With the Indian Government finally waking up from a long slumber and finally trying to connect the long and distant parts of India, new roads are being constructed and new passes are being conquered, in a bid to strengthen the defenses in border area. While defense of the nation might be the reason behind building of new roads, it is in a way a boon for those who love to explore new areas and conquer passes which haven’t been conquered before.
One such newly opened pass is Photi La in Ladakh, and it is situated 30kms from Hanle and is at a GPS measured altitude of 18,124ft. Once this route is complete, it will connect Photile with rest of Ladakh and boast of some of the most wonderful twisties.
A friend and fellow BCMTian, Nitin and his wife recently did Photi La in their Tata Safari and came back with some beautiful photographs and videos of Photi La, which can viewed in their Photi La Travelogue at BCMTouring.
Even though I would be heading to Ladakh this winter, I doubt that I would be able to do this route in the hired taxi, but I can’t wait to get back to Ladakh next year on my motorcycle and do Photi La and other newly opened roads.
2 Comments
How about doing it on a rented bike? I have seen many bike rental shops in Leh and you can try those.
They will be closed in winter, plus the pass itself would likely be buried deep in snow.