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The long way up

A KnightsTemplar MTC Adventure

26th July 2010 signalled the start of a ride adventure by Knight Templar member Syd Dore…aka Easyrider, accompanied by “Big Mal” my riding buddy.

The plan was to fly to India, Delhi and catch the overnight Bus to Manali in the foothills of the Himalaya’s and there, we would hire two Royal Enfield 500cc Bullets and ride the Manali to Leh route, some 500kms of the world’s hardest bike terrain. To reach Leh we would need to ride the infamous Rohtang La, up to Keylong, then Sarchu, Tanglang La the second highest pass in the world and eventually to our final Destination Leh.

Leh was to be our base for excursions to the Nubra Valley which required riding the highest motorable road in the world. A visit to the area which is the home of two hump camels ( these cannot be found anywhere else in the world), Pangong Lake and Tso Moriri and finally the ride back down to Manali, get the bus back to Delhi and fly home. Quite a trip ahead of us and we were both excited at the challenges ahead. We had come prepared with our own tents and one man cookers, freeze dried ready meal packs in case of emergency, plus an array of medicines, rehydration powders and the all important Diamox to combat the effects of Altitude Sickness.

We arrived at Delhi without incident and made our way to Connaught Place where we would catch the overnight bus to Manali. The Delhi traffic was manic and the driving of the locals both frightening and breath taking…..I will never again complain about the M25 at rush hour, peace and tranquillity by comparison. We arrived at the bus station with plenty of near misses, but thankfully no hits, and best of all our luck was really holding out, we had been allocated a reasonable area on the roof of the bus….a possible nap in the offing! ( hehehehehe). Seriously, the bus was a new Volvo air conditioned job and the recliner seats were spacious and comfortable, it was to take us 16 hours to reach Manali, we had 4 stops enroute, one for a meal which was a local curry and was delicious and cost about £1.50…..would have been all of £16.00 back home…mmmmmmmm…really getting into this trip, but I need to be on a bike, not on a coach, cannot wait to get to Manali and fire up the “Bullet”.

We found a clean, quiet hotel in Old Manali and went in search of the bike rental places, eliminating any that had bikes that looked less than adequate. I had advance information that the best guy to see was Annu, he owns Annu Motor Works on the Vashisht Road, about 5kms outside Old Manali. We had left him until last and after checking his bikes, decided he was the man for us. We agreed terms for 2 x 500cc bullets and a spares package and agreed to come back after lunch the following day to road test the bikes prior to finalising the deal, in the meantime he would service the bikes and fit rear pannier carriers, change a couple of the tyres and have the bikes ready to go. Well satisfied with our progress so far, we found a bar/restaurant ordered a Dall and rice with a couple of cold beers as starters and finishers…..time for bed.

