An Adventurous Bike Trip To Manali And More | Himachal Diaries |

I have always had a fantasy to go on a bike trip and the destination in my mind has always been Manali. So this time when I decided to take up a long vacation with my partner we decided not to take up the normal route to vacationing in the mountains.

We decided to create a plan for an adventurous trip. We took the bike rental from Chandigarh and hence began our unpredictable journey. We took an overnight bus from Delhi to Chandigarh.

The Original Itinerary for a Bike Trip To Manali

Day 1: Reach Chandigarh early morning. Picked up the bike and leave for Kufri.

Day 2: See Mahasu peak in Kufri and the Kufri main market. Leave Kufri by 11 for Jibhi

Day 3: See Jalori pass near Jibhi. Leave Jibhi for Manali.

Day 4: Stay in Manali. Local sightseeing.

Day 5: Rohtang pass.

Day 6: Leave Manali for Narkanda . Overnight stay in Narkanda.

Day 7: Go to skiing point in Narkanda and by night back to Chandigarh.

This was the perfect itinerary that I planned for our bike trip. But as I wanted an adventurous trip it turned out to be a little more adventurous than expected.

Before Day 1: Since our plan was sudden we couldn't find train bookings and had to take a Harayana Roadways Bus. Don't ever try to. As soon as we crossed the border of Delhi there was no social distancing. The bus was filled more than the Mumbai local train. Our adventure began from here.

Day 1:

As planned, We picked up the bike from Chandigarh. Not the one we had booked 😪. But ok. The condition of the bike was good so I was ready to adjust. We reached Kufri as planned by around 3 pm. After that, we were so tired that we just decided to sleep. In the evening we went out for dinner and came back to sleep. Everything was as per plan till now. The night was extremely beautiful and we had the best view from our room. And here I would like to mention that we stayed in Hotel Himalayan Heights in Fagu.

Adventure 1: Didn't get the required bike. Realized the place was colder than we expected.

Day 2:

Excited to take a horse ride to Mahasu peak I got up early and realized the sunrise view from my room was excellent too. I was over the top till now as the trip was turning out really well.

Mahasu peak was an epic adventure and also the point where my entire plan just got trashed. We went up to the temple which was closed and from there we had to reach the jeep point which would take us for adventures. Instead of going back the way we came, we started climbing down the mountain directly. The destination wasn't that far . At one point the next step was almost a foot and a half from where we were standing. We could easily step down from there but where is the fun in that. Hence, my partner decided he wants adventures and jumped down. The fun turned out to be something that changed the course of our trip as he suffered an ankle injury. Such that we weren't sure how would we even reach back to Chandigarh with this bike. 

We decided to extend our stay in Kufri for a day and then decide what to do basis the condition of his leg. The hotel we were staying in was already booked and hence we took another hotel. This also had a good view along with a monkey friend who kept visiting us on our balcony.

Mahasu peak

Adventure 2: My partner injured his leg.

Day 3 :

The next day we continued our trip to Manali. We did not visit the points we decided at Narkanda and decided to take a halt in someplace between Narkanda and Rampur. On our way, we stopped to have the best tea in entire Himachal Pradesh. Trust me I did not find a tea better than that before or after that place in my entire trip. I don't have a name for this place as there was none written. Though the best part was when everyone was staring at us looking at my partner's injured leg and the bike alternatively. I guess they were surprised that he was riding a bike with an injured leg.

The view from the Dhaba:

Hotel Aarav Regency - I wouldn't say worse but a very bad hotel experience. These people couldn't even prepare dinner for us and it was such a small village that nothing was available there. We had ordered food at 8.30 pm. At 9.30 we called up to ask how much more time would preparation of dinner take and this is when we were informed that their chef has a stomach ache and will not be able to cook. They said they are going to get food from the nearby Dhaba for themselves and can get some for us if we want it too. We obviously had no option. They got some aloo-beans curry, yellow dal and chapatis for us and I must say that the food in hostels is better than this.

Adventure 3 : Staying in a place where you have no food options and the hotel is providing you jugaad ka dinner.

Day 4 :

The next day we had to reach Manali anyhow. We left our hotel without breakfast and tea and realized later that it was a bad idea. The kind of route we had chosen for a long time we didn't find anything to eat. Later we found a little tea shop that made us some tea and maggi which wasn't actually Maggi but she made it deliciously adding all kinds of spices and veggies.

The major adventure began here. The road was ascending towards a hilltop for almost 10 km. In some places, the roads didn't even exist. We started ascending from here -

and finally reached the hilltop known as Jalori Jyot (a temple of Mahakali)/Jalori Pass(famously known to tourists).

Adventure 4: Riding on a road where the road was missing and whatever was there in place of road was very steep to climb up.

