Bike tour in India
Discussion
Haven't done a bike tour there but have visited several times. I've seen the driving, you must have balls of steel! All my visits have been late autumn or winter and the temperatures have been pleasant, high 20s or low 30s. If you're up high in the Western Ghatts or somewhere early in the morning it might drop as low as 15.
Sounds like an awesome trip, it's an amazing country. If and when you do it please post pics here!
Sounds like an awesome trip, it's an amazing country. If and when you do it please post pics here!
Went to school with the lady in the pic,she had never sat on a bike till 6 months ago. She met a keen rider and is currently on a trip in India riding pillion. She posted this pic 2 days ago on her Facebook page along with some spectacular videos taken whilst riding pillion on some mountain passes.
From a few days in Delhi and then on the bike tour she seems to be loving every minute
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I did a 2 week trip in 2008.
Go after the monsoon, late October/November.
Trip was organised, 20-odd participants & 2 guides. There was also a backup minibus with 2 mechanics. We rode 150 to 200 miles/day & rode mostly through the foothills of the Himalayas.
Absolutely spectacular, although some seriously sketchy/dangerous roads! Potholes like you've never imagined, lowest driving standards I have EVER encountered & riding through cities was a cheek clenching affair.
Be super careful about what you eat & drink, but just do it! One of the most memorable trips I ever did
Go after the monsoon, late October/November.
Trip was organised, 20-odd participants & 2 guides. There was also a backup minibus with 2 mechanics. We rode 150 to 200 miles/day & rode mostly through the foothills of the Himalayas.
Absolutely spectacular, although some seriously sketchy/dangerous roads! Potholes like you've never imagined, lowest driving standards I have EVER encountered & riding through cities was a cheek clenching affair.
Be super careful about what you eat & drink, but just do it! One of the most memorable trips I ever did
Edited by Biker 1 on Wednesday 14th August 07:35
Watching ‘Itchy Boots’ recently, her first real foray into youtube videos, was a trip in Asia, Season 1, Episode 1 – 16, were in India (l think), mostly short 5 – 10 min videos. Still an insight, she used a Royal Enfield Himalayan
I’m not going to give advice as to the choice of bike or how to go about facilitating it, but it’s an area that requires very careful consideration.
On the road, expect the unexpected to be very unexpected, don’t ride after dark or in inclement conditions, fog, mist, monsoon, etc. if at all, avoidable.
Be very careful, what you eat and drink, yes I know it sounds like a well exaggerated troupe, it’s not. Personally I would always make sure I have adequate water, from a trusted source and only eat vegetarian (no hardship) all though vegetarian is no guarantee, it does reduce the risk.
I’m sure many people will contribute, with much more in-depth insight; I hope you get to do it and share your experience on here.
I’m not going to give advice as to the choice of bike or how to go about facilitating it, but it’s an area that requires very careful consideration.
On the road, expect the unexpected to be very unexpected, don’t ride after dark or in inclement conditions, fog, mist, monsoon, etc. if at all, avoidable.
Be very careful, what you eat and drink, yes I know it sounds like a well exaggerated troupe, it’s not. Personally I would always make sure I have adequate water, from a trusted source and only eat vegetarian (no hardship) all though vegetarian is no guarantee, it does reduce the risk.
I’m sure many people will contribute, with much more in-depth insight; I hope you get to do it and share your experience on here.
Just to add: we did the trip on Royal Enfield Bullet 500s. Tough as old boots, but gearchange was on the right & top speed was less than 60mph. Mechanics did a daily service, including chain lube & cleaning. Multiple breakdowns, including a frame fracture that was welded by the side of the road in 20 minutes flat for about 10p from a local!
The other thing to be really careful about is animals all over the roads, including monkeys, cows & the odd snake.
The other thing to be really careful about is animals all over the roads, including monkeys, cows & the odd snake.
If you're looking for a Himalaya trip, I've been twice and going back again next year. It's much easier than you might think, and you don't necessarily need a tour, depends how independent you are.
First time, I flew to Delhi and rented a bike from Stonehead bikes, rode it up to Leh via Srinagar and Kargil. Very easy, you can even use Waze/Google maps and booking.com for hotels. Food is mostly veggie and fantastic, people are really friendly and helpful, you stop at road side cafes called Dhabas to eat and drink. You can get a lunch or small dinner for £2.50 and breakfast from a street vendor even in Delhi is only £1. Petrol stations are the same as here except there's somebody to do it for you. Cash machines are available just like here.
Riding up via the Punjab and the Kashmir Valley was probably one of the best rides I've ever done. You get to Leh and book a hotel either by walking in and asking or use booking.com if you fancy paying a bit more.
