HOW! sikkim chapter - Page 6 - xBhp.com : The Global Indian Biking Community

pistonheadz · 10-16-2009, 10:37 AM

After mind blowing Tsongu - Nathula ... aesthetic Yumthung - Zero Point ...and life changing Gurudongmar ride ... is it the time to return home ?
What else can be there for us after today's ride?
Those were the words lingering in our thoughts at the end of Day07...

exhaustion was tremendous... yet not enough to bring down our courage!
We were excited like never before... and it took only a few minutes to decide that we were not returning home... we started planning about our next destination in no time ...

Yes!!! Even after the ride to Gurudongmar ... still there is something left for us in sikkim ... something yet to be conquered by us ...

How could we neglect of the 3rd highest peak of the world?
West Sikkim is blessed with the elegant view of Kanchenjunga. So we picked Pelling as our destination next!
More or less the adventure was over. We started towards Gangtok in the morning. Day 08 ride was pretty smooth after Day 07. Everything seemed so green after the barren and rough terrain of our previous day’s ride. We cruised all the day in a decent average.We knew about the terrain and atrocious road condition, so we tried to reach Gangtok as early as possible. Just after crossing Tashi view point Indra found his front tyre flat. We were lucky to find a “tyrewalla” nearby but had to literally teach the algorithm of 2-wheeler puncture repair.The day ended with a delicious dinner after a hectic week full of adventure.

pistonheadz · 10-16-2009, 10:41 AM

DAY 09

GANGTOK – PELLING

The day started with a query session with the local people. As Pelling was not planned before, we were not very sure about the route. After getting confused from different sources, we got a taxi driver, who seemed reliable and gave us a concrete idea about the route and road condition. The day was more or less uneventful until Sandy’s old lady started showing her age near Tarku. The problem seemed to be critical and after applying all our knowledge, the outcome was a simple one liner. “Find a reliable mechanic.” A local lad with his red pulsar150 suggested to go back 13odd km to Singtham and bring a mechanic from there. This process has costed a huge time nearly 3 long hours. So after fixing the bike we were bit sceptical , whether to go ahead or to go back. Finally it was Indra’s relentless persuasion to see the mystical Kanchenjunga made us move ahead to reach Pelling.
By the time we reached Pelling it was late evening as we have touched Ravanlo, South Sikkim’s one of the best tourist destination. The road was a real treat in the twilight. Reaching Pelling our next hurdle was to find a decent accommodation after much persuasion we managed to book a room facing Kanchenjunga. Rested the night with a zest to witness the majestic Kanchenjunga ushered with the golden rays of rising sun.

pistonheadz · 10-16-2009, 10:48 AM

It was 5:00AM, beaming sunlight bathing the mighty mammoth mass. The range of Himalaya with Golden peaks looked like a mystery to be unfolded for the centuries.
After barrage of speechless moments and series of attempts to capture the eternal bliss for eternity, we set our sojourn to return home. Our experience, witnessing the beauty of Kanchenjunga can’t be expressed in words... only pictures can do justice to them....

Rest of the journey was more or less uneventful barring Rahul facing minor CDI problem with his bike. We took a diversion near Moregram to take NH-2 as jittery soul was not willing to ride through single lane NH-34. At last after an additional 80odd km of riding we reached Kona at 9:30PM with a feeling “We have done it!”.

vas · 10-16-2009, 12:03 PM

^^^
HOW guys: all pics are awesome. thnaks for the pics guys

burnoutz · 10-16-2009, 02:17 PM

speedo_rocks · 10-18-2009, 04:41 PM

1.How did the bikes perform in general?
HOW! has been accomplished in four bikes. The men and their machines are as follows:
a>Honda Unicorn , rider burnoutz (Indranil Bhattacharya).
b>TVS Apache, rider pistonheadz (Ritwik Sen).
c>Pulsar 150 Classic ,rider speedo_rocks(Rahul Banerjee)
d>Caliber 115 ,rider EngineCooled_sandy(Sandipan Ghosh).

The performance of the bikes has been quite satisfactory with no major breakdowns through out the whole trip.
There were a few niggles like broken fork seals, damaged chain-link and malfunctioning shock-absorbers which are
part of an endurance trip like this . Here is a detailed account of the pros and cons each rider faced with their own bikes.