This was the ace which till now was the most serene viewpoint in my trip till now. There was a trek starting from this point to Serolsar lake and Budhi Nag Mata temple but we decided to give it a try while coming back due to the leg injury. We sat here for more than an hour. We had some freshly plucked plums and some more snacks before leaving for Manali.

On our way to Manali, we stopped at a Dhaba for our lunch. This Dhaba wasn't even fully constructed yet. We sat on a semi-constructed first floor (with no roofs and walls). They probably didn't want to lose business in peak tourism season. We ordered - Half dal fry, Half dal makhani, and paneer with chapatis. Very interestingly we got to taste a different flavored dal. The cook mixed both the dals in half-half proportion and served it on a single plate.

Adventure 5: Having dal of a new variety.

TIP: When you go to small places such as this don't modify your orders and stick to what they are providing.

The way till Manali was so dirty because of construction on the highway that our shoes and jeans were entirely soiled with mud. (It probably had some cement too). We had to stop on our near the river, get down and wash it all. The water was chilled (really felt like ice that had just melted). Now with wet jeans, we resumed our ride. FYI we were entirely dry by the time we reached Manali (It was so hot).

Adventure 6: Riding with soiled and then wet clothes.

After reaching Manali we took a room which was suggested by one of our friends.(A hotel which was probably his relatives') I will need bullet points here.

The room had no view. (initially, they were giving us a room with no window)

There were children playing outside trying to peek into our room

There was no hot water. They said it's available only in the morning. (FYI it wasn't hot in the morning too)

The electricity would come and go every five minutes. (FYI they said they had a backup but didn't use it because there are not enough guests)

Very bad food

We then had a tiring walk on the mall road. Had good Golgappas and softy . Bought some popcorn and came back. Oh, I missed it!! on our way back we thought of taking an auto as our hotel was 1km (exact) from mall road. We were asked to pay Rs. 100 for one kilometer.

Day 5:

We booked another hotel nearby and shifted quickly to freshen up and have a bath. Once we were done we went towards the old Manali riverside to have breakfast. Getting south Indian food in a north Indian version is what we found here. The view although was amazing and I believe old Manali is a place where one should come for a staycation.

The next we went to Hidimba Temple and Ghatotkach Temple( which is just a shrine made on the tree). It is said that after the shooting of Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani this place has become more popular. There were a lot of tourists visiting this place and hence whenever I tried to capture its beauty the pictured were filled with tourists. People had kept Angora rabbits here and were charging Rs.30 to click a picture with them, Women were knitting shawls and stoles to sell and there were Yak rides available. Overall it was a fun picnic spot but I didn't find anything special in Hidimba temple place as I had previously expected.

Hidimba temple

After that, we visited the Manu temple in old Manali. This was a place where we found no tourists, only a small family of Pandits living on the temple campus. We found a walnut tree outside it. It was the first time I had seen green walnuts.

Green Walnut sliced horizontally.

Day 6:

Today we had to visit the Atal tunnel. We got up early in the morning had an amazing breakfast at Ankit Dhaba ( on Hidimba Temple Road ) and left for Atal tunnel.

The views on Manali-Leh Highway were mesmerizing (till I had seen the other end of the tunnel.)

Atal Tunnel is a 9.02km tunnel in which you are not supposed to stop, also you have to maintain the speed of 60kmph for the most part of it. The cars are checked at the south portal for any hazardous material is not allowed inside the tunnel. The inside of the tunnel was extremely cold. It was a straight tunnel that led us to a different world altogether. The north portal opened in the Lahaul district on Himachal where we were supposed to visit Sissu Lake. The lake wasn't that good of a viewpoint but riding in that part of Himachal was a pleasurable experience. Completely raw and untouched by the crowd of tourists. I hope it can stay that way even now when it has been made accessible through Atal Tunnel.

Herd of sheep and goats taken for grazing

The beauty that is no less than Switzerland

Sissu lake

Picturesque streams flowing

Adventure 7: Just riding along without knowing the destination or how far we are from the north portal of the Atal Tunnel. Also, we found Water streams flowing over the road and we had to cross it too.

While coming back from this heaven we found a line of cars waiting to enter the south portal. The line was probably more than 3 km.

Tip: Get up early and visit Atal Tunnel and the heaven beyond or else you will be stuck in Jam for more than 2 hours.

Adventure 8: Paragliding in Solang Valley. It is expensive, but trust me it's worth it.

Here is the youtube link to a short video of it: Paragliding in Solang Valley Manali | It isn't as easy as it seems |

Day: 7

We left Manali early in the morning for Jibhi. On our way, we took a slight detour to Naggar to visit the 800-year-old Gauri-Shankar Temple. it is a protected monument by the ASI and was excavated years ago. Though the ASI says it's from the Gurjara -Pratihara Dynasty, the locals believe it to be there from the times of the Pandavas. One single family has been taking care of the temple for more than 100 years now.

