Leh to Tso Moriri – How to Reach, Routes, Bus, Shared Taxis

by Vargis.Khan

Tso Moriri is one of the two gems of Ladakh, the other being Pangong Tso. This lake is a remarkable beauty in itself. Not just the lake in fact but the entire journey from Leh to Tso Moriri takes you through a highly scenic region that is worth viewing.

The deep blue waters of Tso Moriri present a feast for the eyes. Surrounded by green fields and against the majestic grey of surrounding barren hills, it is one place which in my opinion must find a place in the itineraries of every person visiting Ladakh.

I recently visited Tso Moriri on my 2-month-long trip to Leh Ladakh. The post below is a brief narration of our journey from Leh to Tso Moriri and also provides several other necessary tips for visiting this part of Ladakh. To read the previous parts of this travelogue, you can follow the links below.

Journey So Far:

In case you are wondering about Day 18, we actually did not go anywhere on that day, just relaxed at the hotel. On Day 19, we visited Leh Palace and then rested at the hotel on Day 20. On the 21st day of the trip, we finally moved on to Tso Moriri Lake.

Below is a video of our journey on this day that you can also take a look at. It can give you an idea of the route, road conditions, and the difficulties you may face.

Leh to Tso Moriri Routes

There are three different routes that you can take to reach Tso Moriri. The first one is from Leh to Karzok via Chumathang. The second one is from Leh via Tso Kar and More Plains. The third route is via Pangong and Chushul.

  • Leh – Upshi – Chumathang – Mahe – Sumdo – Karzok (Tso Moriri)
  • Leh – Upshi – Rumtse – Tanglang La – Debring – Tso Kar – Polo Kongka La – Sumdo – Karzok
  • Leh – Pangong Tso – Chushul – Mahe – Sumdo – Karzok

Traveling by the first route, you can easily reach Karzok from Leh in 6-7 hours. The second route via Tso Kar will take you about 7-8 hours. The third route via Pangong is the longest and it is best to do it in 3-4 days.

We completed this journey by the first route, via Chumathang which I will talk about later in the article. But before that, let me provide a little information on the other two routes.

Leh to Tso Moriri via Tso Kar

This route is slightly longer than the first one in terms of both distance and travel time due to 3 high-altitude passes in between and bad roads.  The total distance covered will be around 260 kilometers. Travel time will easily be around 8-10 hours.

The first part of this journey will have you drive until Upshi on the Manali Leh highway.  Upon reaching Upshi, continue on the Manali Leh highway towards Rumtse.

The ascent of Tanglang La starts after Rumtse. Once you have crossed the pass, you will arrive at an Army establishment called Debring. This is where More Plains starts.

There are also a few dhabas there and near the Dhabas, you will notice a road going toward your left. Leave the Manali Leh Highway here and turn on this road.

The first lake on this route is Tso Kar which will be approximately 22 km from this diversion. Stop at Tso Kar, have something to eat at the Dhabas near the lake, and click some pictures.

The second lake on this route is Startspuk Tso, a small lake that can easily be missed or confused as Tso Kar itself. The road too will vanish after Tso Kar and you will be traveling on dirt tracks.

On the way, you will also cross Puga hot water springs, also known as Puga Valley. It is another great spot to take a break. The lush-green scenery around Puga is very charming.

A few kilometers after Startspuk Tso is the ascent for Polo Kongka La. The climb is not very steep and you will barely notice it despite the bad roads.

Continue on this road till you reach Sumdo. From Sumdo, take the turn towards Karzok. After this, the last 50-odd kilometers of the journey is mostly on a bad road.

Leh to Tso Moriri via Pangong Tso & Chushul

The next route that can be taken to reach Tso Moriri is the longest and is ideally a 2-3 day journey. This to not really the route to take if you just want to visit Tso Moriri Lake. Rather, this is the route you follow in the form of an overall itinerary covering Pangong Lake and Tso Moriri both.

Following this route, you first arrive at Pangong Lake via Chang La Pass. This can be completed in about 6-7 hours depending on your speed and breaks. For that day, you will spend the night at Pangong Lake itself.

On Day 2, take an early start as the journey is very long. You will first travel along Pangong Lake until Chushul. This is a very scenic drive even though it is on a dirt road.