Pulsar 150 Classic:
Date of Purchase:10/10/2003
Kilometers done before HOW! : 19560
Pros: It was the oldest version in Pulsar150 family with a handsome 12Bhp.It performed quite well in the highways
with a decent top and mid -range returning a mileage of around 40km/litre.Overtaking and cruising at highways was never a cause of concern. It was confident on the turns and stable at the corners, thanks to 100/90 Dunlop Geo-Cruiser. The Bajaj reliability and availability of parts gave me a peace of mind.

Cons: The bike actually lacked power to climb steep inclinations at places and literally had to lift the bike in half-clutch
and full accelerator. A better torque would have made thinks much better. The all-down gear shift pattern poses a
unique gear problem while climbing inclines. It fails to give you a clear idea about your current gear position and
your little mistake may halt your bike in a neutral in the middle of an incline which this is nothing less than
suicidal.The seating position and the fork angle doesn’t make the bike very comfortable and makes handling very heavy. Faced a problem with
pick-up coil but had to carry the trip with that problem since it was not that serious.

Overall comment: Though it can’t be pitted as a hardcore-touring bike but it fulfils the criteria of a machine that can be
your perfect reliable partner in long tours.

Caliber 115 (Hoodibaba):

Date of Purchase:1/Aug/2003
Kilometers done before HOW! : 31850
Pros: It was perhaps the only 100cc segment bike of those days loaded with trip meter, rpm meter, 9.5 bhp, 113.4cc engine with decent pickup, superb balance and mileage around 60km/litre. It performed quite well on the highways (as I feel it).
With a decent power distribution (in 100cc category) its fun more than trill to ride on HW. Overtaking and cruising at highways has to be done judging it's pick-up, rpm and power band the bike is in. Manuverity was quite good, courtesy 100/90 MRF Zapper. It's greatest charm I'd say is balance, stability, decent power so I managed to keep pace with all my remaining 150 wallas. In many stretches I dared to cruise in 85-95kmph for long hours.

Cons: The bike actually lacked power to climb not only steep inclinations but manageable inclinations also. Always I've to gear down to
get a bit more torque, at times it started sinking where I had to lift the bike in half-clutch and full accelerator. I've rode at least 50% of
the Hills (from Gantok- Gurudongmar-Peling) in first gear with gave me enough pain to both me and my bike. Honestly I
ripped my bike apart. The bike gave me no serious problems except a loose chain.

Overall comment: It would not over-rate my ride as a highway bike or a confidence boosting machine
but it was my first love, first touring partner, beloved reliable silent partner in my pensive moods.
What was said impossible was for me “I’M POSSIBLE"

TVS Apache 150

Date of Purchase : 1st June 2006
Kms done bfore trip : 13,230

Pros : the apache rides as if it was just designed for the sole purpose of climbing hills. Never did I feel the lack of power or torque during the uphill climbs. Even the steepest of the inclines were conquered with ease. Its light weight coupled with the peppy engine is a treat on the hills as well as in the highways. Overtaking is just not a problem. All u got to do was just twist a throttle a wee bit and watch the traffic disappear.

Cons : the pathetic TVS gearbox was at its irritating best. Every gear shift demanded surgical precision or else u end up with a false neutral amidst a steep climb. Another constant worry was the sorry levels of grip provided by the TVS tires. It just did not provide enuf confidence in the twisties.

2.Road condition as per that date
NH-34 connecting Kolkata-Siliguri was in a decent condition during HOW! considering the fact that it is one of the most ill-maintained highways(a myth) in India. Condition was totally atrocious during GIR but we were lucky to get good but not great roads till Dalkhola. The 40 km long 4 lane stretch from Dalkhola to Umedpur was worth enjoying.
Roads in Sikkim are maintained by BRO(Border Road Organisation)and the roads reflect the effort that went into making and maintaining these roads. Siliguri-Gangtok road is butter smooth and it is one of the roads I enjoyed thoroughly in my short but enriching touring life.The road condition starts detoriating as you move towards North Sikkim with asphalt disappearing in stretches . After Thangu till Gurodongmar there is literally no roads ,only rubbles. But the road condition is far better in east and west Sikkim i.e Nathula and Pelling respectively.

3.Traffic conditions on Highway and Hills
Kolkata –Siliguri is a single lane highway and always very congested since it passes through the heart of many important towns like Maldah, Bahrampur and Krishnanagar to name a few. Added to the congestion is rowdy local bus drivers and van-wallahs that make a bikers life hell!!You can be extremely cautious in our own way but that doesn’t mean you are safe here(read jungle).
But the condition in hills is totally different. Most of the roads are desolate and drivers abide by strict traffic rules. So if you follow your line and you aware of the rules there is hardly any reason for accidents in hills. Just keep yourself alert and enjoy the roads.

