India, Sept. 17 -- Lt col Sohan Roy (retd) of the 15th Battalion, Kumaon Regiment (Indore), who claims he will turn 77 in December this year, in August completed a solo motorcycle ride to Umling La in Ladakh, a journey he says was not just an adventure but a homage to fallen soldiers and a message to the younger generation never to give up. Recalling the experience, he said, "I stood. breath caught between thin air and a lifetime of memories. At roughly 19,024 feet, Umling La felt like the top of the world."

Roy flew to Jammu on August 28, having shipped his motorcycle ahead. Collecting his bike in Jammu, he began his journey after an emotional sendoff from a regimental battalion there (name not disclosed for security reasons). He rode v...