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India - Manali Leh

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FLV:
Got some time off work. Planning to go to India and have a go at the Manali - Leh Highway and a good look about the Leh area. 3-4 week trip.
Planning to go in August.

Anyone been and got any tips on culture, conditions, must haves and dont needs?

acousticmotorbike:
I did this road on an Enfield motorbike in July 2009, my visa expired on 17th July, so I borrowed the motorbike and spent two weeks in the region.  It was pretty chilly on the way up and there was lots of standing snow, but most of it had melted on the return ride, which meant that the rivers were trickier to cross.  My mate broke his leg after hitting a rock and he was pinned in the river by his motorbike, that happened at the worst crossing, but they have now put a bridge over that particular river.

There are a few tents set up along the way and you can get food / accommodation there, but I recommend that you bring a tent and stock up on food as and when you can.  I found the people here to be nicer than the ones in the lowlands, might be to do with the Nepal / Tibetan mix. 

The road from Manali to Rothang La (the first pass) was pretty muddy when I was on it, can't image how it would have been the next day as it rained for 24 hours solid.  You can see a video of my descent of the pass here, this will give you some idea of the conditions and traffic.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xERRyfHAqY

Aidan

FLV:
Sounds like a good trip.

Looks like I'd better pack the down jacket and thermals too then...
I've been hoping it wouldnt drop below about 5 degrees, guess the wind chill could lower how that feels significantly up there.

FLV:
just watched the video properly. Looking at that, I might take some mud tyres never mind the specialized hemisphere commuter tyres I just flippin bought at the weekend :(

acousticmotorbike:
I have Marathon XR on my bicycle and they would probably do.  I can imagine you having problems with mud clogging up the mudguards and brakes, so may be an idea to leave the mudguards at home (or in guesthouse in Manali).  It's a fantastic road, I wish I could have gotten more video footage, but the sections before that were far too ropey to try and video, but that was probably more down to the speed I was riding at.  You'll be fine on a bicycle.

I've got some photos of the ride on my blog:  http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?o=RrzKj&page_id=118623&v=7A

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