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Old 30th September 2012, 18:34   #106
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Just finished reading through the entire travelogue, brilliant stuff man! Hats off to you and your co-passengers, all night drives, water crossings and driving on unknown roads in the dead of the night. Simply superb! I think it's more of an adventure than a travelogue.

I've also had this crazy idea of driving from blore to ladakh from 2009 (that's when 3 idiots came out right ?) needless to say, everyone i've discussed this with says i'm crazy and i'll kill myself somewhere on the way. Your travelogue gives me the confidence that not only is it possible, may be my Polo can just about pull it off!

20 days is good time for ~8500 kms! Btw, how did you manage to get such a long leave from your office ?
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Old 30th September 2012, 18:45   #107
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Lovely writeup!! Kudos for doing the trip and that too safely, specially with your mother on board! She seems to have a traveling bug as well!!

Lovely pictures as well.
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Old 30th September 2012, 19:28   #108
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

These are the list of items that I carried

Spares
  1. Engine Oil (5W40 fully synthetic) - Not Used
  2. Golden Cruiser Coolant (500ml)- Not Used
  3. Dot 4 Brake Fluid - Not Used
  4. Air Filter - Used
  5. Headlight bulbs H7 (Low Beam), H1 (High Beam) and H4 (Fog Lights) - Not Used
  6. Fuses (5A,10A,20A,40A and 60A) - Not Used
  7. Spare key

Tools
  1. Long Screw driver (normal type and philips head type)
  2. Cutting Pliers
  3. Wrench (the ones used for plumbing)
  4. Spanners (From size 6 to size 27)
  5. Multimeter
  6. Hammer
  7. 5m electrical wire
  8. Insulation tape, M-Seal (both dry and wet kind) and a role of 2 way sticker
  9. A dozen set of various screws, nuts and bolts
  10. Zip ties (the ones used by Big Bazaar, although a size bigger)
  11. 3 Tonne rated nylon Tow rope with two D shackles
  12. Puncture Repair Kit
  13. 12V Air Compressor pump (ordered those cheap ones from ebay)
  14. Tyre tube
  15. Funnel with a pipe extension that fits snugly while filling fuel
  16. 20 Liter heavy duty plastic container (for carrying extra fuel)

Medicines
  1. Basic first aid kit
  2. Hand sanitizers
  3. 3 Rolls of Kitchen tissue
  4. Diamox - Altitude sickness
  5. Mahacef-CV + Calpol 650 - Fever
  6. Deriphylline 300 OD + Omnacortil + Lacilactone - Backup for Diamox in case Diamox doesn't work
  7. Cetzine - Allergic reactions like cold etc
  8. Rantac - Acidity
  9. Perinorm - Motion sickness
  10. Restyl - For loss of sleep
  11. Bunch of Homeopathy medicines (which I still won't believe that it'll work)

Documents and Gadgets
  1. MapmyIndia GPS (Vx140s)
  2. Eicher all India Road Map
  3. Maps specific to Ladakh - Downloaded and took printouts
  4. Original RC Card, Insurance, Drivers License, Emission
  5. PAN Card (original and xerox) - For identification purpose
  6. Air Pressure Gauge
  7. 2 Mobile car chargers - Just in case one fails
  8. Fiat Road Side Assistance Booklet
  9. Fiat Service Centres list
  10. A BSNL Postpaid connection - Very important
  11. Camera with 18 GB worth memory cards and 4 additional batteries along with charger
  12. List of available accommodation options along the Ladakh circuit