Bikes serviced and loaded we were ready for a 6.00am start, sleep did not come easy, but after what seemed an endless night, we were finally on our way, heading for Keylong, on a road infamous for it’s bad condition, now made worse by a full night of monsoon, the rainfall had been heavy and the road reports were stating multiple landslides up on the Rohtang pass, we had been warned by locals that conditions were the worst known, certainly within the last twenty years. On reaching the start of the Rohtang pass it became obvious we were in for a tough time. Landslides were fairly constant, but these were not the real problem as we only needed a small part of the slide cleared which enabled us to slip through. We had got used to the narrow rough and loose surfaced tracks, with the scattered boulders just lying in the road ready to tip the unwary right out of their saddles……even the lack of barriers and the constant sheer drop of 5,000ft was failing to intimidate…..total and non-stop focus was required to keep the bike upright and under control……the real killer was the thick earthen sludge, 2ft deep and like glue, it clawed at your legs trying to rip them off the pegs and gripped the bikes rear bag carriers like some sort of super glue. The bikes were struggling, even 1st gear and full revs were only just sufficient to keep the bike moving. Slipping the clutch became mandatory to avoid stalling. I was getting worried that it might get too much and the bike suffer a clutch failure. “Big Mal” had reported gearbox trouble, he could not get first gear and was having to use 2nd all the time. My clutch was really starting to run hot and we were only progressing at the rate of 10kms each hour, we had to cover 180kms to reach Keylong, it was going to be a long hard day, but what the heck, that was what this trip had been all about, a challenge and a ride like nothing else you would ever do in your lifetime. We stuck at it and hour after hour passed and we were inching our way closer to the top of the Rohtang……we stop for a cup of chai at a Dhaba tent and are told we are 9kms from the top…..great…just about an hour and we would be over the worst of it !!!! We turn a really tight hairpin only to be greeted by the deepest mud sludge yet….. give the bikes some wellie…… I am shouting to Big Mal to keep ‘em moving at all costs…..well we paid the cost….what the sludge also did was to hide rocks and the like from view….Big Mal hit something hard and was tipped over in front of me, I had no option but to stop. From a truck that was stranded and stuck some ten yards ahead, there appeared a couple of guys who helped Big Mal get the bike upright and over to some more solid ground. I had kept my bike running and in neutral, once Big Mal was clear I selected first and gunned the engine, the bike had really settled into the sludge and even by slipping the clutch it was not happy about trying to move. The two guys that had helped Big Mal now came to my aid. With me revving the nuts off the bike and them heaving like crazy, the bike began to move, I steered towards the piece of ground where Big Mal was waiting…….absolute max revs, a bit of clutch slip and we were slowly getting there…..zzzzzzzzzzzz……disaster my clutch went. Now, we had tools and quite a lot of spares, sadly not a new set of clutch plates. After a brief chat we agree that Big Mal will continue on to Tandi where there is a fuel station and that would be our next rendezvous point. For my part, I would unload my bike, get a lift to Kokshar where there was a mechanic, I would buy new plates and find a pickup truck capable of carrying two bikes and make my way back, fix the bike and get underway to meet up at Tandi. I got a two bike truck because Big Mal was still having trouble with his gearbox, and there was a good chance that his bike would give out soon…..if this did happen, I would see him at the side of the road and could pick him up, collect my bike and get them repaired in Kokshar….well that was the plan.

With a new set of clutch plates and the recently hired chauffeur driven pickup, I headed back to where my bike was stranded, and past the last location that I had seen Big Mal. It was getting late and the weather was deteriorating fast. I had passed the location where Big Mal had last been seen, and I had not seen him or his bike at any point in between. It would seem he had made it down from Rhotang and was safely under cover somewhere, probably at Tandi.

Right, I just need to push on and get my bike sorted, but Mother nature was going to have her say in this…….rain sheeted down, a monsoon was starting, visibility went down to just about zero, due to a combination of mountain fog and sheeting rain……no combination of lights gave us enough vision to continue on safely, so we called it best and found a large enough cutaway to park the truck safely for the night and agreed to take up the task at first light. The driver slept in his cab and I took the loading bed at the back…..there was a tilt over the loading bed, but sadly no longer that waterproof. Anyhow, I unpacked my sleeping bag and inflatable bed mat, smuggled a clean set of long johns into the sleeping bag with me, and proceeded to throw a tarpaulin over all and sundry. It did the job good enough and I was warm, if not totally dry and managed some sleep despite the thunder, lightning and raging storm that went on for pretty much most of the night. At about 4.00am I found my torch and started to get myself sorted in readiness for first light. Most of my kit was wet, but my boots had escaped the tarpaulin cover and had conveniently filled with water…….oh well, nothing to do but tip it out and put them on…..not to bad as it was really quite warm, and once on, the boots felt quite snug, It had stopped raining and the sun came with the dawn, my, my, life can be good sometimes.