After Chushul, you will drive until you reach Loma village. From there, turn right and follow the road all the way to Mahe, Sumdo, and Karzok.

I have explained this entire route in detail in Pangong Tso to Moriri Lake Direct Route Guide which you can take a look at. Reposting this here again will end up making this page way too long.

Leh to Tso Moriri via Chumathang

This is the shortest and the most common route to reach Tso Moriri from Leh. The total distance covered while traveling this way would be 220 kilometers. Travel time can be anywhere between 6 – 7 hours depending upon your speed and breaks.

Now coming back to the travelogue, this is the route that we traveled on to reach Tso Moriri. The plan was that we will reach Tso Moriri via the Chumathang route and stay for the night in Karzok.

The next day, we intended to travel to Tso Kar via Polokongka La Pass and camp there for the night. On the third day then, we were to circle back to Leh City via Tanglang La Pass.

But before we reached Tso Moriri, there were a few other places that I wanted to visit. The first one was Key La Pass, the second was Hor La Pass and the third one was Yaye Tso Lake.

Plan for the Day

So this is how the plan was finalized. We will start early from Leh and first go to Key La Pass. The idea was to just reach the top of the pass and come back down the same way to the Manali Leh highway.

From there, we will travel to Mahe Bridge where the road to Tso Moriri bifurcates. But before going to Karzok, we will continue straight all the way to the top of the Hor La Pass.

Yaye Tso Lake is also located near the top of the Hor La Pass, at a distance of about 25 kilometers from Mahe Bridge. So we will be able to visit both the pass and the lake in a couple of hours at the most.

We would then drive back down the same way to Mahe Bridge and be on our way to Tso Moriri. Why this weird plan and so many deviations? Well, that is because we wanted to cover all the routes and as many passes as possible.

These three places were not fitting into the overall itinerary. I wanted to travel on the Hor La, Kakasang La route. But the way the itinerary was, I just did not know how to include this road in my plans.

So we just decided that we will cover half of it from the Mahe side and the other half from the Chushul side while we go to Umling La.

The same applied to Key La Pass as well. It was not fitting into the itinerary so we just decided to go there, see the top of the pass, and come back down.

Crazy plan? I agree but this was really the only way we could have included these places in our trip. Otherwise, we would have missed all three of them.

Leh to Karu

For us to execute this plan successfully, the most important thing was to start early. We were going to take a lot of bifurcations on some very bad roads and I knew it was going to be a long day.

Thankfully though, when the alarms in our cellphones went off at 5 am, we did manage to get out of our beds and started getting ready. But did this help? It actually did not.

We got ready by 5.30 am and asked the hotel kitchen for some tea and breakfast. They took their own sweet time in preparing it. We were also feeling a little lazy so we also just sat and felt no need to rush the cook.

Due to this, by the time we drove out of the hotel, the clock read 6.45 am. We were already behind schedule by almost an hour.

I do not know why but the start of the day was very lethargic that day. Even though we were running late, I was driving at around 30 or 40 kilometers an hour, that is it.

leh to karu

We just did not have the energy to be excited about our plans. I drove leisurely and as a result of this, we could only make it to Karu until 8 am.

This is the Stakna Monastery, sitting on top of that small hill. I really like the location of this small monastery and could not help stopping here to get this shot.

stakna monastery

The distance between Leh and Karu is only about 35 kilometers and the condition of the road is super smooth. Since it was early in the morning, there was hardly any traffic on the road. But despite all this, we reached Karu only by 8 am and took another break there to get some more tea.

karu junction

Key La / Kela Pass

By now, it was clear that we will have to remove some places from our plan for the day. From Karu, we were supposed to take the road toward Sakti and Chang La Pass. That is where the Key La Pass is located.

Key La Pass, also spelled as Kela Pass, is a high-altitude pass near Chang La. It is an alternate route that was created by the Army between Sakti and Debring.

Why the alternate route? Because during the tourist season, there is a lot of traffic at Chang La Pass. Almost everyone wants to go and see Pangong Lake and Chang La witnesses a huge number of vehicles traveling across.

This is why another road was created to make it easier for the Army movement. This is entirely a dirt road and has not been tarred yet. Once completed, you can either cross Chang La or Key La to get to Pangong Lake from Leh.

