Posted by omvaikul on Oct 29, 2011 in
Spiti Valley Trip Log 2011 8th August, 2011
The day had perfect start to it. Before even brushing I got loose motions. Don’t know how to move on today and to add more things to it, rain started pouring in at Kaza.
So now we had to wait till the weather Gods come in our favour.
I till then took some medicines and got rest everything done. Packing, checking out, bill… stuff like that.
In an hour the skies got little clear and the rain also stopped. We had also finished our breakfast here so it was now time to move on.
It was close to 9am ones we exited Kaza.
The air around was still quite cold so we took one break at the first village we came across for tea and coffee. The place also had a clean loo and by the weather I think by loose motion froze inside 
Anahita bought some chocolates for the local kids and they happily posed with our bikes.
It was time to move on to Losar now.
But before we reached Losar we came across a stream and stream crossing in this cold weather is just what you need to get your heart beating fast. Super fasttttt….
Getting my feet wet so early morning was not something I had anticipated. But I think my body is used to it by now.
We reached Losar, removed our shoes and had some bite here. The usual stuff, maggi and eggs and thin soup.
By 1am we crossed Losar after making the entries in the register. Took some photos as this is the entrance of Spiti Valley if you are coming from Manali side.
Here onwards the road started to gain a little height. There was no drop in performance but as I was on low gears the low coolant thing was an issue. So I took more breaks and we reached the Kunzum top in 45mins to an hour.
Took some photos here and immediately started heading downhill to the Chandratal junction.
In less than 30mins we were 5kms before Batal where a turn takes you to Chandra Tal in about 10-12kms. And the road is not just narrow but some curves are blind and very much on the edge.
One mistake can be very fatal. So we rode very carefully. And to our luck in just 2kms we got one of the biggest streams I have seen on this trip.
Crossing it took a while as it was not very straight. And at the end the road quickly goes up so you can’t even take a breather as you go across.
After covering this obstacle, the rest of the patch was mostly downhill. And in couple of kms we were on flat road.
Ones we reached the North face tent stay we went in and checked out the place and price. Also what all they give for wind protection and the cold in the night.
But then thought of just checking out how far the road goes and till where we can get the bikes near the lake. Also if there were more tents ahead.
We came at a point where the bikes couldn’t go ahead. So now we were confused whether to go back and trek in the morning….or skip the place and head to Batal directly as it was quite freezing out here. The winds were running quite strong.
After a big argument and debate we decided to check in to those North face tent, have some food and come back at this point. Park our bikes at the start of the trek and hike all the way to the lake.
All packed.
Now the bigger problem was that we didn’t know how far exactly is the lake from this point. When you know some distance I think the hike becomes little easy. Its like you know where you have to it.
But we were walking in blank.
And the first couple of kms were quite up hill. The ascent was slowing us very much.
We took many breaks as possible to catch a breath. And the joke was that as soon as a small mountain use to come by we were believing the lake must be just behind it.
In this way I think we covered 4-5 hills, but no lake in sight.
Finally after an hour the first sight of the lake hit our eyes.
I noticed in this season Yes its possible to get the bikes all the way to the lake. We did cross a bulldozer who was at work, trying to make this possible.
We took n number of shots here.
Chandertal is really quite scenic. You can actually tent here and stay if you are carrying all the equipment you need to sustain for a night.
As we started to see the light fading away we decided now its time to head back to the tents.
Return was fast. As most of the patch is downhill so in just I think half an hour we were back at the place where we had kept our bikes.
By now the weather was very cold and I don’t know what it affected on by bike but it just couldn’t start. There was ignition but the rpm refused to go above 1. After 2-3 times hitting starter also it did not woke up.
Then finally it started but I had to open up the throttle fully to get it above 1 rpm. And then in 2 minutes it heated up to ride normal.
We reached back to the North face tent in 2-3 minutes and just went for the Rum.
Our food was also ready so we were sitting in the dinning tent.
Had food and drinks together and the vegetables were cooked neatly despite of this cold weather around us.
By 10pm we went in our tents and the caretaker gave us sleeping bags, blankets and light for the night inside the tent.
I don’t even remember that I removed the shoes before sleeping.
This was one place where I didn’t care much about hygiene.
I was able to get some sleep and also took some medicines for the muscles which were so dearly used up today evening. Hoping that no pain should start tomorrow morning.
Today’s experience taught me some new things on preparing for such events.
I love the way father Himalayas teaches me new things on my every visit to his feet.
Tomorrow the smooth and buttery roads end 
Manali is where we end the day.
Tags: Spiti valley
Posted by omvaikul on Oct 18, 2011 in
Spiti Valley Trip Log 2011
7th August, 2001
We slept well last night. Very peaceful and cool. So today morning had charged us up. The climate was clear and we were at the dinning hall by 8am. Ordered king size breakfast for me and small mini meals for Angelo and Anahita.
