By Ramneek
Day 1 Delhi to Chandigarh
Started this ride on 25 Oct 2020 which was the day of Dussehra, I was on a solo ride fully geared up. I started in the afternoon around 3 pm and that time I get to know my newly installed one fog light is not working, so what!!! I am all set to go with one fog lamp. And the journey begins from Mukarba Chowk Delhi which connects us to GT Karnal highway via Delhi-Haryana-Punjab-Himachal and so on.
Road constructions, diversions, traffic all on the way but that’s fine, I was focused on my safe ride. When I crossed Panipat, I started riding at good speed because after Panipat road conditions are extremely smooth till Ambala-Chandigarh. Riding at a speed of 130 km per hour I felt something fishy. I reached Karnal toll plaza when my bike engine was smoking like hell. I decided to get engine oil changed instantly but unfortunately, I didn’t get motor engine oil on the highway so I decided to ride at constant and decent speed now.
Now it was around 6:30 pm and the roads were dark enough. And guess what the other fog lamp also stopped. But I was still on. Its 8 pm and I touched Zikarpur. Happy to see my brother there and well spent night.
Day 2 – Zikarpur-Manali
Started around 11 am, a tank full and left Zikarpur for Manali, enjoying the infinite beauty on the way which was almost 305 km from Zikarpur. Due to navigation issues, I reached a highway which was going to Shimla instead of Manali. Glad the local people out there routed me to the correct direction for which I had to go back 15 km.
However, due to this navigation issue, I had to choose the inner way to reach Mandi-Manali highway. This route was very narrow and very slow. Hence I was unable to ride fast. Asking people all the way was a good exposure though. This slow riding is always very tiring somehow, I managed to ride, stopped at a dhaba on the go, had coffee, met some riders there who were also riding the Delhi-Manali route.
The freezing weather made me increase the layers of clothes I was wearing. Now, this road ended 10 km before Bhuntar, approaching the wonderful 4 lane highway on the splendid Parvati valley hills. Geared up all again a speed of 100+. This highway on the hills made me finally reach Manali in the next 2 hours, though I was now in a very bad condition – totally tired as this day was indeed hectic.
Day-3 Manali-Atal Tunnel-Kasol-Tosh
So this day 27 Oct 2020, the morning view from the hotel in Manali was full of motivation and I was going to Atal Rohtang tunnel today which is the longest tunnel in the world on this high altitude connecting you to Lahaul district is hardly 15-20 minutes. It saves one whole day if you are travelling towards Leh-Ladakh or any place nearby.
Now I started my ride towards Atal tunnel which is only 24 km away from Manali. I went there, the police stopped me, they turned my Go Pros off and I entered the tunnel. It was such an amazing experience riding on such a high altitude. After 20 minutes, I crossed the tunnel and the view changed; I was on more height now and it was freezing at 12 pm with a high wind speed.
I then came back to Manali at 3 pm, I got my luggage; tied them on my bike and left towards Kasol which is around 80 km from Manali. I reached Kasol around 5:30 in the evening and left some luggage there at my friend’s café and one of my friends joined my ride from here on. We went to Manikaran and got my puncture fixed. After a whole day of riding almost 110 km, I left for Tosh which is around 17 km from Manikaran. We reached Tosh around 8 pm, had great food and said our goodnight.
Day 4 – Tosh to Barshaini parking-Kheerganga
So my day started with a very amazing view as compared to Manali. We left Tosh around 10:30 in the morning and reached Barshaini at 11, did some shopping, had an energy drink and Maggi and carried a lot of chocolates and water for trekking. It was so beautiful when we started our trek to Kheerganga – a bridge on Parvati valley with positive vibes around the starting 4-5 km was easy for me till Nakthan village as I am a travel enthusiast. I am always ready to face new challenges.
After Nakthan, both the beauty and the danger increased. I reached Rudranag temple after 7 km of trekking, worshipped there, saw an amazing view with 2 bridges and 2 waterfalls. Till now everything was good but the trek started getting steeper, tougher with more height. Parvati river was all along with us the entire way, deep gorge at one side and slippery road. It was confusing where to step and walk, we were not scared and tired because both of us were carrying heavy luggage.
I suggest carry only essentials and a small bag, you don’t have a network there and there are arrow signs made on trees so that you can recognize the way otherwise you will end up getting lost in the valley and you may never come back. We did that last 5 km trek too and reached Kheerganga at 5:45 in the evening. We took 5 hours to reach and now it was dark. I could see the moon and the view I always dreamt of. We rented a tent, ate good food at night had a chill session with locals out there and slept.
TO BE CONTINUED…
The author is a 21-year-old biking enthusiast from Delhi, and winner of KTM ORANGE DAY races in DUKE 200 CC category each year from 2016 -19 which were held in Delhi and NCR.