On reaching the point where I had left my bike, we were confronted with a landslide, a small one, but a landslide nevertheless. I could just see the front wheel of the bike protruding from the rubble…..shit…..bad luck I first thought, but I quickly realised that actually I was still having good luck…..hard to believe I know…..but had the bike fallen the other way it would have been unrecoverable and a write off, some 2,000 ft below where I was standing. Counting my blessings, I uncovered the bike and we dragged it clear of the rubble. A quick inspection revealed the front crash bars were bent, rear carriers would require some straightening, rear view mirrors broken , and the light/indicator switch was broken and had been twisted out of position round to the opposite side of the bars. Thankfully nothing too drastic, I could remove the mirrors, reshape the rear carriers and crash bars, but apart from cleaning and repositioning the light switch, it was broken and nothing I did made it work…..so new switch would be required……time to fix the clutch. This is a simple and quick job to do if you have the necessary tools and parts, so in just under an hour, my bike was fixed, looking quite good and most importantly functioning superbly. I left my gear in the back of the truck and rode the bike unladen, what a transition. I realised now just how badly the weight of the luggage affected the performance of these old Bullets…….no turning back now, I had cleared Rhotang La and was now barrelling down the other side of the mountain on slightly better roads…..but not for long, because in the scheme of things the Manali to Leh route is ever upwards and although the roads were better than on the Rhotang, they were still far away from being anything we would normally recognise as being roads. There were still landslides and bridges had been washed away, but with care these rivers and streams were crossed without getting too wet, and without dropping the bike. I stopped at a Dhaba for some hot chai and a momo and took the opportunity to Text Big Mal……where are you mate?......on a campsite near Tandi fuel station was the reply……Great,see you soon buddy…

We were reunited at lunchtime and rustled up omelettes and French bread for lunch….delicious. My bike got cleaned and spanner checked, chain oiled and luggage reloaded. On checking Big Mal’s bike, it became apparent that at some point whilst negotiating the Rhotang La, the gear lever had gotten caught or been struck by some object, and the lever was bent and loose. Gear lever removed, straightened, cleaned, positioned correctly and fully tightened. A quick road test confirmed that all was now well. His bike cleaned, chain oiled and spanner checked, we decided a sleep over at this point, with an early start in the morning.

First light saw us on the move, with Sarchu as our next destination. Sarchu has tented accommodation, no Hotels or community, these tents are erected for the three month season to accommodate travellers, there is a field kitchen and a bulk meal is cooked and served in the tented communal dining room to all those that are staying on site. The meal was good and the accommodation comfortable. It was here that we met up with Annu ( the guy who rented us the bikes). He was leading a group of 9 riders, all on the latest Enfield Machismos, gears on the left side ( not on the right like our old Bullets), and the modern wonder of electric start…..for those with large enough budgets it proved that money can buy you most things!!!!

Annu was pleased to see that we had made it over Rhotang, he has been doing tours for 19 years and confirmed it was the worst he had ever seen , even his new machismos had suffered some clutch failures and they were not carrying luggage ( he has 2 jeeps following the group, one carries the group luggage and some mechanics, the other carries spares, fuel and even more mechanics). I did not feel so bad now about my clutch burn out.

I told Annu that we would be heading for Leh the next day, his group were doing a detour to Tso Moriri and then would arrive at Leh the following day, we agreed to meet up in Leh for a beer and a meal.

We made Leh the next day without incident, although the road surface was pretty much devoid of the quagmire of Rhotang, they were still bad, very loose and rocky, still with frightening drops right at the side of you. Bridges were non existent and we were riding on roads that were more like the bed of a rocky river than a road, however, we had no more trauma’s, we were way up in the snow line now and locals could be seen filling water containers by placing them under the areas of snow melt. We had passed several points where trucks had left the road and I was able to get pictures of a couple but the others were at points where it was just too dangerous or impracticable to stop.

Leh was a welcome sight, we were going to book into a hotel that had en-suite everything and spend the next hour just having a long hot shower, this would be followed by climbing into some nice clean comfortable clothes, swiftly followed by a nice hot meal and ….yes you’ve guessed it….. a beer or three!!! We had completed “The Long Way Up” and we were feeling pretty pleased with ourselves. It was our intention to have two or probably three days R&R before organising the in line permits necessary to visit the Nubra Valley. We had days in hand, so no rush, both bikes and body had taken a bit of a beating over the last 4 days or so, time for some pampering. We had arrived in Leh on the 3rd August, Annu was due to arrive on the 4th and they were having a rest day, so we would meet Annu on the night of the 5th for our meal and a few bevvies. It was the intention that both his group and us two would do the Nubra valley on the 6th August, camp out for 2 nights then return to Leh, I along with Big Mal would then continue with our own itinerary……boy this was beginning to pan out so well, we were in really high spirits,…. little did we know that a major disaster was just lurking hours away…….a situation that would end our adventures, change our circumstances in a massive way and leave us feeling that we were lucky to be alive and to have also escaped without major injury.
We had arrived in Leh on the 3rd August and having enjoyed a good night’s sleep, we were out early exploring Leh and it’s colourful and vibrant market places. We sussed out where the in line permit office was and stocked up on some biscuits, crisps, Sprite and a couple of cases of good bottled water. During our shopping expedition we saw the arrival of Annu and his group, they all pulled into the Ladakh Regency Hotel (3,500Rps per night….well out of our price range), glad that Annu was meeting us at our hotel for the meal and drinks, it would have been embarrassingly expensive for us to have met at the Regency, relieved that we had avoided what could have been an awkward meeting, we were now looking forward to the meet tomorrow evening when we would finalise the trip to Nubra Valley……..in the event the meeting never took place……well not in the context we had anticipated !!!

