Motorbiking to Lake Pangong

Not sure if we could already handle higher altitudes trekking, Annick and Thomas agreed to a suggestion of mine: we rented two motorbikes, got the permit and drove up to Lake Pangong for two days. This saline lake is at 4350m altitude, covering over 600km² and one of the most beautiful lakes in the world, with a deep blue color. Accidentally, it is also disputed territory between India and China.

Biking up is quite the challenge: the road crosses the villages of Shey and Gya and traverses the Changla pass  (the third highest motorable pass in the world at 5360m), where army sentries and a small teahouse greet visitors. The steep and dusty road down leads through Tangste and other smaller villages, until crossing a river called Pagal Naala or "The Crazy Stream". We anyway had to cross quite a number of small streams with our bikes, causing a bit of stress and wet feet. But after about seven hours of driving, we managed to catch the sunset at the lake and sleep in a tent by the shore.

Such a beautiful place that we were sad to only be able to spend 12h there. It would have been great to be able to hike around the area, but apparently (probably because it is disputed territory), this isn’t possible. Waking up at 5am to catch the sunrise, do some yoga and take some pictures, and then it was time to hit the road again.
Of course, a bit of motorbike problem is part of the adventure, and on the way back, we first had to deal with a flat tire and then with some unidentified mechanical issue, which prevented our bike from starting (despite valiant efforts from our and a group of Czech motor bikers to try and repair it). Luckily, we were already past the highest point, so I just led myself ride down for 25km, with the occasional push from Thomas on the second bike. Once back on the main highway, we dropped off the bike at a repair shop, phoned the agency to tell them where their bike was and drove back riding double.