Leh and Ladakh - Trip Planning - All queries go here

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by Hammer & Anvil

Concrete information required- for August-end 2011.
Without own vehicle, whats the alternate arrangement of transport to travel from Leh to Srinagar-one way only.
1. AC-Delux buses?

Are you joking???

Originally Posted by Hammer & Anvil

4. Private Taxi/share a cab- cost/stopeover and time taken.

FYI, the rates as displayed at the Dalgate taxi stand for Srinagar - Leh are as shown below. As explained, Taveras/Qualises charge 10% extra, Innovas 20% extra.


The cabbies do the trip in one day too - taking 16 hours for the run from Leh to Srinagar, but can you/your friends take the physical torture of over 400 km of mountain roads?

[amitwlele]

Originally Posted by Hammer & Anvil

For some reason, a couple from my group wish to come via Srinagar- kind of roughing it out testing the local transport.

Therefore:
Concrete information required- for August-end 2011.

Without own vehicle, whats the alternate arrangement of transport to travel from Leh to Srinagar-one way only.
1. AC-Delux buses?
2. Do they halt in Kargil for the night
3. Cost per person?
4. Private Taxi/share a cab- cost/stopeover and time taken.

Please help.

KD

AC Deluxe buses are out of question on that route.

One more point to note is that if you hire the taxis from Leh they might not be ready to come all the way to Srinagar and drop you till Kargil. You can take the night halt at Kargil and take the different taxi from Kargil to Srinagar. Unfortunately i do not have the rates with me for this.

[harjeev]

Hi
We guys are leaving on 23 night.

1 Delhi Manali
2 Manali Jispa
3 Jispa Leh
4 Leh Leh
5 Leh Hunder Leh
6 Leh Pangong Leh
7 Leh Drass
8 Drass Srinagar
9 SRINAGAR DEL
10 Buffer day might stay an extra day in Srinagar
Cheers

Any other members leaving on the same day?

[METISWHG]

Originally Posted by harjeev

Hi
We guys are leaving on 23 night.

1 Delhi Manali
2 Manali Jispa
3 Jispa Leh
4 Leh Leh
5 Leh Hunder Leh
6 Leh Pangong Leh
7 Leh Drass
8 Drass Srinagar
9 SRINAGAR DEL
10 Buffer day might stay an extra day in Srinagar
Cheers

Any other members leaving on the same day?

Same plan and same dates here. Guess we will meetup somewhere on the way. What vehicle are you in. Lets exchange numbers for "in case" situations.

[UniqueMods]

Guys,
I am planning this trip with my better half. Just two of us.
Please take a look at the following Itinerary and let me know if i have incorrect info / missed something-

09-Jul-11 DAY - 1 Mumbai - Udaipur 753 km 14 hr
10-Jul-11 DAY - 2 Udaipur - Chandigarh 895 km 16 hr
11-Jul-11 DAY - 3 Chandigarh - Manali 285 km 9 hr
12-Jul-11 DAY - 4 Manali rest. 0 km
13-Jul-11 DAY - 5 Manali - Sarchu 230 km 9 hr
14-Jul-11 DAY - 6 Sarchu - leh 249 km 12 hr
15-Jul-11 DAY - 7 Leh - Rest - Premits 0 km
16-Jul-11 DAY - 8 LEH - Khardung La - NUBRA plateau 123 km 4.5 hr
17-Jul-11 DAY - 9 NUBRA plateau - LEH 123 km 4.5 hr
18-Jul-11 DAY - 10 Leh - Pangong Tso 165 km 6 hr
19-Jul-11 DAY - 11 Pangong Tso - Tso Moriri 321 km 10 hr
20-Jul-11 DAY - 12 Tso Moriri - Karo 204 km 8 hr
21-Jul-11 DAY - 13 Karo - Sarchu 213 km 8 hr
22-Jul-11 DAY - 14 Sarchu - Manali 230 km 8 hr
23-Jul-11 DAY - 15 Manali - Chandighar 285 km 7.5
24-Jul-11 DAY - 16 Chandigarh - Udaipur 895 km 15 hr
25-Jul-11 DAY - 17 Udaipur - Mumbai 753 km 13 hr



Please suggest places to stay and expected cost also.

