Doug Percival was slated to be the Assistant Tour Leader on the 2025 Trans-Himalaya Cycling Expedition. He shared his first-hand experience of what transpired as the rains began to fall and the tour was cancelled.

Trying to Find a place of where to Start with this Blog, is a Puzzle in itself.

The Original Tour From Kashmir to Kathmandu, took its first knock just a few months before our
scheduled arrival. The Politically fragile region of Kashmir, had sadly once again put itself into a ‘No-Go Zone’ for
tourism, and TDA changed its scheduled start in Srinagar, further Eastward to the Mountain
town of Leh, in the Ladhak region.

Leh sits nestled at 3600m, pretty much ankle height to its Surrounding Mountains.
It is a Dry and Tough Climate, with the only bit of agricultural land being along the banks of the
Mighty Indus River.
Leh is also home to a Large amount of Military.
With its proximity to Pakistan to the West, and China to The North… To say the Area is highly
monitored is an understatement…it is reportedly the highest militarized zone on the World…
Unsurprising with 3 Nuclear powered states all rubbing shoulders in a small corner of the globe.

Leh is also home to 10 000 stray dogs who live a life of clear skied nights, and i need not explain
what a dog does on a beautiful fully moonlit night shall i?

But, besides the Scouting fighter jet patrols, and the nightly canine choirs, Leh’s backdrop of
Colossal Mountain Ranges is what stands out the Most.

We set about starting the Tour, in a town called Kargil, close to the Kashmir border..with the
intention of riding back eastwards towards Leh, and then the plan was to progress further
Eastwards into the Mountains, towards Manali, then through the famed Spiti Valley, and pop
out in Shimla.

From Shimla, we planned to traverse the slopes of the Himalaya, cross into Nepal…and make
our way to the capital, Kathmandu.

That was the Plan, and how the plan became a frog in a frying pan within the click of a finger!

Within a day of starting the Tour, reports of violent storms, flooding, and severe damage to the
south, made its way to our news feeds.

By the 2nd day, that weather had moved itself into the mountains.
Not only were we dealing with 4600m mountain passes to cycle over, we had gone from bright
sunny dry air, to pouring rain and single digit temperatures.

The Himalaya’s are new mountains in the Big Picture of Our Earths development..they comprise
of sand and loose rock.
There is no vegetation up high, so it is a geographical painting around every bend.

But with the lack of any flora life form, comes the fine balancing act of rock upon rock, glued
together by very soft granular sand.
Now add severe quantities of fast falling rain, and a mountain range so tall, its area becomes
kilometres of vertical catchment Zone.

I think you see where this is going…

Yes that’s right, Flash floods and Loose Rocks…

By day 3, the rainfall had loosened just about every surface Rock on the slopes, and we were
now dealing with a new term…something we had read on local sign posts… Beware of Shooting
Stones.

I never thought much of a ‘Shooting Stone’, until i witnessed them.
A cluster of rock that falls from a 7000m mountain cliff, and has about a 2.5km free fall,
splintering and shattering its way into smaller shrapnel, and then at some point making its way
in front of you at warp speeds, whilst you pedal innocently along on your 8kg bicycle.
It certainly upped the Peripheral vision!

So We pulled the plug, enough fear and danger for a day, and the group got Shuttled home bit
by bit, not before making ourselves at home in a military cantine whilst the tour leader
performed Her usual juggling act of logistics to make a safe transition out of trouble.

We were back in Leh, it felt like we had been served some Hoerdervs before the main meal
began.

But there was something bigger Looming.

There isn’t anything i know bigger than the Himalaya’s. That is the lure of them, their Size.
But i was wrong. Weather is the bigger Player at the table.

Mother Nature is angry. Very Angry.

News from all angles came in, we were facing large scale weather systems from every angle.
Reports of serious floodings became a constant. Road closures grew by the hours, and ominous
forecasts were there to stay.
The tour was placed on hold, something i have only heard of twice maybe in over a decade of
being involved with TDA.
This must be serious….

I didn’t Envy Shanny & Nirmika that morning, telling a group of Clients, that their Dream Trip was
on pause, because of ‘things’ we could not control.
– all whilst mother nature laughed at us, because the sun came out and blue skies deceived us!

Surely Blue sky and starry nights meant all was fine? The night time Canine Choir seemed to
think so.

The riders disbanded and the staff split up. Half went to the End of the ‘danger area’ in
Rishikesh, and half of us joined the local support crew, and took the vans eastward, to shepperd
them toward Shimla, the chosen Rendevouz point of ‘safety’.

Day one in the vans, it felt like we had robbed everyone of what they came to see.
Mountains so sky high, its hard to explain their enormity.
It is very hard to explain the sheer Size of those mountains, ive seen pretty much all the big
mountain ranges around the planet..the alps, the andes, the atlas, the rockys,
yes they epic, and yes they are magnificent..but they just hills in comparison to the Himalaya’s.
We are specks of dust in size to each peak.
Behind a colossal peak, is another peak, which is just a foothill to an even bigger peak. They
stand over you with more Power and Might, than the brain allows you to understand.

Day one of Transit was glorious, a feast to the eyes for me.
Day two… Now that’s where the pendulum swung, and it swung right off the shelf.

Heavy rain in the night, delivered chaos by day.
Our roads became rivers, bridges disappeared, queues of truckers backed up, they all knew what this meant.
We were in a one way funnel…
And forward was the way.
Mother nature threw her fury into those mountains, i saw what were bridges, now look like
ground salt on a kitchen table.
I saw hillsides, taller than city buildings, just eaten away into mud, and dissolved into the angry
mountain river.
Chaos had begun, and further down the funnel we went.
We had a goal, rendevouz in Shimla in a few days right?
Day 3 of the transit, was when i realised this is taking a turn..and not a promising one. We
reached a small mountain village called Hull, in the famed Spiti valley.
On arrival into the village, a local farmer gave our local drivers and guide, a thumbs up to
attempt an upcoming ‘tricky section’ of road….we went around the corner, only to find a
boulder the size of a 6 story building now residing road central.
We scurried back to the village, only to be given a shoulder hunch and cheeky smile from the
man, it wasnt his problem was it.
For the next 3 nights, we bunkered up in a local farmers home.
The family gave up their lounge and rooms and accommodated us.
Phone signal floated in and out when it desired, and so did the updates on the status for the
roads.
Where we came from, had now had a freak snow storm (a month too early according to the
mountain men)…closing any chance of backtracking for us.

The Giant boulder was shoved out the way by one of the insanely brave mountain road workers,
and we could get ourselves to the small town of Kaza.
Kaza is nestled deeply in the Spiti valley, and is surrounded by Snowy capped peaks and Littered
with wonderful Buddhist temples. The rain eased up…in Kaza,
But not with the other crew in Rishikesh!
They were dealing with their own threats of ‘liquid mountains’.

Shimla became a hotspot for wild rainstorms, reports of landslides on almost all access roads.
The town of Manali to the south, had such extreme damage, there was no access from any
angle.

Day and Night we had conflicting information coming in, one road opened, another shut, then
both shut, then both opened… A clear sign nothing was open, was the fact there was no traffic
flowing through the village of Kaza.
By some divine miracle, we did happen to be Bunkering down in a Local hotel, that just
happened to be co-owned by an Australian, and with that, a top of the range coffee machine.
I think that caffeine supply is what kept me sane.

The TDA office crew in Toronto (& South Africa), the TDA crew on the south side of the
mountains, and us 7 crew stuck in Kaza, slowly and steadily formulated an extraction plan.
… And it involved backtracking!
Forwards, we had reached a wall. Literally a mountain wall.
That wall wasn’t being moved anytime before the potential First winter snows, which were now
predicted within 3 weeks time.

That drive back out the way we came, by some stroke of divine luck, went relatively smoothly.
Smoothly is subjective here, the road was Kaput… But there was a deep mutual desire from all,
to get out.

Whilst Getting out of the Mountains, it would only seem fitting that the final hour over the final
pass, would see deluge rains and fog….
Again i watched mud and rock flow off the side of a mountain with ease.
Of course it had to show us who the real boss is of this wild place one final time….

In all this commotion, TDA took the heavy hearted choice, to cancel the tour.
The Outbreak of a global pandemic in 2020, is the only other time in 23 years such a decision has been taken…

We got out those mountains, got ourselves to the flatlands of Delhi, where we rejoined our
Comrades and dealt with the realities of an early ending tour.
We all going home early, somewhat short changed of an experience for sure, but despite the
emotional loss of that journey, i will try explain the gain…

I witnessed Real Human Spirit in those mountains.
I saw people that don’t own much material possession, give out far more than any person i’ve
seen in the 1st world do in 20 years of living there.
Subsistence living Village people, giving up their personal rooms for strangers, local mountain
herdsman pushing stuck vehicles out of mud, local tea houses giving free meals and hot cups of chai to people in need, because they understood the situation…its survival up there.

i watched 3 special Indian men, who arrived in Leh as our local support vehicle drivers,
transform into the Backbone of our Tour when We found ourselves in real trouble.
They waved that Indian flag proudly, we were guests in their land, and they made sure our
safety, comfort and well being was more important than anything else.
How they got those vans out those mountains, i still don’t know.
No anger, no showing of stress, no critique…
Masters of disguising anxiety indeed, maybe helped by a couple boxes of cigarettes per hour.

But i also witnessed Mother Nature get really angry.
Those environments are changing fast, and the signs are there.
Villages, towns and Life, stand No chance when a Mountain decides to move…and it is
increasing with the Severe Weather changes the are experiencing.

The Himalaya’s once again Humbled me, for the 3rd time i have been into them.
I am so insignificant when i stand there and look up.
I got to see them in their beauty, and they also showed me just how Ruthless and cruel they are.
It is a hard life up on the Roof of the World.

To those who had their trip cut short, what a great shame we didnt get to experience the TDA
circus in that Phenomenal Place…
But In some ways, i’m glad you didn’t have to see those roads, i wont ever forget the noise a
mountain makes, when it decides to kick one of its 100meter high ‘Rock Shoes’ off.

Let’s All try play nice with Mother Nature please, the more We all pedal our bikes, hopefully the
happier She will be!

Cheers, Doug

The riders on 2023 Trans-Himalaya Cycling Adventure faced many challenges along the route. Some were expected – soaring mountain passes and rough roads – and some were not – landslides and mini-monsoons – but in the end, the cyclists had an amazing time. It was a cycling adventure that they will not soon forget!

The 2025 Trans-Himalaya is open for registration but the spots are filling up quickly. Don’t wait too long to sign up and cycle the high Himalayas.

