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Good number of times I have seen motorbike riders stranded up there in Himalayas not for want of ideas and enthusiasm but about how they should go around doing things the right way there. Lack of knowledge and inadequate preparation beforehand may result in a rather frustrating biking experience. So I am trying to put few thoughts forward and what little I have gained from experience. It might serve some good for those who are planning to ride Indian Himalayas or just travelling around India in general but you might realized the emphasis is more on Himalayas though.
Precautions: When you want to check the road conditions, chances might be slim that they will gladly interact with a civilian yet it is worth a try and pay a friendly visit to the regional office of General Reserve Engineer Force (GREF) or Border Roads Organization (BRO) and enquire for the latest update. BRO/GREF is non combat army wing responsible for keeping the frontier roads open and in good maintenance so they have latest input from remote and far flung roads. IMHO condition of roads is not a problem but landslides info is what you need to ask, up to around 12,000 feet slides do happen frequently and around monsoons situation can be pretty bad.
Money: Plan your whole trip and do a proper budgeting beforehand, cut some slack towards miscellaneous unforeseen expenses and add some more as rain check. Never keep all money stashed in one place. Try to spend from one reservoir for 2-3 days before you open the next stash. Think of unlikely places to hide money, (although the unlikely place is no guarantee against determined bummers, once my socks got picked up by a Nordic ex beauty pageant on the trail, I dint realised earlier why her forearm was all poked and speckled, it was a costly lesson to learn and I was even more ###### that I all my hard earned money gone waste into drugs). Another time I got mugged at NH1 in Ambala on way to Manali-Leh but it still saved my day as I was carrying only enough money in the belt to see me thru till hotel bills in Manali. Plastic money is hardly of any use in interiors, and big denominations currency can be avoided as there won’t be many people to offer change against the Rs 1000.
Interacting with locals: It bode well not to try and be a showman with them, although my experience is that hill people are gentlest of many races I have known but sometime a situation gets in places where ways of plain people have kind of rubbed off on hill people and they realize enterprising skills means more money. In such situations you should be gentle yet firm if you want to have your way. Make them understand being polite doesn’t mean you are an idiot, once they know who is who; you will get out of any situation pretty undaunted.
Don’t give in to the idea of suddenly being best of pals with them, they are genuinely shy most of time and don’t know how to react to your friendly gestures. Never eye their woman folk and pass even innocent comments as acceptable in your society setup, on their woman folk. If they offer you something to eat, it’s ok to accept. Don’t offer them money in return unless agreed upon previously; offer to pay for food is frowned upon in almost whole of India and more particular by the simple country folks, instead you can offer some toffees or a chocolate bar to the kids or something that you can part with as a small souvenir.
EVEN IF you are an atheist never, NEVER make fun of local gods just because you have never heard of them down in plains wherever you come from or because their gods look so funny or grotesque. Other thing is to forget for a while is that you may have any political views whether on national or local issues. Should some discussion veers off to politics, play by ear!
Although its personal but I have seen best biking happens in small groups, anything 4+ tend to become like a hooligan party and hooligans are not welcome anywhere. Like I said its personal idea, I mostly travel solo and find myself better organized, Prepared and in control of things around.
Clothing & Shoes: I have set a kind of parameter that excluding your foot pump, your whole baggage should wrap-up around 10-12 Kg mark including your spare parts and tool kit. I follow the idea of a hardy and light ‘traveller’ not rider. Only two basic pair of comfort fit jeans is enough for me and couple of tee shirts for change, rest is woollen for outerwear. Make it a point that you take along a good (long if possible) Goose down jacket with you. If you can get the fleeced inner thermal you will thank me on some chilling night for reminding you this. You can prolly live in just one pair of out clothes if you change underwear everyday, so throw in about 7-8 pair always. If possible get a loose skiing lower to wear on top of your thermals, this combination works better then thermal and jeans in high hill riding or very cold temperatures.