4. Necessary bike parts
Bike parts we carried for HOW were as follows.
·Puncture repair kit including tubes, rubber stickers, adhesive and a manual air-pump.
·Mobil cans.
·Clutch lever and wire
·Accelerator wire.
·Chain Link and sprocket.
·Headlight bulbs.
·Drum break-shoe and break-springs.
· Distilled Water for Battery

5.Medicines required:
The general medicines for tours is essential. Apart from these one should carry medicines for hill diarrhea and AMS cure medicines which we would specially recommend. We also carried a 10 litre oxygen cylinder for emergency purpose only .It is manufactured by a company called Oxy-Care and costs around Rs 350. Avaliabilty of this product is good.

6.Riding gears and clothes
During May the general temperature was around 10-15 degree centigrade average. But at places like Nathula and Gurudongmar we experienced sub-zero temperatures accompanied by strong winds. So pack your clothes accordingly.
We made is a point to wear proper riding gears like riding-jackets (without armor), custom made knee-guard and elbow guard and hand-gloves. Point is to keep your whole body well covered from the outside chill as far as possible.

7.Fuels pumps and quality of fuel
Kolkata-Siliguri and Gangtok highway is very popular and finding fuel pumps in those areas is not a matter of concern. But we filled our tanks from Kolkata and Siliguri only and played safe. But in north sikkim the last petrol pump was near Chumthang.

We made a full tank from this place and carried additional 5 litres of petrol in jars we were carrying from Kolkata only. This 5 liters were also consumed in course of the journey. The fuel quality is not great but you don’t have any options either.

8.How to acquire permits in Sikkim?
Now this is million dollar question and the most disturbing one when you plan for Sikkim , specially North Sikkim. Since sikkim has borders with China ,it’s a highly sensitive area and entry is totally restricted. Sikkim police issues separate permits to enter both Nathula and North Sikkim respectively. But Sikkim police is very strict in issuing permits to people who want to explore Sikkim on their own private vehicles. Frankly speaking Sikkim police doesn’t encourage the idea of issuing permits to a group of bikers who want to go on their own, because if something happens to the bikers Sikkim police is not much interested to take their responsibility.
We approached Indian Army instead and could convince them about our plan for our whole trip. They were a little skeptical about the whole idea but agreed after requesting them. Once army was convinced getting the permits from police was a piece of cake. I would like to point out here that be sure about acquiring the permits before you venture for North Sikkim.

9. Maximum and Minimum temperature at Hills:
The maximum temperature was around 15 degree centigrade at Gangtok .North Sikkim is generally cold but we
experienced sub-zero temperatures both at Nathula and Gurodongmar. The minimum was -4 degree centigrade at Nathula .

10. Behavior of local people:
Local people here at hills are extremely friendly and helpful too. We had to interact with them in a couple of occasions and
they were thrilled to find us riding from distant Kolkata. But their sense of distance is a bit weird and better rely on maps than
their notion of distance and direction.
11.What if you are in trouble?
Sikkim has a huge presence of Indian Army and they have regular TCP posts after 10-12 Kms. If your are in any kind of
trouble or finf yoursef screwed up without any local-people around the best option is to approach Indian Army and I am sure that these gentlemen will
help you out.

12.Driving at night:
While you are riding on hills make it a point to start early and reach the destination before dusk. After 5 pm transportation
literally stops and driving in valleys at night is a strict no for local people. So getting any kind of help at night becomes very
difficult.
13.Road and rail connectivity of Siliguri from other parts of India:
Siliguri is the gateway to north-east India and its is a very important town for its strategic position. It is very well connected by road, rail and air connectivity. Bagdogra airport is about 10 kms from Siliguri and New Jalpaiguri station connects Siliguri with the rest of India.

14.What role Indian Army and Police plays in Sikkim
Army and police plays totally different roles in Sikkim .Army is in charge of maintaining the borders with adjoining territories whereas the Sikkim police is mainly concerned in stopping intrusion and looks over internal matters in Sikkim. But let me tell you Sikkim is police is really very strict exercising stricter traffic rules in Sikkim.