“The Trans Himalayan adventure is without question a ‘bucket list’ ride for any serious cyclist that desires to pedal in rugged, remote, world class mountainous terrain. This is simply one of those rides where photographs can’t begin to adequately capture the scale and scope of your surroundings. The physical challenge of climbing up and over passes that sat at dizzying elevations was exhilarating. This is one remarkable and memorable trek that I would do again in heartbeat. It is one spectacular ride.” – Brian McCloskey (USA)

“A true trip of a lifetime. My favourite cycle tour. TDA delivered an adventurous route with incredible scenery, supported by a fabulous team that was always ready to handle the unexpected.” – Mary Potyrala (Canada)

“TDA has done it again! The tour exceeded all my expectations. The routes were well planned and never boring! You see India and Nepal from the unique perspective – from the saddle of you bike! The most beautiful part is you see the countries and it’s people, unfiltered. You also learned to expect the unexpected!” – Dennis Joe (USA)

“All in all, it was an unforgettable experience, one of the best, if not the best in my life.” – Dag Willems (Belgium)

“Trans Himalaya: Beyond expectations in any way. What a great tour in a majestic scenery.” – Tjeerd Saatrube (Netherlands)

“To cycle the high altitude passes in the Himalayan Mountains is an experience of a lifetime.” – Richard Schingler (USA)

“This tour is the total package. It has the most beautiful scenery in the world. The landscapes cover the whole spectrum, from amazing vistas to the flats of the lowlands. The weather will bring you snow and then melt you down to a puddle. The local people will melt your heart with their ability to be content and happy with very little but their beliefs and family. You will travel from being alone in the mountains to the urban jungles with mega, crazy, insane traffic and swarms of people. this is a tour that will light up all of your senses. Just do it.” – Frank Smith (Canada)

“Fantastic exposure to remote Himalayan culture and terrain, with time to explore cultural interests amid fun and sometimes challenging conditions. Superb support by skilled and friendly staff, and a most congenial group of competent, friendly cyclists. Highly recommended.” – Brenda Trenholme (Canada)

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Mats Fredrix was the Content Creator on the 2023 Trans-Himalaya Cycling Adventure. All the riders are now setting off for home after their dramatic 7 weeks in the Himalayas. Mats sends his final report from Kathmandu.

Landing in Leh in Ladakh, India, Buddhism to me was not much more than a fairly abstract notion of compassion, simplicity and peace. If anything, it mostly existed to me as an opposite idea, East opposed to West. And with the West’s influence stretching far and wide today, I wondered how much of this age-old Eastern wisdom I could expect to garner. How hard would it be to catch just a sliver of it, when global tourism had inevitably been working its powerful effects on these areas since at least the turn of the century?

Nevertheless, I was excited about Leh and Ladakh. I flew in considering myself pretty much a blank canvas, with maybe some minor brush strokes, created by a meditation app here or a YouTube video there. More than anything I thought myself eager, maybe even too eager, to find ‘answers’ that the West that I grew up in simply wasn’t able to provide, or if it did, they had along the way been starting to feel stunted. During those first days my excitement grew with every minute I was there. There’s something about the altitude and how it affects your body, which ties in seamlessly with Buddhism and its approach to life. On the subject one rider said, “I don’t know if it has anything to do with the spirituality you feel up there, but the altitude definitely makes you feel a bit high and there’s this calm that comes over you.”

It also, especially in the beginning, causes headaches and an overall sense of discomfort. A shortness of breath at every step you climb, a throbbing heart rate when bending over to tie your shoes. It’s quite unsettling  to realize you’re just not capable of the same things as you are at sea level. It all adds up to one strong mantra – ‘take it easy’. That might just be what it is all about up there among the clouds!

The strong Tibetan influence in Ladakh has a lot to do with its geographical proximity to Tibet. At many times in history Ladakh was a part of Tibet and that’s pretty hard to miss. Yes, there’s the Tibetan refugee markets in the cities and Tibetan prayer flags draped across any pole in sight, but Tibetan Buddhism’s throbbing heart beats inside the many monasteries spread out across the land. Many are lodged into the side a hill or mountain. Inside, it appears that they are almost a part of the mountain. Tranquility is to be found up on their roofs, overlooking the majestic mountain ranges. Somehow, through some mysterious ways, they are safe from the biting power of the wind. However, the calm really starts to surround you inside the many cool, rocky caverns.

To lead a Buddhist life, is to lead a simple life. Shedding our ‘reaching’ ego and pointing our gaze inwards to the peace and calm of our own being. I in no way claim to be in a position to educate anyone on the inner workings of Buddhism itself but a book that might help anybody who’s interested is ‘The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying’ by Sogyal Rinpoche. This is a spiritual classic from a writer who is one of the foremost interpreters of Tibetan Buddhism to the West. Yet there are many other ways to pick up some of these Buddhist gems of wisdom. One of our riders, An, recounted a conversation with a friend who had been to the Himalayas who explained to her the notion of the sky-like nature of the mind, which is so prevalent in Buddhism – “Our mind, with everything it entails, is like the sky, bright, vast, forever expanding and always there. Yet often problems, possibilities, joys and sorrows come over the mind, like clouds they may obscure it, yet clouds are always moving, and the sky will always be there unaffected.”

The TDA Trans-Himalaya Cycling Adventure explores just about everything there is to offer when it comes to Buddhism in Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh. From the bustling city of Leh, where Buddhism and trekking tourism clash, or should I say coexist, to the breathtaking Spiti Valley. In between these mountain passes, or deep in the high altitude valleys, Buddhism is everywhere you go. Yet interestingly enough, never exclusively. You come across plenty of Muslim and Hindu communities, all living in what really feels like harmonious existence together. Though difficulties and conflicts, as you can read in – ‘Forsaking Paradise’ – a collection of Ladakhi short stories by Abdhul Ghani Sheikh, between the many different groups, are also a part of the region’s history.

TDA tours are, maybe more than anything else, a way to see landscapes and cultures gradually transform from one to another. And this tour is no different. Barren, brown and grey rocks turn into a vivid, green jungle, calm turns into chaos, and Buddha turns into Shiva. A major landslide in Himachal Pradesh, near Kalpa, derailed our beautiful gradual transition on this tour though. Just as we were descending out of the high altitudes, ready to enter the green hill stations around Shimla, we were forced to turn back. And an arduous three day bus transfer, looping back around, made the change quite a shocking one.

Hindu festival in Rishikesh

While Shimla still felt on the edge of Buddhism’s reach, the tour quickly pedalled deeper into Hindu spiritual grounds, with Rishikesh and the holy Ganges river providing a vivid example of the Hindu religious experience. Yet there would be one final resurgence of Buddhism on the tour, and not an unimportant one, in Lumbini, Nepal.

At this point, the TDA Trans-Himalaya Cycling Adventure had descended to its lowest point of the tour, just 80m above sea level. And with that, comes a completely different way of life. Long flat days on bustling highways, through some of the hottest places in Nepal, among fleets of local cyclists eventually brought the riders into Lumbini, the famous birth place of the Lord Buddha.

Lumbini is one of the holiest places in Buddhism and a place of religious pilgrimage from as early as the 3rd century BC. At the centre of it all sits the Maya Devi Temple inside the Sacred Garden, which holds the remains of Buddha’s exact place of birth. The temple is very simplistic, everything inside the ‘Sacred Garden’ is of archeological importance and as such holds so much deep value to the religion that there’s simply no need for any bling.

It is situated in the middle of a planned park built in honour of Buddha and Buddhism across the world, which is certainly of a less religious nature. Some of the people on tour who had been there, called it, a bit of tongue in cheek, ‘Buddhist Disneyland’. It might be hard to imagine when you have not been there, but difficult not to see their point when you have. A large number of countries with a strong Buddhist culture were given the chance to build temples, called Viharas and Mahayana monasteries, in this park to honour the Buddha as well as represent Buddhist culture in their country. The result is an extravagant hodgepodge of styles and colour.

This is not to say that in and of themselves, the temples don’t have any aesthetic value and seeing them together certainly gives you a scope of Buddhist influence across the world. The amusement park feeling when walking around is just impossible to shake. Add the fact that some of it feels either under construction or already falling into disrepair, and it all adds up to a rather confusing picture, which doesn’t really seem to align with Buddhist thought at all.

Soon we were back up in the barren mountains of Nepal however, exposed and simple, the perfect fit for Buddhism. Up there it all just makes a little bit more sense, but take the mountains out of Buddhism, like in Lumbini, and Buddhism suddenly starts to feel just a little bit out of place.

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Brian McCloskey is a TDA Global Cycling alumni who has taken part in the North American Epic, TDA’s Great American Roadtrip & the Hippie Trail. He joined the 2023 Trans-Himalaya Cycling Adventure at the start in Leh and continued until Shimla and sends this report on his experiences in India.

When I touched down in Leh, Ladakh in the middle of August I was immediately put on notice that I was entering an environment unlike anything I’d ever experienced. For starters, there was the instantaneous shortness of breath. Coming from sea level this was to be expected. The town of Leh sits perched high on a desert plain along the famed Indus River. Elevation here is 11,500 feet (3505 metres) with the surrounding peaks of the Ladakh Range cresting over 20,000 feet (6096 metres). Secondly there were no sign of trees or vegetation on any of these imposing looking mountains. The semblance of an other worldly, lunar landscape was both dramatic and stark. Collecting my bag and exiting the airport, I realized this was also a different level of ‘sun’. While the air temperature felt somewhat cool, the solar intensity was palpable. With virtually no shade, cycling in this exposed high altitude environs was going to prove itself challenging in ways unimagined. Mother Nature was clearly calling the shots.

There are many aspects of the Trans Himalayan adventure that make it remarkably unique amongst TDA’s array of international cycling tours. To begin with, there is the acclimatization process of hanging for a week with your future riding partners in the remote Kashmir region of Ladakh. The luxury of sharing a week with like minded cycling enthusiasts in this stunning environment was an unexpected treat. Imagine, rest days before you spin your pedals! In true TDA fashion though we had plenty of riding options to local monasteries or up the imposing Kardhung La pass, which sits at an elevation of 17,500 feet (5334 metres) elevation, give or take a few hundred feet. Many of the riders in our group organized day trips to different destinations within the Indus Valley, even an afternoon whitewater rafting adventure. This time to explore created a wonderful set of shared experiences and camaraderie amongst our riding group BEFORE we ventured forth to take on the Himalayas.

The Trans-Himalaya staff

Then there is the staff. Like all TDA tours I’ve had the luxury of experiencing, we had a veteran and talented staff. What stood out here though was the inclusion of so many versatile and gifted native Indian staffers: Depi, Baba, Rama, Ezhil or Izzy. Their wealth of local knowledge and willingness to share helped immensely as we prepared for the riding challenge that awaited. Not only was the staff deep and talented, but having the luxury of getting to know them individually before the tour officially started was a huge plus.

The opening section of the Trans Himalayan tour was designed to further assist in acclimatizing. Our entire group spent the day transiting northwest to the remote village of Mulbekh. On a clear sun drenched morning we at long last began pedalling our way back to Leh. The scenery and riding were spectacular. Dizzying! We climbed up Fotu La pass at 13,600 feet (4145 metres) before descending into the hillside town of Lamayuru. On day two we experienced an adrenaline pumping descent along the Indus River. For day three we returned to climbing, cresting two substantial passes before arriving back in our base town of Leh. We were ready. Interestingly, what we discovered through trial and error was that despite the crazy elevations, the most physically comfortable place was on our bikes.

Over the next two weeks we would experience everything one could ask for on so adventurous tour as this. We climbed epic mountain passes with magical names including Taglang La, Baralacha La, Nakee La. These were easily the longest consecutive climbing distances most of us had ever experienced. Switchbacks and hairpin turns dotted the landscape. This was wild, rugged landscape even in these warm summer months. The climbs were exhilarating and most of the large passes commemorated our feat with prayer flags and elevation markers. Cresting passes well over 17,000 feet (5181 metres) was a rush. Of course what goes up, must come down. The descents off these major passes were pure ecstasy.

No bridge? No problem!

