hey dude......sala u are here gr8.....keep on checking there is a lot more to come....

Started from lachung towards yumthang and zero point early in the morning for perhaps the most beautiful morning on the trip




















Some macros with my 70-300mm in valley of flowers

Great stuff guys.Tsonagmo lake looks very beautiful and the forest picture of NJP from Ganktok looks mesmerizing.

@darth-Sparsh and jithu are from BCMT.Right?

@razor-Good pictures.Just one thing.Please make sure that the pictures are in resolution 800*600 or less.

Sparsh is reg with us too man....but he is more active there...jitu too is from BCMT...actually MG we all are there and here too....
but i love Xbhp more for obvious reasons: the response....its too quick and fast....

@darth: good to relive the 2 week memory...aaah the place is so damn beautiful...i hate Mumbai now....wanna go back and settle there....

@ All: Did i forget to mention that when we had gone to get the permits...i also checked the cost involved in setting up a small place for my old age....haha...seriously..it fits my budget..so i am in consideration....Gangtok..prolly in the next 10 yrs....i will have a welcome board for guys like us....

Amazing man... would surely like to visit that place.. let's see when

@ Amit
gr8 pix... gr8 gr8 ride.. i know what you guys felt while riding... we felt that too...
pix are showing that you went beyond yumthung.. a bright sunny day would be better to enjoy the road and the splendid panorama it offers...
When we were there, the road was completely blocked by a land-slide at a turning 2-3 odd kms b4 the Ultimate zero point... We really had to struggle to ride through a temporary short cut route... It was nothing but a 10-15 meter long, 50 degree inclination, made of loose gravels to bypass that land-slide... It was not that tough while we were going up... but miserable while descending... It was the place where we took the pic 'the worriors'... anw... i didnt find any zero point pix yet... are they in stoar??did u make it upto zero point??

@burnoutz:....lets not hurry things......chalo u tell us..what do you think?....we desperatly wanted to meet you guys in kolkotta.....where were u"ll dude.....

chalo i was kidding the places that we visited....nathula...yumthang...zeropoint...gurudo nmarg....

@MG:Yes.The riders were assorted from different forums etc.We clearly didnt have a quorum or majortity from one particular groupThere is always a case of riders pulling out of ride at the last minute.That even includes me.However this group was destined and great thing is we finally made it.Lets see how our mount everest ride via tibet next year comes out which would again involve people across clubs/forums.

@Indranil:Yup we made it to zero point though the road wasnt all that great.

















The road wasnt all that good

A broken bridge a few kms before zero point





That gave buggers some reason to do some off roading



But life is not always that easy







Anup had a flat tyre at lachung.So we decided to spend the nite at lachung and start very early towards gurudonmarg the next day

We met taxi walas in yumthang who scared the shit out of me when they put their hand straight and said the road is this steep.Next he added that they have to put their vehicles in 4*4 to ascend it.Incase you dont make it you will 'come' down.next he added kanchenjunga 'uske niche dikhta hai woh utna uncha high'(It is so high kanchenjunga looks higher)I knew he was stating something which was actually wrong but still sounded scary.
There is a saying that post 1:00 the wind is so high rocks start flying and it is impossible to come back alive post 1 pm.I have a severe acrophobia and all of us were terrified etc.

Started very early in the morning as we had lot of distance to cover from lachung.

Did lachung-chumthang-lahchen.Booked hotel where we dumped our luggage and anup who was suffering with ill health (ams,cold,rum and high blood pressure)

Finally started the climb to gurudongmar.At the checkpost 16 kms from lake we met army jawans who treated us with piping hot gulab jamuns and tea.

Later on we encountered some mine fields on the way(I guess sparsh and jithu took pics)


Finally reached the lake.I didnt click lot of photos while riding as we were primarily concentration on reaching the lake and make it back safely.I had difficulty standing at lake as i had left my baraclava and wind had started picking up speed that it was 1:00 pm.So i was wearing the helmet thruought while I was at lake to prevent temperature of body dropping.


Thankfully only last section(couple of kms was ' steep' but it wasnt exposed and was relatively safe incase someone actually 'came down').