Cost & Reviews of Hotels that we stayed in
  1. Hotel Vapi - Rs 2500 (1N), Excellent, Secure parking available
  2. Hotel City Castle (Amritsar) - Rs 3620 (2N & 2D), Bad, No parking available
  3. Hotel Krishna Palace (Katra) - Rs 2700 (2N & 2D), Bad, No parking available
  4. Hotel Hari Retreat (Katra) - Rs 3600 (2N & 2D), Very Good, Secure parking available
  5. Hotel Season Palace (Srinagar) - Rs 3690 (2N & 2D), Very Good, Secure Parking available
  6. Hotel Siachen (Kargil) - Rs 3200 (1N), Average, Secure parking available
  7. Kidar Guest House (Leh) - Rs 4500 (3N & 4D), Excellent, Secured parking available but space restricted to just 2 cars.
  8. Padma Guest House (Pangong Tso) - Rs 800 (1N), Good, No parking available
  9. Neelkanth Guest House (Keylong) - Rs 750 (1N), Average, No secure parking available
  10. Manali Hotel (Don't remember the name of the lodge) - Rs 3000 (2N & 2D), Excellent, Secure Parking available
  11. Hotel Urmi (Haridwar) - Rs 3800 (2N & 2D), THE BEST, Secure Parking Available
  12. Hotel Aashirwad (Himmatnagar) - Rs 750 (1D), Good, Secure Parking available

Expenses
  1. Accommodation - Rs 33,100
  2. Fuel - Rs 21,300
  3. Toll - Rs 3,450 (approx)
  4. Food - Rs 19,300 (approx)
  5. Miscellaneous - Rs 5,000 (Pony charges in Katra, Environmental Tax in Leh, Parking charges and entry fee)
  6. Shopping - Rs xx,xxx (Not worth disclosing )
  7. Total cost per person (Shopping and temple offering not included) - Rs 20,500

Fuel Efficiency

Note that I did not follow the Readings shown by the MID. All these figures are arrived at using the full tank to full tank method only. Also the AC was running for almost 95% of the time. Even while climbing mountain passes like Zoji la, Khardung La and Chang La, the temperature was set to 22 degrees throughout. While coming back from Haridwar, the car carried extra 25 liters of Ganga water apart from 20 kgs of Apples from Manali and so much of shopping items.

In the Plains (Bangalore to Srinagar)
  • First Tankfull - 17.7 kmpl
  • Second Tankfull - 17.9 kmpl
  • Third Tankfull - 16.81 kmpl
  • Fourth Tankfull - 18.2 kmpl
Average FE - 17.65 kmpl

In the mountains (Srinagar - Manali)
  • First Tankfull - 15.8 kmpl
  • Second Tankfull - 14.2 kmpl
  • Third tankfull - 13.7 kmpl
  • Fourth Tankfull - 11.8 kmpl
  • Fifth Tankfull - 15.8 kmpl
Average FE - 14.26 kmpl

In the Plains (Manali - Bangalore)
  • First Tankfull - 17.9 kmpl
  • Second Tankfull - 17.53 kmpl
  • Third Tankfull - 18.10 kmpl
  • Fourth Tankfull - 17.7 kmpl
Average FE - 17.8 kmpl

Total distance covered - 8,375 kms
Overall FE - 16.57 kmpl


Expenses related to the car after the trip
  1. 3M Car Care - Rs 3,300 for full interior cleaning plus wash and wax
  2. Fourth Service - As I speak the car is at the Service Center undergoing 4th service. This is a big one where all oils and fluids will be replaced. Also will be installing the new timing kit (as per Fiat recommendation). So I'm expecting the bill to be around the 20k mark

Any more queries or questions, please feel free to ask. I'll be glad if my advice is of some use to others.

Last edited by rohittunga : 30th September 2012 at 19:33.
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Old 30th September 2012, 19:31   #109
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Quote:
Originally Posted by rohittunga View Post


If there are people who can do it from Kerala and Bangalore, then it is not difficult at all to do it from Chennai. In fact if I can recollect correctly Mr J Ravi in his Linea started off from Chennai itself, although the route taken was different.
Regarding people who'll join for another Leh expedition, well I'm ready
First when i read Ladakh Travelogue i thought might need an SUV for that cant do it in Cruze,
But then after seeing .anshuman's post i thought Laura did it so cruze can but the next thing was distance,
but now even that was clear.Have to plan well before such a long expedition However if experienced travelers like you join us then planning time can be cut off.
Took pdf cache of your post & Mr .anshumans post

Just now graduated from college so i have to join Job & settle before an expedition & have to drive on couple of mountain roads before going to ladakh because am newbie driver learnt to drive on Jan 2012 & did an 1600 trip Chennai-Vizag-Chennai within 3 months. Wish i ll soon go to ladakh with Team BHP members.