To ride up Khardung La which is the high pass 24 miles from Leh you need a blue Taxi Union ticket which you get with a hire bike in Leh, or you can go right from Leh and ride round the other way (one route is via Warila Pass in the picture somebody posted above), heading up to Nubra valley and turn left to go up Khardung La where no ticket is required in that direction.
From Leh you can ride to Hanle, stay overnight and then attempt Umling La as it's now open to foreign tourists. Pangong Tso is just stunning, you can stay overnight in a hut, electricity is cut off at 8pm so take a torch. There are so many places to visit, The Hole, More Plains, various other passes, villages etc. You can then come back via Leh Manali highway (it's not a highway, it's part asphalt and part farmers track with rivers) which takes you right out in the middle of really nowhere, terrible road conditions depending on weather and if they're been running trucks up there recently. Then back via Manali, to Delhi.
Or last September I flew to Delhi, had a few days there then flew to Leh and rented a bike for 10 days from one of the many bike hire shops, look at for example shops on Fort road or Old Leh road, plenty of choice, about £17 a day. for a Himalayan. Renting is easy, pay a small deposit or if you get the bike from a friend of the hotel manager no deposit, pay the 10 days upfront and off you go. Insurance is included but useless.
You need to visit a travel agent on your first day there to get an inner line permit - costs £6.50, give the agent the money and your passport and you then get the permit and 5 or 6 copies, you show these at the police checkpoints and they may take one or may not, hence copies. Takes a day to get the permit, it's just a formality. I used Ancient Tracks just opposite the Leh Market area, also used by the tour operators.
Technically only Indian residents from Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh can buy a SIM that works in that area, but the AirTel shop at the back of the Leh market will sell you one for £6.50 a SIM with 3GB data/day, lasts a month and gives reasonable coverage in Leh and when you're near other towns and some villages.
I'd recommend acclimatising in Leh before you go on, for a few days. I spent I think 4 days there before running a 5k fun run and it's tough at 3500m.
There is lots to see, the old Leh Palace, there's a museum and plenty of shops and restaurants with all variety of Indian and Chinese food plus Tibetan. Leh is an Indian tourist destination, so compare it to a ski village in France - everything is more expensive, especially cashmere and things your parents might buy. You can buy some great Yak leather goods, you'll see Yaks grazing on the way to Pangong Tso.
Really good channel to watch is https://www.youtube.com/@KarlRock
I'd recommend it to anybody, just be nice, Indian people are so friendly and helpful you'll never be stuck and all the hotel managers know everybody so if you want a tour or a trip to see something or just a recommendation for a good meal, they will know and even book it for you. Just make sure you have very good travel insurance !
First time, I flew to Delhi and rented a bike from Stonehead bikes, rode it up to Leh via Srinagar and Kargil. Very easy, you can even use Waze/Google maps and booking.com for hotels. Food is mostly veggie and fantastic, people are really friendly and helpful, you stop at road side cafes called Dhabas to eat and drink. You can get a lunch or small dinner for £2.50 and breakfast from a street vendor even in Delhi is only £1. Petrol stations are the same as here except there's somebody to do it for you. Cash machines are available just like here.
Riding up via the Punjab and the Kashmir Valley was probably one of the best rides I've ever done. You get to Leh and book a hotel either by walking in and asking or use booking.com if you fancy paying a bit more.
To ride up Khardung La which is the high pass 24 miles from Leh you need a blue Taxi Union ticket which you get with a hire bike in Leh, or you can go right from Leh and ride round the other way (one route is via Warila Pass in the picture somebody posted above), heading up to Nubra valley and turn left to go up Khardung La where no ticket is required in that direction.
From Leh you can ride to Hanle, stay overnight and then attempt Umling La as it's now open to foreign tourists. Pangong Tso is just stunning, you can stay overnight in a hut, electricity is cut off at 8pm so take a torch. There are so many places to visit, The Hole, More Plains, various other passes, villages etc. You can then come back via Leh Manali highway (it's not a highway, it's part asphalt and part farmers track with rivers) which takes you right out in the middle of really nowhere, terrible road conditions depending on weather and if they're been running trucks up there recently. Then back via Manali, to Delhi.
Or last September I flew to Delhi, had a few days there then flew to Leh and rented a bike for 10 days from one of the many bike hire shops, look at for example shops on Fort road or Old Leh road, plenty of choice, about £17 a day. for a Himalayan. Renting is easy, pay a small deposit or if you get the bike from a friend of the hotel manager no deposit, pay the 10 days upfront and off you go. Insurance is included but useless.
