Sach Pass Road Status & Condition

by Vargis.Khan

Sach Pass Road Status & Condition

Below is the most recent update on road conditions at Sach Pass, from from a friend who just travelled from Amritsar to Leh via Sach Pass.

“From Baigravgarh to Sach pass the condition is what you can say, rocky. I struggled quite a lot as I was with pillion and luggage. But it’s okay if you are not in a hurry, just be careful. After Sach pass I couldn’t see much of a road due to darkness, but there were stretches with Sand heap and bikers will have to be careful.

From Killar to Keylong, the road is almost the same till Udaipur. The bridge connecting Tandi and udaipur was broken and we had to cross the stream. Also road widening(by rock blast) was happening around Tandi.”


A friend of mine recently returned from a trip to Sach Pass and updated me on the current road conditions of the area which I will share here for the sake of anyone who is planning to visit Sach Pass anytime in near future. Please note though that Sach Pass and the nearby areas are highly prone to landslides, rain plays havoc here and the melting snow can deter the road conditions even further anytime. This is merely an overview of how the conditions were in July second week of 2016. If you are planning a trip, caution is advised and if you are not someone who is out on motorcycle trips frequently, I would recommend that you do not travel alone as there is a high chance of getting stranded here. Road through out is a narrow one so that applies to the entire route. If you are planning to visit in a four wheeler, please be careful while you are crossing another vehicle which can also be an entire bus coming from other direction on a road which is barely enough for one car.

sach pass road status

Sach Pass Road Status

sach pass road status

Sach Pass Road Status

sach pass road status

Sach Pass Road Status

sach pass road status

Sach Pass Road Status

sach pass road status

Sach Pass Road Status




  • Dalhousie to Bairagarh – Mix of good and bad but mostly mood. There are several bad patches in between, you will come across patches where there is no tar at all but the road is mostly easy to ride or drive on.
  • Bairagarh to Satrundi – Road is just OK. It is a mix of good and bad with construction work at several places. You will not find tar here and mostly will travel on gravel road with water crossings in between.
  • Satrundi to Sach top – Again gravel road, no tar at all. Several water crossings creating lot of slush and it is a steep climb. Dirt road full of stones at some places.
  • Sach to Killar – Lose soil with lots of water crossings and rocks, no tarr, tight hairpin bends, lot of slush.
  • Killar to Keylong – Mix of good, bad and OK. Several water crossings and slush in between.

Couple of pics posted above should also give you an idea of what I meant when I said narrow road. I hope this information was useful. If you have any questions, please feel free to comment and ask.

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31 comments

Ashish July 14, 2018 - 9:01 am

Hi Vargis Bhai,

Thanks for providing awsm stuff and information.

we are group of 5 frnds and planning to visit Leh via Sach Pass from Delhi in the 2nd week of August. We have planned the following Itenary :

Day 1 : Delhi to Bairagarh(starting somewhere around mid night)
Day 2 : Bairagarh to Killar (will sach pass will be on the same route ? )
Day 3 : Killar to Sarchu
Day 4 : Sarchu to Leh
Day 5 : Leh Local and taking permits
Day 6 : Leh to Nubra valley
Day 7 : Nubra to Pangong ( which route prefered – via agam-shyok village or via Wari la and chang la ?)
Day 8 : Pangong to Hanle
Day 9 : Hanle to Sarchu/pang via Tso Moriri
Day 10 : Sarchu to Manali
Day 11 : Manali to Delhi

Any changes required in itenary ? Probability of Sach pass being opened on 10-11 August ?
Are Permits required to visit Leh via Sach Pass as well ?
And Permits for Hanle and other inner line will be getting from Leh only ?

Suggestion will be highly appreciated.

Thanks
Ashish

Reply
Vargis.Khan July 14, 2018 - 2:59 pm

Hi Ashish Bhai,

Day 1 : Ok
Day 2 : Ok
Day 3 : Very long. May have to break at Keylong or Jispa
Day 4 : Ok
Day 5 : Ok
Day 6 : Ok
Day 7 : Go via Shyok Road
Day 8 : Ok
Day 9 : Too long for a single day. Will have to stay at Karzok and go to Sarchu the next day.
Day 10 : Ok
Day 11 : Ok

Sach Pass – Is open right now, should stay open unless it rains too heavy
Permits – None needed for Sach, for Hanle get it from Leh

Reply
Ashish July 15, 2018 - 3:02 pm

Thanks Vargis bhai, information provided by you is really helpful and worth to read.

Are options for stay available in Hanle ?

Reply
Vargis.Khan July 16, 2018 - 12:45 am

You are welcome Ashish Bhai. Yes there are stay option but you may want to book in advance. See the link below.

http://padmahomestay.in/

If booking this did not work then you will have to stay as paying guest with any of the locals.

Reply
Ashish July 16, 2018 - 6:31 am

Thanks for the information Vargis bhai.

Vargis.Khan July 16, 2018 - 6:02 pm

You are welcome Ashish Bhai

Ashish August 4, 2018 - 5:44 am

Vargis bhai – i was reading ur comments on https://vargiskhan.com/log/plan-trip-hanle-ladakh/ blog.

I can see permits for Hanle are not possible. Can you help me with below queries ?

which route will be more scenic, more good to explore while travelling from pangong to karzok ?

and do we need special permit to travel on agham shyok road or permits for spangmik will be enough ?

If we extend one day in Leh – can u suggest any destination to travel ?

