Leave Manali very early in the morning, as you have to cross a pass called Rohtang (13,050 ft). This pass gets awful traffic jams as tourists from Manali love to go and play in the snow. You have to be very careful as you approach Rohtang as you will come across very bad driving and bad driving on such steep roads is especially dangerous. The environment around this pass is getting damaged due to all these cars and tourists. One interesting thing you will notice on this route is that the trees disappear after a certain height. This is called the tree line and trees do not grow at high altitudes.

After crossing Rohtang you come across quiet and beautiful landscapes. You drive along the Chandra river until you come to Keylong, a tiny township surrounded by snow capped mountains. Just before you arrive at Keylong you have to stop at a place called Tandi to fill up your tank as you will not come across any gas stations until you reach Leh which is 380 kms away!

The next stop is Jispa, a quiet place to unwind after the trip from Manali. You should spend a day here to do some more acclimatising. This is very important as after this you will be spending a lot of time above 10,000 ft. While in Jispa you could go to Darcha, 7 kms ahead, where you could go for a short trek as this will help you acclimatise. Darcha is very pretty meadow.

When you leave Jispa you will come to two pristine high altitude lakes call Suraj and Deepak Tal and then on to a pass called Baralacha La at 16,000 ft. You feel like you are on the top if the world here, but remember that you are very high and the air has very little oxygen so do not run around and do not stop for too long as you may start to feel breathless. Also remember that in these altitudes weather changes very quickly and it can go from sunny to stormy very fast. So keep your eyes open.

You now drive through spectacular landscape on your way to Leh. You will cross Sarchu where we stayed in tents. This place is very beautiful but very cold as it is at 15,000ft. If you stay in a place like this you have to drink plenty of water as it keeps altitude sickness or Acute Mountain Sickness at bay. In fact water should be drunk in large amounts right through this trip. After Sarchu the first habitation that you will come across is Pang. The landscape between Sarchu and Pang is very dramatic. The drive takes you to the Gata Loops which has twenty one hairpin bends.

From Pang you drive to the high altitude plateau called the More Plains. You now feel like you have arrived in the plains and left the mountains behind. These plains are an extension of the Great Tibetan Chamathang plateau and is home to the Tibetan Wild Ass, Marmots and Wild Horses. A nomadic tribe called the Khampa, live here. Remember you are closer to the sun at these altitudes and you could easily get sun burnt, so wear caps and hats and keep your arms protected.

You soon arrive in Leh, a quaint mountain city with palaces, gompas, chortens and even shops and restaurants. Leh is at a height of 11,000 ft and has been the historical capital of this region for centuries. The town is situated on the banks of the Indus and is dominated by the Leh Palace and Fort. On the outskirts of Leh are Buddhist monastries (gompas) like Thikse. Hemis and Stok. While in Leh get into a sturdy pair of shoes and do a round of all these palaces and gompas – all built atop hills. Leh is the place to re-stock your supplies, medicine and film. Did you remember to carry a charger for your digital camera when you left home?! O!O! Not much help remembering in Leh!

From Leh one can drive to Tso Moriri, a high altitude lake at 15,500 ft and spend a couple of days just relaxing and if you are a keen birdwatcher you have plenty of opportunities as the lake hosts several species of water birds like the bar-headed geese, pintails and the Brahmany ducks. Carry binoculars. We had a our daughter Troyee’s 9th birthday here. A piece of advice – you should carry a few bottles of oxygen if you are planning a trip to Tso Moriri as you may suffer from altitude sickness and a few puffs of oxygen may help in an emergency. Leave immediately for lower altitudes, even 1,000/2000 ft will do, if you feel very ill. A GPS with an altimetre may help in such situations. Also very helpful if you are lost.

Another drive that you can do from Leh is to the Nubra valley. On your way you pass Khardung La until recently the highest motorable pass in the world at 18,380 ft. From the snowy heights of Khardung La you descend to the Nubra Valley a lush green area in an otherwise barren region. The amazing thing about this area is that very close to this fertile area is Hunder an area of high altitude desert, complete with sand dunes, thorny shrubs and the Bactrian or double humped camel. A night here is well spent, there is plenty to do. You should leave early for your drive back to Leh as it is not safe to cross high passes after 3pm. There is constant snowmelt which form streams which flow across these roads and in the latter part of the afternoon they build up in volume and speed as the sun rises higher in the sky.

From Leh you can drive back to Delhi via Srinagar (which we did). The road conditions are much better and after such a long hard drive you need a relaxing drive back. This drive too takes you through interesting places like Alchi, a peaceful village with a beautiful gompa and no steps to climb! This Gompa has lovely paintings and frescoes.

You could spend a day at Alchi or drive on. The drive from Alchi takes you through what is known as the “moonscape” in city language, a spectacular lunar landscape carved by erosion. Beyond this is Lamayuru an imposing gompa built on a rugged hill. This is known to be one of the oldest gompa’s in Ladakh.

You are now at the end of your journey. You spend a night in Kargil. From Kargil you reach Srinagar via the Zoji La pass. This pass allows only one - way traffic. You have to join a convoy going up the pass. Find out what time the convoy leaves. We had to start this journey at 1 a.m. This was actually the most exciting bit of our trip. En route you cross Dras, the second coldest inhabited place in the world.

While at Srinagar stay in a houseboat and chill. This is the last leg of your journey. You could go for a day trip to Gulmarg if time permits. The drive to Delhi brings you via Jalandhar. The only thing to look out for on the last bit of your trip is the Indian army, if you do not speak pure North Indian plains Hindi you may be viewed as a possible terrorist! Back to the hot plains – but what a trip.

Do this journey with your parents but remember that we need to preserve these places as they are, that means (even in this sounds like a lecture) no polluting, no leaving behind garbage. Be responsible when you travel – Take nothing but pictures, Kill nothing but time, Leave nothing but footprints and have a Great Time.