[LongDrive lover]

Originally Posted by Styler

I am really enjoying this thread. Please carry on.

My first trip to leh was in a shared Armada taxi, sitting in the back seat when I was a student in 1991. I don't know if anybody will believe it, but at that time I spent Rs 1800 (All Inclusive Delhi to Delhi) on a 15 day trip. My second trip to Leh was driving on my RD350 in 1994.

My most recent trip was the Leh - Kashmir Circuit in 2010, driving my Scorpio with my wife , 2 friends (a couple from bombay) , and kids (8 & 3 then).

I plan to do the next trip without kids, at a quick pace like you guys. I will be doing the complete circuit as you guys. I am just hoping I will have some other cars for company. It is always a little better to have more than 1 vehicles.

Styler

If you can have so much desire and enthusiasm for another trip even after doing it 3 times in three different ways; imagine the fate of those who are longing for their 1st one! Well there are plenty of hungry souls (including me) dying for this, so you'll have enough company next year .

BTW. Leh trip on the back seat of Armda in 1991!! You must have had quite a ride then.

[Styler]

Dear HVK,

Sir, I have a few questions for you all.

1. Did you have starting problems in this trip ? Did you Cover The Engine Overnight ? Any other precautions you took to avoid high altitude starting problems ? What was the battery in your Scorpio ?

2. Do you keep engines running when you are at High Passes like Khardung La / Chang La ? I am asking because I switched off my engine for 10 mins in the last trip, and when I started there was a complete loss of power with dense white exhaust for the next 4-5 kms. Then everything returned to normal.

3. Did you encounter any other problems due to High Altitude / extreme cold in this trip ?

Regards
Styler

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by Styler

Dear HVK,

Sir, I have a few questions for you all.

1. Did you have starting problems in this trip ? Did you Cover The Engine Overnight ? Any other precautions you took to avoid high altitude starting problems ? What was the battery in your Scorpio ?

You rarely encouter temperatures so low from June-Mid sept that starting is a serious problem. Of course, if your car is in shade, pushing it to a sunny area helps.
The problem often is water in the sedimeter freezing, causing fuel delivery issues. Few minutes in the sun fixes this.
If its cloudy, then it means that temperature does not go down very low so not many issues.
That said, while covering the engine helps, also make sure your sedimenter is free of water. Water freezes quickly and can be the root cause of the problem.

[aalokg]

Fantastic thread, and beautiful pictures! Please keep them coming. I am glued to this page!



I am also interested in making this trip next year. Infact, I have shown these travelogues on Tbhp to a friend of mine in Canada, and he is flying down to India next summer just for this roadtrip.

Regards,
Aalok

[optimist]

To all those who undertook the trip and specially to HVK. Thanks a lot for sharing the details and the preparation details. They are priceless. I am subscribed to this thread and trying to soak it in.

Some day the dreamer in me will make it on these routes. Till then I will read all travelogues of the region and drool. Keep it comming.

I have one question on the roads. Can we make it in a long wheelbase car like the optra which is 2600 mm? The GC is around 165-170. If not I will have to look out for a suv. I would love to join a trip next year if possible.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by Styler

1. Did you have starting problems in this trip ? Did you Cover The Engine Overnight ? Any other precautions you took to avoid high altitude starting problems ? What was the battery in your Scorpio ?

First of all, this Ladakh summer was unusually warm and we did not feel cold at all except in Pangong Tso and Tso Moriri. Ambient temperature was in the 5s and 10s even in the night. Nevertheless, we followed the following precautions:

- "Sweatered" the engine grille - I used some gunny bags/newspapers and Jeep Captain & BolBolero used polythene covers.

- The cars were always parked away from the wind/open/towards the wall/shade to avoid cold winds from entering the engine bay.

- The coolant was concentrated with almost equal portions of concentrated liquid and water, which apparently stops it from freezing

The engines mostly started in 3-5 cranks at most.

My Scorpio uses a Exide Express battery. In my Scorpio's case, I had some specific problems - I discovered that my battery had little distilled water inside (result of my cursory check before the trip) and the batteries were getting inadequate charge/ drained out. I had to jump start the car almost every day from Aug 27 onwards with the help of the other car batteries, but that was nothing to do with the cold. This continued till Sep 1, when I finally got a bottle of distilled water and refilled the then-empty battery cells.

2. Do you keep engines running when you are at High Passes like Khardung La / Chang La ? I am asking because I switched off my engine for 10 mins in the last trip, and when I started there was a complete loss of power with dense white exhaust for the next 4-5 kms. Then everything returned to normal.

No, we switched off engines wherever we paused or stopped for over 5 minutes or so (and petrol cars all the time) for the simple reason we had no problems with starting and also to conserve fuel on some of the longer no-fuel pump circuits. In places like Khardung la, we switched off engines for over 30 minutes and had no problem restarting.

Black smoke was customary in all the 3 SUVs (all of them DI engines), especially in the high revs.

3. Did you encounter any other problems due to High Altitude / extreme cold in this trip ?

None. You can expect such problems only in October when temperatures start dipping down to sub-zeros in many places.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by optimist

I have one question on the roads. Can we make it in a long wheelbase car like the optra which is 2600 mm? The GC is around 165-170. If not I will have to look out for a suv. I would love to join a trip next year if possible.

