Ladakh

Leh town, a former barter centre for Pashm (Cashmere) & spices & the present headquarters of the Leh district, today forms the epicenter of tourism in Ladakh. With all its touristy comforts, Leh comes as a relief for the travelers who entered Ladakh via the tiring trans-Himalayan roads. Also, at 3505m (11,500 ft.) above the sea level it is a perfect place to get acclimatized to the great heights & rarefied atmosphere of Ladakh and prepare oneself for the greater heights waiting ahead. The road to a wholesome Ladakh Darshan goes through Leh with modern facilities and amenities – market, hotels, cafes, buses/taxis, airport, hospitals etc.

Here, at over 14,000 ft (4200m), nature rendered the Pangong canvas with its childlike creativity – the clear waters strikingly changing from refreshing turquoise to somber gray, while mirroring the surroundings that hover over and around it. The transitions till the sunset following the spectacular sunrise on this natural marvel are all worth being-eye-witness to and certainly make perfect desktop-images.

Pangong is approx. 140 Kms. away from Leh, situated at an altitude of 14,000 ft. above the sea level. The Pangong Lake is around 71 Kms. long but only 25% of the Lake is in India rest falls in the share of China. The vast and serene lake displays a spectacular color variation from dark blue to turquoise green during the day.

The journey past the deep gorges between the Ladakh and the Zanskar ranges, along the legendary Indus river, on the good-bad tarmacked surfaces, following rocky-dirty-sandy trails, cutting across the stretches of the Tibetan Plateau and the Rupshu valley, and always accompanied by the usual unnerving heights and scenic country delights. It puts one close up to the exotica that Ladakh treasures between its mighty and rugged Himalayan shelterbelts.

This Southeast to the Leh circuit is a little off-track and less traveled compared to that of Pangong Tso but any such quantitative analogies are injustice to these natures’ marvel. While on the move and/or during one’s brief halts this circuit is the place to get intimate with the natural waters, and the thriving wildlife and the camping nomadic herdsman of the yesteryears thriving on the upper reaches of the Ladakh. Of course, as the name suggests Tso Moriri lake forms the highlight.

Nubra [meaning ‘flower valley’ in Tibetan] is a wide fertile valley with a beautiful green terrain and referred to as the ‘valley of flowers’. It was once a part of the Central Asian trade route when around 10000 horses and double-humped camels hoofed its floors.

Getting a hold on the beacon highway, going over the worlds Highest Motorable Pass, the Khardung La, north of the Leh, towards the Nubra valley circuit promises one the scenic surprises that will slap down the ‘barren moonscape impression of Ladakh’ that washes ones mind up till and until this journey.

After overcoming a probable highest motorable road one is welcomed to the charm of the Nubra with the landscape changing from the barren mountains to the lush green and the desert with a snow-capped backdrop!!

Tour Of Nubra: 2 Days with overnight stay at Guesthouses or camps with basic facilities.

Dha-Hanu circuit, lying 160 kms to the north-west of Leh, is an interesting alternate to the conventional route to Kargil via Mulbekh & Shergol. It is a scenic country drive along the river Indus, gorges, beaches, confluence of Indus and Shayok and many beautiful villages like Khalsey, Domkhor, Achinathang etc. However, out of the beautiful villages that are worth more than a ‘dekko’, only two villages of Dha and Beema are open to tourists to explore.

The amazing Drokpa community forms the highlight of this circuit and hence the name “the Drokpa Circuit”. There are factors that differentiate Drokpa belt from the rest of the Ladakh. Drokpa people have the features of pure Aryans, language similar to that spoken by immigrants from Gilgit and Drass and culture and religious practices resembling that of ancient pre-Buddhist animistic religion of Bonchos. Interestingly, the Drokpa people avoid cow and its products. Three times in a year, they have a celebration of the harvest called as Bono-na Festival made lively by the songs, hymns, and ancient rituals. The warm microclimate of the place blesses it with two crops a year and fruits like apricots, apples, walnuts and grape.

Tour of Dha Hanu Circuit : 2 Days with overnight stay in the tents.[from Leh]

Changthang is the extension of Tibetan Plateau into Ladakh and home of the nomadic herdsmen, Changpa (Khampa) and their flocks of pashmina goats. The vast wilderness of Changthang is one of India’s five bio-diversity regions. The uplands of this cold desert averages 4430m (14600 ft) and acts as a basin for few of the highest and most beautiful lakes around the world. Lakes and wetlands of the Changthang are habitat of many a rare and elusive wild animals and birds.

Tso Moriri lake: At 15,500 ft above sea level, nestled between the snow-dusted peaks, lie the cool and calm waters in the basin carved on the higher Himalayas. One of the highest lakes of the world, Tso Moriri, is 28 km long and 8 km at its widest and 4 peaks viz. Mentok and Kharlung on the right and Karchu and Langsar on the left looms over it.The lake forms the breeding ground for the bar headed goose, brahminy duck, pintails, black-necked cranes. The Kiang [Tibetan wild ass], foxes, hares and of course, the delightful Marmots are not difficult to be seen as it is surrounded by a wildlife reserve. The Khampa [Changpa] nomads, too, inhabits this region with their cattle and yaks and their temporary dwellings.

Tso Kar lake: At a distance of around 80 km from Tso Moriri, lies a spectacular lake ringed by the white salt, which it has been churning since ages, and no wonder called as the ‘White Lake’.

Tour of Tso Moriri & Tso Kar Circuit: 2-3 days Jeep Safari [from Leh] Trek: 2-3 weeks 

Lake Pangong-Tso is an inland brackish water lake, 130-odd km long and hardly 6m at its widest, with its major portion stretched into Tibet [China]. The allowed 7 km long view some exploration along its southern shore, till Spangmik, however, more than makes-up for the lost territory’s experience.

Here, at over 14,000 ft (4200m), nature rendered the Pangong canvas with its childlike creativity – the clear waters strikingly changing from refreshing turquoise to somber gray, while mirroring the surroundings that hover over and around it. The transitions till the sunset following the spectacular sunrise on this natural marvel are all worth being-eye-witness to and certainly make perfect desktop-images

Tours of Pangong Circuit: 1-2 days [from Leh]

Private camping is prohibited nearby the lake.

Tourists aren’t allowed beyond Spangmik.

The Alchi circuit lies to the west of Leh on the Leh – Kargil highway and along the Indus. Compared to other circuits in Ladakh, the terrain is gentler and almost all sights are within the reach of an excursion.

This circuit sees several monasteries of significance – religiously, symbolically, aesthetically & location. All these parameters of significance actually meet at Alchi, the highlight of the trip. However, beside Alchi it goes past some interesting shrines and sights too : Gurudwara Pathar Sahib, housing a legendary rock mould with imprints of sitting Guru Nanak Dev; Magnetic Hill that defies gravity; one of the worlds most endangered heritage sites at Basgo; the brilliant pillar-like sandstone exteriors at the Lamayuru Gompa and the moonscapes en route the same; confluence of the Indus and the Zanskar rivers – the life line for the destination in the first place etc.

The clichés like “there is no short cut to success” and “the success is a journey not (only) a destination” make sense if one opts for this perfect gateway to the ‘land of high passes’ or ‘high altitude desert’ or ‘little Tibet’ that Ladakh is. Around 475 kms of apparently unending and unnerving overland journey goes through thousands of cascading vistas – cascading rivers, waterfalls, high passes, lakes, villages, transition from a green coniferous landscape to a barren rocky one etc.