Vargis.Khan August 4, 2018 - 6:11 am

Ashish Bhai that was the status earlier this year, in May. Permits for Hanle are now available and issued. You can take the Chushul route now and it is more scenic than Chumathang. No special permit needed for Shyok road. Your ILP for Nubra and Pangong will work

Ashish August 6, 2018 - 1:47 pm

Thanks bhai 🙂

Vargis.Khan August 6, 2018 - 3:07 pm

You are welcome Bhai !!! 🙂

divy June 23, 2017 - 5:09 am

Hello, Very great information about Sach pass you have provided.
Could you let us know is it good time (25/06/2017) to visit there, I heard land sliding is happening there.

Reply
Vargis.Khan June 23, 2017 - 4:45 pm

Hello Divy, Roads around Sach pretty much remains terrible throughout the year. The only time they are a bit stable is in September. To answer your question, yes it is raining there everyday as of now. Pass was closed for a couple of days on 21st and 22nd after it rained heavily and snowed at Sach top. It was reopened today.

Reply
sudhanshuvermaphotography June 5, 2017 - 4:50 am

Hi Vargis,
You’re a blessing. I am planning a solo cycling tour starting from Bairagarh – to Manali via each pass. I am planning to leave around 10June.
Do you think the pass will open by then ? My plan is to camp most of the time and bikepack.
whats your take on this ?

Reply
Vargis.Khan June 6, 2017 - 3:53 am

Hi Sudhanshu – Thank you for your kind words. Pass will open sometime after June 15th so I would advise that you delay the trip by a couple of week . Another concern is around camping. There is really no place to camp here, specially not at the top of the pass. This area is quite secluded and I would not suggest self camping.

Reply
sudhanshuvermaphotography June 7, 2017 - 7:08 pm

Hi Vargis,
Thank you for getting back. In that case I will start cycling from Manali then, I am sure it will take around 6 -7 days to reach Sach pass from Manali by then pass should get open, if not then I will be left with no choice of going back to Manali from Killar.
About Camping as you suggest its a bad idea, then only option is look for dhabas and villages on the way.
Any light on this ?

Reply
Vargis.Khan June 7, 2017 - 8:26 pm

The reason why I advised against self camping is because I did not notice any spots there where you could camp; plus it is all dense forest where camping in middle of nowhere is not really a good idea. As for Dhabas, there is one near Satrundi and another near Bagotu after you cross Sach. Take your camping gear along, talk to these dhabas owner and if they agree, you can camp there. Until Bairagarh and after Killar / Udaipur along the Manali Leh highway, there are several places where you pitch your tent.

Reply
Aditi May 31, 2017 - 1:41 pm

Hi sir, we are planning to go to sach pass in 2nd week of june i.e. around 11th June. So is it recommended to go there at that time, because of rains in the hilly areas?

Reply
Vargis.Khan May 31, 2017 - 2:40 pm

Monsoon hits this region sometime in July, not June so there won’t be any rains in June really

Reply
Aditi June 1, 2017 - 5:42 pm

Okay! Thank you 🙂

Reply
Vargis.Khan June 2, 2017 - 3:33 am

You are welcome !!!

Reply
Kaushick May 12, 2017 - 6:45 am

Sir…
when is the sach pass opening this year?
i’m planning to do it in the last week of june…
will it open by that time? and what about the climatic conditions during that period?
thanks in advance sir..

Reply
Vargis.Khan May 13, 2017 - 2:12 am

Hello Kaushick – Sach Pass will definitely be open by last week of June. Road conditions around this time are always bad but it still is a good idea to travel here by June end, before the monsoon hits the region in July which makes things even worse.

Reply
Prashant Singh May 4, 2017 - 6:42 am

Hello Bro, I’m planning a solo ride through Each from Delhi on 1st July. Please advice route. Also places to stay if you can, thanks , Prashant

Reply
Vargis.Khan May 5, 2017 - 12:37 am

Hi Prashant – How many days do you have in hand brother?

Reply
Bheem Kundnani March 16, 2017 - 5:42 pm

HI Vargis,
we are a planning a trip to sach pass next week, so it will be feasible or not because i am not getting the current weather and road conditions of sach pass anywhere form the internet.

Reply
Vargis.Khan March 17, 2017 - 1:24 am

Hi Bheem – You will not be able to go to Sach Pass right now. It won’t open until early June. Right now, you will only be allowed to go as far as Bairagarh. There is a check post at Bairagarh beyond which the cops won’t let you go. Sach Pass is under a thick sheet of snow right now.

Reply
Ajay February 21, 2017 - 11:12 am

Hi Vargis,
I am planning Leh Trip for 2017 vai sach pass. Is it preferable in June? I dont want to stop at Manali for rahtang permit.

I had already been to leh once so I have some idea about road which i will be prepared for. Please let me knwo anyting to be concerned of for this side travel from bairagardh to tandi.

Regards
Ajay

P.S. – Nice blog

Reply
Vargis.Khan February 21, 2017 - 4:22 pm

Hi Ajay – Sach Pass usually opens by mid or late June so if you are planning a trip by last week of June, you can take this route. To be on a safer side, I would advise to plan in July first week.

Reply
Vargis.Khan February 20, 2017 - 6:46 pm

Depends on the weather brother but usually the highway opens by end of May or early June.

Reply
pariksheet February 20, 2017 - 2:51 pm

hi sir ,I want to know is manali to leh higway is open for bike riders from 25th may 2017

Reply
Vargis.Khan February 20, 2017 - 6:47 pm

Depends on the weather brother but usually the highway opens by end of May or early June.

Reply

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