Connect Spiti Cycling Adventure (14 Nights / 15 Days)
Himachal Pradesh
Connect Spiti is journey born out of love for the Himalayas and its people. We’re local, passionate about conservation and mountain travel, and deeply committed to creating a sustainable future. We’re committed, not just to sustainable development for the mountains and its people, but also to YOU – the mindful and curious traveller. Few things bring us more joy than sharing this rich natural and cultural heritage with others.
Our Cycling tour to Spiti gives you the high of biking in the Himachal without having to push your body to its limits. Himachal Spiti Cycling tour is physically less demanding, but the landscape is just as otherworldly.
Starting out at the altitude of 2700m above sea level, the route through Spiti Valley takes you as low as 980m and as high as 4590m. On the way, you will come upon ancient trade routes, pass by quaint villages, and visit famous monasteries. Buddhism is the major religion of people in Spiti region and the local culture is a far cry from urban ways.
The itinerary has been drawn to give you the best cycling experience under the circumstances. There may be some short steep ascents on which you gain more than 800m while cycling over a distance of just 15 km, but such challenges are par for the course. No two days of rough and tough cycling are put back-to-back. Our experienced guides and support staff for Cycling in Spiti Valley in Himachal will always be at hand throughout the tour, should you need any assistance.
| Starting point // Endpoint | Chandigarh |
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| Destination Covered | Narkanda, Kalpa, Nako, Tabo, Mud, Kaza, Hikkim, Komic, Langza, Kibber, Chicham, Losar, Kunzum Pass, Chandertaal, Manali |
| Maximum Altitude | 4550 mtrs |
| Difficulty Level | The difficulty level of this cycling adventure is from moderate to difficult. The trail will be challenging enough for experienced cyclist to get exhausted. |
| Transport | We provide backup vehicle at all times during cycling trip. If in any case, you don’t feel like riding you can always use the vehicle. |
| What to bring | Bike shoes • A nice pair of socks and footwear • Bike Helmet • Cycling shorts • T-shirts and good quality warm clothes • Water resistant Jacket • Safety gloves • Torch • Sunscreen Lotion (At least SPF 50) • Cap / Hat • Eyewear |
| Is a First Aid kit advisable? | You must carry a first aid kit with you. Sometimes you could have symptoms of AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness) also which includes a headache, nausea and vomiting. During your trip, our team will carry a first aid kit and fully equipped oxygen cans for such situations. Drinking water is very essential. |
| Precautions |
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Arrival at Chandigarh airport and transfer to Narkanda. On arrival check in at hotel. You will meet and acquaint with team members, prepare for the cycling tour ahead, and complete paperwork formalities. Overnight.
Breakfast at hotel and will get ready for the first day of cycling. Narkanda, which has pleasant weather throughout year, is the perfect place to hit the road. Places like Rampur have little to boost in terms of tourism related infrastructure. These pit-stops, are nothing more than small town-like establishments with basic accommodation and necessities covered. You cycle past local apple orchards and forested hills of the lower Himalayas. The place abounds with conifers, oaks, and maples. The air is bracing, and cycling should be fun for most part of the day, save for some short and steep inclines which actually do the good of preparing you for the journey ahead. Overnight.
Rampur is a scenic place situated on the bank of Sutlej River. Historically, it was located on pilgrimage routes to sacred sites in Western Tibet. You have another day to prepare yourself before we start hitting the tougher and longer sections of the tour. We expect it to be a short cycling day Today, what you come upon on this route are water dams and hydel power grids, majestic structures all of them. The first 30 km out of Rampur makes for easy-breezy cycling over gentle slopes until we hit Jhakri from where you pedal through some downhill and uphill gradients for the second half of the day’s journey to Wangtu. We will finish our cycling at Wangtu for the day to get some much needed rest before we start hitting the higher roads and stiffer climbs. Overnight.
Finally, the day comes to make some serious altitude gain as we leave behind the foothills of the Himalayas at Wangtu and begin cycling towards Kalpa. Kalpa is a high and beautiful place in the Kinnaur region, popular not just for its views and natural beauty but also for its apples and the rarely grown pine nuts. In the first 30-35km of this stretch, we will gain upto 420m to reach an altitude of 1990m. Except for a few short downhill rolls and uphill climbs, this section isn’t really hard-going. What’s tough is the final 15km of the day’s ride. It is a steep uphill ascent in which you gain as much as 835m to end the day at Kalpa, a high altitude, beautiful place in Kinnaur that offers breathtaking views of 6000-plus meter high Himalayan peaks. Day 4 is the first test of your mettle as a cyclist. More than anything, it prepares you for the high-altitude journey ahead. Overnight.