15.Mobile connectivity
We have availed good mobile connectivity all through out Sikkim except in stretches of road in north-sikkim specially after
Thangu till Gurudongmar where there were no signals at all.

16.Bike papers and official documents:
As I just said Sikkim police is ultra strict, so they make it a point to check the official documents when you enter and leave
Sikkim respectively. Bike papers like smart card or blue book, insurance papers, pollution certificate, driving license ,tax token are
of prime importance. In case of official docs passport or voters id card can be useful at times and lat but not the least, your permit
to heaven .

17.Accidents faced
Its very unfortunate but we had our share of accidents iduring HOW! .Apart from sandy and me experiencing life
threatening accident the others were tumbling and rolling from the slopes due to lack of bike power.This became a routine
activity for us.Whatever happens never compromise with your safety and always wear proper biking gears with helmet. This is an earnest
request from HOW! team .

18.How to carry luggage
I would like to explicitly mention here that don’t carry your luggage is some kind of haversack or any other similar means
.We made this mistake and had to pay for the entire trip. In such endurance trips go for tank-bags and/or saddle bags because
comfort and maneuvering are the most important aspects.We would recommend Cramster tank and saddle bags.
For more info
follow this link: Cramster® - India's Favourite Riding Gear and Motorcycle Luggage: Saddlebags Tankbags Jackets Gloves for Touring Racing Motocross on Royal Enfield Pulsar Bajaj Karizma

speedo_rocks · 10-24-2009, 10:41 PM

Great.......a perfect example of lost and found.....thank you Xbhp and all Xbhpians for thier support and appreciation.Long live XBhp.!!

Cheers,
HOW Team.

petrolhead22 · 11-26-2009, 11:43 AM

Guys, I envy you!
The pics are wonderful and breathtaking!

buvanrajd · 07-08-2010, 06:55 PM

Amazing pics guys......

Need your help here

I am planning for a Sikkim Bike Ride from Kolkata coming January after Rider Mania 2011.

Actually we are a group of Bullet riders from Coimbatore (Kovai Thumpers Motorcycle Club - KTMC) who will be doing this and we are not aware of the route, Road Condition and places to see.

Copied your Itenary

Day 1: KOLKATA – DALKHOLA -470kms
Day 2: DALKHOLA – GANGTOK - how many Kms???
Day 3: GANGTOK – TSONGU – NATHULA
Day 4: Gangtok - Lachung -136 Kms but will take 9 hours
Day 5: LACHUNG – YUMTHUNG – ZERO POINT – CHUMTHUNG
Day 6: CHUMTHUNG – ZEEMA
Day 7: ZEEMA - GURUDONGMAR
Day 8: Zeema - Gangtok
Day 9: Gangtok-Pelling
Day 10&11: Pelling - Dalkhola - Kolkata

Is Mid Jan or towards Jan end the right time to visit Sikkim?

Does this covers all parts of Sikkim?

Any permits needed? If Yes how tough are they to get

Can any place be avoided which is mentioned in the Itenary? (I have tight schedule)

Is this Itenary a tight one?

How is the Road Condition from Kolkata to Dalkhola? Any Better(Road condition) route?

Where is the Railway station and Airport in between Pelling and Kolkata?
I dont want to ride back to Kolkata and Instead send my Bike from nearest Railway station/ some other way and Board a flight nearer to Pelling.

10-16-2009, 10:37 AM	#51 (permalink)
pistonheadz Bulleteer Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 36	Day 8 : Zeema - Gangtok After mind blowing Tsongu - Nathula ... aesthetic Yumthung - Zero Point ...and life changing Gurudongmar ride ... is it the time to return home ? What else can be there for us after today's ride? Those were the words lingering in our thoughts at the end of Day07... exhaustion was tremendous... yet not enough to bring down our courage! We were excited like never before... and it took only a few minutes to decide that we were not returning home... we started planning about our next destination in no time ... Yes!!! Even after the ride to Gurudongmar ... still there is something left for us in sikkim ... something yet to be conquered by us ... How could we neglect of the 3rd highest peak of the world? West Sikkim is blessed with the elegant view of Kanchenjunga. So we picked Pelling as our destination next! More or less the adventure was over. We started towards Gangtok in the morning. Day 08 ride was pretty smooth after Day 07. Everything seemed so green after the barren and rough terrain of our previous day’s ride. We cruised all the day in a decent average.We knew about the terrain and atrocious road condition, so we tried to reach Gangtok as early as possible. Just after crossing Tashi view point Indra found his front tyre flat. We were lucky to find a “tyrewalla” nearby but had to literally teach the algorithm of 2-wheeler puncture repair.The day ended with a delicious dinner after a hectic week full of adventure. __________________ Touring - Its my way of life HOW ! Sikkim Chapter HOW ! Ladakh Chapter