We had a long day ahead and were already running behind schedule. So after a bit of thinking, we decided to skip Kela Pass for today.

We were anyway going to be in Leh for another 4 to 6 weeks. So there was really no need to rush. We could think about our itinerary again and include Key La Pass in our plans later.

Karu to Upshi

With that decided, it was now time to continue our journey and move on to Upshi. We had some tea at Karu and as we were about to leave, a group of boys from Kerala approached us asking for a ride.

They were going to Manali and surprisingly, they were hitchhiking all the way. When I asked them why, they told us that the bus service from Manali to Leh was pre-booked for the next 3 days.

They reached Leh by public transport. But when going back via Manali, they could not get a ticket for the bus. Since they had a flight to catch from Delhi, they had no choice but to hitchhike to Manali and then catch a bus to Delhi from there.

I told them that we could only drop them off till Upshi and they agreed. Now with the group of 4 sitting in the back of my car, we started our journey again.

Karu to Upshi is only about 14 kilometers and we reached there in 15 minutes. We dropped the buys at the Upshi intersection. From there, we turned left to Chumathang and they went right toward Manali.

upshi

Upshi to Chumathang

The distance between Upshi and Chumathang is 92 kilometers. The journey can easily be completed in 2 to 3 hours, depending on your speed and breaks.

This stretch is possibly the best part of this journey and one of the most scenic routes of Ladakh. The landscape here is just so beautiful that it will force you to take breaks at every turn of the road.

Colors in the mountains

leh to tso moriri

The beautiful Zig-Zag

leh to tso moriri

More colors

leh to tso moriri

Taking a break

leh to tso moriri

Can’t get enough of this

leh to tso moriri

Notice the writing on the stone in the middle of the river

 leh to tso moriri

This is what happened to us. No matter how much we tried to rush, we could not help stopping frequently to take pictures and shoot videos.

There is not a lot that happened during this part of the journey. After a leisurely drive of about 2 and a half hours, we arrived at Chumathang by 11 am.

Also Read: Clothes for Leh Ladakh – What to Pack

Chumathang Hot Water Spring

Chumathang is a small village that is best known for its hot water springs. You can check out the video I posted above to see what I am talking about.

There are a couple of guest houses near the spring where you can also stay for a night if you wish to. Right next to the spring are a few bathrooms if someone wants to take a dip in the hot water of the spring.

chumathang hot water spring

As a matter of fact, the water in the guest houses nearby is also supplied from this spring only. So if you do not want to bathe in the common bathrooms, you can stay in Chumathang for a night and enjoy this experience there.

From what I am told, bathing in these waters is very relaxing and they also have medicinal properties. While I cannot verify these claims, I am sure it would be a fun experience nonetheless.

leh to tso moriri

We stopped at a small restaurant and ordered some tea and Maggie for lunch. While we were eating, we also got into an interesting conversation with the owner of the restaurant.

He told us how difficult life in Ladakh is, how the winters there are, about the limited amount of vegetables they get there and how costly everything is, and about life in general.

Chumathang to Mahe Bridge

Because of this discussion that we got into, our break got extended to almost an hour. Finally, it was by 12 noon that we bid goodbye to the restaurant owner and drove out of Chumathang.

The condition of the road was good until now but after Chumathang, it deteriorated rapidly. In fact, the bad condition of the road in and around Chumathang was also a point of discussion with the old restaurant owner we were talking to.

There was construction work going on at several places. But overall, the condition of the road was so bad that our speed dropped to just about 20 kilometers an hour.

leh to tso moriri

The distance between Chumathang and Mahe is also about 20 kilometers and it took us exactly an hour to cover it. By 1 pm, we arrived at the check post near Mahe Bridge.

leh to tso moriri

From here, we were supposed to turn right, cross the bridge and drive to Mahe. But before we did that, there were two more places that we needed to cover – Hor La Pass and Yaye Tso Lake.

So rather than turning right, we continued straight towards Mahe Bridge and onto Hor La Pass. The plan was to visit the pass, see the lake, and come back down to Mahe Bridge to continue to Tso Moriri Lake.