At about 03.00am on the 5th August, I awoke with a start…..there was a really, really loud roaring noise and crashing and cracking sounds, as a back drop to this pandemonium, thunder and lightning was crashing through the skies and the rain was falling in what was like a solid sheet of water. Just yards away from the Hotel tons of water, mud, rocks, and other debris was being hurtled downhill in the direction of the town centre……..my God, I was in the middle of a massive landslide and flood situation. The residents of the Hotel congregated on the roof terrace and looked on in horror and wonderment at the tremendous and malevolent force of nature that was on display just yards from us. The Hotel had been built on a solid rock outcrop that stood on higher ground than all of it’s surroundings, whoever made the decision to build the Hotel on that particular spot has my everlasting thanks and gratitude, for it was surely this elevated position that had saved my life, Big Mal and the other residents and staff.

We had no option but to sit and wait. At around 06.00am the rain stopped and the skies were clearing, and at around lunchtime the levels of flood water were starting to subside. The hills are so steep in this region that surface water soon falls away to the valley below, one could only guess at the devastation that had been caused. By mid-afternoon, the water had subsided substantially. The local Police and Military were making the odd appearance, vehicles with tannoy’s were broadcasting messages warning everyone to stay where they were. Bridges had been knocked out and the odd one that was still standing was deemed too unstable for use. Clear up equipment was being mobilised from outside the immediate area, the Bulldozers and JCB’s that had been in Leh had all been swept away, along with buses, lorries, cars, houses, Hotels and sadly, people. This was clearly a major human and environmental disaster. More messages followed throughout the day, as evening approached we got the message we had been dreading, more rain was forecast. Tannoy trucks came around and announced that a monsoon was imminent and we should without further delay leave the Town and head out into the higher hills, we should not stop to pack but just take passports and money and get up in the hills as high as possible. Fortunately, Big Mal and I had the forethought to pack our gear on the bikes a few hours earlier, so with a pillion passenger on each bike we headed for the hills…..man, there were thousands up there. Many had made for a Monastery that stood at the very crest of the hill, obviously full too overflowing, the overspill of humans were crowding round the Monastery walls for some sort of cover, it was now starting to rain. Having got as high as we could, we pulled the bikes off the road onto a small circular piece of ground that was more or less level. Pillion passengers dismounted and we proceeded to put the bikes on the centre stands with the intention of getting our tents up for cover….we had no idea how long we were going to have to sit this out.

Crash…I did not see exactly what happened, but as Big Mal was putting his bike on the stand it tipped and fell on him, trapping his left leg under the bike. He was obviously in some pain and we rushed to get the bike off him. Once freed, he announced that nothing appeared broken, but his foot had been badly crushed, there had been a rock under his ankle and foot and the rear peg and luggage rack had formed the other side of the press, the bike fully laden was a considerable weight and the pressure on that one contact point was considerable. Many helpers got the bike up and helped put our tents up, we accommodated as many as we could, 8 in each tent, it was crowded, but we were in the dry. Throughout the course of the night we shared our biscuits, crisps and water and I checked Big Mal to see how his foot was, it did not look good.
The rain stopped and it had not been as heavy as had once been feared, we got the message we could return to our Hotel. By the time we broke camp and got our gear stowed, the Sun was on the rise and we were told that the weather forecast for the next three days was looking good. Thankful for small mercies we got back to the Hotel and were told the news that many hundreds had lost their lives,and over 80 bodies had still not been recovered, the small number of Police and Military were not able to cope, volunteers were needed to help with the clear up. Only one road in and out of town was useable. All communications were down, there was no electricity, the water supply had been compromised, the small airport had been forced to close and they were not sure when it would re-open. The road down to Manali had been severely damaged for a 36kms stretch and would not be open for at least 5 or 6 weeks.