10-16-2009, 10:41 AM	#52 (permalink)
pistonheadz Bulleteer Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 36	Day 09 : Gangtok - Pelling DAY 09 GANGTOK – PELLING The day started with a query session with the local people. As Pelling was not planned before, we were not very sure about the route. After getting confused from different sources, we got a taxi driver, who seemed reliable and gave us a concrete idea about the route and road condition. The day was more or less uneventful until Sandy’s old lady started showing her age near Tarku. The problem seemed to be critical and after applying all our knowledge, the outcome was a simple one liner. “Find a reliable mechanic.” A local lad with his red pulsar150 suggested to go back 13odd km to Singtham and bring a mechanic from there. This process has costed a huge time nearly 3 long hours. So after fixing the bike we were bit sceptical , whether to go ahead or to go back. Finally it was Indra’s relentless persuasion to see the mystical Kanchenjunga made us move ahead to reach Pelling. By the time we reached Pelling it was late evening as we have touched Ravanlo, South Sikkim’s one of the best tourist destination. The road was a real treat in the twilight. Reaching Pelling our next hurdle was to find a decent accommodation after much persuasion we managed to book a room facing Kanchenjunga. Rested the night with a zest to witness the majestic Kanchenjunga ushered with the golden rays of rising sun. __________________ Touring - Its my way of life HOW ! Sikkim Chapter HOW ! Ladakh Chapter

10-16-2009, 10:48 AM	#53 (permalink)
pistonheadz Bulleteer Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 36	Day 10/11 : Pelling - Dalkhola - Kolkata It was 5:00AM, beaming sunlight bathing the mighty mammoth mass. The range of Himalaya with Golden peaks looked like a mystery to be unfolded for the centuries. After barrage of speechless moments and series of attempts to capture the eternal bliss for eternity, we set our sojourn to return home. Our experience, witnessing the beauty of Kanchenjunga can’t be expressed in words... only pictures can do justice to them.... Rest of the journey was more or less uneventful barring Rahul facing minor CDI problem with his bike. We took a diversion near Moregram to take NH-2 as jittery soul was not willing to ride through single lane NH-34. At last after an additional 80odd km of riding we reached Kona at 9:30PM with a feeling “We have done it!”. __________________ Touring - Its my way of life HOW ! Sikkim Chapter HOW ! Ladakh Chapter

10-16-2009, 12:03 PM	#54 (permalink)
vas Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Bengalooru,Mysooru Posts: 465	Awesome is the word! ^^^ HOW guys: all pics are awesome. thnaks for the pics guys __________________ YAMAHA HONDA IDEAL JAWA

10-16-2009, 02:17 PM	#55 (permalink)
burnoutz Xplorer Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Kolkata Posts: 69	__________________ HOW! Ladakh Chapter HOW! Sikkim Chapter