It doesn’t matter as much what brand you wear but it makes sense that you take only worn-in shoes that doesn’t bite and pinch. A sturdy pair is always an asset and worth investment. Shoes with steel toes might be a nice idea but all gear shifters may not allow tall clearance for them without feeling very awkward. Avoid flat soles, as they tend to skid off from foot-pegs after being wet. Try and wear those shoes that have some kind of groove cut between toe and heel like those army DM boots or latest range sports shoes with deep curve in sole. Heavy woollen socks are always better and throw in couple of extra pair as well. In addition you can have those army style lugs with spikes hammered on toe and heel if you are really going to drive rally style or you are going in early spring and likely to encounter lot of black ice. But you should blunt or sand file the spikes on the tips, blunt knobbles are as good as razor sharps, yr on road not a skating ring!!
Throw in some grocery plastic bags, you may need to keep few things you buy on way or simply store your smelly clothes till you get to wash them or give to laundryman. Throw in some old newspapers; they will come handy when your socks and shoes are wet and if your shoes are not Gore-Tax. All you have to do is make small paper balls and stuff them overnight into your shoes and by the morning they will be somewhat wearable and dry. Lamp shades make great idea to get the socks dry, and bulbs without shade present even greater challenge to hang the socks around, that where the fun is!!
On the Road: When in hills do try to change your mind set from plain road driving. You will see other drivers will respect your driving as well. Be patient and learn to wait for pass, which may take a lot longer then plain roads. Not because the other guy is trying to race you but because there has to be some EXTRA space around before he can step aside wide enough without breaking his pep and loosing speed. Nobody is going to give you pass in hill roads just because you hooted for it and come to grinding halt from this 3rd or 2nd gear and when you overtake, start raving all over again in 1st gear.
Truck drivers are the nicest lot in hills try and be nice to them in return. It will pay someday if not on same trip. I had this trucker coming to me on a frozen morning at Pang when I woke up and realized that clutch plates on my RD350 are stuck because night was biting cold, it snowed as well and that STP infused Motul engine oil went bricks. He offered me whatever help he could give. He was driving a coal truck up to Leh. My situation was all the more aggravated because my tool kit got pinched by someone in Manali, who needed it more then I perhaps, the previous day and I noticed this fact only 15 mins ago that morning. He not only gave me some spares to open clutch cover but also heated a pan of coal to put under her belly and warm up the engine oil. He told me you are good guy I saw you two days back at ludhiana and then near manali and both times when I gave you pass, you waved me bye!!! So bottom line is BE NICE, it will stand you good.
What to carry on the Road: You may want to not miss anything when planning the personal stuff you want to carry, sometime we end up packing a lot more then it is necessary. I learned this fact rather hard way and now I stick to very basic essentials like:-
A Flashlight or Sturdy Battery made of Plastic shell
A Waist belt for loose change and knick knacks
Camera and spare Rolls or RAM cards
Knife?? You would be surprised how often you don’t need one!
Favourite Books to Read when you want to stick in for few days before moving again.
Pair of Gloves and Cap
Walkman/ ipod?? If you really need to be distracted away from hills
A complete Shaving Kit
A lightweight multi purpose Towel to serve variety of services
Flip Flops/Sandals
Few ball Pen and a Notepad
Sweaters / Jackets
T-shirts
Casual Shirts
Jeans
Small Shampoo sachets
Cigarettes, if you are a stickler for your own brand
Hotel Numbers where you got your reservation done
Maps if any
Water Bottle
Light Snacks and fruits
Binoculars
While Driving: Everyone have own driving rhythm and style, so go on as much you can drive but taking rest whenever you feel tired will save you lot of bother, health wise. Idea is don’t over strach yourself unless there is some impeding doom around. One very useful idea is about cummerbunds to prevent kidney rattle. Even if it sound bit weird I just have to say that riding in Himalayas is not like riding in Western Ghats, you will understand what am saying when you realize your front fork did well for all those good 10 years but the oil seals leaked within 2 day of driving in Himalayas if roads can do that to your rubber seals think about your kidneys. Kidney rattle CAN ruin your general mood and no harm taking care of this aspect too. This is especially useful for those TV junkies with somewhat flabby tummy. Guys with six-pack tummy may ignore this.
