Nio, although it is very obvious that your statement was meant for Aryan but in future please specify, woh kya hai ki at times I feel that my foto shotoz are also going good and people are asking for my expert advice.

Thanks for those good words guys

Aryan....that 'One Vehicle' rule is for heavy vehicles. The board visible in your pic of the Kassang bridge states that it is a class 18R bridge..which means it can handle axle loads even beyond 20 odd tonnes. Imagine how many motorcycles you'd need to cross that 'safety' load limit

I better not take any chances Old Fox sir.

Aryan, are you sure that we both were on the same trip..... I mean your pics are simply out of this world and am not sure if I have seen these things that are there on the slide. and yes, not to forget, I salute your riding skills.
@all: with no offense meant to anyone, I would like to say that I would anytime prefer to ride alone then to have a hooligan behind me as a company. Aryan on the contrary, had been one of the most co-operative and wonderful rider. he always used to maintain a safe distance, but was great enough to cope up with my erratic speeds. also, he was no complains about me riding fast or what ever. also, he was the sweeper, but each time he over took me for an instance or two, I had to ride for another 30 odd minutes to be ahead of him. He is just a magician in hills, taking the twisties so gradually as if he is playing Ludo...hehehehehehe

Thanks for those kind words DCS. I am flattered.

Ha Ha!

Pity about the Stetson. Looks really good on you!

Good for you. A dream realised!

This was one of the most hilarious things of the entire trip!!!





I know Ken where you are coming from. but that was Rude.... I know am loosing hair, but see the brighter aspect of it...am gaining Face..... why should I hide my Chaudaween ka Chand underneath a Stetson or any other cap for that matter. heheheheheheheh

waisey on a serious note, I would not mind getting one as a gift from you....heheheheheh once again!!!

I don't believe you posted it! We laughed our hearts out reading this sign at Kaza.

talk about Himachal people being so simple and straight. nobody dared to rub that off, no body did that thing there, but they made sure they all took a leak over there...it was never mentioned that one can not pee ove there....but all in all, it was just truly amazingly funny!




take a look at the wonderful Helmets. they sure were there to protect!!!




Aryan's Chain of Photostudio, which was formally inaugurated by the Poser Babe! heheheheh (Pic @ Kalpa)

I seriously meant it. You do look good. Hair or not!

About the Stetson as a gift to you... are you serious?

Loved Aryan's photo studio.

Day:4 - Tabo - Kaza

Day-4: Tabo - Attargo - Kungri (Monastery) - Attargo - Lingti Village - Kaza

Highlights of the Day:

1. Riding through the beautiful Pin Valley with the Pin River (tributary of the Spiti River) following all through.
2. Reaching our final destination of the Spiti ride - Kaza.
3. DCS giving his visiting card to the tea stall owner at Lingti Village!

We did not have much distance to cover on this day, as we just needed to reach Kaza which was less than a hundred kilometres from Tabo. A hundred kilometres might not sound much when it comes to the plains, but in the hills and with almost no roads for the major part, it was to take us quite some time.

Early morning in Tabo.






We started early morning from Tabo after checking our bikes, lubing the chain and setting our respective luggage bags on our machines. My P-200 was making a strange noise since day-3 and I was unable to make out what was wrong with the machine. It seemed to run just fine, so I was pretty sure it wasn't the mill that was the culprit. However, just before departing from Tabo, I did find out the source of the noise. The nut of the left side leg guard had fallen off somewhere because of which it was bouncing off of the chassis each time the bike went over some pothole or rocky terrain. And since the whole route was rocky and filled with potholes (small and large), this sound continued for the whole way.


It was very chilly when we started out towards Kaza. If I remember correctly, we were onroad by 7:15am or thereabouts. The sun had already risen and the warm sunlight was really comforting for us. But, there were certain places where sunlight could not reach. And hence riding through those portions were really a challenge. It was really cold. For probably, the first time in the entire ride, we could see snow really up-close, especially on those parts where sun rays were not able to melt the snow.

We were riding merrily on the rocky terrain, when we saw a diversion that read 'Pin Valley - 17kms.' and without even giving it a second thought, we crossed the bridge and started riding towards the Pin Valley. I had read and gathered quite some information regarding this valley, which is famously known as the 'Land of Ibex and Snow Leopard'. Although, we weren't lucky enough to see either, but the sheer beauty of the valley bowled us over. Once in Pin Valley, we visited the monastery there, known as the Gungri monastery. The whole place is absolutely out of this world, with the Pin river keeping you company wherever you go. The views were magnificient, and all one could hear if the engines were turned off was the flow of the river down below.

