Ladakh : Little Tibet, land of lamas. Monasteries chortens and Maniwalls

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Part of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh is the third division. Each of the divisions, Jammu , Kashmir and Ladakh, has distinct cultures geographical terrain, religion and life style. It is often called “Little Tibet”. Ladakh derives its name from Tibetan “La Tags’ the land of high pass. Ladakh in the western Himalayas form the vast Tibetan plateau, a high altitude desert, Karakoram Ladakh and Zanaskar range. Ladakh is divided administratively into 2 districts Kargil and Leh.

The Landscape of Ladakh is adventurous, barren mountain. The altitude ranges from 9000ft to 24,000ft from Sea level. Atmosphere is generally dry.

Great Himalaya Range. Including the impressive Snowcapped peaks, NUN and KUN 7135 and 7087mtrs the highest peaks in the Kashmir Himalaya., the Zanaskar range to the south and the Indus Valley to the North. North Ladakh range, the Nubra and Shyok rivers drain the huge peaks of the eastern Karakoram, Rimo 7385mtrs, Teran Kangri 7464 mtrs. In the south east of Ladakh there are several Lakes Pangong Tso, which forms the border with Tibet and Tsomoriri  Tsokar. The highest peaks around Tsomoriri is Lungser Kangri 6655 m, Chhasser Kangri 6622 m and Lapgo 6405 m.

Ladakh is one of the most exotic destinations; Buddhism in central Ladakh has shaped the whole culture. Every few villages have their own monasteries with prayer flags

Ladakh has extensive potential for adventure such a Mountaineering, Trekking, Rafting , Mountain Biking and so on. First opened to Tourism in 1974.

It is divided into several regions and such regions, is at the cross-road of central Asia and still retains powerful traces of its history. The people have a deep traditional society and a strong sense of culture. Music and dancing is their great past-time and “CHANG” is their locally prepared drink, similar to beer.

People are very friendly and helpful , you will find every one greets you with “Joo-Lay", which means Hello, Goodbye, Please and Thank you.

Ladakh is also known for the spectacular Monastic Festivals major events in the evolution of Tibetan Buddhism. Thousands of people turn out in their colourful dress, best making every festival a “ CARNIVAL” of colors.

Ladakh Adventures:

Trekking In Ladakh: [ Book this Tour ]
 

Routes from Kargil and Drass lead to the scenic Zanskar mountains, which have excellent trekking trails including the one from Padam over the great Himalayas into Lahaul in Himachal Pradesh. Few of the high passes of Ladakh are clear of snow until July, and in certain remote valley areas it is better to cross the passes until the snow has fully melted. Nonetheless, most of the passes in the Ladakh can be crossed by the end of June, which is the best time to undertake an extended trek through Ladakh, Zanskar or out of Panikhar in the Suru valley.

The treks out of the Markha valley can be undertaken from the end of June when the snows melt on the higher passes. The Kongmaru La and the Dung Dung La remain open until the middle of October. However, a trek up the Markha valley could be undertaken throughout most of the year by avoiding the high passes and following the trail along the Zanskar River before heading up the valley.

If trekking over the Kanji La you must bring a tent. If traveling to the Zanskar valley at the margins of the seasons it is possible to trek over the Pentse La and find shelter in the villages en route to Padum, although you must bring your own food supplies. Before undertaking the trek over the Kanji La, it is important that you are well acclimatized. Plan on spending a few additional nights at Rangdum before crossing the pass. Trekkers better not make river crossings between Rangdum and the base of the pass in late June and July when the spring snow melt causes the rivers to flood.

 

River Rafting On The Indus River [ Book this Tour ]

The river Indus and its tributaries - the Shayok, Zanskar and the Drass are the only water supply sources of Ladakh. The source of the Indus is the sacred Mount Kailash. It enters Ladakh near Demchok and, for about 100 km, flows slowly through the open, desert like valleys, forming small channels with marshland conditions at some places. As the river flows towards leh through gorges, nature takes its course and makes splashes of purple, green, blue, yellow and crimson on the cliffs. It is a breath-taking sight that can never be forgotten, nor replicated anywhere else.

One more thing river Indus is famous for are rafting trips that happen on its water levels in between the end of June and late August. Rafters can take up two different stretches of the Indus river: one is from Spitok to the Indus- Zanskar confluence at Nimmu, and from Nimmu to the ancient temple complex at Alchi. Experienced rafters looking for more challenging route can try out the route between Alchi and Khalsi.

 

Mountaineering & Ice Climbing In Ladakh  [ Book this Tour ]

The Suru and Zanskar valleys provide some of the more spectacular and difficult climbing in Ladakh. The Nun Kun Massif is one of the most frequent climbing areas of the region and is booked out for months ahead, sometimes years, by climbing expeditions.

The approach to the twin peaks is from the Kargil-Padum Road, about 70-km south of Kargil. The main approach is either from Tangole or Gulmadong. Some expeditions have also approached from Parkutse along the Kangri Glacier. To reach the base camp for Kun it is for the climbers necessary to cross the Suru River.
 

Lakes in Ladakh [ Book this Tour ]

The lakes of Ladakh are wondrous. The biggest and the most magically photogenic is Pangong Lake (14,000 ft.) It is 150 km long and 2 to 5 km wide. Only one third of it is in India; the rest is in Tibet and offers some great options of high altitude jeep safari in Ladakh.

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