[catchjyoti]

This was a great trip for you, your wife and Sherdil. Sherdil indeed has a tiger's heart taking you both to distant places!

And the "Passionately..." coffee mug gave you away. And through you your better half. Hint: 173905 & 298089

[behaln]

One of the best travelogues I have read on Ladakh. Rated well deserved 5*.

A very detailed description of the places you visited. Not to mention the flawless performance of Sherdil.

Not so happy to read about your experience with HVK. If one is in cutomer oriented services then No matter how busy I may be, we have to value the time and preferences of the customers.

[Ranabegins]

Great Travelogue, very detailed with excellent pictures. Right now I don't have any plans of going there but someday I'll and this will be a nice travelogues to take ideas from.

Regarding your experience with HVK, I have heard of similar experiences in the past, as soon as you start charging even a single rupee for a service you can't say that you don't have time. When you are charging for something it means that you are doing it as a business and when you are doing a business you need to have a customer friendly attitude.

[abhishek_hch]

Epic.

Thank you so much for writing all in so detail, it made me feel like I myself was there.. Kudos

[lejhoom]

Thank you, gearhead_mait for this absorbing travelogue, and the accompanying photos were captivating. The simplicity of narration gave me the feeling of being a traveller myself experiencing the road. This presentation will give a great fillip to those travel bugs yearning to visit these northern reaches but are held back owing to not owning large SUVs. Voted 5 star.

[hemanth.anand]

Thanks for sharing your travels. Beautiful pictures aptly supported by just enough amount of text and straight forward reviews and experiences.

There are many Ladakh travelogues, but why this travelogue stands out is because of your Sherdil. I can't even imagine doing those roads in that car. of course there are people who've done it in all sorts of vehicles, it is truly admirable.

I recollected my journey on these roads (it's been 8 years now!!). My eyes became moist as my wish to go back again has not materialised ever since.

Another highlight of your travelogue is that it gives a first hand account of situation at Srinagar. I can somewhat relate to it as I was there on August 15 and it isn't a happy environment when any city/town wears a deserted look. Wish all this ends well.

Congratulations and keep travelling!

[arjab]

gearhead_mait: I don't think any type of compliments or adjectives will do justice to the travelogue that you have shared with all of us.

This travelogue is full of passion to see unseen places, love of driving and most importantly love for your car: all brought to boil together, in the cauldron of a road trip, to come up with this most wonderfully flavoured and visually arresting dish.

My sincere congratulations to you and M'aam for completing this milestone in your lives and my best wishes to both of you for many such (and bigger!) trips in future.

I also see that you are based in Kolkata. Maybe if time & schedule permits it would be lovely to meet up some day.

Take care and drive safe,

Best....always,
Arjab

[adi_gt]

Beautiful pictures and lovely blog. Just wondering how many of our Bangalore folks would term those roads as challenging ? We travel through such mess and dug up streets every darn day.

[AJ-got-BHP]

What should I say ? Did your travelogue make my day at work or ruined it ? A bit of both actually. Awesome travelogue which refreshed my Ladakh memories which made my day ! But the greed to hit the road yet once again has just ruined my day as the mind is already wandering to move the body and the soul. Rated a well deserved 5*

[avi_swift]

Wow!! Take a bow sir, you are one hell of a driver

I did the Hampta Pass trek and when we were being taken to Chandrataal on the last day, I saw the condition of the road, and after seeing your photos and videos, I can recollect just what it was like being a passenger there, even though we were being transported in cars with comparatively higher ground clearance like Bolero and Sumo. To take a hatchback there, require driving skill of a different level.

Also, do you think that the road to Ladakh from Kashmir is more forgiving? (I have a Swift and Ladakh always beckons since I live so near in Delhi, but I have never mustered enough courage to take my car there).

Rated 5 stars.

[Samfromindia]

What an EPIC journey, narrated with all the minute details and beautiful pictures. This is surely going to be a handbook for future travelers to come & surely breaks the "i need a better car !" stereotype which many people have when it comes to road trips. Its a wonderful coincidence that Sherdil completed this major milestone on its most adventurous journey yet Keep up the good work buddy and thanks for spending all the time to compile this epic journey for the benefit of all the readers ! Rated *****

[debuda]

A fantastic travelogue, befitting a truly epic trip. Loved the detailed descriptions, many useful hints & tips and interesting tidbits. Superb photographs were the icing on the cake. I went through the entire travelogue from beginning to end over the last 2 days and rated it a well-deserved 5 stars.

Those planning a self-drive trip to Ladakh will benefit immensely from your detailed and comprehensive travelogue. I did a self-drive trip to Ladakh a few years ago but if I make another trip there I will certainly re-read your entire TL.

The fact that you did this tough and arduous trip in a relatively small hatchback speaks volumes about the skills, determination, enthusiasm and passion of you both. The planning of your itinerary was also superb and you managed to see many beautiful places other than Ladakh.