10-18-2009, 04:41 PM	#56 (permalink)
speedo_rocks Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Kolkata Posts: 15	All you wanted to know about HOW! 1.How did the bikes perform in general? HOW! has been accomplished in four bikes. The men and their machines are as follows: a>Honda Unicorn , rider burnoutz (Indranil Bhattacharya). b>TVS Apache, rider pistonheadz (Ritwik Sen). c>Pulsar 150 Classic ,rider speedo_rocks(Rahul Banerjee) d>Caliber 115 ,rider EngineCooled_sandy(Sandipan Ghosh). The performance of the bikes has been quite satisfactory with no major breakdowns through out the whole trip. There were a few niggles like broken fork seals, damaged chain-link and malfunctioning shock-absorbers which are part of an endurance trip like this . Here is a detailed account of the pros and cons each rider faced with their own bikes. Pulsar 150 Classic: Date of Purchase:10/10/2003 Kilometers done before HOW! : 19560 Pros: It was the oldest version in Pulsar150 family with a handsome 12Bhp.It performed quite well in the highways with a decent top and mid -range returning a mileage of around 40km/litre.Overtaking and cruising at highways was never a cause of concern. It was confident on the turns and stable at the corners, thanks to 100/90 Dunlop Geo-Cruiser. The Bajaj reliability and availability of parts gave me a peace of mind. Cons: The bike actually lacked power to climb steep inclinations at places and literally had to lift the bike in half-clutch and full accelerator. A better torque would have made thinks much better. The all-down gear shift pattern poses a unique gear problem while climbing inclines. It fails to give you a clear idea about your current gear position and your little mistake may halt your bike in a neutral in the middle of an incline which this is nothing less than suicidal.The seating position and the fork angle doesn’t make the bike very comfortable and makes handling very heavy. Faced a problem with pick-up coil but had to carry the trip with that problem since it was not that serious. Overall comment: Though it can’t be pitted as a hardcore-touring bike but it fulfils the criteria of a machine that can be your perfect reliable partner in long tours. Caliber 115 (Hoodibaba): Date of Purchase:1/Aug/2003 Kilometers done before HOW! : 31850 Pros: It was perhaps the only 100cc segment bike of those days loaded with trip meter, rpm meter, 9.5 bhp, 113.4cc engine with decent pickup, superb balance and mileage around 60km/litre. It performed quite well on the highways (as I feel it). With a decent power distribution (in 100cc category) its fun more than trill to ride on HW. Overtaking and cruising at highways has to be done judging it's pick-up, rpm and power band the bike is in. Manuverity was quite good, courtesy 100/90 MRF Zapper. It's greatest charm I'd say is balance, stability, decent power so I managed to keep pace with all my remaining 150 wallas. In many stretches I dared to cruise in 85-95kmph for long hours. Cons: The bike actually lacked power to climb not only steep inclinations but manageable inclinations also. Always I've to gear down to get a bit more torque, at times it started sinking where I had to lift the bike in half-clutch and full accelerator. I've rode at least 50% of the Hills (from Gantok- Gurudongmar-Peling) in first gear with gave me enough pain to both me and my bike. Honestly I ripped my bike apart. The bike gave me no serious problems except a loose chain. Overall comment: It would not over-rate my ride as a highway bike or a confidence boosting machine but it was my first love, first touring partner, beloved reliable silent partner in my pensive moods. What was said impossible was for me “I’M POSSIBLE" TVS Apache 150 Date of Purchase : 1st June 2006 Kms done bfore trip : 13,230 Pros : the apache rides as if it was just designed for the sole purpose of climbing hills. Never did I feel the lack of power or torque during the uphill climbs. Even the steepest of the inclines were conquered with ease. Its light weight coupled with the peppy engine is a treat on the hills as well as in the highways. Overtaking is just not a problem. All u got to do was just twist a throttle a wee bit and watch the traffic disappear. Cons : the pathetic TVS gearbox was at its irritating best. Every gear shift demanded surgical precision or else u end up with a false neutral amidst a steep climb. Another constant worry was the sorry levels of grip provided by the TVS tires. It just did not provide enuf confidence in the twisties. 2.Road condition as per that date NH-34 connecting Kolkata-Siliguri was in a decent condition during HOW! considering the fact that it is one of the most ill-maintained highways(a myth) in India. Condition was totally atrocious during GIR but we were lucky to get good but not great roads till Dalkhola. The 40 km long 4 lane stretch from Dalkhola to Umedpur was worth enjoying. Roads in Sikkim are maintained by BRO(Border Road Organisation)and the roads reflect the effort that went into making and maintaining these roads. Siliguri-Gangtok road is butter smooth and it is one of the roads I enjoyed thoroughly in my short but enriching touring life.The road condition starts detoriating as you move towards North Sikkim with asphalt disappearing in stretches . After Thangu till Gurodongmar there is literally no roads ,only rubbles. But the road condition is far better in east and west Sikkim i.e Nathula and Pelling respectively. 3.Traffic conditions on Highway and Hills Kolkata –Siliguri is a single lane highway and always very congested since it passes through the heart of many important towns like Maldah, Bahrampur and Krishnanagar to name a few. Added to the congestion is rowdy local bus drivers and van-wallahs that make a bikers life hell!!You can be extremely cautious in our own way but that doesn’t mean you are safe here(read jungle). But the condition in hills is totally different. Most of the roads are desolate and drivers abide by strict traffic rules. So if you follow your line and you aware of the rules there is hardly any reason for accidents in hills. Just keep yourself alert and enjoy the roads. 