Announcement

**The Monk** · 11-06-2015, 02:44 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip

Thread Approved

Wonderful, share some more pictures with us

**TheArcher84** · 11-06-2015, 03:47 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip

Originally posted by Asiaticus View Post

I moved to India in Dec 2014 after spending 15 years of my 20's and mid 30's working in media and later development. /

Wish you good luck brother. DO share more pics of your epic journey

Good luck and God-Speed

**krishna77** · 11-06-2015, 05:26 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip

One epic thread in the making! Will look forward to further updates.

Sent from my Xperia L.

**Asiaticus** · 11-09-2015, 05:10 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip - Road to Kargil

‪#‎GreatIndianRoadTrip‬ destination 1: ‪#‎Kargil‬
Kargil is a city in the Kargil district of ‪#‎Ladakh‬, in the Indian state of‪#‎Jammu‬ and ‪#‎Kashmir‬. It is the second largest town in Ladakh after ‪#‎Leh‬. Located 204 km from ‪#‎Srinagar‬ to the west, Kargil is a total of 1,047 km Road trip from Delhi.
‪#‎TheGIRT‬ travelled to Kargil from New Delhi via Amritsar (Punjab) and Srinagar (J&K). The total journey was 1051 kms, mostly highway but at times the Road became a bit unsightly, specially the second half of Jammu - Srinagar highway.
First Leg:
The first leg of the journey New Delhi to Amritsar ( 480 Kms) with a night stop at Hotel Ramada near Golden Temple. One could take straight through Jalandhar to Pathankot en-route but #TheGIRT wanted to visit the Golden Temple hence extra 50 kms off highway into Amristsar instead of continuing on the highway from Jalandhar and doing a night stop in Pathankot.
The GIRT highly recommends Hotel Ramada in Amristsar who, despite being a luxury hotel were very welcoming to a motorcyclist and even parked the whole bike with camping gear still tied, under CCTV guard all night. Vallet!
Second leg:
The second leg of the journey was Amritsar to Srinagar (469 kms) . Most tiring of all, the 469 kms took a total of 11 hours through a highway which is sometimes Six lane, pristine tarmac and sometimes a road from hell, full of dust and mud, therefore off roading wheels are advised for bikers.
The views were beautiful and kept the trip going, the leg after Anantnag was beautiful , with smooth roads zig zagging through ancient pine forests. Plenty of tea shops, dhabas on the way.
In Srinagar we stayed at a Houseboat called Soulkiss on the Dal Lake. Run by the Khan family Soulkiss is a home away from home and helped us relax and rest before journey in to Ladakh region and Kargil.
TIP : Stop at Rahims Tea Shop just after first Toll on Jammu - Srinagar highway for lovely tea and great views.
Journeys cant be planned to a T, the elements sometimes assert their dominance over us and the one night stay at Soulkiss turned in to a three day affair cos weather turned next day in Srinagar and we were advised by one and all to not venture in to Kargil road that day, specially on a motorcyle So we stayed and travelled to Kargil the on the third day, soaking up the Khan hospitality and the beautiful Dal Lake before what we thought was gonna be a rough journey. How wrong were we ?
The road to Kargil is a mix bag, worked on heavily by the Indian Border Roads organisation National Highway 1D has some beautiful parts, like the drive from Zojila war memorial to Drass town. A clean road, tarmac to perfection meandring though perhaps one of the most beautiful valleys in the world. Yet some parts of the highway like the part from Sonmargh to Gumri glacier are are so inadequate that one sometimes feels like turning around and going back to Srinagar. Yet, if you will believe me, the beauty that lies ahead will become sight of a lifetime.
Kargil region is fill of rivers, lakes, meadows and waterfalls , every corner of the topography has water, clean, fresh, glacial water, sometimes flowing as a river or sometimes sitting in a glacial lake, himalayan water which makes riding thorough this vast land an absolute pleasure.
Beyond Kargil lies the land of monasteries and buddhist chants. Pagodas and Stupas . Child monks and buddhist nuns. Ibex and Yak. Rough weather stopped me from going further then the rock monasteries of Mulbekh and Shargol but I returned from Ladakh as a traveler who perhaps at the end of it all did find the meaning of life, what was it?
Your to find when you visit the Land of High Passes…
…. also known as Ladakh.
Main sights around Kargil
‪#‎Zojila‬ and ‪#‎Fotulla‬ passes situated at the height of 3567 and 4192 meters above the sea level are called gateways for Kashmir Valley and Leh District for entry in Kargil District. High peaks of Namikala and Penzila are called the sky pillars of the District. Full of Glacier lakes, and visibly green due to recent reforestation efforts by the Indian army, the place is a visual delight.
The whole District is of high rocky mountains, glaciers, lakes and mountain rivers .It occupies unique position because of its high altitude area in the country which ranges from 8000 to 23000 ft. above the sea level.
Flights and trains are available from New Delhi till Sri Nagar. Taxis can be hired from Srinagar to Kargil region.
10 places to see near Kargil
http://www.tripadvisor.in/Attractions-g676134-Activities-Ka…
Ride Difficulty level : 8/10
Peak Season
Most of the travellers prefer summer months starting from April to June to visit Kargil. Here’s a monthly breakup of Kargil’s climatic conditions so you can plan when to go:
April to June: April to June is one of the best times of the year to visit Kargil. The sun shines bright and keeps the day temperatures warm. Also, do remember that the sun here has the intensity to turn your skin dark for travellers who don’t apply a strong (with a 50+ SPF) sunscreen.
July to September: These constitute the monsoon months in Kargil starting from late July till end of August. Sometimes, there are landslides and cloud bursts. September onwards, a kind of chill sets in Kargil but the sun keeps shining.
October to February: People don’t prefer to travel to Kargil during the winter months from November to February as the temperature can drop down to as low as -42 degree Celsius. Apart from the chilly weather, some of the roads are generally closed in the winter months.
Off Season
Kargil Ladakh is a beautiful destination that has a different charm in all seasons.
Try it out next season

