Thrill-seekers are all aware of the Death Road in Bolivia, where one tiny mistake can push you over the edge and into the lap of gravity. Closer home, we too have our very own Killar-Kishtwar stretch if you wish to live life on the edge. This Ha Giang motorbike loop in northern Vietnam is different though. It is a narrow but paved trail which takes you around the Ha Giang province in North Vietnam, bordering China. Besides presenting opportunities for hiking and trekking, the limestone mountains also let you ride a thrilling course that offers magnificent views of the valley below.
The entire province is said to be a motorcycle rider’s dream and depending on how much time one has, can be explored for weeks. Even months! Dozens of back-wood roads and mountain pathways carve through the scenery. However, the Ma Pi Leng Pass which spirals along massive peaks on the Chinese border is said to be the most terrifyingly beautiful ride in all of Vietnam. Mostly ridden on a moped, renting one is easy once you are there.
Talking about mopeds, a 21-year old once rode his scooter to the Sach Pass in the Himalayas, also riding through the Killar-Kishtwar stretch while he was at it. Karan Bir Singh from Jalandhar decided to negotiate the route on his mother’s Honda Activa 125 and he took what was a grocery-run machine to the world’s most treacherous and highest motorable roads. The scooter’s puny 125-cc engine was starved of air, and the tiny tires were horribly assaulted by the conditions, but still, it had to be done. Braving inclement weather conditions, hardcore roads that are almost non-existent, water crossing and steep drops, Karan and his Activa not only conquered the Killar-Kishtwar road but also the 4,420-metre-high Sach pass in Himachal Pradesh. Having started from Jalandhar, he was back home in just 72 hours after completing the Sach-Killar-Kishtwar circuit,