4. Necessary bike parts Bike parts we carried for HOW were as follows. ·Puncture repair kit including tubes, rubber stickers, adhesive and a manual air-pump. ·Mobil cans. ·Clutch lever and wire ·Accelerator wire. ·Chain Link and sprocket. ·Headlight bulbs. ·Drum break-shoe and break-springs. · Distilled Water for Battery 5.Medicines required: The general medicines for tours is essential. Apart from these one should carry medicines for hill diarrhea and AMS cure medicines which we would specially recommend. We also carried a 10 litre oxygen cylinder for emergency purpose only .It is manufactured by a company called Oxy-Care and costs around Rs 350. Avaliabilty of this product is good. 6.Riding gears and clothes During May the general temperature was around 10-15 degree centigrade average. But at places like Nathula and Gurudongmar we experienced sub-zero temperatures accompanied by strong winds. So pack your clothes accordingly. We made is a point to wear proper riding gears like riding-jackets (without armor), custom made knee-guard and elbow guard and hand-gloves. Point is to keep your whole body well covered from the outside chill as far as possible. 7.Fuels pumps and quality of fuel Kolkata-Siliguri and Gangtok highway is very popular and finding fuel pumps in those areas is not a matter of concern. But we filled our tanks from Kolkata and Siliguri only and played safe. But in north sikkim the last petrol pump was near Chumthang. We made a full tank from this place and carried additional 5 litres of petrol in jars we were carrying from Kolkata only. This 5 liters were also consumed in course of the journey. The fuel quality is not great but you don’t have any options either. 8.How to acquire permits in Sikkim? Now this is million dollar question and the most disturbing one when you plan for Sikkim , specially North Sikkim. Since sikkim has borders with China ,it’s a highly sensitive area and entry is totally restricted. Sikkim police issues separate permits to enter both Nathula and North Sikkim respectively. But Sikkim police is very strict in issuing permits to people who want to explore Sikkim on their own private vehicles. Frankly speaking Sikkim police doesn’t encourage the idea of issuing permits to a group of bikers who want to go on their own, because if something happens to the bikers Sikkim police is not much interested to take their responsibility. We approached Indian Army instead and could convince them about our plan for our whole trip. They were a little skeptical about the whole idea but agreed after requesting them. Once army was convinced getting the permits from police was a piece of cake. I would like to point out here that be sure about acquiring the permits before you venture for North Sikkim. 9. Maximum and Minimum temperature at Hills: The maximum temperature was around 15 degree centigrade at Gangtok .North Sikkim is generally cold but we experienced sub-zero temperatures both at Nathula and Gurodongmar. The minimum was -4 degree centigrade at Nathula . 10. Behavior of local people: Local people here at hills are extremely friendly and helpful too. We had to interact with them in a couple of occasions and they were thrilled to find us riding from distant Kolkata. But their sense of distance is a bit weird and better rely on maps than their notion of distance and direction. 11.What if you are in trouble? Sikkim has a huge presence of Indian Army and they have regular TCP posts after 10-12 Kms. If your are in any kind of trouble or finf yoursef screwed up without any local-people around the best option is to approach Indian Army and I am sure that these gentlemen will help you out. 12.Driving at night: While you are riding on hills make it a point to start early and reach the destination before dusk. After 5 pm transportation literally stops and driving in valleys at night is a strict no for local people. So getting any kind of help at night becomes very difficult. 13.Road and rail connectivity of Siliguri from other parts of India: Siliguri is the gateway to north-east India and its is a very important town for its strategic position. It is very well connected by road, rail and air connectivity. Bagdogra airport is about 10 kms from Siliguri and New Jalpaiguri station connects Siliguri with the rest of India. 14.What role Indian Army and Police plays in Sikkim Army and police plays totally different roles in Sikkim .Army is in charge of maintaining the borders with adjoining territories whereas the Sikkim police is mainly concerned in stopping intrusion and looks over internal matters in Sikkim. But let me tell you Sikkim is police is really very strict exercising stricter traffic rules in Sikkim. 15.Mobile connectivity We have availed good mobile connectivity all through out Sikkim except in stretches of road in north-sikkim specially after Thangu till Gurudongmar where there were no signals at all. 16.Bike papers and official documents: As I just said Sikkim police is ultra strict, so they make it a point to check the official documents when you enter and leave Sikkim respectively. Bike papers like smart card or blue book, insurance papers, pollution certificate, driving license ,tax token are of prime importance. In case of official docs passport or voters id card can be useful at times and lat but not the least, your permit to heaven . 17.Accidents faced Its very unfortunate but we had our share of accidents iduring HOW! .Apart from sandy and me experiencing life threatening accident the others were tumbling and rolling from the slopes due to lack of bike power.This became a routine activity for us.Whatever happens never compromise with your safety and always wear proper biking gears with helmet. This is an earnest request from HOW! team . 18.How to carry luggage I would like to explicitly mention here that don’t carry your luggage is some kind of haversack or any other similar means .We made this mistake and had to pay for the entire trip. In such endurance trips go for tank-bags and/or saddle bags because comfort and maneuvering are the most important aspects.We would recommend Cramster tank and saddle bags. For more info follow this link: Cramster® - India's Favourite Riding Gear and Motorcycle Luggage: Saddlebags Tankbags Jackets Gloves for Touring Racing Motocross on Royal Enfield Pulsar Bajaj Karizma