Pin Valley.





























The Gungri monastery is one of the oldest Buddhist monastic establishments in the Pin Valley. It belongs to the red-headed division called the 'Nyingmapa' or the Old School, which was launched by Padmasambhava, the benefactor saint of the Buddhists. He had established the Mahayana Tantric Buddhism here offset of the 8th century. There are a few other monasteries that are located near-by the Gungri monastery, namely, the Tabo Monastery, Kye Monastery, Kibber Monastery, Sichling and Dhankar Monastery.

The Gungri Monastery at Pin Valley.











There were many small villages enroute, where locals would wave at us and we would inturn wave back at them. It was a really heartwarming experience to see and talk to the locals even. Knowing that our final destination, Kaza, was not too far, we spent a considerable amount of time at the monastery sipping hot tea in the ice cold weather, and talking to the lamas present there. A host of pictures clicked, tea sipped and after relaxing there, we started our journey way back towards the main road which would take us towards Kaza.

Just before Kaza, we stopped for another cup of tea at a small village with about 150 inhabitants, known as the Lingti Village. The Lingti Village lies in the Lingti Valley of the Spiti District of Himachal Pradesh. It runs north-east from the Lingti village for about 60 odd kilometres to it's head. It is interesting to note that the geological history of the place dates back to an amazing 250 million years. The fossil findings in the place have lead to many geological theories. The Gaya Peak which is incidentally the highest peak in Himachal Pradesh, is located high above the northern side of the Lingti Valley. This peak is also the meeting point of Spiti, Ladakh and Tibet.

The locals there were amazed to know that we had come on motorbikes all the way from Delhi just to visit the Spiti Valley. For them, the valley might not hold anything interesting or unknown, but for us urban dwellers, it is and will remain a different world altogether; a world so unexplored and untouched by anything. DCS also managed to give the tea stall owner his visiting card, and assured him of the fact that if he visits Delhi anytime, he should ring him and visit him, and DCS would make the tea stall owner's Delhi visit worthwhile. I do not have a visiting card, so I could only give him a smile and thanked him for the wonderful cup of tea before moving ahead.

Eventually, all through this Spiti ride, we also discovered an interesting fact. We found out slowly, but surely that the locals are so straight forward and simple that they take the jokes that we might make, seriously. This did happen quite a few times during the whole trip, after which we learned that it's better to be straight forward with them than to hurt their feelings in the process of having some fun.

After our tea break, which turned out to be quite a long one, we moved on towards Kaza. Now, for the uninitiated, the town of Kaza is the capital of remote Spiti valley. It is located along the Spiti River (which is pronounced at Piti river by the locals) at an elevation of 12,500 feet or 3,800 metres above Mean Sea Level (MSI). It is also the largest township and commercial center of the valley. It also fortunately for us, had one petrol pump where we were supposed to fill up the tanks of our respective machines the next day (Sunday). But, this was a mistake which almost cost us dearly. More about that later though...

As soon as we reached Kaza, I noticed that I was having a little trouble breathing. Perhaps, it was mild AMS or something psychological, but surely I was having a tough time breathing in and breathing out. DCS was also having a little headache. We both took a tablet of Disprin each which made us feel a little better, but the breathing problem would continue till the time I would be there at Kaza.

Kaza































Next - We visit the Kye Monastery and arguably the highest motorable village in the world - Kibber.

This was the best set man. I actually have no words to describe what I feel. The closest I can says is I wish I was there right now. I don't know if we can live there for, say, an entire life after being used to the luxuries of this modern world, which are of course good. But, surely one can imagine how it was used to be in the ancient world when people lived freely without needing to worry when I have to pay my bills, get bikes serviced and receive salary related SMSes .

Anyways, the shots are superb and the text too is incredible. Lovely stuff.

congratulations brothers for a marvelous trip u had there!!



@dcs sir:- what was tht? it is a like a spill way water outlet of a dam isnt it?
and aryan is standing so close to tht massive water flow, i guess the water with so much of velocity is sounds
like nethng.

I have to say. Stunning Pics Aryan Sir And DCS Sir.

WOW!! And the way you too have narrated the story I actually felt being there with you.

Hearty Congrats to both of you for achieving this.

These lines said it all. I couldn't help but imagine the river noise once engines are off. The best part till now, thats for me !!
Needless to say.... narration is spot on & speaks volumes of your vocabulary and knack of writing. Pics are.... sorry no words. Just enjoying them.

That's interesting. They are following that writing anyways. I liked that helmet for the fact that it can be used for carrying eggs (protecting head is distant). What about that GORA- GORI incident..... detail plz??