It was prolly the most gruelling day of the entire ride and we made it back to lachen and decided to camp there as we were tired to find out anup had befriended all women in the hotel we had left him in


There is a tsolamo lake further ahead of gurudongmar however we were not issued permits as some army exercises were going on there.

awosme guyz...gr8 going...
superb pics as well...

hey Amit (darth)... as you have done ur leh solo trip last year and the sikkim trip this year, how about having a SCREENING of these trips somewhere here MUMBAI.. displaying your pics & sharing your experience would be apt..Its a sincere request, do ponder on it. It would be highly appreciated!

^^Thanks jithin thats a good idea and I would definitely think abt it.


Here is a checklist so that it can help others planning this trip(Actually it should have come towards end of the log but thought it would be useful if I post it asap)

Checklist for my sikkim-bhutan trip(This could be used for touring on P200/other pulsars in himalayas)

PERSONAL STUFF
pepper spray for self defense
cash money for trip+return shipping+cards incase of emergency
few undies
passport
driving license
railticket printout
air ticket printout
1 tissue roll
two sweat shirts
I tee(will wear)
1jeans+1 jeans(wear)
polarised sunglasses(I prefer Oakleys ..coz i own one and they are great for a rugged terrain(shatterproof lens and almost indestructible frame) where they would take a bad beating,raybans are for posers in midlife crisis)
1 towel
shaving kit(to look good while posing)
1 detol soap
talcum powder
deo spray(if you have space)
couple of pair of socks
one pair of shoes(will wear)
tooth brush+tooth paste
sunscreen(if I can find one lying around in house)
1 track pants+1 party types shirt(if space is remaining to wear while flying back and if we visit discs if any in paro and thimpu)
baraclava
muffler
hippo waist pouch
riding jacket
inner liner for jacket
gloves+winter gloves
knee gurads
cramster riding shoes
pen+small book
helmet
woollen lowers to be worn under jeans
religious stuff & charms
10 passport photographs for permits and maybe few extra copies for handing out to female fans


MEDICINES
personal medicines
first aid box(civil defence wala not the free with bike wala)
norflox-TZ
flaygl
crocin
claratin/avil 25
mox-500(15 tablets)
electral packets
glucon-D box
chocalates+glucose biscuits(to be bought locally)+dry fruits(anup is bringing dry fruits :-))
brufen(I dont take these tablets but they help during swellings after falls)
diamox





PHOTOGRAPHY
camera
lenses(18-55mm & 70-300mm)
lens filters& neck strap
battery charger
tripod
gorilla pod
spare SD cards 2*2 GB


TRAVEL
compass
led headlamp
cellphone
mapbook
LP bhutan
photocopied sikkim parts of LP India
cellphone charger
Spike guard(helps if you have firangi types pins in your devices and many people share a cheap room with just one electric point plus has fuses)



BIKE
spare keys (3 sets)
smart card
PUC
insurance
tax reciepts
GATI receipt
10 amp fuse*2
some jumper wires
tubless repair kit
RVMS(which are removed)
motul 300V
funnel
90 number truck oil in small bottle for lubing chain
clutch cable
trottle cable
champion spark plug*1
brake shoe
small plastic tube to suck fuel out of other bikes or trucks
fix spanners 8 to 22(Go for taparia brand)
ring spanner(available one)12-13,14-15,20-22(Go for taparia brand)
two good pliers
screw driver set
washers
saddle bag
tank bag
chain lock
battery plugs
electric tape
bungee cords
lock + chain to tie the bike at night
clutch lever
brake lever
allan keys 4 mm and 5 mm
photocopies of papers
call up razor and check if he has taken footpump
regular crappy tool kit
m-seal(for leakages)(didnt carry this)

wooaah !!! i logged into X after a few days gap and this is what i come across...too good a stuff guys...simply fantabulos!!!

thanks a ton for sharing...

BTW Gangtok luked amazing in the pic...the lighted street where you went for DARU ofcourse...

P.S : @Anup Bhai : you surely are one of the best 'BEVDA' bikers i ever met....no offence meant...just kidding

awesome stuff there guys... loved to see your bikes before the gurudongmar lake... i know exactly how it feels!!!
cheer on you guys !!!

Few Videos from my cell..

This is how we started from Mumbai..,



Then we rode on water.,



we rode ON THE ROCKS:weedman:


we rode on the cold desert..,


We rode on the DEADly roads..,


We reached the highest altitude of our trip..,