Bike tours in India

[AllanB]

I hope to have gathered a few bob together this summer and would like to do a trip to India, preferably in the Himalayas. I am not getting any younger, think I am currently just about fit enough to do something like this and would like to do it before I hit the downhill stretch in a few years time.

Has anyone done one of these trips?

Or there is the other way.

Not quite as old as this guy.

Years ago when I was very fit, I missed out on base camp Everest, now it is not an option, but this is.

[ll2]

Yep been there done that but single bike with my gf.

You don't need any of those tours actually. But possibly for your age, it should be fine to join one of these.

Roads are pretty bad and dangerous. Sometime no lanes and you need to expect which lane the buses wants to take! And Himalayan cliffs is not somewhere you want to play!

Food might be problem as well as hygiene.

Still best trip I have done in my life was my India trip.

You need to choose at least Enfield 500 as at higher altitudes 350 Enfield stuck at times especially if you are two up with luggage.

Alternatively, you can get a bajaj pulsar or any indian bike with efi and 180 cc up.

I know guys done this trip on 100 cc Indian bikes too but painfully and alone.

And don't miss Rajasthan, Goa, Kerala and Kanyakumari to watch sunset and sunrise from the same point! East coast is also nice such as Pondicherry. plus don't miss Nepal.

Also India is not dangerous, hotels are cheap and everywhere.

I was riding from morning to sunset and getting the first hotel on the road sometimes slept in parks and pavement with Babas! - customary in India!

You can ride during dark but after sunset, it is truck and lorry times so you need to ride with lorries at full high beam all the time!

And don't forget the ear plugs. You will see vehicles constantly going with the horn. They have a switch to keep the horn on all the time with different melodies!

Allan, go for it. You will never regret! It is really something real.

I traveled for one and a half hears there and Nepal and these are places where I felt the most freedom in my life, much more than Thailand!

[AllanB]

Thanks for that 112, if I were younger...... well my plan is for a month at the most in the Indian Himalayas. Not sure if the Mrs would like to comes along, we do most things together, but she scares easy and two up on those mountain tracks may end in tears, or worse. So unless I can interest a mate of mine, the official tour may be best.

[Dutchbike]

Although I have no experience with riding a motorcycle in the Himalayas, i just want to say to the OP: Go for it when you have the chance!!

I made several trips to Nepal ( trekking) and those were the best trips in my life, to me the Himalaya is the most beautiful erea in the world.

The memories stay with you for the rest of your life.

[moe666]

I'll be 69 in November and riding all over Thailand for me is great fun, go for your trip Allan or you will live to regret it. In 1996 a friend was on his way to Indian I asked if I could tag along because I knew if I didn't go now I would never go. I have made 3 trips to India and that's enough for me but I say go for your tour.

[aussiebrian]

Go for it!! I too have done many trips around India, and loved it. I have always done them myself. If you feel better on a tour, well go for that, at least go.

I travelled to Nepal back in 1986 2 up from Calcutta to Kathmandu and Pokara on a 350 Bullet, amazing views along the way.

My longest trip was on a 500 Bullet I bought at Lalli Singh's http://lallisingh.com/home.htm and was away 5 months covering 15000 Km. The most amazing time I could have with my pants on. This trip I headed south with some guys I met from Belgium that had hired bikes from Lalli too. We travelled down along the back roads through Rajasthan to Bombay.

I left all but one of my new friends in Bombay, then 2 of us travelled to Goa together.

He too had to go home, so the rest of my trip was just by myself.

In India you can never get lonely. I went down as far south to Humpi, (Not to be missed) and Om Beach, then Poona, across to Calcutta, and back to Delhi. Had a few problems with the bike, but it was an old one, but you can usually find someone that can fix it.

I have attached a few pictures to wet your appetite.

[kbirkins]

Allan-

I sent you a PM

Kelly

[AllanB]

Well that looks pretty conclusive, thanks for all the great advice, having researched and given my workload, this summer is out, so next summer instead, since the summertime is the only option for the Himalayas. June to October, I understand.

That does give me time to plan, get a little fitter and improve my riding skills, in fact I may swap my NV400 for an Enduro of some kind and get some off road practice in this winter.

I may go with another rider or two, but not too many and it is important to get to know a new fellow rider. I did an arctic expedition, 8 guys in 4 Landrovers some while back, didn't check out one guy and he screwed the whole trip up for everyone. We split up and I ended up going off on my own, which turned out to be the best part of the trip.

Edited June 14, 2014 by AllanB

[yankee99]

Looks like fun ... Should be on everyone's bucket list!

BTW that guy looks great for his age.

