular landscapes of India. A trip which is even more spectacular on a motorcycle. I'm neither a travel agency nor a private company. I am simply an individual who loves riding on a motorbike on what I think is the most beautiful road in the world, and at the same time, likes to be able to contribute in aid of the underprivileged children of that school.

All the benefits of this trip will be destined completely to the NGO Amigos de Tara

The NGO would send a nominal certificate to you with the amount of your contribution. If you are a Spanish tax payer you will be able to claim tax relief on your 2010 income tax. In the 2008 trip we collected 3200€, which for Indian standards, would be equal to 14000€ in Europe.

If you want to see the pictures of the trip I organized with a group of seven bikers coming from Argentina, Spain, the United Kingdom and France in July 2008 click here

 

S

 

Program

 

Day

DATES

August 2009

Activities

 

kms

1

Sunday 9

Arrival of the flights in Delhi . Dinner and night at the hotel.

-

2

Monday 10

Train to Kalka. We get the motorbikes, heading to Shimla: 2200m.

120

3

Tuesday 11

Shimla to Mandi : 750m.

160

4

Wednesday 12

Mandi to Manali : 2050m.

125

5

Thursday 13

Rest day in Manali.
-

6

Friday 14

Manali to Jispa: 3350m (via the Rohtang Pass : 3978m).

125

7

Saturday 15

Jispa to Sarchu: 4250m (via the Baralacha Pass : 4830m).

105

8

Sunday 16

Sarchu to Leh: 3500m (via Taglang La Pass: 5328m).

275

9

Monday 17

Rest day in Leh.
-

10

Tuesday 18

Leh to the Tibetan Lama yaru monastery. Return to Leh.

225

11

Wednesday 19

Visit to the gompas in the neighbourhoods of Leh.

70

12

Thusday 20

Leh to Khardung La. Highest pass in the world: 5602m.

80

13

Friday 21

Flight to Delhi, flying over the chain of the Himalayas.
-

14

Saturday 22

Train to Agra visit Taj Mahal and Red Fort. Last dinner in Delhi.

-

15

Sunday 23

Free and last day in Delhi . Departure of the flights to Europe.
-

 

Dates :

From the 9th of August to the 23d of August. 15 days/14 nights of hotels (from the 9th to the 23rd ). Meeting and briefing with the group in Delhi on the 9th of August . If you arrive before the 9th and/or you leave after the 23d, you will have to book hotels by yourself. If you tell me well in advance, I could try to arrange it for you (these extra nights will not be included in the price).

My role is to organize and accompany the group during the trip on a purely free basis. My goal is to collect funds for Tara School for children. This school is in the City of Joy in Calcutta and it is run by the Spanish Government approved NGO Amigos de Tara

Back home, a certificate of the NGO will be sent to you with the amount of your contribution. For Spanish citizens, the amount of your contribution could be deduced from your 2010 income tax declaration.

 

Price  

- Price for motorbike driver: 1800 €.

- Price for pillion passenger: 1550 €. It is possible to make the trip as a pillion passenger or in the back-up vehicle.

 

The price includes:

          • Hiring of the motorbike throughout the whole trip (500cc Enfield Bullet).

          • Mid-range clean hotels. 14 nights (1 to 14 included). In Sarchu, comfortable tents with beds and private WC.

          • Twin-share basis; (single room supplement, additional 300€). 1

          • Food (breakfast, lunch and dinner) water and tea during the trip and on the stops on the road.

          • Trilingual guide , with experience on this motorbike trip (that's me) and a mechanic specialised on Enfields.

          • Domestic flight from Leh to Delhi.

          • Back-up vehicle and driver, to keep the luggage and provide assistance on the road.

          • Spare parts, tools, first aid equipment and medicines.

          • Petrol, tools and repairs and third party insurance.

          • Entries for all gompas in the area of Leh, and all permits in Ladakh.

          • Transfers from hotel to Delhi train station and from hotel to Leh domestic airport.

          • Your contribution to Amigos de Tara NGO.

 

The price mentioned above does not include     

          • International airfares to/from Delhi (between 450€/800€ Europe departure).

          • Your Indian Visa.

          • Vaccines.

          • Entry to Taj Mahal and Red Fort in Agra.

          • Personal expenses like washing clothes, souvenirs or alcoholic drinks.

          • Tips for the personnel on the trip, hotels and restaurants.

          • Transfer from/to Delhi airport. (price of taxi between the airport and the hotel is 5 to 7€).

