Day Six Despite the luxurious settings, I didn’t sleep well and woke groggily with sticky eyes, a snotty nose and cracked lips. Living in the tropics for decades softens you up somewhat and harsher conditions take longer to acclimatize to. Several coffees, a hot shower, a good breakfast, a group shot and a couple of…
Month: March 2020
Kagbeni to Mallaj
Day Five The mood was a little subdued this morning as bad weather was expected which is not conducive to riding on some of the most dangerous roads on the planet. A low grey fog and foreboding looking sky shrouded the mountains and we went for a wander around the medieval ramshackle village before breakfast….
Lower Mustang, Muktinath
Day Four It was now not far before we swung right to make the ascent up to Muktinath on what was the best road seen so far – a smooth strip of blacktop snaking up the mountain above the snow line. As the altitude increased the bikes grew a little sluggish as the Enfield carbs…
Kalopani to Jomsom
Day Four The next morning yielded an even more spectacular view as the 6,920 meter Tukuche Peak revealed itself to the north in the crystal clear morning light. Next to it was the seventh highest mountain in the world, Dhaulagiri I at 8,167 meters. We had not seen this mountain yesterday due to the heavy…
Kushma to Lete
Day Three After an early night due to tiredness we were up early for a quick bite to eat before hitting the road. There were planned road closures on our route north and our guide Jai wanted us through them in good time. We left Kushma and took the last semi-paved road north west and…
Tansen to Kushma
Day Two Accommodation was basic but homely and it was cold, I had yet to acclimatize. Up at sunrise for some organic coffee and breakfast before gearing up and hitting the road again for what would be a long stint riding over rocks today. Our ride would complete the southern loop and take us to…
Pokhara to Tansen
Day One We hit the clubhouse early, checked over our steeds and geared up for the first leg of the journey which would take us south of Pokhara. It was a crystal clear morning and the 7,000 meter Machhapuchhre or the ‘Fishtail’ was reflecting the morning sun across Phewa Lake offering some splendid views. In…
Nepal, Kathmandu
Nepal. It was a crazy idea from the start. An acquaintance had been there on some wild motorcycle ride “into thin air” in the Himalayas so I decided to follow in his footsteps, or wheel tracks to be more precise. The trip was booked and planned in April last year so I had plenty of…