After spending some time at the temple, we moved towards Jibhi. We found a hotel in Jibhi dropped our bags and immediately left for Jalori Pass as we had a long way and we were already late. As my partner's leg was now quite healed we decided to take up the Serolsar lake trek.

We had to do a 5km trek to reach Serolsar lake and then back. When we reached there we got to know that bikes can be taken further 1 km ahead of the trekking point and after that, we had to walk for almost 4 km. After walking for more than a kilometer we found a little stall providing tea and Maggi along with some packed snacks. We had some chips and tea and asked the guy how far is the lake. He said we were already halfway (FYI it wasn't halfway).

We started walking again after some time we got tired and sat down and this is when we found 3 people coming back. Upon asking how far the place is they said " Bas jyada nahi hai "(it's not that far now). We kept asking people and they kept saying this and at one point one guy said - Just 50 more minutes. We had to confirm thrice whether he said 50 or 15.

After walking the trail for a long long time we reached the Serolsar lake and a temple which was known as Budhi Nag Mata Temple. It is very popular among the locals there and it is said whatever you ask for here is always provided. People come here when their wishes are granted and do a parikrama around the lake pouring ghee on the edge of the lake where Budhi Nag Mata is believed to reside.

Coming back took almost the same time and the same struggle. But this time I think we stopped at places to enjoy the views more.

Adventure 9: A trek through the jungle on the hills for more than 8 km.

We were so tired after this trek that we almost slept without even having our dinner.

Also here I would like to mention that our room was just beside a flowing river and the sound of the gushing water was the lullaby we slept to.

Day 8:

The whole day is an adventure.

Why did we even decide to go through the Jalori pass route?? I still don't understand. This is the most thrilling, irritating, and adventurous day of the entire trip. 2 km away from the Jalori Pass our bike broke down. Initially, we thought the engine was getting hot as it was a steep climb for almost 12 km, so we gave it a rest for some time. After almost 20 minutes we tried again as the destination was just 2 km we thought we'll let the bike rest there for an hour while we can enjoy the views at Jalori Pass. But the bike had just given up on us and did not agree to go with our plans. The engine was making strange sounds while we tried to start it and that is when we decided it would need the hands of a mechanic to start again. We had to drag our bike back to a repairing center which was 20km from where we were standing. It was easy to do so on a downward slope but every time there was an upward slope it was extremely exhausting. I took all the luggage while my partner dragged the bike. After some time we got a pickup driver who agreed to tie a rope to the bike help us drag it. He helped us for half our way (till the place he had to go to). He wasn't even ready to take money from us.

From there, our ways separated and we again dragged the bike for the rest of the way. We finally found a mechanic( who later turned out to be a welder) He had no idea about bike repairing. As soon as we reached his shop he checked the engine oil which was practically nil. We got to know that the person who rented it to us did not make sure the engine oil was refilled. So the engine seized. He started opening up the bike to repair it. We asked him if he would be able to and he said very confidently that even if you bring him the spare parts separately he can make a bike out of it. HUHH.!!

This guy wasted our entire day and could do nothing. He gave us a huge list of expenses and said it would take at least 2 days to repair. We had a train from Chandigarh the next day and definitely could not afford to stay in a place like Banjar for the night and hence we decided to talk to the owner of the bike and arrange a pickup for it while we could take a bus and reach Chandigarh. This was a separate fight where the owner wanted us to pay for all expenses which we had no responsibility for. Ultimately it was decided that we would deliver the bike to a Dhaba on the main road from where the Volvo could pick it up.

We told the mechanic(rather welder ) to pack the bike up to which he said he can't do it. He told us to pack up the parts and take the bike as it was. This was a nightmare. We arranged for another mechanic who came to this guy's shop and packed the bike for us. While the first one demanded 1000 rupees for whatever wrong he did with the bike, the other one refused to take any money from us and packed the bike for free. We decided to give him the petrol that was there and he was extremely happy with it. He also arranged a pickup for us which took us to a Dhaba where we left the bike and caught an overnight bus directly to Chandigarh.

We met some really good people this day who made our day and helped us going out of their ways. I wish from the bottom of my heart that God bless them with all prosperity.

Day 9

We were so tired after a long night on the bus that we slept like babies once we reached Chandigarh. We had time before our train so we thought of going to Sukhna Lake. We did and were back within half an hour. The screeching heat reminded us that we were not on the hills anymore and this was a reality check of what was waiting for us in Delhi.

A nine-day trip that wasn't much relaxing, wasn't filled with fun but it was definitely one of the most memorable trips I have ever had. At every turn, there was something that we hadn't expected. I have left out quite a few incidences from this article because if I keep writing, trust me I can write an entire book.