Leh to Tso Moriri by Public Transport

The bus service between Leh and Tso Moriri is not really that frequent. A bus from Leh for Karzok leaves only 3 times a month, on the 10th, 20th, and 30th, at 6.30 in the morning. The fare per person is Rs. 370. 

However, if this does not match your itinerary, you can easily get a shared taxi from Leh to Tso Moriri. These start from the Leh bus stand every morning and are the most commonly used mode of transport by tourists.

The fare per person is about Rs. 500 – 600 per person one way (for a drop to the lake). The next day, you can get a shared taxi for Leh from Karzok village.

The bus and the shared taxis travel via the Chumathang route only. There is no public transport available for Tso Moriri on the Chushul – Hanle – Loma – Nyoma route. You will not find any public transport between Tso Moriri and Tso Kar.

Please click on the link above to continue reading the next part of this travelogue. From Mahe Bridge, we visited Hor La Pass, Yaye Tso Lake, and circled back in about 4 hours.

Leh to Tso Moriri – Conclusion

I hope the travelogue, pictures, and information on traveling from Leh to Tso Moriri were of help. If you have any questions, you can contact me on Instagram and I will be happy to answer. You can also consider subscribing to my YouTube channel and asking your question there.

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42 comments

Nusrat Bano September 23, 2021 - 5:23 pm

Hello Vargis,
I am planning to visit Leh in May 2022 along with parents ( ~70 years age), tentative itinerary:
Day1 – Bangalore to Srinagar –> Stay at Srinagar
Day2 – Srinagar to Kargil ( on the way Sonmarg, Baltal & Drass) –> Stay at Kargil
Day3 – kargil to Leh ( On the way Alchi, magnetic hill ) –> Stay at Leh
Day4 – Leh local sight seeing & permits for other places –> Stay at Leh
Day5: Activities at Leh –> Stay at Leh
Day6 – Leh to Nubra Valley via Khardungla pass –> Stay at Nubra valley (Hunder)
Day7 – Nubra valley to Pangong Tso –> stay at Pangong Tso tents
Day8 – Pangong Tso to Leh via Chang la–> Stay at Leh
Day9- Leh to Tso moiri –> stay at Korzok village
Day10 – Tso Moiri to Sarchu –> Stay to Sarchu
Day11 – Sarchu to Manali –> Stay at Manali
Day12 – Manali to Chandigarh –> Stay at Chandigarh
Day13 – Chandigarh to Bangalore

Could you please suggest if Day7 and Day9 can be done with parents due to AMS..
for Day9, is there a suggestion to come down yo low altitude place?
Any kind of advise will be helpful .. This itinerary is made after going through your blogs ..

Best Regards,
Nusrat

Reply
bishal July 20, 2021 - 5:43 am

namasthe khan bhai

i like you blog and how you explain all the things in a proper understandable way

i want to ask weather there is an good place to stay at night in the way from HUNDER to PANGONG LAKE .In mid point of half the way

Reply
Vargis.Khan July 21, 2021 - 6:17 am

Namaste Bishal Bhai – Thank you for your kind words. There is no place to stay on Shyok road. You can look for accommodation as paying guests in Agham or Shyok villages but no hotels or guesthouses. The next place you can stay at is Tangste or Durbuk where there is a hotel

Reply
Alok November 29, 2020 - 1:22 pm

Sir… I am.plannig for Leh trip with my wife for 8 days after mid January . This will be our 2nd trip . Last time we covered Pangong , diskit , hunder.

Planning to cover Kargil , turtuk, nubra valley , tso moriri, tso Kar lakes and other places … I think Hanle and Pangong won’t b possible due to border tension … Kindly advice on how I should go about to enjoy the winter in Ladakh and cover maximum places .. and are there any good stay available in Tso moriri area (Chumthang) , Kargil and nubra area this winter .. please guide me

Reply
mayank singh March 30, 2020 - 2:12 pm

Hi Vargis, can u plz help me plan the trip. me nd wife travelling from srinagar to leh
19TH MAY SHIKARA SRINAGAR
20TH MAY SRINAGAR KARGIL STAY KARGIL
21ST MAY KARGIL KARGIL LEH STAY LEH
22ND MAY LEH LEH STAY LEH
23 RD MAY LEH LEH NUBRA VALLEY STAY SUMUR/HUNDER
24TH MAY HUNDER PANGONG TSO STAY PANGONG TSO
25TH MAY PANGONG TSO HANLE STAY HANLE
26TH MAY HANLE TSO MORRIRI STAY TSO MORIIRI
27TH MAY TSO MORRIRI LEH LEH
28TH MAY RETURN

Reply
Rupali Maity March 15, 2019 - 6:53 am

hi vargis bhai,
I am Rupali from Kolkata, want to go ladakh between Aug to Sep in this year. We are 7adults. Can we travel direct route to Nubra – Pangong & Tso-Moriri in a single cab? Which cab is appropriate for this route?