Take a long cotton ‘dhoti’ and twist it softly that such dhoti rope feel soft yet supple, before wrapping around lower back, try to have 5-6 rounds before tucking in. It works better then those plastic and stiff back support thingies they sell in market.
Always keep your extra jacket handy (tucked on top of luggage under bungee net) because in hills weather can change in minutes. From sunny and warm enough sunshine this minute to freeze your nuts and knuckles by the next turn. A pair of insulated gloves works better, the kind skiers use, I use lightweight Spalding thinsulate and found them really good for the purpose. Leather once will just pass on the cold drafts to your skin. Whenever you stop for a smoke or rest, placing your gloves on the head fins is another good idea, you will drive off with much warmer Gloves.
Your seat might prove to be a spot of bother in about 3-4 days and you might feel like you are sitting on a bamboo. Seat of a Honda Scooter might seem a dream sofa set to you, so go ahead and improve upon your bamboo. I say this because in my experience no Indian bike has been designed as a tourer or long haul.
It’s also important or ride on correct tyre pressure. Allow some slack for hot air to expand and judge what psi you want to ride on cold tyres. It’s kind of hard to explain but you’d know if you ride regularly. I personally prefer to start of the day with almost 1 psi less them recommended. Before starting off everyday you must do a physical eye inspection of your bike, check for any loose nuts & bolts, check all the control cables tension and fuel lines for leaks, lever and brake free play and tyre for any cuts or nails embedded in them from last day riding. Always check engine oil gauge and 2T level if not using premix. It is not a bad idea to clean your spark plugs every second day. That will also keep you in touch with what’s happening inside cylinders as well. Do checks drive chain tension everyday.
Fuel tank rust in those crumbling Royal Enfield is another problem. Especially with the rented ones. Once riding with some acquaintance that was big times mechanically challenged, I reopened the carb for 17 times between Del-Leh-Del to remove specks of dust and rust. Giving anti rust and rust remove treatment will save you lot of bother and it doesn’t cost an earth.
Tools: Now day’s things are a lot better then they use to be, say 15 yrs ago? I remember carrying those agonizing plastic cord balls, packing and unpacking at least 3 times a day until those bungee nets and cords arrived. You can do away with those spanners and puncture kit instead if you carry those pressure canisters with liquid that turn foam in contact with air and seal the leak. One application is good for one puncture, cost about 350 Rs and has almost 40 psi air in it (but you still have to get the proper puncture fixed when you make it to some city) and good to go for about 100 Km.
if you are driving something very exotic then you needs some extra care about spares because you just wont get them anywhere else. So you have to think real hard in advance about what all you might need. Consider carrying spare clutch plates in addition to regular spares and tool kit. Revise your bike’s weakest spot where she might trouble you, spend few extra chips and nip the problem in bud. Also carry a spare lever set because it rains pretty regular in hills and when you have dashed inside that tea stall in hurry leaving her parked on main or side stand in soft mud, she is ought to fall, when, is just a matter of time and that might cost you a clutch lever.
Never give in the temptation to go for thicker oil just because it worked fine in plains. Even if you do have to have heavy-duty thick viscosity engine oil, after you hit the hills, drain some part of it and add regular oil or you can add some 2T as well which is stock 15 SAE or else carry some oil anti freeze. Hereunder is a small list that you may like to consider as part of tool kit:-
1. A bunch of Bungee Cords and Bungee cord Net
2. Emergency Fuel, them iron cans are bit bulky so I prefer narrow neck Coke Bottles over them. You can sling them over almost anywhere and just two bottles of 2 litre can offer you the emergency range of at least 60-70 Km.