Along the way we experienced bridge outages which forced our talented leaders to innovate with a river crossing. Never a dull moment. There was camping, despite this being a ‘hotel’ only tour. We had both fixed and permanent camps as the only available option in some of the very remote section of the western Himalayas. One highlight of our trip was cresting one of the big mountain passes and gazing down into a remote, lunar landscape only to see our tents perched along the valley floor. Of course our remote alpine experience wouldn’t be complete without the requisite post ride ‘glacial stream shower’ and the proverbial ‘pit toilet’.

Morning surprise

Our weather throughout this section was remarkably consistent with cool nights and wonderfully warm days. We did however awaken one morning to a white wonderland with tents and bikes coated in snow. But given the intensity of the Himalayan sun, the snow disappeared in short order.

It’s only fitting that as our riding group pedalled our way down the spectacular Spiti Valley, our tour would come to a screeching halt. ‘Spiti’ means middle land; the land between Tibet and India. It’s is as beautiful as it is remote. Apparently Mother Nature had reclaimed a section of roadway with a landslide preventing us from accessing the town of Shimla where this opening section of the Trans Himalayan tour was scheduled to end. Our only solution was to backtrack via transit vans. The plus of course was we got to experience the stunning Spiti Valley in both directions.

Th gang

I am always at a loss to explain what attracts people to tackling something as challenging as the Trans Himalaya tour? Perhaps it’s as simple as people wishing to do things that they fear. For each rider there is likely an attraction that even they can’t explain. The Himalayas are magnificent. The panoramic vistas we experienced were mesmerizing. Most importantly the friendships forged in this intimidating landscape will be lasting. This is one TDA experience that will last a lifetime.

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This blog was spontaneously contributed by veteran TDA staffer and Chef on many tours: Yanez Novoa. On the Trans-Himalaya Cycling Adventure he is the righthand man to Tour Leader Sam, the lunch stop master and overall ‘good vibes’ coordinator. This is his report about a very special culinary experience in the region’s capital Kaza, the heart of the Spiti Valley.

Today I was assigned to ‘flex’ on the staff roster. This means that if there are no unexpected duties, I am free to ride my bike at my leisure. The best day of the week! But today, I’m not feeling it. Rolling hills, 57km, 1000 m descent, nice cloud cover, a gentle tailwind in the morning and I load my sorry self into the van and go straight to the hotel. On the way I admire the landscape of the Spiti Valley. The mountains are painted in water colours. Blue brown, grey and green rocks overlap. All touched up with a hint of grey and hazy in the distance.

At the hotel I decide to make myself useful and take on the task to xerox some permits. I procrastinate and end up sitting with the permits on my lap at dinner time. With the setting sun, all the print shops are probably closing so I decide to have some soup and skip dinner to make it before closing time. Ezhil (Tour Leader Trainee) is sitting across from me. He’s really hungry, he has said so a few times. He has some soup. ‘This is really good,’ he says with a distinctly impressed expression on his face. I have some. It is, really good. Before I can leave, colourfully laden plates start pouring in.

Crispy honey and sesame chicken wings. Bruschetta. Pak choy and paneer. Chicken Tandoori. Roast potatoes with crispy broccoli! Cauliflower gratin with yak cheese. The small bites come on big plates to share and, as if on purpose, in uneven numbers so there is always some left and a joyful debate is sparked on every final piece. They come at irregular intervals, sometimes invoking an expectant atmosphere, and at other times a feeling of royal abundance. Camaraderie and gluttony collide as we divvy up the remaining portions that we all want. Mats (Content Creator) pretends the water is wine and all of us, euphoric from the meal, join in the vintage. Then comes desert. So many emotions.

Apple and walnut ‘Christmas’ cake Sticky toffee pudding banana crumble What is happening! Lemon ginger tea. I beam at the chef who gives me a cheeky smile and a salute. He’s so cool. The dinner affected the whole group and we gave a round of applause as if unable to help ourselves. On long trips such as the ones we take part in, every day cannot be a good day, but inspiration and elation can come from anywhere at any time. I walk off the meal and find a print shop. All is well.

Karin & Yanez

Sometimes there are places where the passion for life can be felt in every detail. The Hotel Deyzor in Kaza is one of these unique hidden and unexpected unique places we stay at. The owner, Karin, has travelled the world on his bike and drawn inspiration for his menu from all over the world. The decor is homely and everywhere there are books about the Valley the hotel is situated in as well as many other interesting reads. There is a whole wall of hand written reviews which is a testament to how special this place is to many people. I do not think a visit to the Spiti Valley is complete without a stay at Karin’s place.

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Mats Fredrix is the Content Creator on the 2023 Trans-Himalaya Cycling Adventure. He sends his first report from the High Himalaya.

Indians have a good sense of humour. That’s, quite unexpectedly, one of the first things you notice riding on the roads in Ladakh. It’s all thanks to the B.R.O. and there is no way that name is an accident either, although it really stands for Border Roads Organization. It develops and maintains road networks in the country’s border areas. Apart from building roads, bridges, and other logistical stuff, they’ve also taken it upon themselves to educate drivers on safety and road etiquette. They do this with highway sign boards, though they really do play this game in a league of their own. No, ‘Please Drive Carefully’ warnings or something else unimaginative. No emotional blackmail showing images of kids without seatbelts and all sort of disturbing stuff happening consequently. They use their sense of humour. Here are some of our favourites.

One of the crew said it was almost as if they locked a random B.R.O. employee up in a room for a week and told him he wasn’t allowed to come out, until he had come up with at least one hundred silly road safety statements. Spelling and grammar are definitely considered secondary in this campaign. Whether it does the job or not, is difficult to tell but it attracts attention, and as you hear left, right and centre in our society these days, ‘there’s no such thing as bad publicity!’ Another one of their road signs perfectly encapsulates the mindset crucial for anyone thinking of joining the TDA Trans-Himalaya tour – ‘At high altitude, change your attitude.’

“These mountains will humble you!” This was Tour Medic Sam Covins’ opening statement at the riders’ welcome briefing in Leh on the evening before the official start of the tour. Adding to that was TDA’s own Sharita van Der Merwe. “It is absolutely crucial that all of you leave your egos right here in Leh,” she said, “There’s absolutely no wiggle room out there, this is not the place to play the hero or ignore vital signs that your body is giving you.”

Tour Medic Sam explained that as altitude increases, atmospheric pressure decreases and the air becomes ‘thinner’, but the relative percentage of oxygen in the air (21%) remains the same. Air pressure is very important for the transfer of oxygen from the air into the blood during respiration. The reduced partial pressure of oxygen at high altitude leads to an overall state of hypoxia (low oxygen) in the blood. The body will attempt to compensate for this through various different mechanisms as part of a process referred to as ‘acclimatization’. If, however, ascent to high altitude is too rapid or if an individual fails to adapt, then altitude illness can develop, which in serious cases and if left untreated, can be fatal.

“The TDA Trans-Himalaya is quite a unique tour, in the sense that we start the tour with two rest days,” states Tour Leader Sam Roy. Leh sits at around 3500 m and it is no mean feat to step off a plane that high up after stepping onto it around sea level. A couple of days of acclimatization before hopping on a bike are absolutely essential on this tour. “The first riding days on tour also function as ‘warm-up’ days,” says Sam, “as the route going out of Leh immediately goes over extreme high altitude passes like the ‘Tanglang La’, we decided to first transfer to Mulbekh. From where we ride almost 180 km over three days, cruising up and down between 3000 m and 4000 m.”

>>Related Post: Cycling At High Altitude

These first stages aren’t just to get used to cycling at altitude, but also to warm up everyone’s climbing legs. With some spicy passes just out of Mulbekh like the Namikala Pass and the Fotula Pass, ‘warming up’ really is a relative term. We are in the Himalayas, after all. A flatter stage two rolling down out of Lamayuru and following the Indus River to Uletopko, brought some relief while still keeping the legs busy. The third day,riding back into Leh, then increased the elevation gain again to almost 1400 m of climbing in 68 km.

As you may already gathered, riding on the roof of the world is a challenge. And it’s noticeable from the get-go. Throughout the acclimatization days and the warm-up riding stages, all sorts of little ailments appeared with both riders and staff, some more serious than others. There is some research that suggests the high altitude also affects your immune system, and you become much more susceptible to all kinds of illnesses. After a couple of weeks, almost everyone on tour has had either a coming together with the altitude or with something that rider Frank adoringly nicknamed ‘Delhi Belly’. Tour Leader Sam translated a different expression from his native Quebecois into English, “tasting the spice twice!”

Going into the first real rest day of the tour back in Leh, most riders and staff have recovered and come back to something close to full strength. And all for the better, as the biggest challenge with the Himalayan heights comes in the second riding stretch of the tour, riding out of Leh towards Manali. On stage five, the riders tackle the iconic Tanglang La Pass, the highest point of the tour: a whopping 5330 m. Cycling over high altitude passes is not without its risks, says Tour Medic Sam. At the TangLang La Pass, the partial pressure of oxygen equates to approximately half that of sea-level. This stage is tough and riders will almost certainly feel the effects of the altitude. The Tour Medic is there to provide a level of surveillance for the signs and symptoms of altitude illness and to provide prompt treatment if necessary. The tour vans are each equipped with bottled oxygen and will be used to evacuate riders to lower altitudes in the event of any altitude-related emergencies.

To change your attitude essentially means, be humble, something the Ladakh area is steeped in, thanks to its strong ties with Tibetan Buddhism. Listen to your body, and to what it is trying to tell you. Leave your ego at sea level, because the Himalayan mountains won’t be kind to it. They will crush you if you are unwilling to accept that life will be just a bit different at this altitude. You don’t have to leave that new found attitude behind in the mountains, you can take it with you wherever you go. If you’re able to live by these rules, respect your body and listen to its wants and needs, the Himalayas can truly become your backyard playground. Because there is truly nothing as fulfilling as riding a bike through this breathtaking landscape.

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Located in a region known for its stark and beautiful surroundings and ancient religious traditions, the Gata Loops, set on the Leh – Manali road, have a very different spiritual history.

The riders on the 2023 Trans-Himalaya will certainly be enjoying the view as they descend the 21 loops spread over 10 km but as they approach the 19th loop they might glimpse something out of the corner of their eye.  Something that might make them slow down and stop. Something known as the Ghost Temple. It might appear as just a messy collection of plastic water bottles but this is actually a shrine, set up by local villagers to appease the Ghost of the Gata Loops.

The story goes that many years ago a truck with 2 men in it was driving towards Manali late in the season. In fact, they were the very last vehicle on the road before it closed for the winter. Suddenly it began to snow. Heavily! The truck struggled on but as it approached the 19th loop, it broke down and no amount of effort on the part of the drivers could get it moving again. Apparently, they were worried about the contents of the truck being stolen so they decided that one of them would walk to the nearest village for help while the other would remain and guard the cargo.

The first man did, indeed, manage to reach a small village but the storm got worse and worse, stranding him there for 3 days. When he and the villagers managed to make it back to the truck, the other man was dead. With no water, food or heat, he was unable to survive. His body was buried beside the road where the truck broke down, the same spot where the Ghost Temple now stands.

In the years after his death, travellers began to report strange stories from the Loops. They often mentioned encountering a man begging for water but who vanished when they approached him. Concerned that the area was being cursed by the ghost of the dead trucker, the locals set up a small brick shrine at which they deposited water bottles to satisfy the thirst of the spirit. Soon, other travellers along the road joined in this tradition and the Ghost Temple was born.

