Day 12

The route south out of Leh heads southeast through river gorges with rock walls closing in on both sides. Then it opens completely. The Indus Valley gives way to high plateau, vast and flat, snow-capped ridgelines on every horizon and almost nothing in between. At this altitude the sky is a shade of blue that doesn't exist at sea level.

We rode 260 km of mostly good tarmac, stopping for lunch, snacks and gas along the way. At one point the whole convoy lined up in the shade of a single roadside tree, a long row of bikes and riders dwarfed by the mountains behind them.

Hanle is about as remote as it gets. A small, sparse village sitting in a wide flat valley at over 14,700 feet, still under construction in places, with a sunset that made even the half-finished buildings look good. There's a world-class astronomical observatory up here. On a clear night, the sky must be extraordinary.

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