Can a Santro with 2 on-board, cross from Tso morir to Sarchu via Samdo-Puga-Polakongka la-Startspuk tso-Tso kar-Pang-Naki la-Sarchu ??
I know this route is for preferred 4x4 but this would save me 1 day.

UM

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by UniqueMods

Can a Santro with 2 on-board, cross from Tso morir to Sarchu via Samdo-Puga-Polakongka la-Startspuk tso-Tso kar-Pang-Naki la-Sarchu ??

You mean this route which we took - the roads are not as bad as you think, and if you manage to get your Santro across Rohtang Pass without problems, this route would not be any more challenging than that.

Originally Posted by UniqueMods

Please suggest places to stay and expected cost also.

The places we stayed at in
(A) Korzok (Tso Moriri)
Nomadic Life Camp
Contact Person: James
Tel: 01982267321; 09419178984; 09419341687
Email: nomadic.life@yahoo.com; gdorjey@yahoo.com
Costs: 2500-3500 INR per room per night, including dinner & breakfast.


(B) Leh
Kidar Guest House (Kidar Guest House (Leh, India) - Hotel Reviews - TripAdvisor)
Contact person: Jigmet
Tel: 09622963234
Costs: 700 - 1500 per room per night.


(C) Hundar
Habib Guest House
Contact numbers in picture
Costs: 400 - 800 per room per night.

[lordofgondor]

I find the times you've mentioned from A to B (in mountains) kinda optimistic ones! Be prepared as they may be stretched.

Originally Posted by UniqueMods

19-Jul-11 DAY - 11 Pangong Tso - Tso Moriri 321 km 10 hr

What route are you planning for this stretch? From the distance I guess Pangong - Karu - Chumthang - Moriri?

Any mods to the car; increased GC / skid plates?

Edit:

Folks, request you to validate the following travel plan I have for mid/end August:

Days in hand: 14

Day 1: Noida - Manali
Day 2: Manali - Sarchu
Day 3: Sarchu - Leh
Day 4: Leh (Permits/Provisions/Fuel)
Day 5: Leh - Pangong (make camp/rented camp)
Day 6: Pangong - Chushul
Day 7: Chushul - Hanle (will try getting acco. in the Observatory before arriving here, else make camp)
Day 8: Hanle - Kyon Tso (make camp)
Day 9: Kyon Tso - Moriri (make camp/rented camp)
Day 10: Karzok - Sarchu
Day 11: Sarchu - Chandrataal (make camp)
Day 12: Chan'taal - Manali
Day 13: Manali - Noida

Keeping a day as buffer. Would be driving my Safari 4x4 and carrying Jerry cans to store at least 60 l of diesel.

[UniqueMods]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

You mean this route which we took - the roads are not as bad as you think, and if you manage to get your Santro across Rohtang Pass without problems, this route would not be any more challenging than that.

Thanks, Thanks and Thanks a Ton for the hotel info.

I have been to Rohtang in a alto 2 yr back, so i am pretty confident with a Santro crossing Rohtang.
I am planning to go through Samdo-Puga-Polakongka la-Startspuk tso-Tso kar-Pang-Naki la-Sarchu, unless any Bhpian suggest against it.

Guys, please pore in with more hotel info, as it would be a great assist for me and everyone planning this trip.

Originally Posted by lordofgondor

I find the times you've mentioned from A to B (in mountains) kinda optimistic ones! Be prepared as they may be stretched.


What route are you planning for this stretch? From the distance I guess Pangong - Karu - Chumthang - Moriri?

Any mods to the car; increased GC / skid plates?

Please update me on my error / optimistic time calc. I really need this info.
which do you feel are too unreal?


Yup. Pangong - Karu - Chumthang - Moriri.

No modifications whats so ever. Do i need them?

UM

[lordofgondor]

Originally Posted by UniqueMods

Please update me on my error / optimistic time calc. I really need this info.
which do you feel are too unreal?


Yup. Pangong - Karu - Chumthang - Moriri.

No modifications whats so ever. Do i need them?

UM

Hey mate, there are no errors. Just that the mentioned times are the best case scenarios with minimal halts. Things can be unpredictable in them mountains, hence, I said optimistic time calculations. Also if you like/love photography, be assured that you'd be stopping a lot more than expected.

