Bajaj Avenger FLG Ride To Leh Ladakh – The Dream Ride

Day 9: Sarchu to Manali. As we headed off to Manali, everyone was having a smile on their face. This riding patch was a known patch as we were about to ride back the same route and it included serious off-road until the Rohtang top. The whole group was split into three, the lead group consisting of 8 riders going tyre to tyre on the corners, the middle scattered pack having the best time with a final view of the mountains and the tail pack including the rest of the riders with the support crew having their own fun time. Post lunch, it was the Rohtang pass where we could see the top covered with cloud. As we reached the top, it which was completely covered by dense fog. It took almost 2 hours to reach our hotel from the Rohtang top as the dense fog and the traffic at the end of the twisties took our time. The support vehicle also made it to our hotel in Manali by 6 PM which was a decent amount of time considering all the delays on the way.

Staying away from mobile network with just nature to admire is a different feeling

Finally, as we reached Manali, everyone had their network back and literally everyone was glued to their mobiles. Sending updates to their families, updating posts on social media and what not. By the evening, everyone visited the Manali market which they could not on the previous ride day. A few guys got some shopping done. While a few enjoyed the spa and relaxed their hearts out. Late evening we had a meeting before dinner where everyone shared their thoughts about the people and the arrangements done for them. The management team was called GIO Adventures which was outsourced/arranged by the Bajaj team as they were experienced in taking such rides and adventures earlier.

Day 10: Manali to Chandigarh. The final stretch included a few ghats and a little off-road while exiting Manali. Although in the whole trip we were not hit by heavy rains but experienced misty weather and slight drizzle. This was the section where the last part of the ghats came in and we were hit by very heavy rains. The rains continued till we entered Punjab and everyone got soaking wet. By the end, everyone experienced everything – rain, fog, misty weather, off-road, high altitude, nala crossings, ghats, etc. This happened to be a complete trip giving all kinds of experience of every situation to every rider in the group. As we reached Chandigarh, new riders had learned a lot while experienced riders had improved their skills, all this while having an experience of their lifetime.

Day 11: Chandigarh to Delhi. However, I did not ride to Delhi. I had joined from Chandigarh and my flight back to Mumbai was from Chandigarh. The media bike, the Bajaj Avenger Cruise 220, was loaded back into the Tempo Traveller in the morning. From Manali to Leh and back I got a fuel efficiency of 31 km/l while the stretch from Chandigarh to Manali and back was very nice and did not have any oxygen issues and the bike returned about 40 km/l. While I completed almost 2000 kms in the last 9 days, my back had given up. The Avenger surely is a comfortable motorcycle but not for all. There were different Avengers whose seats were modified and as I had a word with the owners, they did complain about the stock seat not being really comfortable for longer journeys. By this time, the 6 riders had made it to Chandigarh via Srinagar and joined the convoy heading back to Delhi.

Now the main thing, at Rs. 9000/- could the ride be organised? The answer is no. Over here, Bajaj contributed a part of the payment per rider to the organizing team while the Bajaj Avenger owners could take the benefit of a great discount and enjoy the ride. For the whole ride, there was a single Bajaj representative, the backup mechanic Mr. Brijesh who was a supportive marshal rider too. A special mention to him as he led the ride from Delhi to Chandigarh and back while also stayed as a sweeper as well as the technical support for the whole ride. The organizing team also did a fabulous job and hats off to the support doctor, it was their job to be available and they did it without any complaints. This was my dream ride, although I had planned to do it on a different vehicle, it is now off my bucket list. I really enjoyed writing this article as I relived all the moments while penning down this experience.