[AllanB]

I am quite convinced this trip is for me....I just have to make sure my body is up for it, I see that old ladies have done it, but some of these old dears are tough. I plan on buying an Enduro to practice on soft surfaces, as the tarmac parts are quite straightforward.

I really want to do some filming of the trip, videoing, whatever you call it and wondered if anyone had any experience of this. My budget is tight, so I have found a cheap camera and I will buy a couple to practice, the MD80 looks okay for this, but could do with something small and lightweight to use as an on-board monitor.

This camera takes a MicroSD card and wondered if there was a smartphone, or similar that I could hook up as a monitor, the camera can double up as a webcam, so there must be something. There is also the question of storage, though the cards themselves are very cheap and of course extremely lightweight. The camera can take a 16gb card, a few quid a piece.

I could look at another forum for this, but it is very much bike specific in terms of setting up and use, anyway any advice would be appreciated.

Edited June 19, 2014 by AllanB

[ll2]

I am quite convinced this trip is for me....I just have to make sure my body is up for it, I see that old ladies have done it, but some of these old dears are tough. I plan on buying an Enduro to practice on soft surfaces, as the tarmac parts are quite straightforward.

I really want to do some filming of the trip, videoing, whatever you call it and wondered if anyone had any experience of this. My budget is tight, so I have found a cheap camera and I will buy a couple to practice, the MD80 looks okay for this, but could do with something small and lightweight to use as an on-board monitor.

This camera takes a MicroSD card and wondered if there was a smartphone, or similar that I could hook up as a monitor, the camera can double up as a webcam, so there must be something. There is also the question of storage, though the cards themselves are very cheap and of course extremely lightweight. The camera can take a 16gb card, a few quid a piece.

I could look at another forum for this, but it is very much bike specific in terms of setting up and use, anyway any advice would be appreciated.

It is not that hard to that route. Lots of breaks and nice places to stop and see on the route for taking a break.

Plenty of hotels on the roads if you feel tired that day too.

i use a sony action cam hdr as30 and you can hook i up with any smart phone with android or i phone via Bluetooth and can use your phone screen as a view finder and transfer your videos right away to your phone.

It comes with its protector.

It also has gps which records your way and speed and show it nicely. It is very compact and aerodynamic too and video quality is very good.

you can buy one in Thailand for around 10 k thb.

If you want to go more professional, go for hdr as 100 which is the newer and better model.

check:

http://store.sony.com/compact-pov-action-cam-zid27-HDRAS30V/B/cat-27-catid-All-Action-Cam

[AllanB]

I am quite convinced this trip is for me....I just have to make sure my body is up for it, I see that old ladies have done it, but some of these old dears are tough. I plan on buying an Enduro to practice on soft surfaces, as the tarmac parts are quite straightforward.

I really want to do some filming of the trip, videoing, whatever you call it and wondered if anyone had any experience of this. My budget is tight, so I have found a cheap camera and I will buy a couple to practice, the MD80 looks okay for this, but could do with something small and lightweight to use as an on-board monitor.

This camera takes a MicroSD card and wondered if there was a smartphone, or similar that I could hook up as a monitor, the camera can double up as a webcam, so there must be something. There is also the question of storage, though the cards themselves are very cheap and of course extremely lightweight. The camera can take a 16gb card, a few quid a piece.

I could look at another forum for this, but it is very much bike specific in terms of setting up and use, anyway any advice would be appreciated.

It is not that hard to that route. Lots of breaks and nice places to stop and see on the route for taking a break.

Plenty of hotels on the roads if you feel tired that day too.

i use a sony action cam hdr as30 and you can hook i up with any smart phone with android or i phone via Bluetooth and can use your phone screen as a view finder and transfer your videos right away to your phone.

It comes with its protector.

It also has gps which records your way and speed and show it nicely. It is very compact and aerodynamic too and video quality is very good.

you can buy one in Thailand for around 10 k thb.

If you want to go more professional, go for hdr as 100 which is the newer and better model.

check:

http://store.sony.com/compact-pov-action-cam-zid27-HDRAS30V/B/cat-27-catid-All-Action-Cam

Thanks for that, what about the altitude issue, is oxygen necessary/available? You make it sound as though there is only one route, is that so?

That camera looks extremely good, a little cheaper in the UK, with a real warranty thanks to the DPA.

Just seen a couple of Youtube comparisons between the Sony and GoPro and the Sony wins hands down in all respects except for underwater use. Plus the Sony is 25% cheaper and likely to be more reliable.

Useful info thanks.

[ll2]

I am quite convinced this trip is for me....I just have to make sure my body is up for it, I see that old ladies have done it, but some of these old dears are tough. I plan on buying an Enduro to practice on soft surfaces, as the tarmac parts are quite straightforward.