Reply
Vargis.Khan March 15, 2019 - 12:55 pm

Hello Rupali Ji,

Yes you can travel on this route in August September. Any SUV will be good enough for the route.

Reply
Vishal Vij February 19, 2018 - 10:58 am

Hi Vargis,

We planning a chandigarh srinagar kargil leh manali route in a 4×4. Any suggestions for a 8 day itinerary. Also is it a good idea to do both Pangyong and Tsomoriri? Or is one lake good enough. Also is it a good idea from Karzok to head out towards Manali without returning to Leh.

Your suggestions for stopovers first 3 nights for acclimatising would be very welcome.

In case of a breakdown is it possible to get a truck in Leh to bail out the vehicle as my SUV cannot be towed.

Many thanks again
Vishal

Reply
Vargis.Khan February 20, 2018 - 3:49 pm

Hi Vishal – 8 days can be a bit of a tight schedule. Can you throw in a day more? Also, when are you planning to travel, which month? Let me know and I can suggest an itinerary accordingly.

Getting a tow-truck will be a task next to impossible because of no phone connectivity. If there is a break down, you will have no means to call anyone and ask for help. The only way out is that you wait for someone to pass you buy and then a person from the group hops in for the ride to reach Leh and come back with a truck. Even then chances of finding a truck will be tough and then rest of the group will be stranded with the vehicle. So make sure that you prepare your vehicle in advance and remove any chance of a breakdown.

Reply
prasann February 15, 2017 - 11:34 pm

Hello Khan Bhai ,
I am Planning to visit leh in April 18 of 2017 , first of all I want to know is this a good time to visit Leh and other nearby places ?
I have Pongong Lake and Moriri lake also in my plan.

suggest me for should i take bike on rent or Car with driver will be good choice?

Reply
Vargis.Khan February 16, 2017 - 2:34 am

April is not a good time to visit Ladakh Prasann Bhai … Both the highways will be closed at that time and you will have to catch a file to Leh.

Reply
Anindya Mondal August 30, 2017 - 7:36 pm

VARGIS Vaiya what is the best time for visit in leh – ladakh?

Reply
Vargis.Khan August 31, 2017 - 2:45 pm

Hello Anindya – September is the best time to visit Ladakh

Reply
Nisith Ranjan Ghatuari February 12, 2018 - 12:42 pm

Hi Vargis,
I am flying to leh from 21st April to 1st May. is it possible to cover Pangong, moriri and henle in bike ….

Vargis.Khan February 12, 2018 - 5:44 pm

Hi Nishith – Yes you should be able to rent a bike at this time and cover all these places.

umang July 26, 2016 - 5:29 pm

Hi Vargis

i will be going to Tsomoriri on 10th September 2016. we are 8 people. can you please suggest where we should stay

Reply
Vargis.Khan July 27, 2016 - 2:42 am

Hi Umang – There are several hotels and camp sites at Tso Moriri so finding an accommodation should not be a problem in September.

Reply
komal June 27, 2016 - 1:26 am

hi,
i am planning a trip to Leh first week of Sept. my Email [email protected] would you send me your contact info please so i can plan my trip betterThanks

Reply
himadri sen October 5, 2015 - 9:48 am

Hi ..thanks for your blogs with loads of useful information , I am booked for ladakh during odd time of the year ( Nov-15) , where can i add accomodation in tsomoriri , can you help me any guest house no ?

Reply
Vargis.Khan October 5, 2015 - 2:08 pm

Hi Himadri, I do not have number of a guest house in Karzok. Since you will be traveling in November, finding a place to stay should not be a problem either in form of a hotel, guest house or home stay. There will not be many tourists around at that time.