Leh was in lock down, nobody was getting in,….. and for sure no one was getting out!!!

Big Mal’s foot looked bad, we were told the Hospital emergency section was working, but in view of the circumstances there were long queues. We would join the queue, the foot had to be checked out, he could not walk unassisted and the bruising was significant. Finally reaching a Doctor we were referred to the Xray department. A cracked Fibula just above the ankle was diagnosed, but this was not the major concern, it was the amount of bruising and swelling that was the major problem. The Doctor decided to put a temporary plaster cast on the leg and said that Big Mal should not walk on it and should repatriate to the UK immediately……..both impossible to do……I asked for some crutches, but was told that there were none available, it seemed that the flood had taken it’s toll on various parts of the Hospital, the dispensary and most of the patients wards had been hit and most of the medicines and drugs had been lost and the wards were devastated by the flood leaving thick mud covered floors, mud soaked matresses were everywhere and patients were all outside, thankfully under a warm sunny sky. Whilst Big Mal had his cast put on and waited for it to set, I walked towards the devastation and gave a hand with the clear up. I was told the Hospital was desperate for any drugs and medicines and if I could help collect any from the other Hotel residents it would be much appreciated.

On our return from the Hospital we were pleased to see Annu and his boys, He is well known in these parts, and the problems of two guys riding his bikes had quickly reached him. I explained that we needed to return to the UK as quickly as possible, and with the roads to Manali closed, we were really concerned as to how we could return his bikes. Annu proved that he was an absolute gentleman and man of honour. He understood our problem immediately and without hesitation agreed to terminate the rental of the bikes as of that date, and would require a sum of 3,000Rps per bike to get them eventually returned to Manali, this sum would be deducted from the 7,000Rps deposit per bike that we had paid at the initial hiring day. So in total we were refunded 7,250Rps each and our responsibility for the bikes had been removed from the equation…..Wow what a big worry out of the way and how genuine is that guy Annu……Superstar in my book. That major problem sorted, a collection of all surplus medicines and drugs was carried out, we managed to fill a complete backpack and one of the German girls staying at our Hotel volunteered to take it to the Hospital. Earlier that day I had picked up some sort of bug, the air down town had been foul and the smell among the worst I have experienced. The bug had also got Big Mal, but not quite as bad as it was affecting me. I had chronic diahorrea, needing to use the toilet almost constantly, I was in a catch 22 situation, I needed to drink at least 4 litres of water a day, and keep eating to maintain some stomach content, but the more I drank or ate, the more I needed to go!! I was taking Imodium, but this was not helping, Big Mal told me his was under control, however we were now in a bit of a quandary, I needed to be the legs for Big Mal and needed to be mobile to get what food was available and maintain our bottled water supplies. This is where Mahinder (one of Annu’s mechanics entered the equation). He took on the responsibility of getting for us, what supplies he could, and a damn good job he did.

I was still suffering badly 2 days on, I had lost over a stone in weight and was feeling pretty ropey, I heard a knock on my door and yelled for whoever to enter. Mahinder came in with four other people, they turned out to be Doctors from Keylong Hospital, they were on holiday in Leh when the disaster struck. Mahinder had told them of his concerns as to how bad my situation was. After some preliminary questions they told me that they had some tablets that would definitely sort me out, Imodium they said was just not strong enough or the right thing to sort me out. They gave me the tablets and warned that they must not be taken on an empty stomach, I must keep drinking as much liquid as I could, and certainly no booze or smoking, otherwise I would have adverse reactions. Thankfully the improvement after taking the tablets was dramatic and 12 hours after starting the course of tablets I was no longer running to the loo every five minutes and I could feel my body strength slowly returning.

