and the significant Muktinath Temple where pilgrims travel for weeks to reach on foot , horse , cycle , motorcycle , bus , 4x4 or even the local taxi from Jomsom after a flight from Kathmandu .
My chosen ride is a Royal Enfield Classic 350 , commonly known as a Bullet , but amongst the bikes were Royal Enfield Himalayans and Crossfires .
From previous experience I knew that the road from Beni to Jomsom was incredibly challenging but as I ’ d heard the road from Kagbeni to Muktinath was now pitched I felt that the other parts of the route would be much improved from 4 years ago … alas , at some points I severely doubted my decision to take the Bullet as opposed to a Himalayan . The road between Beni and Jomsom was decidedly challenging for those of us on the Bullets . Steep narrow inclines with large loose rocks and boulders , deep traction sucking bulldust was not ideal for those of us on road tyres , the deep bulldust often hid a large but loose rock that could launch you off your intended course and with deep ravines or canyons often running alongside the road it sure did grab all your attention !
The overnight stop in Tatopani , which literally means hot water , was a great place for the stragglers to join the rest of the group for a delicious homemade Nepali meal and taste the local alcoholic brew of Raksi . I normally limit myself to two glasses , but the adrenaline was still flowing freely after the riveting ride and after 5 glasses I wobbled off to bed .
The morning was a slow and leisurely start , powered by plenty of black coffee , a few of us strolled down to the hot thermal pools , stripped off to our underwear and submerged ourselves in the luxuriously hot water and revived
TRAVERSE 58