Sources

• Distances, the line of the road and fuel pumps: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database Licence. Routes worked out with the Open Source Routing Machine.
• Heights: NASA Shuttle Radar Topography Mission, public domain, served by Open Topo Data.
• National Highway 301 (India)

  en.wikipedia.org · Encyclopedia

• Padum to Kargil Road Trip 2026: Route Guide

  discoverwithdheeraj.com · Published guide · dated 31 August 2026

• Zanskar Valley Trip 2026: Routes, Budget and Permits

  discoverwithdheeraj.com · Published guide · dated 18 August 2026

• Pensi La

  en.wikipedia.org · Encyclopedia

• Key roads in Kargil closed due to heavy snowfall, traffic advisory issued

  voiceofladakh.in · News report · dated 20 April 2025

• Manali - Darcha - Shinkula - Padum (Zanskar) Road Status in 2026

  discoverlehladakh.in · Tour company's page · dated 8 May 2026

• Traffic Police, Ladakh Police

  police.ladakh.gov.in · Official page

• Zanskar district

  en.wikipedia.org · Encyclopedia

• Mobile phone connectivity in Leh Ladakh

  discoverwithdheeraj.com · Published guide · dated 14 August 2026

A gap is not a fact. It means we looked and found no source.

• No dated opening or closing announcement for Pensi La found for 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 or 2026.
• No source says whether motorcycles were allowed at opening in any year.
• No official source found for the rule that Zanskar needs no permit; whether foreign citizens need one was not established.
• No timing or one-way rule found for Pensi La.
• Which office decides the opening of Pensi La was not established; the highway is maintained by a central corporation and closures are announced by Kargil police.
• Whether the restriction on rental motorcycles from outside Ladakh is enforced in Kargil and Zanskar was not found.
• The official account of District Police Kargil was not opened; its advisory was read in local news.
• No website found for the new Zanskar district.
• A blogger's two pages disagree on whether the Ladakh tourist fee applies on this road.
• Video filming dates are not stated; they were published on 8 October 2025 and 24 September 2025. Both run from Padum towards Kargil.