After almost 20 years on the road in the Land Cruiser and a couple of long-distance hikes it was time to try a new type of adventure. And so we flew to Northeast India with the plan to tour the Seven Sisters, as the region is dubbed, on a Royal Enfield, the iconic Indian motorbike.
While the plan had been to buy an Enfield on arrival and sell it before flying out, we had the luck that our friend Krishnajan was happy to lend us one of his bikes! How incredibly kind is that?
So what to pack for the bike? On arrival in Guwahati, the plains of Assam, it was bloody hot (around 30C / 86F), but it would be cool in the mountains. Pack camping gear, or not?
The Enfield came with two panniers and so that was the maximum capacity to carry our gear. Once we had our clothes packed, we had plenty of space left for a tent, inflatable mattresses and one light sleeping bag.
Read More: the Journey & our Long Distance Hikes
Recommended Books on Overlanding by Motorcycle
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Products from Amazon
Our trip and what we learned
- 90 days – Nov 15-Feb 14
- Short days. Sunrise around 6.30 am and sunset between 4.15 – 5.15 pm.
- In the mountains many, if not all, shops and restaurants close at 6 pm if not earlier (the record was Zunheboto, where everything was closed before 4 pm).
Per State – Climate & Clothes/Gear
- Foreigners no longer need Inner Line Permits except for Arunachal Pradesh. Indian nationals still need some other Inner Line Permits (I believe Nagaland & Manipur).
- Assam & Tripura (Nov/Dec) : plains, warm. In the morning we started out with wearing a light wind jacket and ended up driving in our shirt. A second set of clothes for the evening so we could wash our sweaty biking clothes and have them dry in the morning.
- Meghalaya (Nov) : hills, warm. The only state we camped, twice. It was warm enough with one sleeping bag for the two of us. Disadvantage: the tent was soaking wet and took long to dry. By the time the sun came over the hills and the tent was dry, we lost part of the morning. So we stopped camping.
- Mizoram (late Dec), Manipur, Nagaland (Jan), Arunachal Pradesh (early Feb): mountains. Cold! We bought fleece jackets, Coen a down jacket, and we were glad to have brought our rain jackets (as wind protectors; we had no rain at all). We also bought rain pants to wear as second layer. Still, by the end of the day we would be stiff from driving. Plenty of tea stops along the way to warm up in the sun.
- To sum it up: make sure you bring enough warm clothes.
Accommodation
- We camped twice in Meghalaya
- A couple of times we stayed with locals, mostly through Couchsurfing.
- Most nights we stayed in budget accommodations. Some states have government accommodation, called Circuit houses / Tourist lodge / Government resthouse / Forest resthouse. In the mountains the room had hot water (sometimes brought in a bucket). All rooms were unheated and only three times we got a tiny electric heater, which did not by any means warm the room, but was nice nonetheless. So also for the evenings you need warm clothes! Thermal underwear does the job.
- Many of the (government) guesthouses had filtered water systems to fill your water bottle.
Travel Guides for India
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Products from Amazon
Coen’s Clothes
- Hiking shoes (worn on the bike) — our trusted Keen Targhee III
- Adventure pants with extra pockets on the bike – Pinewood’s Tiveden TC-Stretch
- Mountain hiking pants — Decathlon – MH500
- Short sleeve base layer — Armadillo Merino Cougar
- Long sleeve base layer — Armadillo Merino Panther
- Long sleeve shirt — Pinewood Glenn Shirt
- Short sleeve shirt – Pinewood
- Socks — Darn Tough Hiker Micro Crew Cushion Sock
- Night socks — Darn Tough Men’s Unstandard Stripe Crew Light Cushion Sock
- Boxers — Armadillo Merino Rammy Boxers
- Japanese multifuncional scarf — Tenugui: a cloth without limits
- Rain jacket – Pinewood Abisko Telluz
- Wind jacket – Decathlon Trailrun Wind jacket
- Gloves – Bazaar find
- Fleece with zipper – Bazaar find
- Down jacket – Bazaar find
- Extra pants to wear as second layer – Bazaar find
- Flip flops — Bazaar find
Karin-Marijke’s Clothes
- Hiking shoes (worn on the bike) — Keen Targhee III
- Long pants —
- Long sleeve base layer — Icebreaker Merino Tech Lite Graphic T-Shirt
- Long sleeve shirt — Pinewood Cumbria Shirt
- T-shirts 2x – Landcruising Adventure Design
- Socks — Darn Tough Hike/Trek Micro Cushion Stripe Crew Socks
- Underwear — nondescript
- Bodywarmer — Benetton Sleeveless Puffer Jacket
- Rain jacket – Pinewood Isaberg
- Wind jacket – Decathlon Trailrun Wind jacket
- Fleece with zipper – Bazaar find
- Extra pants to wear as second layer – Bazaar find
- Flip flops — Bazaar find
Camping Gear
- Tent — Tarptent MoTrail
- Mattress hers — Therm-a-Rest Prolite Ultralight Self-Inflating 3/4 size
- Mattress him — same as hers, but older style valve
- Matras combiner — Therm-a-Rest Mattress coupler
- Sleeping bag — Big Agnes Wiley SL 30
- Silk liners — Decathlon Forclaz Silk sleeping bag liner
- Tent pegs — Mixed bag of MSR Mini Groundhogs and Easton Nano Stakes
- Ground sheet — Dupont Tyvek Ground Sheet
- Seat mats — We have used various over the years. Therm-a-Rest beats them all
- Towel — Nano Pack towel
Toileries / Water
- Hydration blatter — Platypus Hoser 3Lt
- Purifying tablets — Just in case we always bring: Micropur Purification Tablets
- Backpack rain covers — Decathlon Quechua
- Towel — Nano Pack towel
- Shampoo bottle — Nalgene Wide Mouth Square Storage Bottle
- Soap — Coleman Dish and Hands Camp Soap Sheets
- Antibiotic oitment — Neosporin Original First Aid
- Extra heat — Tiger Balm Extra Strength Red
- Rescue blanket — Mylar Thermal Space NASA Blankets
- Sewing kit — Gear Aid Outdoor Sewing Kit
- Insect repellent — Senz Insect shield Tick Off
Electronics & Other
- Laptop — BYO (bring your own ;-))
- Best hiking camera — Ricoh GR III
- Batteries —External battery pack and camera batteries
- eReader — Kindle Waterproof Paperwhite
- iPhone — Protective case
- Pocket knife — Victorinox Swiss Army Outrider Multi-Tool
- Waterproof bags — We use Sea to Summit Ultra-SIL in various sizes
- Stuff sack — Assorted small bags non waterproof
- Ziplocs — Ziploc Freezer Bags
- Travel Coffee maker — Mini Immersion Water Heater
- Card reader — Hama USB 3 Compact Flash
The Royal Enfield across Northeast India
Check it out: the Landcruising Adventure Sketchy-Ride Shirt Collection
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