By 9am we started for Kye monastery first. It was just 14kms from Kaza and it was a quick ride.
But ones we reached Kye what we saw was that the place had already filled up with tourists. And there was also a waiting for the next group to go in.
We decided instead of wasting time outside we will ride to Kibber instead. Its just again another 8-9 kms from Kye I think.
Ones we reached the village we headed straight to the Norling guest house I had heard about.
We checked out the place and ordered some pancakes and tuna sandwich for us. We realized this could have been a great place to stay for a night. Very decent accommodation and the village is just amazing to stroll around.
We took some photos around and after spending close to an hour here we started downhill for Kaza.
On our way down an Israeli chic wanted a lift down. Angelo gladly jumped the gun and took her all the way to Kye monastery.
After we reached down we now were enroute to Komic, Hikkhim and Langza route.
We covered some kms up the road and it was quite challenging. Its not a very wide patch and very inclined with very little road group.
We rode till a diversion and then got confused which one to take. After a little thinking we took a shot by taking the right turn and I also noticed my bike was heating up slowly. My guess the coolant must have gone low so Anahita sat with Angelo for next few kms. Only after reaching Chandigarh I came to know the radiator had just too much mud and slush stuck on the front and it only needed cleaning.
But since we didn’t know what was the issue back then we decided to keep my Ninja back down only till the point it made it and Anahita waited with the bike. I rode the P220 and Angelo sat with me to ride up and just check how far we need to go.
We made it till Hikkhim and the returned as I was getting worried about Anahita. Even the sun was very hot by now.
We returned back to where Anahita and my bike in less than half an hour. And we quickly started moving downwards back to Kaza.
It was past lunch time now and we were definitely very hungry.
We had ordered in the morning only what we wanted for lunch. So when it we arrived it was almost ready for us.
The specialty of this place, Timo Chapta.
It was a delicious thing to have here. But a little spicy thing. Look what happened to Angelo after few bites.
All Red
Around 4pm it started raining in Kaza. And whether too cooled down. But all our clothes got wet which were drying outside. i quickly ran and get them out but then was breathless for next few minutes.
After the rains stopped and weather cleared up so we decided to head to the market for final shopping and withdrawl from the ATM as money was almost over.
For some reason it was quite empty.
Now the highlight of the day. When we reached the ATM it was out of order. And we all panicked.
Anahita became restless and Angelo tensed, I little worried. Then from the bank we came to know this was because there was no electricity in Kaza.
As the light comes back the ATM will start working.
We waited over 2 hours for the light to come and then after getting frustrated we went back to the hotel.
We came back in few minutes on our bikes. And still nothing was active.
Again we waited and then went back to the hotel. But the moment we reached the entrance, the light turned ON.
We didn’t even got down but quickly rode our bikes to the ATM.
We were the first, the manager came and rebooted the machine. As everything came to normal we made our withdrawls quickly before the ATM runs out of cash…
What a day it was…. I’ll remember this, my first visit to Kaza always.
Tags: Spiti valley
Posted by omvaikul on Oct 17, 2011 in
Spiti Valley Trip Log 2011 6th August, 2011
Today morning felt awesome. Waking up near the roof of Himalayas is something I’m grateful to have in my this life time. And Tabo is really a wonderful place.
Last night from some folks we heard there is a German Bakery near the market area so we decided to head there for tea and breakfast before we check out.
Breakfast was good and I also had the pleasure of a local company. My good old friend, stray dog. He looked very hungry so I fed him some cookies and an egg. He looked delighted.
Yesterday’s foreign group, we met them here also. They had plans to visit Pin valley and so was ours.
After we were done we moved to our hotel, packed our stuff and mounted the gear.
I think around 8.30am we were on the road.
Kaza was just 40kms from here but the road from here to Kaza was just a name sake road. And the heat was also suddenly getting to us. With no water and snacks we carried, this patch seemed like a 100kms. Also couldn’t find a shade either to get away from the sun for few minutes.
In an hour when Anahita wanted to go a to a bathroom, it was mission impossible as we couldn’t even find a building close by.
Finally a structure just before the diversion for Pin valley came by and it was some old building where cement were stored. No bathroom here also but Anahita found a room which had door and cement sacks socked it and thats it. Now its called a bathroom as per this log…. 
After I heard this we just scrammed before anyone sees us.
Buoy she was happy after this. And we also managed to find some water to drink.
After this the views were amazing all the way to the turn of Pin Valley.
Very picturesque and what colors of nature we were getting to see.
The dog wanted to pee on my bike only 
We took lot of stops from the entrance of Pin valley to all the way up to Guling.
The terrain here is totally different. And climate too had come to little cool and pleasant now.
Just after Guling we saw a small bridge taking you across the river. We quickly took the offroad patch to reach down to the river.
It was quite shaky and some wooden planks were broken or missing. We went little across and posed for some photos.
After spending almost half an hour here we started riding now back to the main highway, heading towards Kaza.