3. A strong masking tape.
4. Spare 2T Oil or engine oil.
5. Pair of sturdy Sling bags and tank top, it is very important to stuff the side sling bags evenly so your bike doesn’t lean on sides while driving.
6. Cable Lock to secure your stuff to bike
7. A good quality Helmet
8. Original Registration of bike, Pollution Control certificate & Insurance cover note. You may keep only the photocopies but if asked to produce, the traffic cop may not consider them even a penny worth.
9. Your subsisting and Valid Driving Licence or international driving licence.
10. Your usual Spares like Spark Plug, Clutch/Accelerator Cable, various Bulbs, few strands of wire, etc).
Medicines: Prepare your medical kit keeping in mind your past medical records. Many tablets are available over the counter but do not scoop them without consulting your GP.
1. Take some anti puking tablets like Avomine or Perinorm,
2. Anti loose motion ones as well,
3. Iodine gauze or solution and Dettol,
4. Pudine Hara tablets are better then Diagine or gelusile for upset Tummies,
5. Some mild anti allergy tablets,
6. Moisturiser and Anti mosquitos spray,
7. Diamox 250 mg,
8. Water Purification Tablets.
You might realize that my medic kit is rather small. Drive and live sturdy is the main idea. Insisting on too much hygiene will leave you frustrated or bed ridden for want of it. I mean don’t try and be a staunch sticker for only packed food and mineral water. Because if you may have to eat local water and food, you have already pampered your stomach line a lot and it will fail at first test.
Even if you have taken ill, you still NEED TO eat something. So carry some hardy fruits as well from your last shopping/city/civilization point. Curd and rice are always available everywhere. Rice is easy to digest and curd will help you with ‘friendly’ bacteria that exist in it to help you recover from illness.
Unseen UV rays can wreck your skin as well. When you see those rosy cheek people in hill it’s not because they are in best of health but because that’s a very mild UV burn. They stay rosy because they just live there, bring them down in plain and see that rosy cheek turning into brown shade. So you can try and not look a Baywatch model with muscles rippling. Once burned those tissues may take from 3 to 5 months to heal and your skin colour to be back to normal self. Apply nothing less then 30+ sph factor sun creams. L’Oreal makes 50+ but it’s very costly, Johnson & Johnson offer one with 40 sph and cost about 300 rupees. If you can get total sun block Zinc paste that you have seen those cricketers having, nothing like it.
Take some ointment for those undy rashes. You are going to need one application every night after 4-5 days. That will also serve as a bacteria-killing cream. Get some anti bacteria foot powder too.
Mountain Sickness: There is lot of information already on internet about this so I will just breeze through on it. AMS or Acute Mountain Sickness can be of two types but since the acute type is for mountaineers we will stick to first stage type, which can happen while riding. Its bit complex but I will try to explain. This is not some kind of sickness or indicates weak physical condition of yours. What happens is when you gain height your body is not able to adjust to the rarefied air that have less oxygen. Genetically our body is conditioned to breath at a fixed rate and maintains pulse. This gain of height imbalance (don’t ask me how) the Ph factor (water level) in our blood, the messed up Ph level triggers the brain and con it into thinking that this particular ph level means body is resting, so brain in turn, without we noticing it, signals to slows down the breathing and bring down pulse rate slower the same way it should be at the time of rest or sleeping. This upsets the whole system in real time sense. We are already not having enough oxygen and fully awake, in need of oxygen and extra calories but to make things worse we have automatically started breathing slower and reverse the needs. This less oxygen and demand supply situation being upset is what largely cause mountain sickness.
To overcome this mountaineers follow this cardinal rule of gaining aproxx 1000 feet a day and retreat down 300 feet for rest/night halt. But while biking in hills it’s not possible to do so owing to your quicker pace. So what you can do is that peer hard at your maps, know road conditions beforehand and estimate your Km you can or going to cover. During the day reach at the top most height point and stay there for 10/15 minutes and driving towards evening loose height and settle for night. AMS will take about one full day and half before it sets in, thought this time span is not fixed. For some people it may set in within 6 hours. AMS can make you feel dizzy, giddy and temperamental and if allowed to be persisted at height attitude, will turn into second degree AMS and may cause AMS death in rare cases.