The story goes on to say that travellers who do not offer up some water at the Temple, will suffer misfortune in their lives, so perhaps the riders on the Trans-Himalaya should pack an extra water bottle on their bikes…just in case!

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On TDA tours, a rest day can mean different things to different people, but rest is probably not one of them. We previously highlighted the rest days in Shimla and Manali on the Trans-Himalaya but, as famous as those locales might be (and deservedly so), there are 5 other unique locations on the Trans-Himalaya where riders get a day off. Each one of them has much to offer.

Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, India

Perched on the banks of the sacred Ganges River, Rishikesh is considered the ‘Yoga Capital of the World’ and is well known for its stunning temples and ashrams. Hindu pilgrims gather from all over India to bathe in the river’s holy waters and wash away their worldly sins especially in the evenings during the Ganga Aarti (river worship ceremony). Of course, the city is also famous for hosting the Beatles in 1968 when they visited Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and wrote many of the songs that appeared on their legendary ‘White Album’. You can even visit the Beatles Ashram.

Riders should be aware that it is a vegetarian zone and no meat or booze is allowed. In fact, the sale of eggs was also recently banned within the city limits. They will have to protect their fruit and veggies from the enterprising monkey population – macaques and grey langurs. The former are more aggressive when it comes to stealing food. Finally, they should bone up on their Hebrew as Wikipedia notes that, “The town is one of the favourites of Israeli tourists, who often come here after completing their mandatory IDF service.”

Naukuchiatal, Uttarakhand, India

Naukuchiatal, which translates to ‘Lake of 9 Corners’, is a small hill station nestled amongst oak and pine forests at 1200 m above sea level. The fresh water lake is fed by an underground spring and legend has it that it was created by Lord Brahma. There is a small shrine in town to honour this. Local tradition states that anyone who completes a circle of the lake, visiting all 9 corners, will be blessed with good fortune for their upcoming journey although another interpretation relates that someone completing the circuit (a parikarma) will instantly attain Nirvana and disappear in a plume of smoke. Any riders attempting this on their rest day should be sure to let the Tour Leader know their plans, just in case!

A towering statue of Hanuman, the Monkey God, greets visitors on the road into town. Riders can enjoy a number of activities here – bird-watching, paragliding, fishing, hiking, rock climbing and kayaking but they should be sure to visit the Lotus Pond (Kamaltaal) where pink and white flowers bloom, surrounded by colourful hummingbirds and butterflies. They can sample a local favourite, Buraans squash, which is made from rhododendron flowers or they can try to get to the bottom of a local legend which claims that somewhere inside the lake there is a secret route directly to China. A bike path, perhaps?

Royal Bardiya National Park, Nepal

Located in a transition zone between the plains of northern India and the outer foothills of the Himalayas this amazing National Park started as an exclusive Royal hunting ground back in the 1960’s before being turned into a nature reserve in 1976. The local population was relocated in 1982 to better protect the animals and in 1988 it was established as a National Park. It covers almost 1000 sq kms, a mix of forests (70%), savannah and grasslands and is home to 513 bird species, 61 species of mammals, 150 species of fish and reptiles and 839 plant varieties.

Wildlife includes many endangered animals including Gharialand marsh mugger crocodiles, Royal Bengal tigers, Greater one-horned rhinos, Gangetic dolphins, swamp deer and black bucks as well as the endangered Fishing Cat (which can, amazingly, swim long distances, even underwater), the state animal of West Bengal. It features the last remaining herd of wild elephants in Nepal and was home to the tallest recorded Asian Wild Elephant – Raja Gaj – who stood 3.43 m.  Activities include Elephant safaris, canoeing & rafting, hiking, and bird watching. At the park office riders will find a rhino – Shivaram – who was injured as a baby. He is blind in one eye and used to wander freely the park around until he killed a man. Best not to pet this one. (No kidding!)

Lumbini, Nepal

Lumbini, which in Sanskrit means ‘the lovely’, is one of the holiest places in the world and one of Buddhism’s most sacred sites. It was here that in 623BC, that the Lord Buddha was born. His mother, Maya, stopped to rest amongst a shady grove of Sal trees and subsequently went into labour. Pilgrims from around the world come here to pray, to meditate and to reflect. The Indian Emperor Ashoka visited in 249BC and erected a sandstone memorial column to mark the occasion but by the 9th century AD, the site had been forgotten and was not rediscovered until 1896. It was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997 and is one of four cities that the Buddha said every Buddhist pilgrim should visit along with Bodh Gaya, Sarnath, and Kushinagar.

The historical area features the Maya Devi Temple, traditionally thought to be the birthplace of the Buddha, the Puskarini (Holy) Pond, where he had his first bath and a sacred Bodhi Tree, decorated with prayer flags. There are also over 30 monasteries and the World Peace Pagoda. Riders visiting the site should wear clothing that expresses respect for its sacred nature and should circumambulate the buildings in a clockwise direction. Nearby is Kapilbastu Tilaurakot, the Buddha’s hometown where, as Prince Siddhartha, he spent his youth until the age of 29 when decided to seek inner peace. Visitors can explore the ruins of the family palace. Too much Buddha? Lumbini is also known for its bird life, especially the rare Sarus crane and the Indian spotted eagle.

Pokhara, Nepal

Nicknamed the ‘Jewel of the Himalaya’ for its absolutely spectacular setting, Pokhara is set on beautiful Phewa Lake and offers stunning views of the Himalayas. Nepal’s second most populous city sits at an elevation of 800 m and is within 60 kms of the Annapurna Range and 3 of the world’s highest 10 mountains. It was once a major stop on the ancient trading routes between India and China but the political upheaval in Tibet has shuttered those roads. Local horse caravans, however, still set off to the distant and remote Mustang region of the country. Many tourists use the city as a base for their trek on the legendary Annapurna Circuit and it is considered one of the best locations in the world for para-gliding.

The city, fittingly, features the International Mountain Museum and the Gurkha Museum, which honours those legendary soldiers, considered the most feared warriors of the British Empire. Riders can wander through Old Pokhara and its ancient bazaar and historical temples or row out to the beautiful Tal Barahi Temple located on an island in Phewa Lake. They can visit the infamous Devi’s Falls, a torrent that creates an underground tunnel at its base, named for a Swiss woman who fell in in 1961 and was swept away to her death or explore the nearby Mahendra Gupha – limestone caves known as House of Bats. Other activities include, but are not limited to, mountain biking, ultra light flights, bird watching, bungee jumping, skydiving and white water rafting!

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“Once a year, go somewhere you’ve never been before.” – Dalai Lama

I am an expert on everything I know nothing about. This expertise has grown longer as I age. Keep that in mind as you read this blog on training for the Trans-Himalaya cycling tour, in which if you choose to go, you will cycle at a low gradient, slowly but surely to altitudes of 5,000m and plus. If you do decide, then you will be rewarded in many ways – more on that later.

This minor accomplishment I managed to do at a tender age of 67,  though if you think that this would get me into the Guinness World Record book, let me tell you, there were older people cycling in the group of adventurers who reached those 16,000 plus ft peaks with much more gusto, flair and speed that I could muster. But sadly – neither the flair nor the gusto helped them to get into the Guinness World Record book either.

Struggling up those mountains which I described in a blog called Cycling Over 5000 meters ‘Passes on The Trans Himalaya Tour’, I kept asking myself, Henry why didn’t you do those dammed breathing exercises. It could have been at least 6% easier. Now my dear reader, you may ask yourself ‘breathing exercises’ for altitude climbing? ‘What are you smoking, Henry?’ Just for the record I don’t smoke not even that funny stuff.

So here is the thing. In 2010 fourteen members of a British army climbing expedition to the world 5th highest peak in Nepal, took part in a fascinating experiment. Chosen randomly, for four weeks half of the members were assigned exercises to strengthen the muscles involved in breathing. Apparently, these exercises are called inspiratory muscles training. And just in case you are wondering, according to an old article I read in Outside Magazine, we have between seven to eleven pounds (3kg to 5kg) of breathing muscles that consume energy like any other muscles in our body. Let me tell you that is a lot of kilograms to drag up the mountain.

Because we are mere humans no matter the age, the level of oxygen in our blood system drops as we climb higher in altitude. When the army boys reached 16,000 ft or about 4,000 meters altitude, their arterial oxygen dropped by 20%. Not for all of them. The ones who practiced the breathing exercises, the oxygen level dropped only 14%.

Can you imagine? You can sit at home watching your favoured TV show while training for those high peaks. And it is reaching those peaks that will provide you the rewards. You, like me, may struggle for each breath getting to those peaks, but a minute at most two after you get there, you will have on your face the biggest grin you ever had. You will already forget the discomfort. You will ooze joy, pride, confidence. You will see panoramas you have never seen before. You may even think you are invincible. And you will have downhill rides that will go on and on and on as you smile and say to yourself, this is what I was born for. THIS IS MY LIFE. This is me. I am on top of the world.

Talking about rewards, there is a reason I quoted Dalai Lama at the beginning of this blog. Much of the area you will be cycling those magnificent passes, is called the Little Tibet of India. Dalai Lama himself is a frequent visitor and along the way you will see and be able to visit magnificent Buddhist monasteries, meet monks and perhaps even someone who can enlighten you a bit. Afterall, who among us doesn’t need some more enlightenments.

I started this blog with a suggestion from Dalai Lama to go somewhere where you have not been before. I will end it by referring to a quote from my previous blog on the Trans Himalaya Tour, there I started with a quote from George Mallory, who may or may not been the first human being that stood at the top of the world. “The greatest danger in life is not to take the adventure.” I couldn’t agree more.

Limited spaces remain on the 2023 Trans-Himalaya. Follow the link below for more info.

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“The greatest danger in life is not to take the adventure.” – George Mallory

A long time ago, as in once upon a time, popular outdoor magazines were thick, the stories long and colourful, informative and entertaining, and it was fun to collect them. Why? Well, when winter came and long evenings set in, you could go through the accumulated pile, pick one or two magazines and read and dream of the great places you will go one day…maybe. Except somehow, even on those long evenings, there were always more pressing things to do and so the pile of old magazines grew and grew. And I never had the heart to throw them away.

Nowadays, periodically I go to that pile, pick up a magazine or two, and, yes, find a story that is fascinating. And thus, I came upon a story about George Mallory, the man who may or may not have been the first person on top of Mount Everest. George Mallory is also the person who in responding to the question, “Why climb Mount Everest” simply said, “Because it is there”. Whether he was just tired of the endless inquiries or just having fun is now immaterial. As our South African colleague, Sharita, would say, “It is what it is”.

It was almost five years ago when, in a blog called ‘Trans Himalaya Adventure – “Because It Is There‘, I introduced our company’s latest cycling adventure – a six-week journey from Kashmir to Kathmandu.  It would be a most unique way to experience the sights, sounds, smells and more, much more of the highest mountain range of the world – The Himalaya.

The truth of the matter is that, besides knowing Mallory’s quote and the fact that he died on the mountain, I knew very little about him. Yet reading about him brought back many fond memories from the inaugural Trans Himalaya tour in 2019. In the process, I was discovering a kindred spirit. I too, as a kid, loved climbing boulders, trees, fences. I still do, particularly fences, especially those with overhanging fruit, although falling is no longer much fun.