Reply
RANJAN GUPTA July 4, 2015 - 9:42 am

Hello Vargis Bhai,

I need your prompt suggestion on my following itenary:

Can I do Tso Miriri in place of Pangong, or which one is better?

Please, suggest. Thanks in advance.

D1: 17th July Night- Delhi to Manali (Bus)
D2: 18th July Morning – Freshen up somewhere in manali, Pick-up bike, Get Permit, Have Lunch
D2: 18th July After-Noon – Head to Solang Valley, Night Stay at Solang. (Hotel Iceland) (12KM)
D3: 19th July Early Morning – Head towards Sarchu, Night Stay at Sarchu, (Goldrop Camp,
Adventure Camps, Sarchu Heights etc) – (11 Hrs-224 KM). Lunch at Jispa.

Places to visit: Deepak Tal & Suraj Tal (known as origin of Bhaga River) and Cross Baralacha Pass (16020 ft) Reach Sarchu.

D4: 20th Early Morning- Head to Leh (8 Hrs- 251 KM), Night Stay at Leh. Lunch at??

On the Way: Gatta Loops, a series of 21 hairpin bends carved into the mountainside, way up the Lachung La pass (4985M above sea leve)l, Skyangchu Thang (Biggest and Highest Plateau on Earth on Stretch of 42 Kms), Tanglang La Pass 17,585ft, second highest motorable road in the world. Banks of Indus River & Indus Valley.

D5: 21st Early Morning- Get Inner Line Permit, Leh Local Sightseeing (Shey – Thiksey – Hall of Fame –
Shanti Stupa)
Thiksey Monastery 19 Kms from Leh, Thiksey is one of the largest and most impressive Gompas of Ladakh. The Thiksey monastery provides a panoramic view of the green Indus Valley from its vantage point atop a hill. It has chambers full of statues, Stupas and colorful Tankhas.
Hall of Fame Hall of Fame near Leh is worth a visit for every citizen. It is a glorious museum constructed by Indian army. You can see the memorabilia, eminent defence personalities with biographies, images and weapons used during Kargil war.
Shey Palace & Monastery This summer palace of the erstwhile King of Leh is set upon a hill. The monastery itself has a 7.5 meter high, copper statue of a sitting Buddha, wrought in gold. This is the largest of its kind in the world.
Shanti Stupa is located at about 1km from Leh. It was built by a Japanese order and has wonderful views over Leh and the Indus valley especially at sunset. The stupa was built in 1980s and is a beautiful monument decorated with colourful paintings and enshrines large statues of Buddha.

D6: 22nd Early Morning- Leh to Nubra Valley, Night Stay at Hundur. (5 Hrs- 120 KM)

Via Khardung la pass the highest motorable pass in the world (18,380 feet). On the way you get excellent view of great Karakoram Range. Keep driving through Syok River and reach Hundur by Afternoon. After Lunch visit sand dunes for camel safari.

D7: 23rd Early Morning – Hundur to Pangong Lake via Leh. (10Hrs- 260 KM). Lunch at Leh.
Night Stay at Pangong Lake Bank in Camp.

D8: 24th Early Morning: Witness the Sun-Rise. After Breakfast Leave for Ule Via Leh. (8Hrs-210KM).
Lunch at Leh.

If time permits, enroute to Alchi visit Gurudwara Pathar Sahib, Magnetic Mountain & Likir Monastery

D9: 25th Early Morning: Ule to kargil. (8 Hs-160 KM). Overnight at Kargil.

Leave for Kargil, enroute have a spectacular view of Moonlandscape, Lamayuru (Oldest Monastery in Ladakh) and Giant Maitreya Buddha at Mulbekh.

D10: 26th Early Morning: Kargil- Drass- Sonamarg- Srinagar (8Hrs – 204 Kms). Night Stay at Srinagar.

After early Breakfast by 5.00 am drive to Srinagar passing through Drass, the second coldest inhabited Place on earth and you can have spectacular view of Kargil War famous Peaks Tiger Hill and Tololing Peak. Drop at Srinagar.

D11: 27th Early Morning: Full Day local Tour in Srinagar. Night stay at Boat House, if possible.

