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Extreme tour, from 3 weeks
approx. 2,500 km
text and photos: Joe Pichler |
Katmandu is the starting point of our trip to the roof of the world. Nepal’s traffic on the left side of the road as well as the ruthless driving of busses and trucks take time to get used to in the beginning. The lowest point of our trip is 650 meter. From here the tour continues on uphill. Separating the steep slopes of the Himalaya Mountains a small tarred road leads towards the north.
The rainfalls of the Monsoon took their toll on the Friendship Highway from Nepal towards Tibet; a road which is already continuously threatened by landslides. Time and again the overloaded trucks get stuck in the mud. The bad track is the only connection between Nepal and Tibet. At the border crossing Sony, our Tibetan guide, and our escort vehicles are already waiting for us. We ride through a thick, almost tropical, vegetation passing by large waterfalls and finally reach the barren and mountainous landscape of icy giants. We remove the induction pipes for the airbox to prepare our 950 Adventures for this high altitude.
In spite of this thoughtful preparation we already know that on an altitude of 5000 meters there will only be left a maximum of 50 PS of the usual 100 PS. However, this is still plenty of power to perform nice drifts and to speed with 150 km/h across the tracks. The view from the mountain crossing Tang La is breathtaking. A range of nameless mountains, all above six- and seven thousand meters, is only challenged by the Shisha Pangma Massif, which reaches 8022 m. By crossing the 5120 m high Tang La we left the Himalaya main mountain crossing behind and reach the Tibetan uplands.
At the banks of the Paiku Tso we decide to pitch up camp. As soon as the sun sets we don’t hesitate to climb into our sleeping bags. The night is clear and the temperature falls to 15 degree below zero. The Nomad’s tents with their herds of Yak are found everywhere in this landscape. Our KTM bikes are certainly a celebrated attraction. Wherever we take a break we are soon surrounded by a crowd of people. Main food is Tsampa, roasted barley, and Bötscha, tea made of Yak butter. The tea is better than we imagined.
It is made from black tea mixed with soda and Yak butter and usually drank hot. This way it is not bad at all. Only when the butter already tastes rank and the tea starts to cool (you’ll see the blobs of fat) the beverage cannot be recommended for European taste buds. For me it is hard to imagine living through these long cold winters in tents made from Yak wool being completely exposed to all wind and weather. The track to Drongpa is in an excellent condition. The 950 bikes perform at a speed of more than 150 km/h on the altitude of 4,800 m without a problem. On the last 80 kilometers before reaching Paryang the road starts to get worse again. Deep sandy passages demand all of our concentration.
These conditions are comparable to the Sahara, but we are in a height of 4,500 meter on the roof of the world. When a strong wind started to pick up in the afternoon we are more than glad to reach the safe walls of the small town Paryang. After passing the 5,200 meter high Mayum La the track starts to get better again and in a short time we reach Drachen the point farthest west on our trip. Drachen is located right beneath the Kailash Mountain “jewel of snow.” For the Buddhist Tibetans this is the center of the world system. The majority of our group undertakes the Kora; a traditional circle in a clockwise direction around the holy mountain.
Renate and I have completed the Kora already in 2003. We decide to skip it this time and rather ride our bikes through the neighborhood of Drachen. Short day trips lead us to the monasteries Gyangdrak and Chuku. We enjoy the peaceful days in one of the most remote regions of our world. The next stage to Manasarowa Lake is one of the most favorite one’s for me. From a small hill one has an almost unreal and out-of-this-world impression of the deep blue Manasarowa Lake with the Gurla Matata, which is almost 8,000 meter high, at the horizon. The weather is beautiful when we start on our way back to the east. The first 550 kilometers to Saga we have to take the same track as during arrival because there is no alternative.
The first clouds turn up in the sky and the weather starts to get very unpleasant. Unfortunately a drizzly rain starts to fall on our longest stage. Until we reach Lhatse we need to complete 300 kilometers. A usual wind in the afternoon chases the clouds away and we can take off our raingears again. We reach Lhatse, the only larger town on our Tibet trip, in the late afternoon. Sony, our guide, claims during supper, “Today we’ll definitely have to visit a Karaoke bar.” The dimly lit bar is located on the first level of a modern house. Besides our group only a few Chinese soldiers are guests here. People sing totally off-key and very loud and drink lots of beer.
In the evening it starts to rain again. The next morning the surrounding mountains are covered with snow. Today we have to cross the 5220 meter high Gyatso La, which might become a problem on a day like this. We have reached the Friendship Highway again. It is crowded with trucks which already have removed the snow. Only the Yaks at the side of the roads trod through fresh snow. Our time in Tibet is almost over. But before we cross over to Nepal we stop by the Mt. Everest Base Camp. In Shegar we buy our tickets for the National Park and now 100 kilometers of incredible gravel roads lay ahead of us.
This morning we don’t get to see much of the Qomolangma, as the Tibetans call the Everest, because thick clouds surround the highest mountain in the world (8,850 m). The first rays of the sun dissolve the last remains of the clouds and finally the icy north side reveals itself in the morning light. A breathtaking view. To continue on our way we choose the old and rarely used track directly to Tingri. Knowing that this will already be our last day in Tibet we imprint our track into the sand of the upland desert. Two days later we ride through the chaotic traffic of Katmandu again, a small shock after weeks of loneliness on the roof of the world.
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