Delhi Bikers

Pangong-Tso Lake, 2014 “It’s about the journey not the destination” . You must have heard that countless times but there is another key ingredient. The journey can be ruined or be memorable thanks to who you ride with. These days there are countless ‘tour-companies’ and ‘operators’ and ‘guides’ who are promising you a ‘full-package’ with them. Here are some things to remember before you say yes to that ‘all-inclusive’ ‘adventure of a lifetime’.  1)   Credibility:  What is the company's reputation? Did they do a ride last year or a recce run this year or did they ride a decade ago? Because things change dramatically every year it is important that they know where they are taking you. And has anyone else recommended them to you? Is there any online review about them from previous clients? Or are you believing everything they claim on facebook or their website? Did they actually take those photos? If possible, meet them before you commit. 2)  T...

Balochistan Levies  escorting Alex & Teresa I have always wondered what it would be like to ride across Pakistan and into Iran and onwards. It seems the closest I will get in this generation is through second hand accounts from European bikers who cross into India via the Wagah border. All of them consistently speak of the hospitality of Pakistani people, the food and culture. I recently had the joy of spending couple of days with Alex Taìri Castellano and Teresa Caprino, riding their BMW1200GS from Italy and heading into Singapore and then across into Australia. Delhi Biker (DB) How many days were you in Pakistan and how was it entering from Iran?   Alex: We were in Pakistan just seventeen days in total. Got in from Taftan . Iran was super efficient…people are hardworking and most part of our journey we had a police escort. At the Iranian border at Mirjaveh , the immigration office was modern and tidy. Our paperwork went smoothly and then they opened t...

Early morning 'Breakfast Run'. Spangmik to Tangtse. From day into night. We were enthused and refreshed by our miraculous sleep, which felt more like an incredible escape from the jaws of AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness). The last meal Ray had was the previous day’s lunch but he still chose to skip the breakfast. The Ladakhi drivers advised us to return to Leh instead of going to Tso Kar.  Some said it was “Bone shattering!” while others warned, “there is no road”.  We had already taken a huge risk by riding without acclimatizing and to continue further in our shaky state would have been foolish. The wild shades of the mountain could not hide the blizzard brewing behind it. Adventure motorcycling is about calculating your risks so you can keep riding. Plans are made to serve us not the other way around. Trouble starts when we stubbornly stick to an itinerary when wisdom tells us to be flexible and modify. So we headed back to Leh via Changla. I will never fo...

We should have anticipated what lay ahead in the night but maybe we convinced ourselves that sheer stubbornness could keep Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) at bay. But alas, by 5pm the temperature had dropped enough to make us immobile and stuck under our blankets and our heads were throbbing like bass woofers and no one was dancing. I asked the monk who ran the guesthouse why there were oxygen cylinders outside our rooms. “Precaution” he said. Ray had no appetite so I ate by myself. I returned to find him throwing up even the water he was trying to drink. We laughed the first few times. Then panicked, as he couldn’t stop. Neither the pink walls or the velvet blankets helped. Finally Mr. Concentration was called to the rescue. I ran and called the monk to do something. He sent a man named Dhyan Singh Thakur, the resident waiter/nurse/guide who said he could cure anything with his massage. I wasn’t going to argue and Ray was far too sick to protest as a chunk ...