          • Lunch and dinner during free days in Manali, Leh and Delhi (days 5, 9 and 15) and lunch in Delhi (day 13). Meals in India 4 €.

          • Transport during the free days in Leh, Manali and Delhi.

 

 

Climate and clothing during the trip

In July, and August the temperatures in Delhi and Kalka can exceed 35°C. When going up in altitude, starting from Shimla, the weather is milder with temperatures around 25°C with very sunny days. When crossing the pass on the road from Manali to Leh, the weather is, in general, dry and sunny but it can suddenly change and temperatures may drop. It is thus usual to pass from one extreme to the other several times during the day. We should have some very sunny and hot days, some cold days, and maybe some days riding under the rain. At more than 4000m of altitude, the sun can burn the skin easily and on the road there are very few places with shade. It is thus advised to bring high protection sun lotion, sunglasses and gloves.

Motorbike gear: helmet (best an open one), wind-breaker, gloves, closed boots, and equipment for the rain (those in two parts preferably). In windy days, the top of the wind-breaker is more than sufficient for not feeling cold. In Ladakh, the rain is rare in July and August, but the weather is unpredictable. If you are sensitive to the cold, bring protection. A motorbike tank bag is very useful to keep the camera, hand gloves or small things within reach.

State of the road and driving in India  

This trip is one of the most spectacular and impressive that one can make on a motorbike. Nevertheless, this trip is not an easy walk and is not obvious for everybody. If driving in India is not easy (the rules are not the same as in our countries), one gets used rather quickly to the “local habits”. The traffic is chaotic in the cities but there is in general very little traffic on the roads and people drive slowly. The road, in particular from Manali up to Leh, is very variable. One rolls on for kilometres on roads in very good state that change abruptly into dirt tracks with sand and stones. We could encounter landslides blocking the road for a while or small rivers to be crossed on motorbike. The state of the roads varies each year, since the road is closed for eight months and it is covered with snow, which destroys the asphalt.

This is a memorable trip to make on a motorbike, but I do not advise it for the inexperienced biker. I advise you, even to those which have a long riding experience, to take an advanced driving course before making this trip. One can even be surprised of all the things which one can learn in this kind of course!!

India is an incredible country, full of magic, but it is not an easy country for those who do not have patience or are not used to the delays and the unforeseen situations. If you decide to join the group, I will ask you to be flexible with the possible delays and the unexpected situations due to the special conditions of the country. This type of motorbike adventures always has a share of risks of which you must be aware of and accept before joining the group.

Being open minded with a good amount of humour is essential to be able to enjoy this trip to the maximum. A trip that you will almost certainly never forget in your whole life.

 

The RoyalEnfield Bullet  

The Royal Enfield continues to be manufactured in the Indian factories of Madras after the closing of the head office in England in the Fifties.

There have been very few aesthetic and technical changes since then. It is a very solid motorbike with a legendary look and motor noise. With the gear box reversed and a 500cc engine, the Royal Enfield gives a pleasurable sense of a bygone time on the Indian roads. The Bullet is far from being a fast motorbike but it is the best adapted for the hard conditions of the roads in this part of the world.

 

Details of the trip

Day 1 Flights a rrival in Delhi. Afternoon meeting and briefing with the group at the hotel: (introduction to the country, motorbike riding in India and trip programme). Dinner and sleeping at the hotel.

Day 2 Departure by train early in the morning from Delhi to Kalka on the Shatadbi Express. Four hours later, we will join the team who will assist us during our trip and have our first contact with our motorbikes. We will practise near the train station to get used to them. Kalka is a small town much easier and more pleasant to start out than in the frantic streets of Delhi. After that, departure towards Shimla. Lunch on the road. The road is full of bends until we arrive in the old summer capital of the English Raj. Shimla is a picturesque city, established on the mountainside with plenty of British style architecture from colonial times. Dinner and night at the hotel.

Day 3 Departure to Mandi. The road is surrounded by mountains, fields and sloping terraces. We will cross the Sutjej River and we will arrive in the evening at Mandi where dinner will await us at the hotel.

Day 4 We continue through the green Valley of Kullu. The road follows the river until arrival in Manali with splendid sights of canyons, long tunnels, and wooden bridges suspended over the river. We will crosshe right-side of the river crossing where we'll find small villages with wooden houses typical of the Himachal Pradesh State architecture.

Day 5 Manali: Free day and acclimatization to altitude. You will have the choice to wander around Old Manali, visit the village of Vaishist with its thermal springs, trek in the nearby mountains or simply get lost in the bazaar of the city unearthing Tibetan antiques which are legion in the stores. Dinner in a town centre restaurant.