You need to visit a travel agent on your first day there to get an inner line permit - costs £6.50, give the agent the money and your passport and you then get the permit and 5 or 6 copies, you show these at the police checkpoints and they may take one or may not, hence copies. Takes a day to get the permit, it's just a formality. I used Ancient Tracks just opposite the Leh Market area, also used by the tour operators.
Technically only Indian residents from Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh can buy a SIM that works in that area, but the AirTel shop at the back of the Leh market will sell you one for £6.50 a SIM with 3GB data/day, lasts a month and gives reasonable coverage in Leh and when you're near other towns and some villages.
I'd recommend acclimatising in Leh before you go on, for a few days. I spent I think 4 days there before running a 5k fun run and it's tough at 3500m.
There is lots to see, the old Leh Palace, there's a museum and plenty of shops and restaurants with all variety of Indian and Chinese food plus Tibetan. Leh is an Indian tourist destination, so compare it to a ski village in France - everything is more expensive, especially cashmere and things your parents might buy. You can buy some great Yak leather goods, you'll see Yaks grazing on the way to Pangong Tso.
Really good channel to watch is https://www.youtube.com/@KarlRock
I'd recommend it to anybody, just be nice, Indian people are so friendly and helpful you'll never be stuck and all the hotel managers know everybody so if you want a tour or a trip to see something or just a recommendation for a good meal, they will know and even book it for you. Just make sure you have very good travel insurance !
KTMsm said:
SteveKTMer said:
Lots of useful stuff
Thanks, really tempted to give it a goDid you ride by yourself?
I'd go in September, it's hot any time of year but September is cooler than most and very little rain. Ladakh is in a rain shadow so hardly any rain up there.
You don't need breakdown insurance, not that there is any, just flag down somebody and they will know somebody who will take you in a truck to a mechanic who will be able to fix anything, especially flat tyres, probably cost £20.
The bike shop told me that if I have an accident, offer some cash and ride away as soon as possible, it's how it's done apparantly.
I’ll echo everything SteveKTM posted.
I’ve been to India a couple of times in 2019 & 2022. Both times on self-organised trips with my adult sons & friends. We flew into Delhi, rented a car & drove around to places like Shimla, Amritsar, Agra etc. the highlight for me on both trips, however, was the Manali to Leh Highway.
An epic 2 day trip, starting with the Rohtang Pass (not necessary now as the Altai tunnel is now open, but still worth the trip over) then up into the high Himalayas over some of the highest motorable passes in the world.
Leh is a beutiful town with a different vibe to other parts of India & on our last trip, a mate & I rented Royal Enfield Himalayans for a couple of days, rode over Khardung La & stayed overnight at Pangong Lake. The mountains are like nothing else on earth, with high desert plateaus & deep rocky valleys. The short bike trip was a highlight of an already epic trip. We decided we needed to do a proper bike trip.
So the two of us are flying out again in mid-September for 2 weeks, but flying direct to Leh this time. After an acclimatisation day (Leh sits at 3500m above sea level), we’re off on a 10 day bike trip to the Nubra Valley, Pangong Lake, Hanle & the Umling La pass then on to Kargil & a loop of the Zanskar Valley.
As previously mentioned, it’s easy to organise your own itinerary, bike rental is cheap (as is bike repair, as we discovered after I fell off!) & locals are absolutely lovely. I can’t recommend India enough & I know this won’t be my last trip there.
I’ve been to India a couple of times in 2019 & 2022. Both times on self-organised trips with my adult sons & friends. We flew into Delhi, rented a car & drove around to places like Shimla, Amritsar, Agra etc. the highlight for me on both trips, however, was the Manali to Leh Highway.
An epic 2 day trip, starting with the Rohtang Pass (not necessary now as the Altai tunnel is now open, but still worth the trip over) then up into the high Himalayas over some of the highest motorable passes in the world.
Leh is a beutiful town with a different vibe to other parts of India & on our last trip, a mate & I rented Royal Enfield Himalayans for a couple of days, rode over Khardung La & stayed overnight at Pangong Lake. The mountains are like nothing else on earth, with high desert plateaus & deep rocky valleys. The short bike trip was a highlight of an already epic trip. We decided we needed to do a proper bike trip.
So the two of us are flying out again in mid-September for 2 weeks, but flying direct to Leh this time. After an acclimatisation day (Leh sits at 3500m above sea level), we’re off on a 10 day bike trip to the Nubra Valley, Pangong Lake, Hanle & the Umling La pass then on to Kargil & a loop of the Zanskar Valley.
As previously mentioned, it’s easy to organise your own itinerary, bike rental is cheap (as is bike repair, as we discovered after I fell off!) & locals are absolutely lovely. I can’t recommend India enough & I know this won’t be my last trip there.
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