Why a kindred spirit? Here is a quote, “Why do we travel to remote locations? To prove our adventurous spirit or to tell stories about incredible things? We do it to be alone amongst friends and to find ourselves in a land without man.” I thought, what a way to describe the camaraderie of cyclists, thinking back to our own struggles up endless mountain passes over 5,000 metres high. As an aside, one of my companions from those climbs, less than a month ago waited hours for me in the hotel lobby in Rome on our last day on the Viva Italia Cycling Tour, just to spend an hour or two reminiscing about our adventure.

“There are seven continents – and we cycle on six of them – but there is only one Himalaya Mountain range and there we do not cycle.” So begins the first sentence of the blog, Trans Himalaya Adventure – ‘Because It Is There’. Crossing a continent or the world’s highest mountain range by bicycle is a remarkable thing to do: it is long, arduous, requires commitment in time, energy, resources, and demands sacrifices such as leaving your loved ones behind. Mallory understood this, “To struggle and to understand. Never the last without the first. That is the law”.

Reading about Mallory, what comes through loud and clear is that he was a remarkable human being, a great climber, teacher and soldier but most importantly, a decent human being. That is perhaps why I liked this quote the best, “We don’t live to eat and make money. We eat and make money to be able to enjoy life. That is what life means, and that is what life is for”.

So, what is life for? I can only tell you that on the 2019 Trans-Himalaya, I had a great time, learned a lot, struggled a lot, walked a lot, contemplated a lot, had lots of fun, and now have many wonderful memories of my time cycling the mighty Himalaya.

Limited spaces are still available for the 2023 Trans-Himalaya Cycling Adventure.

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Live viewing double feature of ‘Cycling the Trans-Himalaya’ and ‘Cycling the Bamboo Road’.

Longtime TDAer Shanny Hill and filmmakers Nirmika Athalye and Esen Küçüktütüncü will be at the ready on their keyboards to answer your questions in realtime as we all watch the films together. We hope you will join us!

The screening will be on Friday, July 10th at 10:00am Eastern time (Toronto / New York) on YouTube. If you would like to RSVP to the facebook event, click here. Otherwise simply find the direct links to the YouTube pages below.

The first video will start at 10:00am, followed by a short break, and the second will begin at 10:15am. You will have to click to the 2nd link at that time to continue watching.

10:00am – Cycling the Trans-Himalaya:
https://youtu.be/Z_CPLQGxfDg

10:15am – Cycling the Bamboo Road:
https://youtu.be/MIXmP9S-JKI

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Bamboo Road

Many of us have criss-crossed the countries of South-East Asia on a ‘shoestring’ over the years, returning home with fond memories. Now we invite...

“Veni, Vidi, Vici.” – Attributed to Julius Caesar

Veni

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

All together there were 42 of us – 32 cyclists and 10 support staff hailing from the four corners of the world – 15 countries to be exact. There was more than 3,000 km of riding ahead of us, including over 34,000 m of altitude gain – four times the height of Mount Everest!

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We gathered in Ladakh 51 days ago to begin a cycling expedition that would take us over mountain passes above 5,000 m, through unknown weather conditions, past natural wonders and into unique cultures.

Vidi

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We saw stunning mountains peaks, endless rivers and waterfalls, luscious green forests and meadows. Dry lunar landscapes that stretched out for miles were suddenly interrupted by a river and a green oasis.

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We saw sacred places of worship both ancient and modern – Hindu, Buddhist, Islamic. We saw weddings, funerals and religious celebrations.

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We had encounters with people of every colour and ethnicity. We met folks, old and young, with features combining many different genes. We came across nomads and travellers of all kinds. We heard languages that we had never heard before, but there was also plenty of English.

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We saw people of all ages working hard in the fields to make sure that they had enough food to eat until next year, an endless number of traders and shops of all kinds. We saw a lot of joy and plenty of struggle.

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Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We ate an incredible variety of local specialties. Some of us payed for this by spending more time in washrooms than we bargained for.

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We saw people trying to build roads and we saw nature demolishing their efforts.

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We saw domestic animals running around as well as being slaughtered for festive occasions. We saw cows ambling on streets and highways and we captured some great footage of monkeys swimming across river. We saw rhinos bathing in a river and elephants strolling in the tall grass.

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We made friends for life and spread the ashes of a friend who was supposed to have been with us on the trip but passed away suddenly. We imprinted images on our brains that will not disappear for as long as we are alive. Cumulatively, we took so many pictures that they would fill several large galleries.

We tried very hard to see a tiger or two but it was not meant to be. They prefer the deep forests and the tall elephant grass. To quote from my favourite book that I read on this trip, The Snow Leopard, by Peter Matthiessen, “It is the whole acceptance of what is”…. “Have you seen the snow leopard? No! Isn’t that wonderful?” It is what made his expedition a success, as it did ours. It was the acceptance of what we saw, felt, experienced and accomplished.

Vici

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

We conquered steep climbs and dangerous descents. We conquered the heat, humidity, the winds and the rains – sometime all in one day. We conquered roads scarred by monsoons, mudslides and earthquakes. Most importantly, we conquered our own fears and limitations. We cycled a lot. Sometimes we pushed our bikes up steep hills. We laughed often. Sometimes we cried from exhaustion but in the end, we conquered that as well.

Photo: Frieder Wolfart

After Peter Matthiessen’s ‘unsuccessful’ search for the Snow Leopard, his partner on the expedition remarked that their expedition was – “tough enough so that we feel we have accomplished something, but not so tough it wiped us out completely”. I think that every participant on the Trans-Himalaya Cycling Tour would agree.

“The Buddha’s teachings are like travel guides that show the way to enlightenment, to ultimate knowledge of the nature of the mind and of the phenomenal world.” – Matthieu Ricard, The Monk and the Philosopher

It was a mere three months ago that I stood under a sacred Bodhi tree in Madagascar of all places, seeking enlightenment at the end of the Magical Madagascar Cycling Tour. Today I am actually standing under another Bodhi tree, this time in Lumbini, Nepal where, according to believers and anthropologists, the spiritual teacher known as Buddha was born.

We have arrived in this place after an arduous but nevertheless enjoyable six week cycling journey and most of us spent the day visiting the complex of temples and monasteries here in Lumbini. Here a pilgrim (or a cyclist) will find monasteries built by various Buddhist Associations from around the world – Sri Lanka, Cambodia, China, Thailand and even France, Germany and Canada.

These monasteries and temples, some of them quite spectacular, are obviously to venerate Buddha. Included in the middle of the park is a beautiful golden statue of a child Buddha which gives  visitors a great opportunity to take a ‘selfie’. Watching this made me think of Buddha’s teachings about attachment to the ‘self’ and the need to “unmask the imposture of the self in order to recognize the true nature of things”.

Though I did not take a ‘selfie’, I did ponder what Buddha would say about all of this. One branch of Buddhism, the Zen Japanese, actually says ‘Kill the Buddha’. According to the famous French monk, Mattheiu Ricard, who abandoned a promising career in science to study Buddhism and eventually becoming an ordained monk, Buddha made it clear that “his teaching should be examined and meditated on but never simply accepted as true”.

It is while having all sort of such random thoughts running through my head that I found Richard, one of our riders, at the Chinese monastery. He was on the front steps of the temple watching a caterpillar inching along. He commented that the caterpillar was ‘happy’ and is doing what it is suppose to be doing. Though not a practicing Buddhist, Richard revealed that Buddhism, unlike Judeo-Christianity, always appealed to him ever since he was just 13 years old and received a gift from a girl upon whom he had his first crush. The present, a book, happened to be Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse.

We continued our discussion about how it seemed that all human beings had a need to find meaning in their lives as well as in their symbols. I then ran into Yanez, our Assistant Tour Director on the Trans Himalaya Cycling Tour, and we continued exploring this vast complex of temples. One of them was locked and looked through the gate to be a bit ‘Disneyesque’ but it seemed very appealing to Yanez and he suggested that we should break in, just for the fun of it. I explained that at this stage of my ‘enlightened’ life, I no longer possessed the desire to break into locked compounds, which was a bit disappointing to Yanez as he was obviously in need of some mischief.

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Instead, we refocused on the fact that the large complex we were exploring was mostly empty of pilgrims or tourists. A discussion ensued about how this place needed some changes in order to make it more appealing to the masses. Yanez, being a chef, thought that some good street food from each of the Buddhist countries represented here would help. I suggested that a virtual reality centre in which wise old men would dispense wisdom was required.

Just then we ran into three more cyclists from our group – Gonzalo, Ruth and Juan. I was not sure if they were searching for enlightenment of their own but looking at their professional cameras, I am sure that they got much better photos than I did. Of course, all of this is a bit, as my father would say (and forgive me as this is in translation from Yiddish) “neither here nor there”. Therefore I will end with a wonderful quote from a rabbi, a very famous one who had when he was alive and now that he is dead even more so, many followers, Rabbi Nachman of Bratzlav – “As the hand held before the eye conceals the greatest mountain, so the little earthly life hides from the glance the enormous lights and mysteries of which the world is full, and who can draw it away from before his eyes, as one draws away a hand, behold the great shining of the inner worlds”.

Tomorrow we begin the climb to Pokhara. From there we can see the great Annapurna mountain massif and I will endeavour to draw away the hand that conceals the great shinning of the inner world.

Our Trans-Himalaya Content Creator, Nirmika, introduces us to the cycling adventures of TDA Global Cycling Chef Yanez Novoa…

“Ohm was the first sound in the universe. Ever since the Big Bang, it has spread around in all shapes and guises. When Earth got its share of the Ohm, the biggest portion got assigned to the Indian sub-continent. India smells, sounds, looks and tastes intense, and there is no more intense way of experiencing it than from the exposed and vulnerable perspective of a bike! Every few days, a different staff member gets their chance to trip out and ride a bicycle. Needless to say, we all scramble for the opportunity to be alone, just for a while. But this is India and you are never alone.”

Now, let’s hear from Chef Yanez…“I help a bit with packing up lunch then get on the road quickly because the last rider has left 15 minutes ago and these people are fast. As I leave it starts raining, a heavy cool rain giving some relief from the heat and humidity. The road runs through a thick tropical forest with tall pines and teak trees and clusters of houses every now and then. We have entered a wide plain next to a river, a stark contrast from the cliffs of the last few days. In the jungle I see a sign that reads “Wildlife Corridor: Beware of the Elephants”. I wonder if Henry saw it? Next one says”Wildlife corridor: Beware of Tigers”. Better watch out! The roads are not too busy but with all the honking we saw no tigers.After many kilometres, I spot my first rider. This is comforting in two ways; I am not that slow and I’m on the right road… They won’t hear me because of the Ohm but I have to stay back so they don’t see me. It might make them… uncomfortable. We get into the outskirts of town and traffic picks up significantly. The “lawless” traffic of India has a surprisingly manageable and enjoyable flow to it. Back home in South Africa everyone is driving 80km/h in the 80km/h lane half asleep but here, everyone is driving 40km/h everywhere wide awake. Everyone knows where everyone is because of the honking.I take a break to catch my breath and watch a lady walk down the street handing out packets of peanuts to monkeys sitting in a row on a wall. The main monkey calmly takes a pack and opens it without spilling one! This monkey was a touch smaller than the lady giving it peanuts and he knew this lady, he was expecting her. He also knew the guy at the fruit stall earlier who was shooting him with a slingshot. I always got told  that if you feed the monkeys they will come back. People have been feeding these monkeys for thousands of years, they are not leaving. I thought all monkeys are the same yet he knows all humans are different. This monkey know more about humans than I know about monkeys.With that in my mind I get back on the bike and join the flow of cars, dogs, people and bikes. The only thing that does not join the flow, are the cows. They can do whatever they want because they give us milk and mothers give babies milk hence they are all our mothers, agreed. I cruise through a cloud of incense, sewerage and a noise with a denseness to it and arrive at the Divine Resort in Rishikesh just behind the last rider. The day is done and so is my share of riding. But I wonder what’s to see on my next sweep ride?

