Zanskar Cycling Question

[Adithya Kini]

- Zanskar by Bicycle in July 2016. A few questions.

1) shall i go for Plan A which is as follows 
Bangalore -Delhi - Flight
Delhi -Manali - Bus
Manali - Kokhsar - Bus 
Kokhsar to Zanskar sumdo - Bicycle
Zanskar Sumdo - Padum - Trek
Padum - Kargil - Bicycle
Kargil - Srinagar - Sumo
Srinagar - Bangalore - Flight

2) shall i go for Plan B which is as follows 
Bangalore Srinagar - Flight
Srinagar - Kargil - Sumo
Kargil - Padum - Bicycle
Padum - Zanskar Sumdo - Trek
Zanskar Sumdo - manali - Bicycle
Manali - Delhi - BUS
Delhi - Bangalore - Flight

Plan B the scenic beauty will increase with days into the trip and Vice versa for Plan A
Plan B is more popular and hence its easier to find horses to carry bicycles during the trek days than in Plan A.
Plan A is less of elevation Gain (most of the elevation gain is done during the "trek" and not bicycle, hence will be faster than Plan B could shave 1 or 2 days.

Comments Please ..... I know its not a route generally taken by Indians and is popular only among handful of Europeans and other westerners who do this every year, but would love to connect with anyone who has done this route or knows some one who has.

[suman paul]

What about Plan C - 

Bangalore
Delhi
Leh
Zanskar
Manali / Srinagar
Delhi
Bangalore



thank you & regards

suman

+ 91   9886300685

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[Adithya Kini]

o well that's intriguing , i can give that a thought too. that way i can cover lamayuru and moreover i fly straight to leh instead of multiple modes of transport, it will save me many days of transport which i can use fruitfully actually cycling. let me check what the europeans have to say about that route ( i say Europeans because these routes are currently explored only by them) :) Thanks Suman Paul.

[suman paul]

You may get in touch with Delhi Randonneurs also as they explore that region. 

thank you & regards

suman

+ 91   9886300685

[Adithya Kini]

Ok Great , i See they have a website with contact details , i will get in touch with them also . The Plan C seems like an option but is super expensive at 17k per head to leh by flight. as opposed to 4k(flight delhi)+1K(bus manali) per head on Plan A and Plan B. I will delve deeper.

[Gopikrishna Murugaian]

Hi Adithya,

I would prefer plan B, if riders are not used to high altitude conditions. The starting point for plan B(Kargil) is at 2650m altitude whereas Koksar(starting point for plan A) is already at 3350m. Starting from Kargil will help them to get acclimatized to the conditions. Also, consider the popularity &  easy availability of horses/ponies for the trek.

Regards,
Gopikrishna M

[Adithya Kini]

That's very true Gopal , Plan B does have a very gradual elevation gain in comparison to Plan A. While for both me and my wife this will be the third trip to ladhak and each time we upgraded the location and mode of transport too, first by hired four wheeler then by self driven motor bike and now by cycle/trek. Earlier 2 times we did not experience any AMS but cycling/treking is very different from mobiking or sitting in a car, so the elevation profile is far more important this time. your point is extremely valid and i thank you for putting it forward.

[Adithya Kini]

Reposting the question to get more inputs

- Zanskar by Bicycle in July 2016. A few questions.

1) shall i go for Plan A which is as follows 
Bangalore -Delhi - Flight
Delhi -Manali - Bus
Manali - Kokhsar - Bus 
Kokhsar to Zanskar sumdo - Bicycle
Zanskar Sumdo - Padum - Trek
Padum - Kargil - Bicycle
Kargil - Srinagar - Sumo
Srinagar - Bangalore - Flight

2) shall i go for Plan B which is as follows 
Bangalore Srinagar - Flight
Srinagar - Kargil - Sumo
Kargil - Padum - Bicycle
Padum - Zanskar Sumdo - Trek
Zanskar Sumdo - manali - Bicycle
Manali - Delhi - BUS
Delhi - Bangalore - Flight

Plan B the scenic beauty will increase with days into the trip and Vice versa for Plan A
Plan B is more popular and hence its easier to find horses to carry bicycles during the trek days than in Plan A.
Plan A is less of elevation Gain (most of the elevation gain is done during the "trek" and not bicycle, hence will be faster than Plan B could shave 1 or 2 days.

--

Cheers,
Adithya Kini

[Satish Vangal]

Hi Adithya,

Just saw this post, and your later one looking into costs of getting your bike up to Rohtang from Bangalore. Not sure if you've gotten some feedback already, here are my thoughts - based on my experiences cycling from Manali-Leh-Srinagar 3 summers ago, and also having trekked from Lamayuru - Padum and Darcha - Padum, although that was quite a few years ago.

