Cycling in India: High passes and hidden roads of Ladakh

The film starts in Manali and follows the Route Team north along some of the highest roads in the world. It also shows how quickly plans can change in Ladakh, where traffic, snow and altitude don't always cooperate with a filming schedule.

Manali and the road to Rohtang Pass

The first part of the film takes us from Manali up towards Rohtang Pass. Much of the regular traffic now uses the Atal Tunnel, while access to the pass is restricted and tourist vehicles need a permit.

The Route Team arranged the necessary permit and were advised to leave at 3.30 am to avoid the traffic. But that wouldn't have been much use for filming a cycling route in the dark. So they settled on 5 am, hoping to reach the road as the sun came up.

Unfortunately, 5 am wasn't quite early enough. Plenty of other people had the same idea and were heading up to enjoy the snow.

A queue of around five kilometres formed on the pass. The team took six hours to cover just 15 kilometres, although they still managed to film the route before the traffic brought them almost to a standstill.

Above: Traffic queues across Rohtang Pass during the Route Team's filming trip.

Across Baralacha La and into Zanskar

From Rohtang, the film continues across Baralacha La and towards the Zanskar Valley. The landscape becomes drier and more open, with high mountain passes, rocky slopes and long stretches of road with hardly any settlements.

Several of these locations also feature in the Great World Adventure challenges. The Easy Challenge includes routes near Jispa and the Gata Loops, while Baralacha La appears in both the Medium and Hard Challenges.

The film then takes us to Gonbo Rangjon, a steep-sided sacred mountain rising above the valley. After finishing the main route, one of the team stopped at a local woman's home for a cup of masala chai and sent up the drone for one last aerial shot.

Everything went smoothly until the final orbit, when the drone hit a rock face and disappeared high above the road. Its last GPS position showed it was around a kilometre away and 500 metres higher up.

So much for a relaxing tea break! Luckily, the GPS coordinates helped him track down the drone.

Above: Gonbo Rangjon, the sacred mountain where the Route Team's drone crashed.

The Manali–Leh road and the Gata Loops

The film follows the Manali–Leh highway through the Gata Loops, a series of tight bends winding up the mountainside. These roads connect long valleys with high mountain passes, where the weather can be fine down below but much less friendly further up.

Above: The ROUVY Route Team on the road through Gata Loops in Ladakh.

The Route Team continued to Leh, where they planned to film Khardung La next. An international cycling expedition had agreed to provide a rider to join the filming on the final climb. But after battling poor weather and several tough mountain passes, the group arrived in Leh exhausted and decided not to continue.

That left the team needing a bike and someone who knew the climb well. Luckily, a local guide in Leh stepped in. He lent a Route Team member a bike, joined him for the ride and shared some useful advice along the way.

Five hours up Khardung La

Khardung La rises high above Leh and features in the Great World Adventure Hard Challenge. The ROUVY route covers 48.71 km with 1,411 m of climbing, making it a very different ride from the gentle Tso Moriri stage.

The local guide rode alongside the Route Team member, sharing tips on how to tackle the long climb at altitude. Five hours later, they reached the top, exhausted but delighted to have made it.

Above: A ROUVY Route Team member reaches Khardung La after five hours of climbing.

Choosing Umling La

Bad weather forced another tough decision later in the trip. The team could head towards Pangong Lake, famous for its changing shades of blue, or attempt Umling La. They chose the pass.

At 5,799 metres, Umling La is still the world's highest paved road. Mig La is higher, at a reported 5,913 metres, and is now recognised as the highest motorable pass. But it's an unpaved military road, so Umling La still holds the record for the highest road with a continuous asphalt surface.

A snowstorm hit the night before filming, covering the pass on their planned route. The team had to find another way through, with help from local guide and driver Abdul. He drove and helped film the routes, following the team's direction.

Above: Abdul, the local guide and driver who helped the Route Team film around Umling La.

The detour worked, and Umling La now features in the India Hard Challenge. The route covers 23.6 km with 1,137 m of climbing, which should be enough to keep most riders busy without having to deal with a snowstorm.

What's still ahead in the Long-Term Challenge

The India Long-Term Challenge consists of four routes, released in order:

1. Zanskar River: 20 km with 266 m of climbing. This first stage opened with the film.
2. Tso Moriri: 21 km with 89 m of climbing. This is the second stage introduced here.
3. Dalai Lama Road: 16 km with 225 m of climbing.
4. Gumbok Rangan: 13 km with 301 m of climbing.

A new stage becomes available each week, and you'll need to complete the routes in order.

A road the film didn't show

The film finishes in Padum, but there was another nearby road that the Route Team hadn't planned to film.

While staying in town, one of the team spotted a village beneath a cliff, about eight kilometres away. The next morning, he went to take a closer look and discovered Karsha, its monastery and the new Karsha Phodrang.

The road was decorated with lungta prayer flags and ceremonial gates to celebrate the Dalai Lama's 90th birthday and prepare for his visit to Zanskar in July 2025. The gates featured photographs and quotes along the road leading to the new Phodrang at Karsha Monastery.

Despite the overcast weather, the team decided to film the route. It later became the third stage of the Long-Term Challenge, Dalai Lama Road.

Starting near the Padum helipad, the route descends past Pibiting Gompa before turning towards Karsha. It crosses the river and climbs through the final bends to the new Phodrang.

Above: Prayer flags and ceremonial gates line the road from Padum towards Karsha.

Above: The new Karsha Phodrang at the end of the Dalai Lama Road.

The final stage returns to Gonbo Rangjon

Gonbo Rangjon features in the film, but riders get another chance to explore the area in the fourth and final stage. The route keeps its official ROUVY name, Gumbok Rangan, while the mountain itself is known as Gonbo Rangjon.

The 13 km route starts on the Padum–Darcha Road and follows a series of winding bends towards the mountain. It passes west of Gonbo Rangjon before heading south and finishing below Lakhang. With 301 m of climbing, it's a short ride, but noticeably hillier than the Tso Moriri stage.

Best places for cycling in India on ROUVY

The Great World Adventure offers plenty more cycling in India beyond the four Long-Term Challenge stages. Several locations featured in the film also appear in the separate Easy, Medium and Hard Challenges.

• Easy Challenge: Jispa and the Gata Loops, with routes ranging from 18 to 23 km.
• Medium Challenge: Hanle, a downhill route from Baralacha La and the Indus Valley.
• Hard Challenge: Nurbu La, Umling La, Khardung La, Drang-Drung Glacier, Shinku La, Baralacha La, Lamayuru and Chang La.

The Hard Challenge certainly lives up to its name. Shinku La has 1,800 m of climbing over 45 km, while Chang La packs 1,600 m into just 32 km. These are definitely not routes for a quick, easy spin!

Planning a cycling holiday in India?

Exploring these roads in real life takes more than booking a flight and bringing your bike. You'll need to think about the altitude, unpredictable mountain weather, permits, long transfers and limited services in remote areas.

Having local knowledge made a big difference during the Route Team's trip, from finding another way to Umling La to arranging a guide for Khardung La.

On ROUVY, you can experience these roads from the comfort of your indoor trainer. You won't have to deal with the thin air or a sudden snowstorm, which is probably a good thing!

But you can still experience the climbs and descents while taking in the mountains, valleys and lakes that the Route Team travelled so far to film.