“Why are you so curious?”, asked Jeet, with a hint of snideness layering his voice. “Not like you are coming along on this trip.”
“Why not I added?”, referring to their animated discussion of a Leh Ladakh bike trip.
“Girls do not do a Ladakh bike trip”, Abhishek added.
And just like that, this girl was doing a two week long bike trip to one of the most legendary bike routes within the country, Leh Ladakh.

We hired monstrous bikes from the city itself and left at the crack of dawn the next day after deciding on the routes, itineraries and doing some final checks.

I was adamant about not riding pillion in the beginning itself and managed to convince the boys to be one of the earlier riders. I had been reading bikes for nearly a decade by then which instilled within them, and me, confidence.

The cold desert, as it is often know, Leh Ladakh is a place unlike any other you will experience, not only in India but all over the world. Every biker in India dreams of traversing this stupefying and mystifying landscapes that has established itself as one of the most iconic bike rides in the country.

We started off from our base in Delhi, riding north towards the idyllic city of Srinagar, moving on to the historic Kargil before finally arriving at our first destination, Leh Ladakh.

Over the course of the next few days, we traversed the Ladakhi terrain, visiting the multi-hued lakes of Two Moriri and Pangong, the sand dunes of Sumur and Hundur hiding in the picturesque Nubra Valley as well as the historic monasteries that rivaled the natural allure that Ladakh had on offer.

What makes a Ladakh bike trip so acclaimed within the bikini community are the open roads that snake through the terrain, extending to infinity and beyond. It was hard to keep our eyes on the road considering all the beauty around us.

We made our way through the winding roads; engines roaring and riders howling. We rode during the pleasant days with the colossal snow-capped mountains of the Himalayas keeping us company throughout our journey.
We spent our nights chowing down on local delicacies and animatedly dissecting the events of the day. I would go to bed every night, tired to the bone but looking forward to waking up and doing it the next day all over again. Such was the vibe and energy of Leh Ladakh.

Two weeks roared by, moving faster than our Royal Enfields on the roads of Ladakh. The gang was already discussing the next adventure as we rode through the thriving green valleys of Manali on our way back to Delhi and this time they included me without even asking.