1) ROUTE CHOICE: The Padum - Kargil road is pretty spectacular as well, so whether you start with it or finish with it, the scenery will be changing but beautiful all along. Coming from the south it appears that there will be several stretches of 4x4 road from Darcha north up to Shingo La when you get there. http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/himachal/state-to-be-road-linked-with-zanskar-valley-by-sept/112034.html 

2) LAMAYURU - PADUM ROAD? It also looks like there is a motorable road now from Lamayuru Gompa on the Leh-Kargil road South to Wanla. Then you have to trek further south till beyond Lingshed, and then you reach the Zanskar river valley, and it looks like the road has come up north from Padum till this point, beyond Zangla. When you get to Leh and Padum, ask how far the road between Lamayuru  and Padum stretches, and how many km are still only walking trails. That will soon be another possibility to reach Padum by cycle without going all the way to Kargil from Leh.

3) GETTING TO MANALI: Take along lots of bungees - you should be able to lash your bike onto the top of any of the regular non-AC state buses, which will be cheaper than a Volvo, both for your ticket and the extra luggage charge.

4) TRY CYCLING UP TO MARHI FROM MANALI:  Up to Marhi, you should be fine in terms of traffic. And yes, there was a lot of slush and traffic getting closer to Rohtang, but on a cycle you can actually get past most of the jams quicker. And its a good acclimatization climb.

5) IF GETTING A RIDE, JUST GO UP TILL ROHTANG: Most of the traffic stays on the southern side of Rohtang Pass. If you're not riding, then just get dropped at the top of the pass or a little before. Then enjoy the downhill ride all the way to the Chenab river, and more or less level riding till Khoksar. You could also ride from Manali to Marhi, spend a night there acclimatizing, then catch a ride from Marhi to Rohtang if the traffic is looking bad, and ride down to Khoksar.

6) LEAVE A DAY FOR PHUGTAL GOMPA: After crossing Shingo La, heading north, take a day to trek to Phugtal and back, well worth the side trip.

7) DONT TAKE A SUMO FROM KARGIL TO SRINAGAR, RIDE! I reached Srinagar from Kargil in 2 days. 1 day to Dras - tiring climb but you'll be quite fit at this point. Then a morning climb up to Zoji La, followed by a blissful 100 km descent  in 3 hours all the way practically to the Srinagar bus station! Well worth the extra day.

8) SRINAGAR - DELHI: There are 24 hour state buses which will be the cheapest way to get back to Delhi.

9) TRY TO USE SAME AIRLINE: From Srinagar - Bangalore, or Bangalore - Leh, try to use the same airline. Then you can be sure your luggage will be booked through to the end point. Otherwise you may have to collect your bike box and recheck it for the 2nd leg, and go through the hassle of any extra baggage fees a second time. I've had good experiences with Jet airways the couple of times I've transported my cycle with them.

10) BIKE BOXES FIT INTO AMBASSADORS: Perhaps you can find an old Ambassador taxi and book him for taking you to the airport. The bike box snugly fits in the back seat, as I discovered in the city of Ambassador taxis - Kolkata! Specially if there are two of you, the airport bus will anyway be around 250-300 rupees each.

11) CYCLE GUIDE CONTACT IN MANALI: I highly recommend Rana, a nice laid-back local who has cycles for hire, and also organizes Manali-Leh and other rides. He has a guest house in Manali. He would be a good person to call and ask about the logistics of transporting your cycle from Manali to Rohtang, cost, latest road conditions, etc. His number is 9459829914.

Hope that's helpful. Please document and share the exact stretches from Darcha to Padum, and Padum-Lamayuru where there is a cycle-able road!

Satish

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From: adithy...@gmail.com
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 2016 20:32:38 +0530
Subject: Re: [BBC] Zanskar Cycling Question
To: bangalor...@googlegroups.com
CC: adithy...@gmail.com; suma...@me.com

[Adithya Kini]

Thank you so much Satish , Yes i did get some responses but none as elaborate and yet to the point as your. Very highly appreciate you taking the time out to help a fellow traveler , with your permission, i will mark a cc to you each time i put in questions about this trip that i am planning. You are the only local i know who has done zanskar. i do have some questions around hiring horses for carrying the cycles from zanskar sumdo to padum which i will post after i have done some research on the internet, so that i can be more specific and well aware before firing un-researched questions. about your point "6) LEAVE A DAY FOR PHUGTAL GOMPA:" yes i do plan on this side trip , the book i am currently reading "himalaya by bike" also mentions this side trip.

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Cheers,
Adithya Kini