Thrown Into the Deep-End - Part 1

Journeying into a seldom-seen corner of the world on a type of bike you’ve never ridden, on terrain of which you have no information, and having no real experience of spending extended hours of seat-time on a motorcycle for multiple days. This was my plunge into the deep-end of the world of adventure touring on a motorcycle.

That common saying “being thrown into the deep-end” has a very literal example for me. When I was a kid, I was thrown into the deep-end of a swimming pool at the YMCA. That was the first exercise of my very first swim lesson. I can imagine my parents were probably having immediate buyer’s remorse at this point. However, it was the best thing that could have happened. That was the best way for me to learn. I picked up swimming quickly. And that method has continued to work for me to this day in various parts of my life.

This particular trip was also to lay the foundation for the establishment of Lets Go Moto. Rather than going on one of the more tried-and-true “adventure” tours in the world, I wanted this trip to be somewhere off-the-beaten path (pun intended).

India’s northeast region is not as well-known by riders, or most people for that matter. People don’t really pay attention to that area (or even know that it is a part of India) which hangs out on the right side of the country. It’s nestled between Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet [China], Myanmar, and Bangladesh. The northeast is comprised of ‘7 sisters and 1 brother’, referring to the states of the region. Rather than getting into the history, just know that relative to its size geographically, it is an immensely complex region. Influenced by not only all those bordering countries, but also by a multitude of tribes each with distinct traditions, languages, and religions. It is also blessed with stunning natural beauty which, apart from the cities, is relatively untouched in a country that has such a high population density. I started with an 8-day tour from Guwahati.

Guwahati is the gateway to the northeast. It is the hub where you fly into from major Indian cities. Historically, access further into the remote areas of each state has been difficult, if not impassable or unsafe at times. Now there are major arterial roads between the larger cities (although not always in good condition). Further from those cities, things are still rough and unfinished. And these are the major reasons why the northeast region has managed to retain large areas of natural beauty. Although commercialization will continue to encroach further, there are policies and measures taking place to fight it off as long as possible to maintain the beauty and culture.

An example of such is the necessity for outsiders (i.e. Indians that are not residents of the specific states) to get a permit to enter certain areas. That goes a step further for foreigners who need an additional permit. Although it is a bit of a hassle, it is helping control the influx of tourists at a manageable level. This process was handled for us by our tour hosts and will be done as well for the upcoming Lets Go Moto tours in the northeast. An aspect of its tours that Lets Go Moto looks to ensure is to practice and promote responsible tourism. This includes minimizing our footprint, reducing waste, and supporting local businesses, entrepreneurs, and artisans.

Day 1 was spent getting settled into the hotel and meeting our hosts and the other riders. My roommate for this tour had ridden his own bike in from Kolkata – a Royal Enfield Bullet. This has essentially been India’s favorite and most revered bike for quite some time. There are a lot of references on the history of “the oldest global motorcycle brand in continuous production” and the Bullet model specifically having “the longest production run of any motorcycle in history”, so I won’t get into it here. Being a standard cruiser bike with roots back to 1932, it is not meant to tackle “adventurous” terrain, but that hasn’t stopped a LOT of Indians to ride them to very remote and now iconic destinations in the entire Himalayan region.

The rest of us were on Royal Enfield’s newer and aptly named Himalayan. It is a dual-purpose, adventure touring motorcycle that was developed from the ground up, without sharing really anything with the rest of the Royal Enfield lineup. Now if you remember me saying,…

“Journeying into a seldom-seen corner of the world on a type of bike you’ve never ridden, on terrain of which you have no information, and having no real experience of spending extended hours of seat-time on a motorcycle for multiple days. This was my plunge into the deep-end of the world of adventure touring on a motorcycle.”

…then I’m telling you now that the Himalayan was the perfect bike for the journey ahead.

The Royal Enfield Himalayan is built for the rough roads that you will encounter in the rural bits of India and is perfectly suited to the Himalayan mountain region. At 411cc, this bike wasn’t meant to break performance records. It was meant to be affordable and cater to riders of all skill levels. The Himalayan is built to be durable, get the job done and put a smile on your face. Designed from the ground up by Royal Enfield, I think they have done a clever job. Seating position is where it should be, and the location of the foot controls allow for comfortable stand-up riding. A big front wheel makes navigating tougher terrain forgiving. Aesthetically, the retro-classic design is a very welcome departure from the crazy shapes and design elements on other adventure bikes.

Apart from my roomie on his Bullet and me on a Himalayan, there were two other rented Himalayans, each with a rider and passenger. From the Mumbai area were a guy and a gal, and from the southwestern state of Kerala were a couple of guys who would take turns being rider and passenger. Leading the ride was our ride captain on a Himalayan and following behind us was the modified 4X4 Maruti Gypsy support vehicle driven by our tour operator. The Gypsy is a cool little off-road beast that became popular with Indian law enforcement, the military, national parks, and also has a cult civilian following. Our luggage would be strapped to the back of the Gypsy.

Our amazing co-hosts both grew up in the northeast, each with an in-depth knowledge of the region, and are proud to share the richness of their culture. I hope you all get to meet them soon on an upcoming Lets Go Moto adventure. We ended Day 1 with a pre-ride briefing by them, over a delicious dinner of veggies, rice, daal (lentils), and roti (Indian bread). Apart from discussing logistics of timing and breaks along the way, they were trying to give us an idea of what to expect on the road conditions. Also, the weather is tricky to predict in the mountains. However, nothing can fully prepare you and none of us really knew what lay ahead of us. But that is the point of an adventure, isn’t it?

More on that grueling first day of riding will be continued in “Thrown Into the Deep-End - Part 2”.