Rishikesh, India

“There are still miles to ride, and stories to collect… I’m embarrassed about how shallow my knowledge of India was before this trip as I thought of it as one place which it is not. I did not come to India on a spiritual journey, I came here to do a job. What I am finding is a lesson in humans and nature. Not humans as part of nature, but rather nature as part of humanity.OHM!”

Dr Helen Gertig, medic for TDA Trans-Himalaya 2019, describes an episode of illness and some surprising lessons.

After one month on the Trans-Himalaya Cycling Tour, I was feeing pretty smug. Despite three weeks spent at high altitude, multiple questionable street food forays, and a morning spent cycling along the world’s most treacherous road, I was sitting pretty healthy. However, in a country notorious for its gastroenteritis, where a runny tummy is so prolific it has its own loving nickname – “Delhi Belly” – it was only a matter of time. And so it was that I found myself halfway through an evening consultation with a rider, starting to experience worsening waves of nausea. A gulp of air as I reached for my stethoscope, a shift in the seat. The urge to vomit was becoming irresistible……

How could I play this? A quick silent vomit in the ditch behind whilst the patients back was turned, quietly waiting for me to listen to their chest? But what about the inevitable spray? And its pretty hard to be sick in silence….. Confess, and let the patient be party to the whole sorry spectacle? But you wouldn’t really want antibiotics from a doctor who was clearly in the process of succumbing to their own raging infection. Flashbacks to medical school – why was this scenario never covered in those endless medical ethics lectures? With the idea to maintain some scrap of dignity, I gently excused myself and walked in the calmest manner I could summon to the nearest bathroom. Sweet relief in the form of a noisy expulsion of gastric contents back up the way. A heavy decontamination later (think water, soap and multiple bottles of alcohol gel) and I returned to finish the consultation, muttering something about a coughing fit. No, my finest moment it was not.

So began my twenty four hours as a patient – every doctor’s worst nightmare. Luckily, the wonderful TDA family was on hand to help, and in between raging vomits I learnt some useful and affirming lessons:

1. Buckets

Every Indian hotel, hostel and guesthouse comes with a sturdy, large bucket in the room. Previously I had used these for washing clothes only, but it turns out they are most excellent for containment of your gastric disasters when the bathroom feels just a heave too far. I’m now back to washing my clothes in them, albeit with a surreptitious antiseptic rinse first.

>>RELATED POST – An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away

2. If you didn’t know it already, TDA tour leaders are pretty awesome

“I can do injections if you think you need one for the nausea, just not IV lines” declared our leader Emily in a businesslike manner as she washed out the aforementioned bucket. I gabbled something about orally dispersible medications (medications that dissolve in the mouth, meaning the patient doesn’t have to try to swallow tablets when vomiting. They are a brilliant form of drug delivery that sometimes avoids the need for an invasive injection when a patient cannot swallow), and we eyed each other warily. Emily, a thousand thanks. I owe you a drink, or five.

3. Yes, I concede, ORS is pretty horrible

As an expedition medic, oral rehydration salts (ORS) are my favourite bit of medical kit. Whether you have vomiting, diarrhoea, or have just had a long, hot sweaty day on the bike, you loose a lot of salt. Your body is highly sensitive to very small changes in its salt concentration, and even a relatively mild loss can leave you feeling pretty rough. Oral rehydration salts can be found in pharmacies all over the world, and are basically small premixed sachets of salt and sugar to dissolve in a set concentration of water, to rehydrate the patient and restore their salt balance. They are magic things and can make you feel better really quickly. Anyone who has been on expedition with me knows that I push ORS like mad, and can bore anyone unlucky enough to innocently enquire with hours of witterings on osmolalities, optimal intestinal absorption and hypo- vs hypernatraemia. However, like any medicine worth its salt (apologies, irresistible…), oral rehydration salts are not very palatable. And thus it was that my room-mate watched me with a humorous glint in her eye as I tried to swallow down the disgusting taste of my own medicine.

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4. India has its own illness comfort food, and its pretty great

In the UK, when someone is nauseous, the consensus seems to be that they must be fed dry toast and flat coke. Nothing so pedestrian in India. Once I had stopped feeling quite so sorry for myself (and had cleaned out my nose), I was ready to join my colleagues around the dinner table once again. They warily watched me perusing the menu, before swiftly taking matters into their own hands. “She’ll have the kedgeree, thanks” – from my colleague Nirmika. “You will love it, its the ultimate Indian comfort food when you’re ill” Move over dry toast – this soothing blend of rice, lentils, stock and a touch of ghee is exactly what the doctor would order again!

5. Mother’s wisdom is not cross-cultural

On the phone with my mum (because you are never too old to call your mum when ill……), she wasted no time in prescribing- “Yoghurt, the more the better – replace all the good bacteria you know?” I mentioned this to Baba and Rama, my Indian colleagues, who were horrified – “My mother said you must NEVER eat yoghurt when you have a bad stomach!“. Whose mother was right? Let us not look to science here, but simply respect the universally agreed law that your own mother is always, always right……

6. It takes a village to treat a recalcitrant doctor

As news of my vomitus downfall spread through the group, I thought I would feel humiliated. Rather, it was an affirming experience. Enquiries from all, encouraging words and grinning thumbs up on my return to the breakfast buffet. Detailed fluid balance updates were asked for and given. Multiple bags were carried, medicines fetched and extra jobs done. It was lovely reciprocation of the caregiver relationship, and a real privilege to be propped up by our entire TDA Trans-Himalaya community.

Thanks team – I promise to buy a nicer flavour of ORS on our next rest day!

After a couple of weeks cycling over peaks of 5,000 metres in Ladakh, followed by a ride through the spectacular mountains and valleys of Lahaul-Spiti in Himachal Pradesh, we have arrived in Shimla, the half point of the Trans-Himalayan Bicycle Tour.

If you have never been to India you most likely have never heard of Shimla but this small city, established in early 1800’s, was for a long time the summer capital of British Empire in India. Even after independence in 1947, the Indian government spent more time meeting in Shimla than in the British Raj’s real capital, Calcutta. There is a very good reason for this. Shimla, which is spread over seven hills, is situated at an altitude of over 2,000 metres, which creates a wonderful escape from the stiffling heat of the Indian subcontinent.

Shimla nowadays, at least in the summer, is a popular tourist destination, mainly for in-country tourists although here and there you may spot a foreigner walking on its wonderful long pedestrian mall. It is here, on the Mall, where most of Shimla attractions can be seen and visited. So Shimla, in short, is a great spot to have a couple of days rest after our maddening three week ride through the high Himalayas. I say maddening because most people who hear about our mode of travel and the route we have taken to reach this place just shake their heads and think we are mad. But the truth is I wonder who exactly is mad.

Arriving in Shimla meant we were back to the world of maddening honking – that is the God given right of every driver in India – and, of course, the internet, newspapers, television and thus to the news and the chaos of the world. The Hindustan Times that I picked up at out hotel  reception declared loudly ‘UK parliament suspended amid unprecedented chaos’. Another headline announced ‘Automobile sales in India see worst ever decline in August’. While watching television later on, one of the country’s ministers blamed millennials for not doing their duty for the motherland – buying new vehicles and motorcycles.

The Times of India had the following leading headline ‘State governments can slash road fines if they want says Union Minister of Transport Nitin Gadkari’. Apparently the “hefty fines (that apparently were put in place ‘to save lives’) will overburden the common man” said a representative of the West Bengal State. I suppose the fact that the common man could actually slow down and obey the law is just way too much burden on him.

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The Pioneer, another English language newspaper, took a more honourable approach to its front page and revealed that Prime Minister Modi said to end single-use plastic in order to save farmland. I imagine that PM Modi would much rather talk about plastic than deal with another headline from The Times of India which stated ‘UN asks India, Pakistan to protect the human rights of Kashmiris’. Not that ending single use plastic is a bad idea. Personally, I have been calling for that for over 30 years.

You can imagine that after spending the last three weeks in the clear mountain air there was only so much I could take of the world so I decided that it was time to hike to the highest point in Shimla. It is at the top of the mountain that a statue of Hanuman overseas the activities taking place in Shimla. It is there that one can seek some guidance at the Jakhoo Temple.

Though I am not a Hindu nor a very spiritual man, I thought that perhaps being in the presence of Hanuman – the invincible, immortal monkey god, symbol of strength and energy – I might gain some insights, if not the answers, to whether it is us – cycling over 100 km a day on remote roads and climbing a thousand or two metres each day – who are mad or whether the world around us is simply a mad, mad, mad world.

Nakeela La (pass), altitude 4,740 meters
Boralacha La, altitude 4,850 meters
Lachung La, altitude 5,019m 
Tanglang La, altitude 5,360m 

“It is impossible to describe the last week in one sentence” – Lieutenant Colonel Rae Simpson, Retired senior air force officer, F16 pilot, aged 75, current 2019 Trans-Himalaya participant

Every cell in my body is screaming, ‘Enough! Stop, for heaven sake!’ The muscles on my thighs are shrieking ‘Not one more revolution.’ I can see the top, I think, I hope, but, in fact, it is still a few km of steady climbing away. Not a very steep gradient but at this altitude, any gradient is hard pedalling. A small car coming from the top pulls to a stop. I am breathing so hard I can hardly hear his question. “Where are you from?” asks the driver? “Canada” I say. He moves on, than he stops and backs the car up “How old are you?” “Sixty seven” I say. He nods his head and moves on. And I just breathe, if that is what one can call it. Better yet, I gasp and gasp again. I do not think. I am incapable of thinking or reacting in any way. All I can do is extract as much oxygen from each breath as possible.

I was on this road two years ago in a car checking out a possible cycling tour of the Himalayas. As I sat in the vehicle, enjoying the magnificent views and wondering if my headache was caused by altitude or by too much caffeine, I thought, is this really a good idea for our company? It certainly would be a challenge, it will fit well into the ethos of our company, it will create a new cycling tour that no other bicycle tour company has ever attempted, but who will sign up? Who is crazy enough to cycle day after day at such altitudes? And what about me? I scouted it so that means I should cycle it. I will be 67 years old and although I have cycled over 4,000 metres before that was ten years ago. And this is not 4,000 metres. This is over 5,000. Are you nuts? Are you pushing your luck? Why?

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Why indeed? I breathe deeply and look to the top. By now most of the other riders have probably reached the summit. I am in awe of each and every one of them, men and women, several of them older than me. The top is at 5,360 metres or 17,582 feet. The support van is nowhere to be seen but even if it was here, my inner voice would be saying, ‘No, you are not getting in. You have come all this way, you can’t get in now.’

And so I breathe as deeply as I can, drink a bit more water, lift my leg over the bar and move on. The ‘why’ is not important now. It doesn’t matter. Nothing matters. Not the spectacular views, not the cool air, not the threatening clouds. Nothing matters except to move ahead another ten feet…and then another ten feet. And repeat.