But it’s easy to tackle; you just have to be alert. Mountain sickness is mostly seen to be active around and after 10,000 feet. As a preventive measure you can start with 250mg Diamox tablets, twice a day, 24 hours before you hit big heights. You should be 3 dozes down before you hit 10 thousand and beyond. Maintain good water level in body as owing to cold we don’t feel thirsty and let the fluid level drop in body. Drink water regularly even if you are not thirsty. I would say finish off at least 3 litre of pure water in addition to your usual milk/tea stuff. If on Diamox don’t have soft drinks. Diamox usually don’t have any side effects but some people may experience tingling sensation at the nerve ending points like finger tips and toes and soft drinks will taste flat. Diamox is prescription drug in USA and Canada but its available in most Indian hill stations at OTC. Those who are allergic to sulpha drugs please consult your Doctor for alternative. DO NOT use in pregnancy. Diamox is a diuretic drug, so drinking a lot of water while taking the pill.
Inner line permits: There might be some areas even for Indian nationals where the Army or Administration restricts your movements with permits to enter and travel. You don’t need to get permits from plains or from state capitals only. Anywhere you are going in hills or around frontier district, just see what district that area you intend to go, falls in and make sure that you travel through the district administration office, which is usually SDM office. Per application you will need some proof of being Indian citizen like ration card/voter card or passport and two recent photographs, but foreign nationals will require to submit passport photocopies and won’t be given permits to a group of less then four.
When you make application think ahead where all you might want to go within that particular district and mention all those places and ask for permission in single application itself. For example Leh is going to be the base and you might want to go three different places that need permits, spanning like 180 degree. So make one application and mention all places and ask nearly 12-15 days permit to travel. That way you still come to Leh and touch base but won’t have to scramble up to DC office for fresh permission. Get plenty photo copies of permission because army check post at entry and exit point will ask for a photo copy of permit to retain for records and statistics.
When in Leh, your hotel guy can fix your permit for Rs 50-100 service charge and deliver them next day but if you are applying single then it is more sensible to appear before the issuing authority in person as they usually don’t give permits to single people. I guess what they fear is, if he is a total idiot and going to die in some remote valley, he is going to cost us whole damned rescue or body recovery operation at the expense of national exchequer. We can avoid this perceived future problem right here by turning down this request.
I am leaving the stuff about filming equipment and cameras to your budget and style since I feel that’s altogether a different field. Except one little tip about shooting with a camera when you can’t carry a tripod on bike and travelling not to shoot professionally. Take a washer about twice the size of one rupee coin and tie a plastic cord in the hole, adjust the length to your eye level standing straight, leaving the margin enough to tie other end to some notch on your camera. When you shoot a panoramic long shot with a slow film you need to be still, place that washer on ground and press your toe firmly on it, pull the camera gently to eye level and feel the cord going tout, you are ready to shoot without shake.
I guess that’s about it and I have summed up most of the stuff that I knew. But still there could be many things that we know either by instinct or experience that I may have forgot to mention. The above expressed views have been gained and weaned from personal experience and I cannot claim them to be absolute fit or recommended for others, please exercise your own discretion
Happy Riding!!
Edited by Hippie at Heart, 22 May 2006 - 04:04 PM.
I too hope this article will serve some usefulness for casual and regular bikers alike. This one was lost in the initial shifting and -m2- very kindly prod me to resurrect it. This was written after I found near absent info on this aspect at various Indian biking websites or at best they would be spewing twisting tales about record timings from point A to Z. Kids really want to do things fast way sometime and not care or heed to planning. Since my days of being speed demon are long gone I thought there might be some souls around who want to do things little slow, planned and taking it easy.
