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Scouted personally. Experienced slowly.
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September 2026Delhi (Final Prep) & Heading for Ladakh
Preparing for our 14-day, 3,000 km Himalayan expedition across the highest motorable passes on earth, wrenching on the Jimny, and confronting the quiet ache of packing up my very first rented home.
“When you are facing 3,000 kilometres of mountain road, you realize that leaving a home is not just about moving boxes; it is about learning to carry your stability inside the car.”
- Founder Notes, September 2026
Focused On
Final logistics and vehicle staging for Her Drive: Ladakh Odyssey (14 continuous days, 3,000 km) and packing up my first rented apartment.
Scouting
High mountain passes: Zojila, Rohtang, Baralacha La, Nakee La, Lachung La, Tanglang La, Khardung La, and Umling La (19,024 ft).
Building
Prepping the Maruti Suzuki Jimny for high-altitude passes: fresh fluids, differential checks, recovery gear, and packing high-altitude spares.
Thinking About
The quiet mental rewiring of 14 continuous days behind the wheel, and the bittersweet finality of closing out the very first home I ever rented.
Reading
Lonely Planet India (specifically the Leh and Ladakh regional chapters) alongside high-altitude route guides.
Vehicle Rigging
Checking every bolt on the Jimny: fresh fluids, air filter inspection, tyre pressure calibration, and stowing recovery straps for mountain cols.
Weather & Gear Prep
Shopping for unpredictable high-altitude autumn weather: merino wool base layers, windproof hard shells, and thermal gear for sub-zero mountain nights.
Moving Out
Packing cardboard boxes in my first rented apartment in Delhi. When the convoy returns, I will have barely 48 hours to vacate and hand over the keys.
September has arrived with a strange, double-edged momentum. On one side is the largest expedition Before Maps has ever taken on: Her Drive, a 14-day, 3,000-kilometre all-women overland expedition from Delhi to Umling La (19,024 ft) and back, co-hosted with the team at OverlandX. On the other side is my living room floor, currently covered in flattened cardboard boxes and packing tape.
My days right now are split between two distinct forms of physical effort. Half the day is spent wrenching on the Suzuki Jimny in the courtyard: inspecting suspension bushings, checking engine and differential oils, torquing wheel nuts, stowing recovery boards, and making sure our VHF radios and camera gear are secured. The other half is spent in my apartment, sorting through clothes for sub-zero Himalayan weather and packing everything I own into boxes.
I am reading through the Leh and Ladakh sections of the Lonely Planet India guide, cross-referencing route notes with old topographic charts and talking to drivers who have crossed Zojila after the first autumn dustings. There is an enormous amount of mental space required to map 14 continuous days of mountain driving across passes that sit above 17,000 feet.
What makes this departure poignant is the quiet knowledge that this apartment, the very first home I rented independently, will be gone when I come down from the mountains. I return from Ladakh with barely 48 hours to finish packing and hand the keys back to the landlord. There will be no leisurely transition. The road will demand everything I have, and when it lets me go, a new chapter begins immediately.