It has been a remarkable ten or so days for all of the participants of the inaugural Trans-Himalaya cycling tour. We have enjoyed some of the most spectacular views in the world and experienced and learned from one of the most unique and oldest cultures living in the Himalayan highlands. But I believe, for most of us, it has been an adventure of self discovery. After all, not one of us has ever cycled at such high altitudes. In fact, not one of us even knows anyone who has come close to doing what we are doing. So just as I have asked myself over the last two years, why are you doing this, I imagine each and every rider carried their thoughts and moved their own pedals one revolution at a time, reaching one high after another.

Now that they have accomplished this, does the question even matter? Does checking off a 5,000 metre pass matter to anyone? It is just a number. What matters, I suspect, is the self knowledge we have gained, the pushing of our own boundaries, the indescribable feeling of fighting for more oxygen, those moments knowing what it really means to be fully alive, being ‘in the moment’, appreciating each breath and loving the path we have chosen for ourselves. What really matters to us is the satisfaction that comes from overcoming one’s doubts and enjoying the realization, once again, that what matters most in life is really doing things, of moving your legs when they are shrieking and telling you that it is enough. No, it is not enough! Definitely not! Life is there to be explored.

Travelling here, up on the mountains, I ended up visiting a couple of monasteries. Apart from their stunning locations, surrounded by magnificent mountains, I could never admire their existence. As a non believer myself, I’ve been quite dismissive of any religious doctrines or believers, but I think that’s starting to change this time.

Hold on, hold on.

I’m not turning into a believer suddenly. I am and will always be a follower of science, over religion but my perspective has started to change a little since my last visit to Lamayuru Monastery.

Lamayuru Monastery

It’s a beautiful monastery located atop a hill in the Ladakh region of Kashmir, India. A quick walk leads you up to the entrance that overlooks a lush green valley. Like any other monastery, there are a number of prayer wheels located from place to place inside the compound. Prayer wheels are basically cylindrical rotating wheels that have the Buddhist prayer chants (‘Om Mani Padme Hum’) written on them. Now I don’t want to get into all the meanings and interpretations of the mantra, but you basically recite it as a means to obtain enlightenment and peace and this mantra is written in every nook and corner of a monastery. So after taking a couple of shots around the monastery, I decide to head back to the group’s hotel. It was a lovely evening, with fresh golden light spread across the sky, and I was really hoping to get a couple of portrait shots of monks!

And ho, I was in luck! The Tibetan monks school had just dispersed, and I could see a bunch of little monks just running around like highly energized protons (so much for positivity ;))

I could contain my excitement no longer, and rushed towards them. A little shy at first they were probably wondering why was an Indian girl with a camera suddenly amongst them and smiling foolishly at any monk who she made contact with.  All it took was a few jokes and some funny comic sounds to break the ice! And boy, was it the best evening I’d spent yet. The half an hour I spent with the little monks, was by far the most refreshing time I’ve spent with any humans.

Laughs and giggles

They were constantly playing pranks on each other, trying to run around tricking me, laughing at every other joke…it was just so easy to exist in that lively space. I was astonished to see their childlike curiosity at play, untouched and unhurt by what I thought of religion and its preachers.

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We were soon joined by some of the senior monks, and they had an even more amusing sense of humor. Without any barriers of age, gender or creed we laughed and talked about for what felt like an eternity, almost in a state of deep play.

A yawning monk as he recites his daily chants

In an instant I could completely understand the meaning of an excerpt from a blog that I had read ages ago, only to be able to relate now. You can read the wonderful piece of writing here.

“When one enters the realm of deep play, the sacred playground where only the present moment matters, one’s history and future vanish. One doesn’t remember one’s past, needs, expectations, worries, real or imaginary sins. The deep-play world is fresh, wholly absorbing, and full of its own unique wisdom and demands. Being able to temporarily step outside of normal life—while keeping one’s senses alert — is indeed like being reborn. To erase all memories and yearnings — to be vigorously alive without self-awareness — can provide a brief return to innocence.” Read more from the blog here.

And with that new found wisdom, I hope to mold each of my days with a little more innocence and a little less judgment.

Until next time!

Nirmika Athalye is the Content Creator for the 2019 Trans-Himalaya tour. She will be documenting the tour in photos, blogs, videos, and social media posts. Follow along with the cyclists here on our blog or through Instagram where she is posting daily using the hashtag #tdatranshimalaya. 

“That is at the bottom the only courage that is demanded of us: to have the courage for the most strange, the most singular and the most inexplicable that we may encounter.” – Rainer Maria Rilke

The small hotel here in Leh, Ladakh has been overrun by a group of tourists, many of them senior citizens, from different parts of the globe. There may seem to be nothing particularly different about them from any of the many other travellers in this part of the world. However, if you happen to start a conversation with any of them, you will find that they are here to do something very unusual, something that no other group, certainly not in their age bracket, has undertaken. They have gathered for the start of a bicycle tour that will take almost 2 months to complete. Starting here in Leh, the participants will cycle through spectacular valleys and up over passes at 5,000 metres, stopping for rest days in some of the areas most famous locales before eventually ending in Kathmandu, Nepal.

View of Leh

Leh, the capital of Ladakh, is described by the Rough Guides as one of Asia’s most scenic towns. Ladakh – ‘the land of high passes’ is the area through which the group, including myself, will be cycling. The area is often described as ‘Little Tibet’ or ‘the last Shangri-la’ and “is mainland India’s most remote and sparsely populated region. A high- altitude desert cradled by the Karakoram and great Himalaya ranges and crisscrossed by myriad razor-sharp peaks and ridges”, it is in Ladakh where the riders will face the high and lows, not only of the terrain but of their own struggles and desires. It is here where they will often ask themselves why are they here, what are they searching for and what, if any, meaning there is to their own life experience.

The Great Drigung Kagyud Lotus Stupa, Lumbini, Nepal

One of the places where the tour will enjoy a rest day after cycling through Ladakh, is Lumbini, the birth place of the one called Sakyamuni, better known as Buddha. According to the book The Snow Leopard’ by Peter Mathieson, it was in Lumbini that ‘he forsake (the comforts of palace life) to go in search of the secret of existence that would free men from the pain of the sensory world, known as samsara”.

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It is one of those funny things in life, totally unplanned, that the hotel in which we have gathered is called La Buddha. I say unplanned because the tour was to start in Srinagar (in Kashmir) and our first rest day was suppose to have been in Leh but in a different hotel. Unfortunately modern leaders are not in search of the secret of existence but are preoccupied with political ambitions not realizing or caring for the impermanence of ambitions and the futility of their actions. They are enslaved by desires and at least according to Buddha’s teachings they are not free men or perhaps men of free will.

Shanti Stupa

Thus we find ourselves here in La-Buddha, accepting the energy flow of the universe.  Preparing for a journey that although will be done more or less together, we allow each and every one of us to be, quoting Mathieson again, “seeking our own Holy Grail what Zen Buddhists call our own ‘true nature’; each man is his own saviour after all”. Meanwhile we wander around this wonderful town. There are plenty of great restaurants to fill our hungry palates, we can visit the 16th century palace which is “lording over the old town from the top of granite ridge”, or visit the Chamba Temple. Riders can help acclimatize to the altitude by climbing the many stairs of the Shanti Stupa, inaugurated in 1985 by his highness the Dalai Lama. Some of us linger by the ever present prayer wheels – “spinning out the invocations that call the universe to attention: OM!” (Peter Mathieson, p55, ‘The Snow Leopard’)

Soon enough we will be spinning our own wheels. And being in the land of Lamas (Buddhist teachers or gurus) what better way is there to conclude this rumination than to quote Lama Anagarika Govinda (1898 – 1985) from ‘The Way of the White Clouds’ – “Just as the summer cloud, in harmony with heaven and earth floats in the blue sky from horizon to horizon following the breath of the atmosphere – in the same way the pilgrim abandons himself to the breath of the greater life … that leads him beyond the farthest horizons to aim which is already present within him, though yet hidden from sight”.

“O dear Himalaya … why are you so amazing. Can I kiss your peak or can your silence speak.. O dear Himalaya...” Santosh Kalwar

A travel newsletter in my inbox recently revealed the ‘Greatest Show on Earth’ – the 2000 km stretch of mountains and valleys in the Himalaya Range. The only problem, they say, is where to begin your visit.

I have a suggestion. Begin in Srinagar, nestled in Indian Kashmir, where our inaugural Trans Himalaya cycling expedition begins. Why Srinagar, you ask? Well, everybody knows that when you travel to the Himalayas you will obviously see stunning landscapes but what few people realize is the variety of spiritual cultures they will be exposed to. Srinagar’s name originates from Sanskrit and means ‘City of the Sun’.  It has also been called  the ‘City of Wealth’ and, in modern times, the ‘Venice of the East’. As a largely Muslim city, it is a great place to begin our spiritual adventure.

After a few days later of cycling, you will be in the Ladakh (Land of High Passes) region of the Himalayas. The people there are closely tied to Tibet and practice Tibetan Buddhism. That, of course, is the reason the Dalai Lama has spent the last two summers in the area. A tired cyclist can check into one of the many monasteries for a few hours or days of meditation and Buddhist teaching.

Another week or so and you will find yourself in the Kulu Valley, otherwise known as Valley of the Gods. On the rest day in Manali, spiritual seekers can visit the Hindu Manu Temple, honouring the ancient sage Manu, who is said to be the creator of the world and the writer of Manusmriti.

After this short taste of Hinduism, your visit in the region brings you back to Buddhism and its monasteries but not for long. Soon we arrive in Rishikesh, known as the Yoga Capital of the world. Just about every hotel offers classes. Whether you practice yoga for its physical benefits or for its spiritual rewards, one thing is for sure, Rishikesh is not a place to get a beer or a burger, unless you are a seeking the perfect vegetarian burger.

If  you are wishing to learn something about Sikhism you will need to take a day or two off and head to a venerated Sikh shrine at Hemkund, a high-altitude lake on the periphery of the Valley of Flowers. Legend says that it was here that a Sikh guru did penance and had a divine vision. Who knows, perhaps a cyclist or two could have a divine vision as well?

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Next up is Lumbini in Nepal, the reputed birthplace of Lord Buddha and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You will have a plethora of ancient and modern monasteries to choose from for your meditative time and teachings.

Perhaps the most interesting spiritual journey is to be found in our final destination of Kathmandu where one can observe the blending of Hinduism and Buddhism.  Often Hindu and Buddhist Temples are situated side by side, having coexisted peacefully for generations. If there is one thing we all should be seeking is to find a way to co-exist on this unique planet. As such, is there a better place to end the ‘Greatest Show on Earth’ and the Trans-Himalaya Cycling Expedition?

After the success of our first video internship with Turkish videographer Esen Küçüktütüncü we have two new recruits ready to film in 2019.

Esen filmed hundreds of hours of footage during her three months on the West Africa en Vélo cycling expedition and is currently busy editing a video series based on that experience. We hope to share the final result with you in the coming months.

In the meantime, please meet Nirmika Athalye from Pune, India and Laundon Peacock from Perth, Australia.

Nirmika will be filming the Hippie Trail in February and March and then returning later in the year to film our first ever Trans-Himalaya tour.