Leh was still in a bad state, those shops that could open had now run out of food, some café’s were opening and serving limited menu’s. The Banks had run out of money, still no electricity and no communication or internet facilities. The Airport had opened and news of flights from Leh to Delhi were being touted. Racketeering was running rife….one way tickets were being offered at 24,000Rps…….300% more than the regular price of 8,000Rps……far too much for us, and they would only take cash, no credit card facilities were available. We still had time on our side, it was the 7th August and our scheduled flight from Delhi was not until the 16th August, we had the freeze dried food packs and I was cooking one a day for Big Mal and myself, we had secured plenty of bottled water, so compared to lots of others we were in pretty good shape. I had three concerns, firstly I was conscious that Big Mal needed to get proper attention to his foot, secondly I could not allow the stomach bug to return otherwise travel over long distance would be out of the question for me, and thirdly we needed more money to purchase flight tickets from Leh to Delhi. I had three more days of medicine, so that defined the deadline, I now just needed to work out where and how we could raise funds. One of Mahinder’s friends, Sonnu came to the rescue, his elder brother ran the large Hotel, Hotel Dragon, he offered to change Stirling into Rupees, a quick calculation of what we would need, a visit to the Hotel and the deed was done. One final hurdle left…….get two air tickets out!!!!

On Saturday evening, it was announced that the Police were aware of the profiteering by the airlines, they announced that airfares would be no more than 8,000Rps , anyone breaking this rule should be reported and they would be arrested……great….ticket prices were now within our reach….we just needed to get two of them. On Sunday the 8th August we got a lift to the Airport in the hope that we could buy tickets for Monday 9th. No such luck, they were not selling tickets in advance, purely on a daily first come first served basis. We returned to the Hotel and determined to be at the Airport for 04.00am Monday the 9th August. Our plan worked in as much as we managed to get out on the second flight of the day, we were hoping to make the 13.15hrs flight from Delhi to London on that same day. The Air Steward got the Pilot to radio ahead for mobility assistance and transfer from Terminal one to Terminal 3 of the Indhira Ghandi International Airport . It is sufficient to say that the transfer went smoothly by Indian standards and we just made the connection by the skin of our teeth. I was able to make contact with home and both families were relieved to hear we were both basically okay. The families at home had picked up the fact that there was a disaster in Leh, they knew we were there, but did not know whether we were alive or dead. They had been in touch with the British High Commission and were informed that relief workers in the area had been informed of our presence in Leh. We knew none of this, and in truth never came across any UK delegates, plenty from other countries, but the good old UK were sadly nowhere to be seen. I told my missus to cancel the life insurance claim, to put some bubbly on ice, cook me one of her fabulous dinners and be prepared to meet a very dirty and smelly Husband at around 8.00pm that evening.

All went to schedule and as soon as I reached home I had a well needed shower, I tucked into a very welcome home cooked meal and attacked the Bubbly with some verve. I had now finished the tummy medicine and the next day the symptoms returned, however I was home and within 48 hours I was feeling a lot better. Big Mal had been to his local hospital and they had cut the pot off, X rayed the foot and confirmed a cracked fibula. The bruising and swelling would start to dissipate quite quickly once he managed to get his foot up and refrain from putting weight on it…..last reports state vast improvement……so home safe and sound after an adventure that had been immense. I had ridden the Bullet “The Long Way Up” and along the way ridden a YAK and a three wheel rickshaw ( see photo’s). I had met some wonderful and genuine people, enjoyed their culture, their hospitality, and shared in their grief and consequences of a major natural disaster. I had not made the Nubra Valley, not from the lack of trying, the authorities would not issue permits to travel, it was and would remain too dangerous for some time to travel to and from the Nubra. Despite the end circumstances, it is an adventure that I thoroughly enjoyed and will remember as a ride of a lifetime……the Himalayas….magnificent…..untamed…..serene with a stark beauty…….they cannot be ignored, nor are they ever really conquered.

It is a fact that in all these disasters, the people that have the least, suffer the most. I am a member of the BCMT forum India and these are doing great work for the people of Ladakh . My contribution to helping is continuing via Yogesh Sarkah who heads up the forum.
If you want to know more about the Leh disaster, just google “Leh Floods”
If you feel you want to help the people of Leh, google “BCMT Forum India” and find the thread on help for Leh.

I am so happy to be alive, with my family again, and riding my bike is sheer joy……………

Easyrider 14th August 2010.