15-Day Motorcycle Expedition in Ladakh with Zanskar and Nubra Valley

• Arrive in Leh, check in to your hotel, and acclimatize to the altitude.

• Enjoy the beautiful green valley and drive along the Indus River across the moon landscape, passing Lamayuru, the oldest monastery in Ladakh, and the Giant Maitreya at Mulbekh.

• Descend into Baltistan Valley to the garrison city of Kargil, the gateway to Zanskar Valley.

A hotel at the top of town (2,600 m) will be your home for the night.

Distance Covered: 200 km.

• Drive to Rangdum through the beautiful, wild Suru Valley. Leave the paved roads behind today and continue on a dusty track at average speeds of around 20-40 km per hour, ascending to the herdsman's village of Parkachik before reaching Rangdum.

Distance Covered: 130 km.

• Start from Rangdum in the morning and ascend the adventurous track further until you reach Pansi La Pass (4,401 m).

• Visit the tiny Rangdum Mountain Monastery before descending along a massive glacier at the entrance to Zanskar Valley and reaching Padum Valley.

Distance Covered: 90 km.

• Visit the area surrounding Padum, the only small town in Zanskar. Around 1,000 people live here in the summer.

• In the afternoon, visit Karsha Monastery, a medieval oasis of peace and an important centre of the Buddhist faith.

Spend the night in the best guest house in Zanskar at an altitude of approximately 3,500 m.

• Cross Pansi La Pass (4,401 m) and spend another night on a meadow near Parkachik Glacier.

Distance Covered: 170 km.

• Descend through Suru Valley to Kargil, where you will come across your first filling station in 550 km.

• Cross Fotu La Pass, reach Lamayuru Monastery, and set up your tent there at an altitude of around 3,800 m.

Distance Covered: 190 km.

• Witness the morning meditation in the monastery, which is an unforgettable experience.

• Take a steep descent to the Indus Valley. Your next track starts at the confluence of the Indus and Zanskar rivers. The 40 km long wild road from the Zanskar River to Chilling, a coppersmiths village, is one of the most breathtaking motorcycle routes anywhere in the Himalayas.

• In the late afternoon, reach Leh.

• End of your motorcycle tour.

Distance Covered: 140 km.

• Relax and explore Leh.

• Ride 50 km on the road with a 2,000 m ascent to Khardung La Pass, the highest motorable road in the world.

• After a brief stop in the thin mountain air, descend quickly into the arid Nubra Valley, which until recently was a restricted military zone due to the nearby Pakistani and Chinese borders. It is now a new high point of Ladakh tours, with breathtaking views, remote oasis villages, and rugged river landscapes.

• Enjoy a half-day ride through the broad valley to the hot springs of Panamik, followed by afternoon riding on camels through the dunes of Hunder.

Have dinner in the peaceful garden of the guest house.

• Visit Khardung La Pass (18,380 feet).

• Return to the headquarters in Leh. The afternoon is free to relax and shop.

• Visit Shanti Stupa at sunset.

Have dinner at the best Tibetan place.

Distance Covered: 160 km.

• After breakfast, ride along the Indus River to Mahe Bridge and then continue to Tso Moriri Lake. The lake is located at 14,000 feet near the small village of Korzok.

• On the way, cross Polokangla and Namchick La Pass before reaching Korzok Village. Upon arrival, check in at the camp.

Distance Covered: 210 km.

• After breakfast, check out and drive to Tso Kar Lake.

• Cross the biggest and highest plateau on earth on a stretch of 42 km.

• Reach Skyangchu Thang, the most extensive and highest plateau on earth on a stretch of 42 km, then continue across Tanglang La Pass (17,585 feet) and the Indus Valley.

• Upon arrival in Leh, check in at a hotel.

Distance Covered: 200 km.

• Depart back home from Leh.