Starting Altitude: 2825m | Highest Altitude: 2825m | Resting Altitude: 2767m
Cycling on Day 5 begins with the downhill ride of 15km we ascended the previous day. Thereafter starts the 60 km journey towards our new destination, Pooh. Over this distance we begin to gain altitude slowly and the road turns eastward towards the Indo-Tibetan border. Known as the Hind-Tibet Road, this used to be an ancient route connecting India and Tibet for centuries. Pressing on, you’ll notice the landscape change. The greenery of Kinnaur falls behind, replaced by Rocky Mountains. You almost feel another world coming round the corner. The last 8 km of the day’s cycling will be a steep uphill ride to Pooh. Overnight.
On Day 6, we gear up for what will be the longest ascent of the journey as we officially enter the high-altitude cold desert region of Spiti. The first 5km out of Pooh will be an easy downhill ride along the Sutlej River up until its confluence with the Spiti river at Khab. The road here is literally carved out of rugged mountain faces. Khab onwards, the road starts rising steadily towards Nako, a gorgeous fertile oasis in a barren landscape. The road between Khab and Nako is also known as Ka Loops, and it has a series of hairpin bends. The vistas get better as you climb up the loops.
Overnight at hotel.
Crossing Nako, the ascent continues, the air gets thinner and it’s here that the physical and mental endurance of a cyclist will be tested. All the cycling of preceding days prepares you for this challenge. We press on through several hairpin bends until Malling Nalah, which is a place notorious for falling stones and sudden closures. A signboard by Border Roads Organization here describes it as “the world’s most treacherous road.” But thanks to our guides and support staff, crossing Malling Nalah shouldn’t be a problem for you. Thereafter, the journey gets easy with a downhill ride of 30-40km all the way to Tabo, which is home to a tenth century Buddhist monastery. Arrival here is a welcome respite after a long day’s cycling. Overnight.
An easy day of cycling follows the previous day’s rough and tough ride. The road out of Tabo takes you into the overwhelming expanse of the Spiti valley. Here, we are well into Kipling’s ‘world within a world’. Mountains with intriguing formations and colors dot the landscape. The geography can aptly be described as Martian. The gentle uphill road lets you appreciate the views at leisure. Along the way, we take a detour to the high-altitude village of Dhankar. Perched at a height of 3894m, Dhankar offers some heart-stopping views. From here the ride is going to have a number of inclines and declines. The ascent to Mud is a super uphill. Be prepared and you’ll enjoy the ride like no other. The entire Pin Valley National Park area is so spectacular, that you won’t find the words to describe it. Overnight at hotel.
The 50 km today won’t be a problem. You would be very well acclimatized and there would be a lot of downhill sections today. Enjoy the ride, take loads of pictures and breathe that delicious mountain air. Arrive Kaza, the largest township and commercial center of the Spiti valley. Overnight.
Leaving behind the hustle and bustle of Kaza, today we cycle few of the world’s highest villages. Kaza to Hikkim (World’s higest post office) and then to Komic is about 20Km away from Kaza. What this means is simply that there is a massive 20Km incline to be tackled today. Once again, the views from these villages will leave you speechless. Those spectacular meadows above 4,000 meters, the blue skies, the beautiful monasteries with fluttering prayer flags are simply delightful to the senses. After Komic, you will ride downhill to Langza village for overnight.
We start descending from Langza village towards Key Monastery. This is the largest and best known gompa in the region and merits a quick visit before we press on towards the twin villages of Kibber and Chicham. These villages are situated close to each other but are separated by a massive and deep gorge, a telling instance of geography deciding accessibility in these parts. A suspension bridge inaugurated in 2017 now straddles the gorge. It is often described as the highest altitude bridge in Asia and just crossing it is sure to give you a high. Overnight.
After Chicham, the road enters the rolling plains of Ladarcha, which has been the hub of historical barter trade for the people of Spiti, Ladakh and Tibet. To this day, a festival is organized annually where merchants come from these places to barter goods. Ladarcha onwards, the road descends to Kiato after which it isn’t so much a road anymore as a gravelly track. The last leg of the day’s journey from Kiato to Losar is rough, so you better sit tight and hold fast. Overnight.
Ride to the Kunzum La (La means a mountain pass in Tibetan) which is situated at the altitude of 4590m and is the highest point of this journey. We visit the temple on this pass and enjoy the view of distant glacial peaks. From Kunzum pass, there is a gorgeous downhill to Batal form where the road turns towards Chandrataal. The stretch from Batal to Chandrataal is about 7 kms long and is unbelievably beautiful. This stretch is also an uphill ride. Overnight camping near the lake.
On the last day we bid adieu to Spiti. No more cycling from here on. We will drive you to the bumpy and adventurous drive to Manali, through Atal Tunnel, which we call the gateway back to your urban lives. You will spend your last day of cycling at pre-booked hotel in Manali. Overnight.
After breakfast proceed proceed towards Chandigarh. Drop at Chandigarh airport.
| Inclusions | A. Accommodation
B. Meals & Beverages
C. Transport
D. Support
F. Permits / Environment fee
G. Add ons.
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| Exclusions |
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