To the Top of Khardung La
Steve and I woke up quite early, 5:30am to get a head start and avoid the hot sun of late morning. Jean-Pierre started even before us, maybe an hour, or so. What a rascal. He definitely liked to get to the top first this time.
It was fairly straightforward climb, approx. 37 kms from our guesthouse in Yourtung. Road was good too. The only slight annoyance we had to contend with was heavy traffic, esp. military convoys going to the Nubra Valley. It was a windless day and it wasn’t fun at all to ride through clouds of diesel fumes. But the ever expanding views of the Indus Valley down below were hugely rewarding;) Passing through South Pullu, 23kms from Leh, we had to submit our passports and show permits. But the good news, just past the checkpoint was a new, not so long ago finished, stretch of smooth pavement for the next 5 kms.
Later, even more military trucks overtook us, now joined by lots of tourist jeeps too. 9 kms from the top the good road finished and we were on a usual dusty dirt road with rare patches of old pavement here and there. Everyone was climbing up with their own tempo. Jean-Pierre still ahead of us, spinning with Armstrong-like cadence, Steve pushing ‘biggish’ gears on his Rohloff and I was somewhere in between;) On a good part of the road, it was easy to ride 11-13km/h uphill, on the bad one, 7-8 km/h, and I was quite happy…
Not far away from the top, a jeep stopped nearby. A couple from Switzerland with their son and a local guide, offered me some water, even glucose bisquits. Not really wanted to take advantage of their generosity, I took the water but declined the bisquits. For a while, we talked about their and my trips. Thanks again guys, if you are reading this;) And, good luck on your excursion to Tso Moriri. Usually, folks riding in jeeps give me thumbs up, a quick passing smile, and that’s more than enough to make my day. I always appreciate it. It really is a huge boost. In exchange, I wave back, try to smile, or quickly pose for a snapshot, with the victory sign, of course;)
The last three kilometers, I rode with Steve together, more or less, to the top. The Khardung La pass was quite a surprise, when compared to the other passes I had crossed so far. A restaurant, lots of sings announcing arrival on the highest motorable pass in the world, two shrines, urinals and even a military memorial with the Indian flag. Plus, scores of trucks, jeeps and tourists coming up here for a quick look, or heading into the Nubra Valley for a few days. And lastly, not to be missed, military presence on the pass. I won’t go into details but it was sizeable. From time to time, a helicopter flew overhead. I tried to talk up one military guy, with a red barret, black sunglasses and his stern and focused gaze, he could easily pass for Jean-Claude Van Damme, except his Tibetan looks;) But there was no chance for a picture.
Btw, the Khardung La pass is nowhere near its claimed height of 5,602m. IMO, it is only marginally higher than the Tanglang La pass (approx. 5,300m) that we crossed a week earlier, by about 50 to 100 meters, at most. For more on the highest motorable passes in the world, check out this article…
With our bikes we achieved almost celebrity-like status on the pass. Random people were congratulating us, asking us about our rides and scores of Indian tourists wanting to take pictures of us, or just our bikes;(((. I’m used to taking pictures of others but this time I easily complied. It was fun for a while. I even met an Austrian tourist who stayed in Nepal 2002, in the same hotel as me (Hotel Utse). I remember it quite well because I met Peter Habeler, a mountaineering legend, there. He was the first one, together with Reinhold Messner, to reach the top of the Mt. Everest in 1978 without oxygen.
After 40 minutes almost everyone went their own way and the pass became deserted, with only military guys left behind. There were some huge black clouds bulking up behind a ridge, so I bid farewell to Steve and Jean-Pierre, wished them good luck, thank them for their good company in the last week and their invitation whenever I visit Australia. Thanks guys, stay safe and have fun out there…
A quick last glance toward mountains of the Karakoram range and it was time get on my way down, back to Leh. I ripped it up, taking over cars and motorbikes easily. I was wishing for a full-suspension downhill bike;) But the threatening clouds quickly came over me. It started with a light rain, later changing into a hail. I was peppered with ice pellets. Having a rain jacket helped but with nothing to put over my biking shorts, I felt the stinging ice very much on my thighs. On some parts I had to slow down because of the freezing pain;) But there was not much else I could do… With already wet and cold feet and legs, I could only ride lower into the warmer air of the valley below. So, after a record-breaking descent of one hour and 35 minutes from the top, at least I like to think so, I was back at my guesthouse in Leh again, with my bike shorts and the rain jacket dry too;) BTW, Leh didn’t receive a drop of rain from these high clouds;)
Tired and exhausted from the cold rain, I took a short nap…
Start: Leh, Jammu-Kashmir, India
End: Leh, Jammu-Kashmir, India
Distance: 75.12 km
Elevation: +1,705/-1,705 m
Time: 5′43″
Avg: 13.1 km/h
Total: 1,151.1 km
Riding/Total days: 17/23