I really want to do some filming of the trip, videoing, whatever you call it and wondered if anyone had any experience of this. My budget is tight, so I have found a cheap camera and I will buy a couple to practice, the MD80 looks okay for this, but could do with something small and lightweight to use as an on-board monitor.

This camera takes a MicroSD card and wondered if there was a smartphone, or similar that I could hook up as a monitor, the camera can double up as a webcam, so there must be something. There is also the question of storage, though the cards themselves are very cheap and of course extremely lightweight. The camera can take a 16gb card, a few quid a piece.

I could look at another forum for this, but it is very much bike specific in terms of setting up and use, anyway any advice would be appreciated.

It is not that hard to that route. Lots of breaks and nice places to stop and see on the route for taking a break.

Plenty of hotels on the roads if you feel tired that day too.

i use a sony action cam hdr as30 and you can hook i up with any smart phone with android or i phone via Bluetooth and can use your phone screen as a view finder and transfer your videos right away to your phone.

It comes with its protector.

It also has gps which records your way and speed and show it nicely. It is very compact and aerodynamic too and video quality is very good.

you can buy one in Thailand for around 10 k thb.

If you want to go more professional, go for hdr as 100 which is the newer and better model.

check:

http://store.sony.com/compact-pov-action-cam-zid27-HDRAS30V/B/cat-27-catid-All-Action-Cam

Thanks for that, what about the altitude issue, is oxygen necessary/available? You make it sound as though there is only one route, is that so?

That camera looks extremely good, a little cheaper in the UK, with a real warranty thanks to the DPA.

Just seen a couple of Youtube comparisons between the Sony and GoPro and the Sony wins hands down in all respects except for underwater use. Plus the Sony is 25% cheaper and likely to be more reliable.

Useful info thanks.

to go Leh valley, there are two major routes from Delhi.

either via Srinagar which is easier but will take a looong time or via Manali which is shorter but more painful.

you do not need oxygen mask if you do not have any respiratory sickness but you have to take enough breaks - i mean real breaks not a 30 minute masala chai break - to get away from altitude sickness as you will be going through one of the highest road available on Earth altitudes around 4000 km. I had no difficulties as my home country is mountainous and i took breaks. I also did Anapurna Mountain Circuit - trekking for around 20 days - at Nepal before too with again close to 5000 - 6000 meter passes but that was painful as i got altitude sickness but recovered very fast fortunately.

And Tanglang La pass on Manali - Leh Road is around 5500 meters and lots of horror stories there. If you dont take enough breaks on the road before, you might get altitude sickness and need to rest at that nasty pass.

Then Leh to Kargil.

Best is Delhi - Manali - Keylong - Leh - Kargil - Srinagar - Amritsar - Delhi (can pass Amritsar and can go directly to Delhi but Amritsar is nice with its Golden Temple)

there are many other routes to do around North India. Dont pass Rajasthan state like Jaipur, Pushkar, Udaipur etc and Haridwar - Rishikesh - Dehradun route. you have to visit Varanasi and Agra(Taj Mahal) as well.

These are all Northern routes. Many nice routes available down South too! India is huge!

And with this thread of yours, you are arousing me. want to leave everything and go there again!

Edited June 19, 2014 by ll2

[AllanB]

Getting back to the subject of cameras for the trip, I am still in the UK at present looking for a camera to buy ( I get a real warranty here) and try out in Thailand and on the dress rehearsal trip to Laos later this year.

I have been doing a lot of internet searching in an attempt to find the right camera and found a Youtube guy called "Techmoan" who is independent and above all concise, as I detest guys who spend half their time talking about themselves.

This review of the Contour is quite good as is the camera

With bumpy roads expected it would seem better to use a helmet mounted cam, as opposed to bike mounted and as the man says that rules out bulky models like the Gopro, which everyone raves on about.

The other option is this little Mobius, which is cheap, (so buy two) but remarkable good.

Does anyone know about these or other helmet cameras?

[darkian]

Some great advice in this thread, nice to see.

Riding a motorbike in India is a fantastic idea - I rode in India and Nepal this year, and intend to go back several more times. My own trip went south from Delhi to Rajasthan, then back to Delhi (train from Jaisalmer), and then up north to Nepal, through Nepal to the other side (after a detour up in the mountains, past Jomsom), and then a 34 hour train ride from Siliguri back to Delhi. Leh Ladakh would be fantastic if you feel up to the altitude, but the time of year is important. I was over in the Himalayas in April and the weather was not right - you need to go around August/September in order to get to Leh. 'II2' sounds like the person to ask about the specifics of that trip - I'm happy to answer any questions about Nepal.