Pin valley to Kaza the road is simply amazing. And the view around made again stop again and again for some photos.
There is more than one way to wear knee guard.
Late in the afternoon we reached Kaza and entered the town in search for the famous Hotel Khangsar. It was recommended to me by so many people and from so many logs I have read till date on Kaza.
After covering the entire market we came to know its just on the opposite side of the petrol pump. We parked and went in and like always Anahita bargained us a good deal. She’s the Man.
We rested for sometime. Freshen up and decided to meet outside to head for the market, walking.
My jeans was ripping apart so first we decided to get that fixed. I wished I had got my camera along, I had left it back at the hotel.
The market site was a ground for photographers. We strolled up and down the streets of Kaza market. Bought a few stuffs…. No actually I and Angelo bought a few stuffs, Anahita shopped…..
We also got the booze for the night. And just before dark we headed back to the hotel.
After unpacking and changing we all sat in the boys room. Opened up everything, pour our drinks and at the first cheers the lights went out.
But it was fun to have a great dark in the candle no wait…mobile torch light.
The trip was a success, we had made it all the way to Kaza in the Spiti Valley. The feeling was astonishing.
We will cherish the moments we spent here.
Tags: Spiti valley
Posted by omvaikul on Oct 12, 2011 in
Spiti Valley Trip Log 2011 5th August, 2011
Today we didn’t bother to get up early like always. Alarmed was set for 6am but we also got up by 6.45am and ready packed saddled up on the bikes by 7.30am.
Took some photos of the morning around the hotel. From Anahita relaxing to the apple trees from around.
We were the only ones in the hotel so the breakfast we had ordered was prepared in a jiffy. They were not great as the snacks we had yesterday but was decent enough to fill us.
Took one final photo of all 3 of us together and started for Reck Peo by 8.30am.
Its just 9kms down so ones we reached in the market area first site we were looking for was an ATM.
It was right under our nose and we couldn’t see it. It was such a shabby looking place.
After all with drawls done we decided to cover some good kms before we take any halt.
Pooh was couple of hours from here and was a perfect place to take a big break for water and loo. But the condition of the road and the number of photo halts we took was more than anticipated.
Pooh came after riding for 3 hours due to very nasty road. And we took atleast half an hours break here. Climate was also very hot by right now. Sun was hitting straight into our eyes and we were loosing water quickly.
One incident also took place here. We after having our drinks all left together, without anyone of us paying. Our bad. Luckily Angelo realized and went back to pay.
By the time he came back Anahita wanted a photo with this building we saw just by the side.
Very happy to see this building. For her atleast, guys manage it anywhere.
After Pooh the road was neat and clean all the way till Nako.
Though Nako was just 30kms from here but we again took so many halts from here to Nako that again it took almost and hour and half to reach the place.
This patch had some amazing sights and views around.
The valley and the village.
We reached Nako late in the afternoon. It had a deserted look. Just few tourist and few locals. May be this was not a tourist season. Since we had not had lunch we though of having some quick bites before we head to the lake. And all what you get here is the all time famous momo’s and thukpa.
Its always good in taste but this one didn’t seem to be that great. You can’t complain though as if you have McD around the corner.
We took some photos of the village and the fields behind the local house structures.
Anahita taking a power nap.
The lake was not a great site. I think the charm of it is only in winter season. Today in this hot weather it looked more like a usual pond.
I think animal husbandry is popular among the locals here as we saw a lot of cows and sheep kept like this in an enclave.
A local told us that if you all want to reach Tabo in day light then start now before the water goes up in Maling Nallah.
The statement was enough to get us moving.
But before we hit the road we took some shots at the Nako helipad. I wish we could have spend more time here. Next time I will be staying in Nako.
Crossing Malling Nallah was super duper fun. Although the water was not high but the sound was scary. And the clear sun dried away are shoes and socks in a jiffy.
Just before entering the Spiti Valley we had to stop to register ourselves at the post beside the highway. Took some 20 mins over here and after this it was dark. The sun had set and Tabo was still another 15kms from here.
In less than an hour we reached Tabo. The ride was done carefully as the road was little soft.
But nothing to worry about. We found accommodation and a good one just at the entrance of the town. On the by pass side of the town.
After we struck a deal on a fair price, it was time to clean up and head to the market for dinner. The hotel was good but there was no kitchen and parking.
Also the town was next to empty. Hardly any Indian tourists. Just bunch of foreigners. There was also no light in the town so our torch was finally out. And we walked to a place where we could see lot of people eating around.
We thought this might be a good dinner place.
Till the momo’s and other stuff arrived we did some time pass with the cam and had lot of talks on biking, relationships and all the gossip topics.
It was fun.
Today’s day seemed long despite of less kms covered but it was a great feeling to finally enter the Spiti Valley.
It has been 3 years I was planning to come here.
Tomorrow we reach Kaza the destination of the trip with a quick detour to Pin Valley.
Tags: Spiti valley