Long wheel base cars do have a problem on rough roads. Low GC cars take hits in the bumpers and underbody but damage is much less compared to a long wheelbase car. Ideally, a small car like the Swift will be perfect and almost as good as a SUV, assuming it has a skilled driver behind the wheel.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

- "Sweatered" the engine grille - I used some gunny bags/newspapers and Jeep Captain & BolBolero used polythene covers.

This is how Jeep Captain's Bolero looked after "sweatering"

[laluks]

Day 04
15th August 2011
Chitkul

After a comfortable and relaxed sleep woke up by 06:00hrs to explore the beauty of Chitkul before breakfast.

Everybody was happily clicking pictures of sunrise, clouds, mountains, valleys ....

By 06:30hrs I too joined the bandwagon

Chitkul


Beautiful


Mist playing hide and seek







By now everybody started towards Baspa River.

continued...

[laluks]

Day 04
15th August 2011
Chitkul

HVK Scorpio and Jeep Captain's Discovery Bolero going to Baspa River


VB with Discovery Bolero - Glamorous


Discovery Bolero meets Baspa River


The trail to Baspa River


Govt. High School at Chitkul. Come to Learn


VB and Jeep Captain decides to try High School again



By 07:30 we returned back to the guest house and had a good breakfast. By 08:15 we were finished with breakfast and ready to roll.

Jeep Captain left immediately to Recong Peo to pick up TS, who was camping there after getting his Inner Line Permits. We were supposed to meet again near Powari Petrol Pump.

While the room accounts were being settled I ran away again to catch the last few minutes of Chitkul's beauty.

continued....

[laluks]

Day 04
15th August 2011
Chitkul

Wooden houses at Chitkul






Saw a place of worship




Decided to check the place of worship.

The entrance


Inside




A panorama of the place


continued...

[laluks]

Day 04
15th August 2011
Chitkul


I find Mr. Gloomy. I asked him to walk along with me, which he did!


More wooden structures


Some modern building, wood and concrete




Beautiful Chitkul


Can you spot a lady working in the field?






A wild flower


Landy


Wooden House amidst beautiful environs


By now Mr. Gloomy had become happy by the attention he got. He is curious at my camera

By 08:30 bid bye to Mr. Gloomy and we started our journey for the day from Chitkul. Three beautiful hours at Chitkul, the quest is still remaining.

Chitkul - I will come back one day.

continued...
(The days journey account by tomorrow)

[bullock-Car]

after reading this and many threads about leh for 2-3 years, i have option to travel to leh by air this 1st week of october, but not sure about the weather there.
but I have decide to try and experience, though I am not driving, let me experience the bliss firsthand. any inputs about weather in october?

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by bullock-Car

after reading this and many threads about leh for 2-3 years, i have option to travel to leh by air this 1st week of october, but not sure about the weather there.
but I have decide to try and experience, though I am not driving, let me experience the bliss firsthand. any inputs about weather in october?

It will be cold (nights close to zero, days okay), but hotels and taxi cabs come much cheaper than other months. So you will save money and get chilled due to the cold. Good chance of live snowfall at Pangong and Tso Moriri

[Manuuj]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Maybe the reluctance to post further must be because of poor member response. I find apart from the tbhpians who went on the trip, no one seems to be posting in this thread anyway! I am not surprised at the tepid pace!

I doubt the reason that members aren't posting has anything to do with the standard of the thread which by the way, is superb.

It may be that like myself we do not want to disturb the flow of the thread with our comments of appreciation.

Its not only the journey that all of you undertook but also the way this thread has been constructed that make me want it to rate it the full 5 stars that it so rightfully deserves.

Please keep the posts coming...

Originally Posted by laluks

[b]Day 04
15th August 2011
Chitkul
Can you spot a lady working in the field?
Attachment 720082

[b]
continued...
(The days journey account by tomorrow)

Its said a picture is worth a thousand words. This picture of yours with that lady working alone in the field reminded me of a poem by the famous english poet William Wordsworth titled "The Solitary Reaper" that i am reproducing below:



The Solitary Reaper

Behold her, single in the field,
Yon solitary Highland Lass!
Reaping and singing by herself;
Stop here, or gently pass!
Alone she cuts and binds the grain,
And sings a melancholy strain;
O listen! for the Vale profound
Is overflowing with the sound.

No Nightingale did ever chaunt
More welcome notes to weary bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt,
Among Arabian sands:
A voice so thrilling ne’er was heard
In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,
Breaking the silence of the seas
Among the farthest Hebrides.

Will no one tell me what she sings?--
Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow
For old, unhappy, far-off things,
And battles long ago
Or is it some more humble lay,
Familiar matter of to-day?
Some natural sorrow, loss, or pain,
That has been, and may be again?

Whate’er the theme, the Maiden sang
As if her song could have no ending;
I saw her singing at her work,
And o’er the sickle bending;--
I listened, motionless and still;
And, as I mounted up the hill
The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more.


Well done and do please keep the posts coming!