I had heard a lot about HVK and the services they offer. It was an eye-opener to learn about your terrible experience. Thank god I never used their services. Anyway, with the increasing power of the internet available in our pocket anywhere in the world through our smartphones, motorists rarely need any human assistance for drawing up an itinerary, navigation, choosing optimal routes, finding hotels, etc., and even emergencies.

[John]

Superb narration and equally amazing pictures, Soumyajit!
Brought back memories of our trip, 7 years ago.
Hats off to you, Monosree and Sherdil.
Rating this 5 stars.

[Who_are_you]

Great travelogue. But we are hearing only one side of the story about HVK.



I have used services of CHD and RoutO countless times and never faced any issue. When I was stuck in North East last month during protest and internet ban, it was HVK who had helped me.

[gearhead_mait]

Wow! Frankly I didn't expect so many good words coming from fellow BHPians. Thanks a lot to all of you!

Originally Posted by catchjyoti

This was a great trip for you, your wife and Sherdil. Sherdil indeed has a tiger's heart taking you both to distant places

Thanks catchjyoti! You caught us, huh!

Originally Posted by behaln

One of the best travelogues I have read on Ladakh. Rated well deserved 5*.

Thanks Behaln for your kind words!

Originally Posted by Ranabegins

Great Travelogue, very detailed with excellent pictures. Right now I don't have any plans of going there but someday I'll and this will be a nice travelogues to take ideas from.

Thanks a lot!

Originally Posted by Ranabegins

Regarding your experience with HVK, I have heard of similar experiences in the past, as soon as you start charging even a single rupee for a service you can't say that you don't have time.

Agreed, but that is history now. The beautiful experiences that we had during the trip washed away all these minor hiccups.

Originally Posted by abhishek_hch

Epic.
Thank you so much for writing all in so detail, it made me feel like I myself was there.. Kudos

Thanks abhishek!

Originally Posted by lejhoom

Thank you, gearhead_mait for this absorbing travelogue, and the accompanying photos were captivating. The simplicity of narration gave me the feeling of being a traveller myself experiencing the road.

Thanks a lot, my friend! Feels real good when the reader enjoys the narration.

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

There are many Ladakh travelogues, but why this travelogue stands out is because of your Sherdil. I can't even imagine doing those roads in that car. of course there are people who've done it in all sorts of vehicles, it is truly admirable.
!

Thanks Hemanth. Your travelogues are quite adventurous too!

Originally Posted by arjab

gearhead_mait: I don't think any type of compliments or adjectives will do justice to the travelogue that you have shared with all of us....

..I also see that you are based in Kolkata. Maybe if time & schedule permits it would be lovely to meet up some day.

Thanks Arjab! Yes, we can meet sometime. Will send you a PM.

Originally Posted by adi_gt

Beautiful pictures and lovely blog. Just wondering how many of our Bangalore folks would term those roads as challenging ? We travel through such mess and dug up streets every darn day.

Thanks adi_gt! Same here as well in Kolkata. People have started terming places in Kolkata like Behala as Beha La, Mahestala as Maheshta La (La meaning high passes)

Originally Posted by AJ-got-BHP

What should I say ? Did your travelogue make my day at work or ruined it ? A bit of both actually. Rated a well deserved 5*

Thanks Arav da!

Originally Posted by avi_swift

Wow!! Take a bow sir, you are one hell of a driver

Also, do you think that the road to Ladakh from Kashmir is more forgiving?

Thanks avi_swift! Sonamarg-Leh is way better than Manali-Leh, but your swift will easily cover both the routes, depending on the time of your travel.
mid Aug till Sep end usually remains good, both the road condition as well as the weather.

Originally Posted by Samfromindia

What an EPIC journey, narrated with all the minute details and beautiful pictures...
Rated *****

Thanks Samrat!

Originally Posted by debuda

A fantastic travelogue, befitting a truly epic trip. Loved the detailed descriptions, many useful hints & tips and interesting tidbits. Superb photographs were the icing on the cake. I went through the entire travelogue from beginning to end over the last 2 days and rated it a well-deserved 5 stars.

Thanks debuda. Your kind words means a lot to us!

Originally Posted by John

Superb narration and equally amazing pictures, Soumyajit!
Brought back memories of our trip, 7 years ago.
Hats off to you, Monosree and Sherdil.
Rating this 5 stars.

Thanks a lot, John

Originally Posted by Who_are_you

Great travelogue. But we are hearing only one side of the story about HVK.

I have used services of CHD and RoutO countless times and never faced any issue. When I was stuck in North East last month during protest and internet ban, it was HVK who had helped me.

Thanks Who_are_you!

Please let this travelogue remain a one sided one, be it the review or the experiences associated with it.

If you want an all sided jurisdiction of the matter, there is a separate thread on that here (Review: HiVayKing Ladakh 951 (travel advisory service))

By the way, nice to hear that you had brilliant experiences with HVK services. Do share your travelogue highlighting your experiences with HVK.

Thanks!