There’s a moment on some recce ride when the road disappears—and that’s when things start getting interesting.
People think we design routes sitting in an office, looking at Google Maps, drawing lines from A to B, Which is true BTW. That’s not how Mototour works. For us, every route is earned. Every turn is tested. Every “tour” you see on the website… started as a question: Can we ride there?
And that question has taken us to some wild places—Galwan, Nagaland, Tawang, Nepal, Mig-La—places that don’t come easy, and that’s exactly why we go.
Galwan: Riding Where History Breathes
The first time we rode towards Galwan, it didn’t feel like a “tour recce.” It felt… different. Heavier.
Gyaltsan was riding just ahead of me, as he usually does. He’s the kind of rider who talk much and notices everything. At one point, we stopped without saying a word. The silence there is not empty—it carries stories.
The road was surprisingly smooth in sections, but the terrain around it reminds you where you are. You’re riding through a place that’s been in the headlines, but when you’re actually there, it’s not politics—it’s raw, untouched Ladakh.
We joked a little, as we always do. Arshad tried spotting wildlife before anyone else, Tashi kept asking about chai stops like it was a luxury ride. But underneath it all, we knew—this route is special. Not for everyone. And that’s exactly why we want to take people there, the right way.
Tawang: The Long Way Is The Only Way
Tawang wasn’t just a recce—it was a test of patience.
If Ladakh teaches you altitude, Tawang teaches you endurance. Landslides, unpredictable weather, roads that go from perfect to non-existent in minutes. Gyal kept saying, “This road has mood swings.” And honestly, he wasn’t wrong.
One evening, after a long, exhausting ride, we sat down at border of assam and Arunachal, sipping on a beer. with basic food, completely drained. And then someone (probably me) said, “Riders are going to love this.”
Beer was so cheap in Arunachal that gyal was offering it to passer-bys, We laughed on all falls,
Because that’s the thing—what’s tough for us becomes unforgettable for them. That struggle, that unpredictability… it’s the story they go back with.
Nepal: When The Whole Crew Shows Up
Nepal was different.
This wasn’t just a few of us—it was the entire Mototour operation crew. Mechanics, captains, planners… everyone. It felt less like work and more like a full-blown road trip.
And chaos? Of course.
Wrong turns, random stops, arguing over routes, laughing over nothing. At one point, we weren’t even sure if we were on the “planned” route anymore. But that’s the beauty of recce—you don’t always follow the plan, you discover a better one.
Gyaltsan and I ended up leading most of the ride, but honestly, every single person added something. Arshad found routes we hadn’t considered. Tashi kept morale high. Chopel… well, he made sure we never took things too seriously.
By the end of it, we weren’t just building a Nepal itinerary—we were building a Mototour experience outside Ladakh.
Nagaland: When the Road Fights Back
Nagaland… that one tested us.
This wasn’t the kind of ride where you enjoy the views while cruising. This was the kind where the road keeps reminding you who’s in charge. For almost 10 days, we were riding through the outskirts—no proper tarmac, just mushy, broken tracks, slush, and sections where you stop and think, “Are we even supposed to be riding here?”
Gyaltsan and I had one of those moments early on. The bikes were sliding more than riding, and every few kilometers felt like a small victory. Madhav as usual, turned it into a joke—“This is not off-road, this is no-road.”
But it wasn’t funny all the time.
There were stretches where even we—who do this all the time—were drained. Boots soaked, bikes struggling for grip, and that constant focus you need when one mistake could cost you hours.
I kept pushing through like a machine, Gyaltsan somehow still had energy to talk, and I remember thinking… if we can make this enjoyable, we can make anything work.
And then, after days of that chaos—we reached Kohima.
Suddenly, everything changed.
Proper roads. Cafes. Civilization. We didn’t say it out loud, but everyone felt it—this is where we breathe.
That evening in Kohima… that was one of the most relaxed moments of the entire recce. No pressure, no route planning, no mud to fight. Just good food, proper rest, and that quiet satisfaction of knowing—we pushed through something real.
What These Recce Mean To Us
Not every route makes it to the website.
Some are too raw. Some need more work. And some… we
keep for the right riders.
But every recce whether it’s Galwan, Tawang, Nepal, Mig-La, or Nagaland—adds something to Mototour.
It sharpens us. It humbles us. And honestly, it reminds us why we started this in the first place.
Because at the end of the day, this doesn’t feel like work.
It’s just a bunch of us- riding into the unknown, figuring things out, and coming back with stories that eventually become your journey.
And somewhere between getting lost, getting stuck, and finally getting it right…
That’s where the real Mototour begins.
Mig-La: The Kind of Ride You Don’t Announce
Mig-La is not the kind of place you put on a flashy banner.
It’s raw. It’s quiet. It’s the kind of route you only take people to when you’re sure they’ll respect it.
I remember riding there with Gyaltsan, just the two of us for a stretch. No noise, no rush. Just the sound of the engine and the wind cutting through the mountains.
We stop for few photos We didn’t say much. Some rides aren’t meant to be documented—they’re meant to be felt.
Why We Do This
People often ask—why go through all this trouble?
Why ride unknown roads, deal with breakdowns, risk wrong routes, push through weather and terrain… just to create a tour?
Because for us, this the fun.
This is what Mototour is built on real exploration. When you ride with us, you’re not just following a route. You’re riding something we’ve lived, tested, and sometimes struggled through.
Every time you cross a pass, stop at a chai point, or take a turn that surprises you—that’s not luck.
That’s recce.
That’s us, a few months (or years) earlier, figuring it out… laughing, getting lost, arguing, and finally saying:
“Yeah… this is it. This is a Mototour ride.”