Day 6 This is the when things become serious with the true beginning of the mythical road to Leh. We will reach the Rothan Pass before entering the Lahaul Valley with splendid landscapes and valleys as far as the eye can see. Arrival in the evening at the village of Jispa.

Day 7 Green vegetation becomes increasingly rare letting room for the ochre colours and the lunar landscapes which will prevail until the arrival in Leh. That night we sleep in a tent camp in Sarchu at more than 4000 m of altitude.

Day 8 The road and the landscape become more and more spectacular. We take the 21 turns of Gata Loops to continue going up and up reaching the Pang Valley , probably the most magical place we'll see during the day. We have in front of us all the snow-covered Himalayan chain. Behind us, a flat valley formed by a glacier at more than 5 000 m of altitude. The road keeps going up until the Taglang La Pass at 5328m of altitude, the second highest pass in the world. The rest of the day is much easier as we go down to the plains which will lead us to Leh while passing by Tibetans temples or Gompas, perched high in the mountains. Arrival in Leh in the evening.

Day 9 Well deserved rest for us and the motorbikes. Free day in Leh, capital of the State at 3500m of altitude. The old city is a true labyrinth of small lanes with Tibetans houses made out of brick and wood and with the Old Royal City Palace dominating the city from above. The city is full of bazaars and shops with Tibetan antiques.

Day 10 Departure to Lama Yaru, the oldest and most spectacular gompa of all Ladakh. It is more than one thousand years old and is located on a medieval site village surrounded by the typical Ladakh lunar landscape. We cross one of the most deserted parts of the area. After the visit, we'll have lunch in the restaurant of the monastery. We go back to Leh for dinner.

 

Day 11 Departure towards Khardung La in the Nubra Valley. It is the highest pass in the world (5602m of altitude) that can be crossed on a motor vehicle! A few years ago, there was a panel which said “From here you can talk directly with God". We must obtain special permits as it is a military zone near a hot China border area. Return to Leh.

Day 12 Visit the neighbourhoods of Leh to see the gompas of Thiksey monastery which resembles the Potala Palace in Lhassa, Tibet. After the visit to the Hemis Gompa we will go back across to the other side of the river. Finishing at the Shanti Stupa with splendid sights of the Valley. Last night in Leh and that evening we'll say goodbye to our motorbikes.

Day 13 Flight departure to Delhi. The flight out of Leh to Delhi is one of the most spectacular one can make in India, flying over the mountains of the Himalayan chain overseeing the highest mountains in the planet. Arrival in Delhi to leave our bags and to have lunch in the hotel. Rest of the day free to visit Delhi, city full of monuments being visited and plenty of purchases to be made.

Day 14 Train to Agra on the comfortable Shatadbi Express to visit the Taj Mahal and the Red Fort. Last dinner with the group and last night in Delhi.

Day 15 Last day in Delhi and depending on your flight departure, last minute shopping or sightseeing. Flights departure.

 

Reservation

In order to make a reservation, it is necessary to pay a 400 € deposit. The deadline to be registered is on 30Th of June, 2009. On the 1st of July, I will book the domestic flight, and the hotels. I will send an e-mail to each person with confirmation of the Leh-Delhi flight, as well as the electronic ticket reservation.

For payment of the outstanding amount, you have two options:

  1. To make a transfer to my account with the balance due, or
  2. To pay in cash (in euros) on arrival in Delhi.

The trip will take place with a minimum of five people and a maximum of 10 motorbikes or 12 people. If by 30th July, 2009 , there are not at least five reservations, the trip will be cancelled. In that case, I will refund the deposit in full (400 €), without any expense to you.

For any cancellations between the 1st July and the 25th July 2009, I will have to deduct 300€ (flight and hotels reservations) from the refund. No refund will be given after the 25th July.

To make a reservation please send me an email and I would send you a form to fill in.

Contact:

If you have any questions, you can contact me on my website contact section or via my email.

On my French mobile phone: 00 (33) 6 16 76 14 49

By mail: Pablo Alvarez, 70 Bld de Clichy 75018-Paris, France.

  1. The inscriptions will be done by booking date order. That means that if you book at the last minute, you might perhaps have a single room option if there is no other person to share a double one. So the sooner you make your booking the more possibilities you will have to have a double room.
  2. It is compulsory to obtain travel insurance if you don't have one that goes with your credit card or your car/motorcycle insurance. This type of insurance covers medical expenses abroad and airplane repatriation in case of illness or accident. You will also need to bring your International Driving License.