[docfreak]

for valley of flowers, time to go is betwen- june to october, july would be too wet and slushy.
ahead of vof there is an excellent trek - kak bhushandi.
waiting for hvk's input.

[wanderernomad]

Nice idea, if its not only for the jeepers I may also chip in with full gear. But since many seem to be the first timers plus will have family along Ill prefer the Chopta-Tungnath to Valley of flowers as 1) it will be crowded at Govindghat and adequate parking facilities wont be available while you are gone, 2) You are not allowed to camp or take in food/water into valley of flowers, 3) It will be even more crowded at Ghangaria.
But in case you guys are open to some fun trails that are not too arduous and in HP I can come up with a few more options.

[jaysmokesleaves]

Im driving to Ladakh in early June(1st week) Approx 15-20 days trip. Would love to, but not sure I can fit into the schedule being discussed.

[DKG]

Originally Posted by docfreak

ahead of vof there is an excellent trek - kak bhushandi.
waiting for hvk's input.

Originally Posted by wanderernomad

in case you guys are open to some fun trails that are not too arduous and in HP I can come up with a few more options.

I am game for anything that is scenic. Hopefully by end Feb we should have a clear consensus on the route and then start freezing on stay options etc

[M P Sreenivasan]

Originally Posted by Sha

Thar will be ideal choice. Jeep/CJ3B will definately will go but you have to spend more time on vehicle issues rather than enjoying nature. Even 2WD vehicles with high GC will do easily ladakh unless you want to try off the track roads like me.
Personally I would suggest Gypsy for himalya trip, No issues carefree for full trip.
For example from keylong to Leh can be done in one day, if driving in CJ3B then it will take atleast 3 days with stop at sarchu/pang. staying at sarchu means starting problem even carb gypsy had starting problem.

I have travelled from Kanyakumari to Jammu & Kashmir in my CJ500 and felt that any diesel engine with heating will not be suitable in extreme cold conditions, hence I switched over to DI engine with which I have not had any starting trouble. When ever I get the urge to travel I take my vehicle and explore like this I have covered all the states in India except eastern India beyond West Bengal, which I want to cover and get into Bhutan. Hope to join you guys on an enchanting explorative expedition.

[DKG]

Originally Posted by M P Sreenivasan

When ever I get the urge to travel I take my vehicle and explore like this I have covered all the states in India except eastern India beyond West Bengal, which I want to cover and get into Bhutan. Hope to join you guys on an enchanting explorative expedition.

That's just such a wonderful way to explore India. Hopefully next year we can plan something toward Arunachal and Bhutan?

[MileCruncher]

Deepakji, this is a great thread! I would like to do Ladakh again this year. But for me it has to be post September and I would like to do Changthang and Hanle.

Cheers

[Spitfire]

Saw this in my inbox today. Fly-in, drive around, fly-out.



I am no way connected to these guys thought of sharing it as folks wanting "to do" the Himalayas have an option.

[MileCruncher]

Originally Posted by Spitfire

Saw this in my inbox today. Fly-in, drive around, fly-out.

Attachment 486624

I am no way connected to these guys thought of sharing it as folks wanting "to do" the Himalayas have an option.

Rs2,000/day is not bad for Safari 4X4 considering I had paid Rs 1600/day for Baleno (One car category upgrade scheme) from Avis in 2006. The only catch will be the obscene amount of deposit. It was 75K for the Baleno then and I think it will be atleast 1L or more for these categories.

[r_nairtvm]

Originally Posted by Spitfire

Saw this in my inbox today. Fly-in, drive around, fly-out.

Attachment 486624

I am no way connected to these guys thought of sharing it as folks wanting "to do" the Himalayas have an option.

Thanks a ton for posting this.

DGK and others, can we have lock on dates. So that guys who want to book for rental vehicles (not necessarily from Avis) can do the bookings in advance

Thanks and Best Regards and Drive/Ride Safe

Ram

[dhuli]

Originally Posted by M P Sreenivasan

I have travelled from Kanyakumari to Jammu & Kashmir in my CJ500 and felt that any diesel engine with heating will not be suitable in extreme cold conditions, hence I switched over to DI engine with which I have not had any starting trouble. When ever I get the urge to travel I take my vehicle and explore like this I have covered all the states in India except eastern India beyond West Bengal, which I want to cover and get into Bhutan. Hope to join you guys on an enchanting explorative expedition.

Welcome Sreeni. Would love to hear more about your travels across this country! Very inspiring. You must read similar ones from HVKumar and Roamingrao, besides others! Hope to learn from your experiences and travel tips.

[r_nairtvm]

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

Rs2,000/day is not bad for Safari 4X4 considering I had paid Rs 1600/day for Baleno (One car category upgrade scheme) from Avis in 2006. The only catch will be the obscene amount of deposit. It was 75K for the Baleno then and I think it will be atleast 1L or more for these categories.

MC,

I don't know from which company you rented the car. Did they ask you for the money to deposited in cash?. In my experience with many international car rental cos, INDIAN branches and even some local players like Autoriders, they took a mannual chargeslip for my Credit Card - latter I found that they had online-blocked INR 50 K for rental periods varying from 7 to 20 days.

It will be interesting to know

Best Regards & Drive/Ride Safe

Ram

[MileCruncher]

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

MC,

I don't know from which company you rented the car. Did they ask you for the money to deposited in cash?. In my experience with many international car rental cos, INDIAN branches and even some local players like Autoriders, they took a mannual chargeslip for my Credit Card - latter I found that they had online-blocked INR 50 K for rental periods varying from 7 to 20 days.

It will be interesting to know

Best Regards & Drive/Ride Safe

Ram

No it was not cash but Manual Chargeslip on the card. My rental was for 3 days and the amount reverted to the card after 21 days.

[absynthguzzler]

MC. If the dates match, then I'm going shotgun in your Getaway .

[MileCruncher]

Originally Posted by absynthguzzler

MC. If the dates match, then I'm going shotgun in your Getaway .

Arun, as you already know it, Dibs have already been called for the front passenger seat. Its going to be the owner! But its going to be rotating policy so as not to discomfort any particular person. But yes I would be very glad to have you and hand over the steering to you.

Lets plan this thing out !

Cheers