D12: 28th Early Morning; Get Flight to Delhi.

Reply
Vargis.Khan July 4, 2015 - 3:08 pm

Hello Ranjan,

1. Rather than going to Solang, stay in Manali for the day. Test the bike, take it towards Rohtang and see if it is able to perform. If not, pick another.
2. Pangong is always and anytime better than Moriri.You will need at least one more day to do Moriri in this itinerary.
3. You can have lunch at Pang on your way to Leh
4. Nubra to Pangong via Leh the same day would be a very long journey and you will reach Pangong in dead of night. Do this in two days or take the Agham Shyok road to reach Pangong from Hunder.

Reply
RANJAN GUPTA July 10, 2015 - 9:52 am

Thanks Vargisb bhai, for all your valuable inputs. These are really helpful.

Reply
Vargis.Khan July 11, 2015 - 4:46 pm

You are welcome brother

Reply
Anvinder singh June 8, 2015 - 3:40 pm

Hi vargis, we r four friends nd hd two bullet bikes, we plan leh ladakh tour from 4 july to 19 july.. Actually apka article dekha spangmik, maan, merak, chushul to karzok vala shortcut hai jo..and we wanna do this.. Kya ap hmein thoda guide kr skte hai k 1 din mein tso moriri kaise ponchna hai.. Kitna petrol chahiye nd kaha kaha se milega is rste mein.. Koi problem to nai hai.. Atms kahan pe milega nd most imp subah kitni jldi jana pdega..

Pls agr ap hmein guide krdo, pls achi tra se guide krdo
Thnx..

Reply
Vargis.Khan June 8, 2015 - 11:49 pm

Pangong to Tso Moriri in a day would be very difficult ….. you are better off taking two days to cover this route

Reply
Anvinder singh June 10, 2015 - 12:54 pm

Thnx And agr hunder se pangong jana hai via wari la to ek din mein ho jayega?
And black petrol jo milta hai dhabhas mein uska koi nuksan to nahi hai??

Reply
Vargis.Khan June 12, 2015 - 1:17 am

Hunder se pangong ek din mein ho jaayega par kaafi lamba drive rahega …. aur sadak bhi kaafi kharab hai Wari La ke aas paas …. Petrol ki toh ab koi kya gaurantee de sakta hai ke usmein kitna petrol hai aur kitna kerosene … no way to tell

Reply
Aanvinder June 10, 2015 - 1:02 pm

4 july jalandhar to patnitop
5 july patnitop to srinagar
6 july srinagar to kargil
7 july kargil to leh
8 july leh rest
9 july leh rest
10 july hunder to pangong
11 july pangong to hanle
12 july hanle to tso moriri
13 july tso moriri to sarchu
14 july sarchu to sissu
15 july sissu to kaza
16 july kaza rest
17july kaza to reckong peo
18 july reckong peo to shimla
19 july shimla to jalandhar

What is ur view on tht???

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Vargis.Khan June 12, 2015 - 1:22 am

1. Why do you wanna stay at Patnitop? Start really early from Jalandhar and reach Srinagar straight.
2. Why stay for 2 days in Leh for rest? Just spend one day, more than enough.
3. Moriri to Sarchu would be too long .. Stay at Pang
4. Save a day, reach straight to srinagar from Jalandar and use that day to visit Chandrataal. Do it Sissu to Chandrataal and Chandrataal to Kaza.

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Aravind April 13, 2015 - 5:27 am

Awesome. Really well summarized :). That is definitely a confidence booster. Will take care of the things you have mentioned. I will definitely post about my experiences once I am back.

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Vargis.Khan April 13, 2015 - 7:06 am

Would definitely love to hear about how your trip went brother …. Btw, I will also be traveling to Ladakh in July this year

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Aravind April 13, 2015 - 12:04 pm

Oh! That is great. What time you are planning to visit and what is the route you are planning to take. It would be really nice if we meet up some place in Ladakh 🙂

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Vargis.Khan April 13, 2015 - 3:08 pm

Havent finalised the dates yet but it would most probably be in first 10 days of July

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Aravind April 12, 2015 - 10:04 pm

Thanks. Yes, I was indeed planning to get the bike checked/serviced at Leh as well since the journey north towards nubra valley will be about 500 kms and the journey east towards pangong-hanle-tsomoriri will be about 750 kms both of which are difficult stretches where the bike needs to perform well. I am planning to learn few important things about bike repairs like changing clutch cable, removing air filter for performance in high altitudes and most importantly fixing punctures. What is your take on solo riding? Are there a lot of people riding solo in Ladakh? Is photography restricted in any place?