By The Way can you tell me the rough value of total money spent in your expedition
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Old 30th September 2012, 19:35   #110
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Hats off Rohit, this is one amazing travelogue, read it from 1st post till last in 1 seating. And to say lot of people, including me, have been thinking about making this journey and you have actually done it, it is a motivation definitely. Thanks a lot for recording all the details meticulously, they will be handy when someone plans the trip. And the "Linea" performed amazingly.

Excellent and smart driving!
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Old 30th September 2012, 20:32   #111
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Amazing travellogue - I must say driving over 1000 kms a day on the highways are a different ball game even if it is into the night - but the mountain passes are scary in the day, let alone night

Wow - you are a nutcase indeed

Thanks for the clear details on route and accommodation. An applause for an uneventful successful completion of the trip!

Last edited by headers : 30th September 2012 at 20:33.
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Old 30th September 2012, 22:10   #112
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Quote:
Originally Posted by shashank.nk View Post
Just finished reading through the entire travelogue, brilliant stuff man! Hats off to you and your co-passengers, all night drives, water crossings and driving on unknown roads in the dead of the night. Simply superb! I think it's more of an adventure than a travelogue.

I've also had this crazy idea of driving from blore to ladakh from 2009 (that's when 3 idiots came out right ?) needless to say, everyone i've discussed this with says i'm crazy and i'll kill myself somewhere on the way. Your travelogue gives me the confidence that not only is it possible, may be my Polo can just about pull it off!

20 days is good time for ~8500 kms! Btw, how did you manage to get such a long leave from your office ?
Thanks Shashank and I agree with you that the drive from Pang to Keylong in the dark was more adventurous than an average holiday. Seeing those videos and photos of water crossing still gives me goosebumps.

Another factor that I forgot to mention in my log was the fact that the water level at these crossings are at their peak during daytime (around noon) and gradually decrease as the temperature drops. So when I crossed all those places in the night, the water levels will definitely be at their lowest level

The Polo has almost no rear overhang which makes it more suitable in those mountains regions than my Linea. It can definitely go the full Ladakh circuit. I guess now its only a matter of when rather than if ?

Oh and regarding my leaves, thankfully my company has a pretty generous leave policy. So inspite of taking such a long break, I still have leaves to do another 10 day trip

Quote:
Originally Posted by neel385 View Post
Lovely writeup!! Kudos for doing the trip and that too safely, specially with your mother on board! She seems to have a traveling bug as well!!

Lovely pictures as well.
I think its all in the family neel. Even though she doesn't know to drive, having such an optimistic and encouraging person sitting right next to you and urging you on under such dangerous conditions is something special indeed. Most parents would run away by just listening to our log let alone be a part of it. In that way I consider myself very fortunate. Glad that you liked the pictures.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Meer View Post
Hats off Rohit, this is one amazing travelogue, read it from 1st post till last in 1 seating. And to say lot of people, including me, have been thinking about making this journey and you have actually done it, it is a motivation definitely. Thanks a lot for recording all the details meticulously, they will be handy when someone plans the trip. And the "Linea" performed amazingly.

Excellent and smart driving!
Oh yeah, the Linea performed flawlessly. I'm very proud of the decision that I took while selecting this car, although it hasn't been a smooth ride after purchase (read my ownership details for more). But I kept piling on the kms, these niggles were ironed out and during this trip all was well.

To give you a sense of perspective, the car has clocked 60,000 km (exact) in 1yr 6 months. Thats an average running of 106.7 km per day . Now thats what you call a true workhorse.

