RAMBLE IN THE--- PANGI VALLEY---INDIAN HIMALAYAS.

'Rugged grandeur and austere beauty' -Indian Himalayas.

 Pangi is stunning in its rugged grandeur and austere beauty located in the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh in the lower range of Dhauladhar Himalayan ranges. The scenery of high Himalayan green pasture is sublime and imposing and nature appears in her wildest and grandest moods. Everything is on a stupendous scale. The great river rolls along in a deep and narrow gorge, lashing itself into fury, sandwiched between adamant cliffs that confine it. Precipices spring from the brink in places almost perpendicular to a height of 1,000 to 2,000 feet. On the lower ranges are grassy slopes of rich pasture with dense forests of pine and cedar, while higher up the stern and majestic mountains attaining an altitude from 18,000 to 21,000 feet rising far above the line of eternal snow. But all this is not rugged and sublimity and naked beauty. Every few miles the traveler reaches tolerably open nooks of surpassing beauty, which may have been small lakes in some gone by age, while the river was cutting its course.By Dr. J. Hutchinson. 

Want to spend nights under millions stars, while resting heads in middle of nowhere in the Himalayas, if you are board of riding the regular Indian roads and want to take your Royal Enfield to the worse of road conditions and ride the extreme gravels, than that might be "Pangi Valley".
we have been riding there since last couple of years, particularly in Autumn as the Summer and Monsoon seasons would be foggy and rain causes the landslides and road can remain blocked many days, therefore to avoid this hassle. Autumn is best to ride there.  

Road condition gets worse after Udaipur town, sky touching mountains are cut through to connect the remotest villages of the Himalayas with road. One side is sheer drop to the ragging white water river Çhandra-Baga whilst one side is the tallest mountain of Himalayas. There isn't much on the way, therefore camping is the best option to spend overnights while ventureing Pangi. 

 

 

On our guided motorcycle trip, we are followed by our back-up Van crew, they ensure to fix up any breakdowns and carry all our camping gears and food. We light camp fire every night and share booze while our kitchen crews ensure a five stars meal, every night you will have a new story to tell. 

This ride through pristine Pangi valley commence right from Manali and ride roll through Lahul valley while negotiating zigzagging Rohtang pass road plunge into Pangi. Riding the most thrilling roads up to Sach pass and stunning lush green Chamba valley will absolutely leave you speechless. Endless winding roads compose endless memories and a camaraderie on adventure for lifetime.  

Trans-himalayan "Roof of the world" Ride.

The land is so barren, the mountain passes are so high, only the best of friends or the fiercest enemies would visit us. Ladakhi prverb.

So true, this ride between Manali-Leh is one of the most visited routes in Indian Himalayas, this great adventure commence from Manali, located in northern India. Road between Manali-Leh was built during 60s, its just hard to imagine the road conditions on the high mountains passes, and what astonish most is the road labors working at the elevation of 5,000meters to maintain the road.   Road to Ladakh itself is an adventure and riding motorcycle to reach there is a hard-work too, riding through five high passes and rough roads, the hue of high snow-capped mountain passes and overnight in the camps in middle of nowhere next to turquoise clear crystal clear water Lakes will be a mind-blowing experience.

A solo ride may be the right choice but if you want to have an hassle free motorcycle experience, than joining a group would be the wise decision, you will be riding in middle of nowhere, as you gain the altitude the oxygen level drops down and you will struggle to breath, altitude sickness is something that you need to watch out.

The arid landscapes and high pastures are home for Himalayan fauna, riding through the ancient Tibetan nomadic settlements while visiting Buddhist monasteries will be indeed an unique experience to have on this epic adventure. Tackling outrageous roads which challenges your zest for adventure will definitely be accomplished with this adventure.
This legendary road was once the bartering trail among Tibetan and Indian traders, Leh town was the halt of "Silk route caravan"while traveling from China to across Asia. Various facial  features of local inhabitants describes the history of silk route era. 

while venturing on Manali- Leh road, don't expect luxury rather prepare yourself  for harsh climate and living conditions. There isn't much up there on the way. Everything you will see on the road is temporary settled for 4/5 months of tourist season. Tents are clean with attached toilet but you will still want to use your personal sleeping bag for your own comfort.  This ride checks your patience in every ways. You will wonder sometime what most of the riders do, "why I m here" and you won't find the answer until you are not back home and will rest your head on your old pillow!!

Into The Thin Air

Riding in the shadow of 8,000meters high mountains is no more a dream, we just got back after two weeks ride from Nepal. Where we've been riding around Annapurna mountains and we took less traveled tracks  through some of the most impressive sights of high Himalayan settlements. we spent few days sightseeing the monuments around Kathmandu and two days at Pokhra. The real thrill of our Nepal adventure lies up in the high mountainous roads. Where we ride all gravels and hairpins on Royal Enfield bullet 500cc.

waking up next to a giant snow-capped mountain in the wild Himalayas and riding in their shadows is something common on this adventure, morning and evening can be a bit chilly and during the night temperature drops down to minus, the weather condition changes faster than the eye blink. Therefore an appropriate riding gear is must to pack on your traveling bag. 

One must have off road skills before you come on this adventure with us, sometime there is no road where we ride, we just follow the tracks of big trucks and local buses.

Every single curve offers a stunning view and you would be probably stopping after every 10 minutes to capture these wonderful moments on ride. People you will come across in the small villages are amazing and very generous toward the tourist. It can be fun to stop by the villages and handover some candies to the kids.  

Lower regions of Nepal are lush green while higher regions are arid and semi-arid, varies as per the altitude. highest we ride on our Nepal adventure is 3,500meters.  

 We fly in and out from/to Kathmandu. This is an amazing two weeks adventure through some of the highlights of Nepal, riding from the plain of Thari to the highest region of Mustang. we run two rides there every year, from 1st March to 15th and 1st November to 15th November.
if you are keen to experience Nepal on motorcycle, come with us, or you can even join one of our fixed departure dates, if you are traveling with friends and have a set date to travel with can tailor your tour for you as well. Drop us an email for any further information info@motorcycleexpeditions.com
 

Spiti Valley Adventure.

Spiti valley is located at the elevation of 3,500meters in the northern India on Indo-Tibet frontier, this tiny Tibetan nomadic settlement is the most remotest yet authentic Buddhist land in the heart of mighty Himalayas.
Thousand years old Buddhist monasteries and lunar landscape rugged valley and white washed Stupas (Buddhist Shrines) are the most fascinating sights in Spiti valley.

 

•  Spiti valley is one of the most less traveled regions on Indian sub-continent. Just like the road between Manali-Leh, it's open for 5 months of the year. Its not advised to travel there during the rain as the loose terrain keeps sliding and causes sometimes major landslides. Any riders heading to venture Spiti valley must acquire off-road skill.  

• The high pastures of Spiti and Lahul are the home for Himalayan Shepherds, on your ride they may cause the heavy traffic.

• We are heading back to ride Spiti valley in November with an Italian team. we have got 7 riders on board and expecting few more riders on board. get in touch with us on info@motorcycleexpeditions.com and we will send you the details.