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Vargis.Khan April 12, 2015 - 11:48 pm

Honestly I do not really like riding alone but that is just because I need someone to talk to, not because of fear of a breakdown. Is not that what adventure is all about? The fear of uncertainty? Everything that happens on this trip will be a memory that you will cherish. We spent the night out on the road in middle of nowhere in freezing cold, not a soul in sight, with no idea of where we were and without a clue of what we were going to do next day. True that we were scared shitless that night but now when I think about it, it was one of those moments that will last in my memories forever. So relax, prepare, but no do not sweat. Get your bikes checked in Manali, take a test run, ride slow and careful and you will be okay. Get it serviced again in Leh before starting the journey back home. The key to any vehicle is the sound, familiarize yourself with the sound of the motorcycle when its running in perfect condition and keep an ear out for any unfamiliar sounds while on the journey. If there is any problem with the bike, the sound will be the first indication.
In July and August, you will find plenty of people travelling on the route. If I was you, riding solo, I would probably stay close to another group or maybe just make friends and ride with them. That way If I run into any trouble, I would have someone to help me out.
Photography is prohibited in Hanle. You will have to leave your camera and all the photography equipment at the check post in Nyoma and collect it the next day on your way back.

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Aravind April 12, 2015 - 5:54 pm

Thanks for the quick response. Assuming I take a newer vehicle for rent and the risk of breakdoan is low. But, things can go wrong sometimes even with a new bike. What are the options in hand in case we are stranded which can happen on any route in Ladakh. Are the army guys helpful ? what are the other options just in case?

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Vargis.Khan April 12, 2015 - 8:47 pm

Its a hard question to answer really. The second thing it would depend on is where did the break down happen and the nature of problem.
For mechanical trouble, up until Jispa, there is a mechanic available on Manali Leh highway so a breakdown between Manali to Jispa would mean that you will have to get a mechanic from nearby town. There are plenty of travellers on the route so you will need to find someone who is willing to help and by help i mean get a mechanic for you or watch your bike and luggage while you do it. Same thing applies on Srinagar Leh highway, you can get a mechanic but the question is to find someone who can help. For areas around Leh, there are no mechanics in the local villages so a breakdown would mean trouble. To ensure that you do not run into this situation and also because of the fact that you will be riding alone, I suggest that you get your motorcycle fully checked before leaving Manali and then again in Leh, just to make sure. Army folks are quite helpful. There was an incident when we got lost and stranded on the Moriri to Pangong route and had to spend the entire night out on the road. It was the Army people who helped us the next day by helping us carry the motorcycle back to Leh.
Carry a puncture repair kit along with and learn how to fix a flat tyre in Manali, very important. At least you will be able to take care of that problem on your own.

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Aravind April 12, 2015 - 8:52 am

Hi Vargis,

The unpaved roads you mentioned which we have to take to reach Tsomoriri concerns me a little. I am planning to do a solo bike ride this time and this is one of the route I am planning to take. What are the risks of bike breakdown and what are options available in case we are stranded in the middle of this route.

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Vargis.Khan April 12, 2015 - 12:49 pm

The risk of bike breaking down would actually depend on the motorcycle and not really the road. If the bike is not a good condition, it can break down on you anywhere on the route, leaving you stranded.

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CHUKHU June 6, 2015 - 4:33 am

Hi vargis,
am planning for a tso moriri trip. It wil start from sarchu. Vehicle that we are using is innova. Can we reach in one day from sarchu? Can i have the numbers of hotels, homestays or tent houses? From tsomoiri we would be going to leh followed by nubra. Nubra to pangong.

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Vargis.Khan June 6, 2015 - 3:12 pm

Hi Chukhu …. Sarchu to Karzok in a day would be a very long and tiring journey but doable ….. Start really early from Sarchu and then you will reach Moriri by late evening. I am sorry but I do not have any phone #s of the hotels over there.

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