Manali - Sarchu in 9 hours seems kinda tough, especially if the sections around Rohtang / Gramphoo / Zing Zing Bar are in bad condition.

Pangong - Moriri in 10 hours would require some spirited driving.

Please make sure to start your daily trips ASAP and do the max driving in daylight.

Modifications not needed if you're careful in crossing nallahs and sections having rocks/boulders. Santro is quite a peppy vehicle for Ladakh.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by UniqueMods

I am planning to go through Samdo-Puga-Polakongka la-Startspuk tso-Tso kar-Pang-Naki la-Sarchu, unless any Bhpian suggest against it.

Roads in Ladakh: From Mahey to Tso Moriri and back to Sumdo | Facebook

Roads in Ladakh: Morey Plains to Sarchu | Facebook

Roads in Ladakh: Sarchu to Jispa across Baralacha La | Facebook

Roads in Ladakh: From Jispa across Rohtang Pass to Manali | Facebook

Please take a look at the photos on the above links for a glimpse of the type of roads you'd expect to negotiate from Manali to Korzok (Tso Moriri) and judge for yourself if you can make it with your Santro. Since the route was run by me in reverse to the direction you plan to, you might want to look at the sequence of photos in reverse.

[abbey4u]

Me along with few office folks are planning leh trip in August 13th to 22nd. Request experienced folks out here to help with my query
a. We are 5 people travelling in safari 2.2 (4x2). Will this be too heavy for steep climb? Will 4x2 overcome the tough mountain roads?
b. Is august good time? What about rains? landslide?

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Roads in Ladakh: From Mahey to Tso Moriri and back to Sumdo | Facebook

Roads in Ladakh: Morey Plains to Sarchu | Facebook

Roads in Ladakh: Sarchu to Jispa across Baralacha La | Facebook

Roads in Ladakh: From Jispa across Rohtang Pass to Manali | Facebook

Adding some more links for a detailed look at the road conditions on the way to Leh.

Roads in Ladakh: From Srinagar to Zoji La top | Facebook

Roads in Ladakh: Zoji La Top downhill to Kargil | Facebook

Roads in Ladakh: From Kargil to Fotu La | Facebook

Roads in Ladakh: From Fotu La top to Leh | Facebook

Originally Posted by abbey4u

a. We are 5 people travelling in safari 2.2 (4x2). Will this be too heavy for steep climb? Will 4x2 overcome the tough mountain roads?
b. Is august good time? What about rains? landslide?

Safari 2.2 4x2 has no issues on steep climbs and rough roads, unless there are any mechanical problems. Most vehicles travelling to Leh are 4x2, and this forum is full of many people who did the journey in a 4x2 Safari.

Rains in August are confined to south of Rohtang. Once you're across Rohtang, heavy rains are an extreme rarity. On the Jammu - Srinagar route, there are chances of landslides around the Jawahar tunnel, but the road is cleared quite fast in such cases.

[Turbanator]

Update

The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Himachal Pradesh Edition

As per The Tribune - non HP cars cannot cross Rohtang for onward journey to Keylong/ Leh side without getting Permits. Though it does not say on restrictions on cars coming from Keylong side .

[UniqueMods]

Originally Posted by Turbanator

Update

The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Himachal Pradesh Edition

As per The Tribune - non HP cars cannot cross Rohtang for onward journey to Keylong/ Leh side without getting Permits. Though it does not say on restrictions on cars coming from Keylong side .

This is just ****. now spend a day in Manali for permits. Instead of enjoying beauty of Manali, i will have to spend time SDM office at Manali.

Just Sad.

pity anyone reaching Manali on a weekend and having to wait for Monday to get permits.

UM

[BolBolero]

For all those planning to drive towards Leh via Manali and Rohtang Pass please note:

Himachal Government has decided to ban vehicles from out of state, from plying on the Manali - Rohtang Jot route, unless they have permit from the Office of Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Manali. Which will be issued between 10AM to 5PM on Monday to Saturday (barring Second Saturday, Sundays and Government Holidays). All travelers are advised to source this permit before heading to Ladakh in their own vehicles or vehicles hired from other states.

Additionally, Rohtang Jot is closed officially on Tuesday for repairs. So if you are planing to cross it on Tuesday, make sure to leave in the wee hours of the morning from Manali.