10-24-2009, 10:41 PM	#57 (permalink)
speedo_rocks Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Kolkata Posts: 15	Thank you Xbhp. Great.......a perfect example of lost and found.....thank you Xbhp and all Xbhpians for thier support and appreciation.Long live XBhp.!! Cheers, HOW Team.

11-26-2009, 11:43 AM	#58 (permalink)
petrolhead22 Banned Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Sakaleshpur, Karanataka / Pondicherry Posts: 57	Great going! Guys, I envy you! The pics are wonderful and breathtaking!

07-08-2010, 06:55 PM	#59 (permalink)
buvanrajd Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Coimbatore Posts: 145	Amazing pics guys...... Need your help here I am planning for a Sikkim Bike Ride from Kolkata coming January after Rider Mania 2011. Actually we are a group of Bullet riders from Coimbatore (Kovai Thumpers Motorcycle Club - KTMC) who will be doing this and we are not aware of the route, Road Condition and places to see. Copied your Itenary Day 1: KOLKATA – DALKHOLA -470kms Day 2: DALKHOLA – GANGTOK - how many Kms??? Day 3: GANGTOK – TSONGU – NATHULA Day 4: Gangtok - Lachung -136 Kms but will take 9 hours Day 5: LACHUNG – YUMTHUNG – ZERO POINT – CHUMTHUNG Day 6: CHUMTHUNG – ZEEMA Day 7: ZEEMA - GURUDONGMAR Day 8: Zeema - Gangtok Day 9: Gangtok-Pelling Day 10&11: Pelling - Dalkhola - Kolkata Is Mid Jan or towards Jan end the right time to visit Sikkim? Does this covers all parts of Sikkim? Any permits needed? If Yes how tough are they to get Can any place be avoided which is mentioned in the Itenary? (I have tight schedule) Is this Itenary a tight one? How is the Road Condition from Kolkata to Dalkhola? Any Better(Road condition) route? Where is the Railway station and Airport in between Pelling and Kolkata? I dont want to ride back to Kolkata and Instead send my Bike from nearest Railway station/ some other way and Board a flight nearer to Pelling. __________________ Kovai Thumpers Motorcycle Club- Coimbatore RE STD 350 84, YAMAHA RD350 84, YAMAHA RX100 94, RE TBTS 2009 Last edited by buvanrajd; 07-08-2010 at 06:57 PM.

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Bikers from North East ( only the Seven Sisters states and Sikkim )	deepmetal	Coffee Lounge:Off Topic Discussion	52	01-07-2010 10:38 PM
Sikkim Bhutan 2009	spiderweb	The Tourer	92	09-08-2009 09:54 PM
The Sikkim Trip, Dec '07 with Bajaj Discover125cc	Bhaski9836	The Tourer	6	07-16-2009 01:28 PM
The thunder-dragon ride(sikkim-bhutan 08)	darth_lucifer	The Tourer	78	03-09-2009 02:08 PM
Riding Skills Workshop (Delhi): The Next Chapter - Sunday: December 21, 2008	Aryan	xBhp Offline Meets(G2G's)	61	12-26-2008 07:54 AM

Register Now for FREE!
Are you registered on xBhp yet? If not, do so now and start participating to be able to share photos and experiences with other members. It will also enable to you have a chance to be a part of xBhp contests and roadtrips in the future! Username: Password: Confirm Password: E-Mail: Confirm E-Mail: Birthday: Image Verification I agree to forum rules