Laundon will be spending four months accompanying the Tour d’Afrique participants as they head south on our iconic tour of Africa. Watch for his videos and photos as they appear on Instagram and Facebook in the coming months  (follow along using #tourdafrique).

We hope that these talented young videographers can bring more and more of our tours to life through the videos they produce.

We’ve been known to talk about the off the beaten track places our tours take our cycling clients. Here at TDA, we aren’t shy to explore the world in some of the planet’s less popular areas. There is, however, a reason why some destinations draw so many people. The world is full of incredible sites and monuments – both natural, and man-made – that are justifiably famous. Our 2019 cycling adventures can bring you right to their doorstep.

>>See all our 2019 tour options

1. Tour d’Afrique – The Great Pyramids of Giza

2. Hippie Trail – The Taj Mahal

3. The Odyssey – The Acropolis

4. Madagascar – Avenue of the Baobabs

5. Orient Express – The Mighty Danube River

6. North American Epic – The Grand Canyon

7. Orient Express – The Blue Mosque

8. Bamboo Road – Angkor Wat

9. Trans-Himalaya – Mighty Mountain Ranges

10. Viva Italia – The Colosseum

The second section of the 2019 Trans-Himalaya Cycling Expedition runs from Manali to Rishikesh and is aptly named – Heavenly Hill Stations. Our route will take us through 3 of India’s most beautiful colonial hill stations. They were established as high-altitude towns to be used as a place of refuge to escape the blistering summer heat and dust of plains during the British Raj and were designed to, as much as possible, replicate the climactic conditions back in the British Isles. However, after the 1857 Mutiny, these towns also served as vital centres of political and military power.

Manali

The small town of Manali is situated in the Kullu Valley, often referred to as the ‘Valley of the Gods’. The story of its founding goes like this – One day Vaivasvata, the seventh incarnation of Manu found a tiny fish in his bathing water. The fish told him to look after him with devotion for one day it would do him a great service. Vaivasvatatava cared for the fish till the day it grew so huge that he released it into the sea. Before departing the fish warned Manu of an impending deluge when the entire world would be submerged and bade him to build a sea-worthy ark. When the flood came, Vaivasvata and the Seven Sages were towed to safety by Matsya the fish – which is regarded as the first avatar of Lord Vishnu. As the waters subsided, Manu’s ark came to rest on a hillside and the place was named Manali.

Its location marks the beginning of an ancient trade route to Ladakh and from there over the Karakoram Pass on to Yarkand and Khotan. The British made it into one of their hill stations in the 1800’s. During their rule, they introduced apple trees to the area and to this day, the fruit remains the best source of income for the majority of the locals, although tourism is growing quickly. The Brits also introduced rainbow and brown trout into the nearby lakes and streams.

Today, the town is a popular adventure destination with trekking, paragliding and whitewater rafting all available. A pleasant 2km walk out of Manali will take one to the sacred Hadimba Temple (1553) where pilgrims come to honour Hadimba, the demon wife of the Pandava Bhima from the Sanskrit epic, the Mahabharata.  Nearby Gatothkach, the warrior son of the Pandava Bhima and his demon wife Hadimba, is worshipped in the form of a sacred tree. Old Manali is worth exploring with its ancient stone and wood houses and is the location of the Manu Maharish Temple, the alleged site where Manu’s ark came to rest after the great flood. The Manali Gompa is world famous for its large statue of Buddha and sublime wall paintings. Finally, one can relax at the Vashist Hot Water Springs and Temple, dedicated to the local patron saint, which is 3km from Manali, across the Beas river.

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Shimla

Shimla, the capital of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, is named after a Hindu goddess, Shyamala Devi, an incarnation of Kali. Attracted by the dense forest of pine, deodar, oak and rhododendron and its cool climate (it stands at 2200m) the British took control of the area in 1815. Prior to that there was only a temple and a few scattered houses. As more and more British officers and bureaucrats decided to spend their summers in the area, it became famous for balls, parties and other festivities. Rudyard Kipling wrote that it had a reputation for “frivolity, gossip and intrigue”. In fact, the writer used the town as the setting for his books, Kim & Plain Tales From The Hills. In 1864, Shimla was officially made the ‘summer capital’ of British India.

The railway route from Kalka to Shimla was completed in 1903 and, with more than 806 bridges and 103 tunnels, was touted as an engineering feat, known as the “British Jewel of the Orient”. In 2008 the line became a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is definitely worth a ride. It has a ruling gradient of three percent and 917 curves, the sharpest of which is 48 degrees. One interesting story is that during its construction, British Colonel Barog miscalculated tunnel construction and the ends failed to meet in the middle. Humiliated, he shot his dog, then himself and is buried at the entrance to his mistake. A new tunnel was successfully completed with the help of a local ascetic Bhalku who used a long and solid wooden staff to hit the ground and divine the correct alignment! He also helped with the alignment of several other tunnels on the line and was eventually awarded a medal and turban by the British Viceroy.

The town is home to a number of buildings in the Mock Tudor and Neo-Gothic styles of architecture dating from the colonial era, as well as multiple temples and churches. The centre of Shimla is the Mall, which meanders along the mountain ridge for 7kms. There is no traffic and a walk along its length will allow one to take in sights like the Viceregal Lodge (LP describes it as “a cross between Harry Potter’s Hogwarts and a Scottish baronial castle’), the Town Hall and the Neo-Gothic Gorton Castle. At the east end one can make the strenuous 30 minute hike up to Jakhu Temple for some incredible views of the snow-capped Himalaya. The temple itself is dedicated to the Monkey God, Hanuman. Appropriately there are hundred of monkeys in the area as well as a 33m statue of Hanuman, in pink, no less.

Mussoorie

Known as the ‘Queen of the Hills’ for its spectacular views of snow-covered Himalayan peaks as well as over the Doon valley, Mussoorie was established by the British in 1823 after Lt. Frederick Young of the East India Company, who came to the are to shoot game, decided to build a hunting lodge there. Its name appears to be a derivation of ‘mansoor’, a shrub which is indigenous to the area. Mussoorie was the intended terminus of the Great Trigonometric Survey of India in 1832 that began at the southern tip of India. It was also known for spirits. In 1832, Sir Henry Bohle started ‘The Olde Brewery’ on the outskirts of town. However, he argued with the aforementioned Lt. Young about licensing and in 1834 the facility was shut down. It was reopened in 1850 when Sir John McKinnon, the brother-in-law of Sir Henry Bohle, restarted the brewery, being the first in British India. It is said that the famous Indian poet, Mirza Ghalib, was a big fan. Shipping the big barrels of beer to their destinations on carts gave name to the town’s Cart MacKenzie Road which still exists today.

Under British rule, Mussoorie, in 1827, became a convalescent centre for soldiers. It was also the temporary home to the last Maharaja of Punjab, the child King, Maharaja Duleep Singh, son of the great Maharaja Ranjeet Singh. After the two Anglo-Sikh wars, the Punjab was ready for annexation by the British and Duleep Singh was forced to sign away his kingdom and wealth, including the famous Koh-i-noor diamond, to the Governor General of India, Lord Dalhousie. Before he left for England, the Maharaja was kept at the Castle Hill Estate near Landour Bazaar in Mussoorie. His days there came to an end on April 19, 1854 when he was deported to England where he lived in exile for the rest of his life. During the 1959 Tibetan Rebellion, the Central Tibetan Administration of the 14th Dalai Lama was at first established in Mussoorie while the first Tibetan school was established in Mussoorie in 1960. Today, some 5,000 Tibetans live in Mussoorie.

Considered by many to be the honeymoon capital of India, one can enjoy a 3km walk along Camel’s Back Road from Kulri Bazaar to Gandhi Chowk, passing a rocky outcrop in the shape of a camel’s hump. Gun Hill is a wonderful place to look out over the Indian plains and can be reached by cable car from the Mall Road. There is also the opportunity to visit the remains of the building and laboratory of Sir George Everest, the Surveyor-General of India from 1830 to 1843. Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak is named for him. The renown Landour Language School offers classes in Hindi, Urdu, Sanskrit and the local dialect of Garhwali.

There are seven continents – and we cycle on six of them – but there is only one Himalaya mountain range and there we do not cycle. It was five years ago that Depi Chaudry, one of several people who have been of great help with our Indian cycling tours, suggested a new cycling trip – the Trans-Himalaya from Kashmir to Kathmandu. If you are like me and you haven’t been to Kashmir or Nepal, then your reaction would be ‘Wow, what a great fit for TDA’. But as we all know, ideas take time to be implemented –
even good ones.

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So five years later, I found myself landing in Leh. Located in the Ladakh region of India’s Jammu and Kashmir State at an elevation of 3,256 m, it is one of the highest commercial airports in the world. “Due to its location in between the mountain ranges of the Himalayas the approach to Leh Airport has been named and nominated as one of the world’s most scenic airports to land into and take off from” says Oscar Boyd in his book, Highest Airports in the World. I was there to go over the route that Depi has suggested as the most exciting cycling route from Kashmir to Kathmandu.

From the beginning of the airplane’s descent and for the first few hours on the ground I experienced two things that would return over and over again while scouting the route – spectacular scenery and being out of breath. While the scenery certainly was stunning, it was the 5,000m passes that really  took my breathe away, literally!  Incredibly, that was while I was simply a passenger in a car – it will be great fun when I will be making my way up those passes on a bike. Perhaps I should be starting my training and sleeping in an oxygen deprivation tent as soon as possible?

Why, then, would one even attempt such a tour? To borrow a quote from legendary climber George Mallory – ‘Because it is there’. As I mentioned previously, there is only one Himalaya. Whereas Aconcagua, the highest peak in the Andes and the highest peak outside of the Himalayas, reaches 6,962 meters, unbelievably there are 14 mountains all over 8,000m in the Himalayas range and well over 50 that are over 7,000m.

The awe inspiring scenery and the physical and mental challenges are definitely reasons to cycle the Trans-Himalaya but, wait, there is more. This tour will allow you to experience a unique part of the world and its amalgam of cultures; Muslim, Buddhist & Hindu. The tour begins in Srinagar which has been called the Venice of the East and then proceeds through Buddhist Ladakh, where Dalai Lama has his summer residence.

Riders are then transported from arid Ladakh into verdant, green Manali, a high attitude resort town in Himachal Pradesh. The route returns to some more Tibetan culture in the rugged Spiti valley before stopping in Shimla, one of India most popular hill resorts. Then the path descends to the world yoga capital – Rishikesh. After adjusting our chakras, the riders head for the world famous Corbett Tiger Reserve, perhaps catching a glimpse of India’s national animal, the tiger.

From there we climb back into the mountains for more stunning scenery on the way to Nepal and the renowned Bardia National Park. The cyclists then head to Lumbini where, according to Buddhist tradition, Queen Mayadevi gave birth to Siddhartha Gautama, better known as Buddha, in 563 BCE. From Lumbini we head to Pokhara, a major tourist destination, where, among other things, I managed to paraglide high over Lake Phewa, trying to catch a glimpse of Annapurna, the 10th tallest mountain on Earth.

Five more days of great cycling, including a stay in the wonderful ancient town of Bandipur, complete with stunning glimpses of the snow-covered Himalayan peaks, and the inaugural Trans-Himalaya cycling expedition will come to a close in legendary Kathmandu.

So why should you take part in this expedition? Well, it has all the ethos of previous TDA tours; exploration, challenge, and personal accomplishment within a wonderful community of likeminded people. And, of course, because it is there!

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