My advice would be to buy or rent a Royal Enfield Bullet, 350 or 500, either is fine. They're great bikes and very dependable.

As for cameras, I had a GoPro Hero 3, but have barely even looked at the footage. Head/body/bike cam footage can get pretty boring after about 2 minutes. My advice would be to have different mounting points on the bike for different angles. I know friends who've used Contours, and I know there are tons of cheap copies, but I guess you get what you pay for. The GoPro was largely very dependable. Take spare batteries and a mains charger, plus spare memory cards. Also if you have a separate digital cam, it would be fun to shoot some other things and then edit together a short (3 min) video of your trip. But headcam-only edits are, in my opinion, a little tedious to watch.

Generally we stayed in hostels, hotels or camped. Camping was amazing, but word of warning, don't camp in a safari enclosure which contains tigers and rhinos, because being woken up in the night by an angry male rhino about 30 meters away is possibly one of the scariest things that'll ever happen to you...

Some photos to whet your appetite...

[ll2]

Getting back to the subject of cameras for the trip, I am still in the UK at present looking for a camera to buy ( I get a real warranty here) and try out in Thailand and on the dress rehearsal trip to Laos later this year.

I have been doing a lot of internet searching in an attempt to find the right camera and found a Youtube guy called "Techmoan" who is independent and above all concise, as I detest guys who spend half their time talking about themselves.

This review of the Contour is quite good as is the camera

With bumpy roads expected it would seem better to use a helmet mounted cam, as opposed to bike mounted and as the man says that rules out bulky models like the Gopro, which everyone raves on about.

The other option is this little Mobius, which is cheap, (so buy two) but remarkable good.

Does anyone know about these or other helmet cameras?

dont go for the cheap ones Allan.

you buy an action camera every 5 years and these do not look sturdy or they will not be offering the most updated tech found at Sony and Go Pro cameras.

you know, if camera will get any problems in your Laos ride, there will be nowhere to fix it.

[AllanB]

Some great advice from Darkian and now I think 2 or 3 little Modius cameras is my best option and I will tell you why. In my opinion an interesting film is more important than the extra the 1% picture quality offered by a £300 camera. By mounting cameras in vulnerable positions one can create a lot more incitement and as you mentioned lot of mounts is the way to go too.

I had some dealings with a TV company in the UK, where two guys bought our little ATV's and the footage they shot was fantastic using cameras mounted on the rear forks pointing at the wheel and outriggers close to the ground.

Having a number of cheaper cameras gets round the problems of reliability too and of course security, as I guess the Gopro and Sony cameras are a magnet for thieves..

Super pictures mate....I can't wait.

[ll2]

Some great advice in this thread, nice to see.

Riding a motorbike in India is a fantastic idea - I rode in India and Nepal this year, and intend to go back several more times. My own trip went south from Delhi to Rajasthan, then back to Delhi (train from Jaisalmer), and then up north to Nepal, through Nepal to the other side (after a detour up in the mountains, past Jomsom), and then a 34 hour train ride from Siliguri back to Delhi. Leh Ladakh would be fantastic if you feel up to the altitude, but the time of year is important. I was over in the Himalayas in April and the weather was not right - you need to go around August/September in order to get to Leh. 'II2' sounds like the person to ask about the specifics of that trip - I'm happy to answer any questions about Nepal.

My advice would be to buy or rent a Royal Enfield Bullet, 350 or 500, either is fine. They're great bikes and very dependable.

As for cameras, I had a GoPro Hero 3, but have barely even looked at the footage. Head/body/bike cam footage can get pretty boring after about 2 minutes. My advice would be to have different mounting points on the bike for different angles. I know friends who've used Contours, and I know there are tons of cheap copies, but I guess you get what you pay for. The GoPro was largely very dependable. Take spare batteries and a mains charger, plus spare memory cards. Also if you have a separate digital cam, it would be fun to shoot some other things and then edit together a short (3 min) video of your trip. But headcam-only edits are, in my opinion, a little tedious to watch.

Generally we stayed in hostels, hotels or camped. Camping was amazing, but word of warning, don't camp in a safari enclosure which contains tigers and rhinos, because being woken up in the night by an angry male rhino about 30 meters away is possibly one of the scariest things that'll ever happen to you...

Some photos to whet your appetite...

cool photos darkian!

I will go back there again that is for sure.

I did some fair amount of Nepal riding as well.

Man, these are the best areas you can ride a motorcycle that i experienced in my life!

but one needs a lot of space and time in life to go for such adventure as these are not weekly rides.

i believe one needs a 6 months stay in India and Nepal to go over some of the best roads and areas on Earth.

[CTO]

great pics Darkien, thanks, envious of all you who have done this