Quote:
Originally Posted by headers View Post
Amazing travellogue - I must say driving over 1000 kms a day on the highways are a different ball game even if it is into the night - but the mountain passes are scary in the day, let alone night

Wow - you are a nutcase indeed

Thanks for the clear details on route and accommodation. An applause for an uneventful successful completion of the trip!
Hahaha. Thanks for the compliment headers !!! Ya 1000 kms now seems like a walk in the park now. I had huge responsibilities on my shoulders while crossing those passes in the night because had anything untoward happened to us, I would be held responsible and accountable. I'm so relieved that everything went smoothly. As they say, all's well that ends well.

Quote:
Originally Posted by asw View Post
By The Way can you tell me the rough value of total money spent in your expedition
Hey I have mentioned the cost incurred for the entire journey in the previous post itself (#108). Have a look and still if you need any more information then do let me know.
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Old 30th September 2012, 22:21   #113
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Quote:
Originally Posted by rohittunga View Post



Hey I have mentioned the cost incurred for the entire journey in the previous post itself (#108). Have a look and still if you need any more information then do let me know.
You have pressed enter just few moments before me post #108 was not there when i replied. Thanks a lot for creating an awesome travelogue & also mentioning expenditure.

i found & sent you request in Facebook By The Way !!
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Old 30th September 2012, 22:54   #114
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Hats off to you buddy.I have nothing else to say
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Old 1st October 2012, 09:31   #115
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Quote:
Originally Posted by asw View Post
After reading travelogue of .anshuman i was thinking about trip to ladakh from chennai, but thought it will be too far away for me. After reading this Travelogue i got some inspiration. am planning to travel to ladakh next year. i have to make necessary preperation for it from now wish some one from forum will join me

HI nice to hear about your travel plan even I am planning to go to ladakh from Chennai soon, may be we could patch up to do it together.
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Old 1st October 2012, 09:56   #116
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Hello Rohit,

Thank you for this wonderful Travelogue - the pictures & the narration are simply amazing. Hats off to you for successfully completing this trip driving single handedly. But the three ladies with you deserve even more appreciation, specially when they too were ready to spend whole night in Car while you drive, not once but twice.

It is really good to see you all finishing this trip without any problems whatsoever, specially your co-passengers though in thier sixties, kept in best health during entire trip.

Thanks you once again for writing one of the best travelogues here.

Regards,
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Old 1st October 2012, 10:44   #117
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Absolutely fantastic travelogue Rohit, more than physical stamina it is the sheer amount of willpower that you displayed during this trip. You and your co-passengers surely deserve to be felicitated, what with just one driver and going through the most treacherous roads (no roads many a times), that too overnight drives.

Going to such rough lands surely requires determination, which you have demonstrated fully, coupled by the excellent support of your co-passengers. I think Fiat can (should) advertise people like you and other Linea travelers to highlight their car's abilities. It would work wonders for the company as well as convince prospective buyers.

Your trip will serve as a great guide to all future Ladakh goers, especially the list of spares, tools, medicines, equipments, etc. shows your level of preparation.

Once again, congratulations to you, your mother, and your aunts for providing us a fantastic travelogue, and more congratulations to Fiat for manufacturing such a sturdy car.
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Old 1st October 2012, 14:50   #118
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

@rohittunga: Awesome travelogue.

I liked the fact that your team took time to click so many pictures, even during difficult moments. The details on accommodation and other expenses will be useful even for those who do a partial trip.

Rated 5 stars.
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Old 1st October 2012, 16:47   #119
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Thanks Rohit for the absolute fantastic TL. Your writing ability and the pictures are a bonus for the readers. A big round of applause to you and your co-passengers for your absolute will power and strong determination. Another big round of applause for your Linea too, for taking the most treacherous roads in it's stride and also for successfully completing the journey without any fuss.

I'm sure this adventure trip of your's is going to inspire many more in the forum to set out to conquere Leh and next year we may see more TL on Leh.

Thanks for providing all the details about expenses, medicine, hotels etc.
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Old 1st October 2012, 17:03   #120
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Re: How hard can it be? Bangalore to Ladakh in a Linea

Super like! Loved your narration and some fascinating pics to go with it. Any specific reasons for skipping Nubra?
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