A Glimpse of God’s Plan- Gayatri’s Bike Trip Review to Ladakh with Thrillophilia

“Ik onkar, satnam, karta purakh, nirbhau,
Nir vair, aakaal murat, ajooni se bhang,
Gur prasad. Jap.
Aad sach jugaad sach,
Hai bhi sach naanak hosi bhi sach.”

They could hear this Mool Mantra in the distance. The sound of the chant vibrated the cold air of Ladakh, resonating with the beauty all around.

Yes, nature is the truth. She is the teacher, she is the guru. She asks one to be fearless and hopeful, she also asks for humility and compassion.

The famous Gurudwara Pathar Sahib stood firm on the land of Phey, its elegance and calm reverberating in the surroundings. It was her first day in Leh, and visiting this gurudwara was a must. The serenity of the place, that too in a setting like Ladakh, where lofty mountains and stout peaks test one’s best endurance and limit, tingled her nerves. The aura of the place was so divine, that she stayed there for almost an hour.

Her legs were shaking while entering the gates of the gurdwara; she was stunned by this unexpected encounter.

So, this Ladakh trip was not her plan. She had merely done the booking, and her friends had initiated all the plans and arranged for the flight tickets. Their tour operator, Thrillophilia, took care of the rest of the arrangements.

Since they opted for a bike trip, their packing was a bit different. The heavy jackets and biking gears made the bag so heavy that it felt like it was ripping off her shoulders. But determined, she headed out with her friends for an adventure of a lifetime.

To wheels and wheelies
The collection of Himalayan bikes that were assigned to them gave off a splendid look, adding to the grandeur of the vast valleys. All the women of their batch could ride a bike, including her. They decided to take turns while riding so that none of them would get too tired, and since they were riding in doubles, this plan posed no issue.

That day they were to head out of Nubra. The butter-smooth snaking roads shot up their adrenaline rush, and they started to show off some skills. From wheelies, stoppies, and cliffhangers, they indulged in a brief gig of bike stunts. They had exhausted a lot of energy in this, which, later on, proved to be quite heavy on them.

They did not know that there would be such a long stretch of off-roading ahead of them that very day!

Nonetheless, they all reached their destination not exactly in the ‘pink’ of health, but rather a ‘yellow’ or a ‘purple’. Yes, they were super tired and had to skip the camel ride for the day.

But as she was travelling, she urged everyone to get up early and take the camel ride the next morning. Although most of them kept on sleeping, she and two or three of her friends went out and did the safari in the morning. After their return, they narrated the experience to their other batchmates, who in turn made a droopy face for having missed the last chance.

They headed off to Pangong that day, which proved to her one of the best rides she had taken in her entire life. The views were so scenic that she felt like never stopping the bike. But reality and practicality hit her when she felt a searing pain in her back a few hours later.

Nah… riding forever would not have been a good idea, she realised immediately.

To capturing moments

They clicked so many pictures in so many poses in Pangong. They also created formations and gimmicks to get that perfect photo with the backdrop of the great Pangong Tso!

They had their big Indian flag with them, which they thought of placing in the Chang Las Pass and in Khardungla Pass. And so they did.

Crossing these two passes has added some special feathers to her hat, and she thanked the moment her friends convinced her to come on this trip. Wahe Guru had his blessings on this trip.

Another important episode of this trip took place in Sangam- the confluence of the Zanskar and Indus rivers.

So, the last day of their tour was a leisurely day, and they all decided to do something fun. She did not expect the conversation to take a turn for adventure activities, however, she had to comply. Anyway, she thought, what can be the harm?

She wanted to take a lot of pictures of this ride, so she started to archive the moments from the very beginning. She could get some really good photos before the ride, but…

The post-ride condition of hers was quite poor.

Her body was shaking from the cold and she was entirely wet. The ride was very very scary, with turbulent rapids almost toppling and turning their boat. It was her very first experience of river rafting, although the others had done it before. The guide and the river rafting trainer expressed their concerns as well, saying that the force of the rapid was more than they expected…

She just thanked god for keeping her alive. That is why she gets so sceptical about adventure sports. But there was another thing that crossed her mind-

The amount of construction and tourism that plagues Ladakh, they are bound to affect the ecosystem of the place. And she believes,

Never mess with nature, she can wreak havoc.

Perhaps this ride was just a glimpse of the same.

While returning to their rooms that day, they again crossed the Gurudwara, and she did not fail to steal a long glance of the same again.

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh.

Read More: Thrillophilia Ladakh Bike Trip Reviews