Peak Season
Most of the travellers prefer summer months starting from April to June to visit Kargil. Here’s a monthly breakup of Kargil’s climatic conditions so you can plan when to go:
April to June: April to June is one of the best times of the year to visit Kargil. The sun shines bright and keeps the day temperatures warm. Also, do remember that the sun here has the intensity to turn your skin dark for travellers who don’t apply a strong (with a 50+ SPF) sunscreen.
July to September: These constitute the monsoon months in Kargil starting from late July till end of August. Sometimes, there are landslides and cloud bursts. September onwards, a kind of chill sets in Kargil but the sun keeps shining.
October to February: People don’t prefer to travel to Kargil during the winter months from November to February as the temperature can drop down to as low as -42 degree Celsius. Apart from the chilly weather, some of the roads are generally closed in the winter months.
Off Season
Kargil Ladakh is a beautiful destination that has a different charm in all seasons.
Try it out next season

**krishna77** · 11-09-2015, 05:56 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip

Kargil has something special in it. Always.
Nice pictures!

Sent from my Xperia L.

**Asiaticus** · 11-09-2015, 07:06 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip

Originally posted by krishna77 View Post

Kargil has something special in it. Always.
Nice pictures!

Sent from my Xperia L.

Thank you. Indeed. The place was mesmerising !

**sunilg** · 11-16-2015, 12:50 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip

These are some of the most beautiful pictures that I've seen this week

Thanks for sharing [MENTION=79941]Asiaticus[/MENTION]

It must have been a life changing experience for you! I hope you'll start liking the country once this ride is over

p.s.: Now following you on your FB page.

**saikarthik** · 11-16-2015, 03:19 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip

Great Pics and awesome touring.. continue posting awesome pics.

**amrit_neo** · 11-16-2015, 09:32 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip

lovely photographs, waiting for more.

**itsmevini123** · 11-17-2015, 01:23 PM

Re: The Great Indian Road Trip

Amazing ride and equally beautiful pictures

Announcement

The Great Indian Road Trip

The Great Indian Road Trip

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment