Leh, India
Trip Start
Jun 26, 2006
1
52
55
Trip End
Ongoing
Leh,
India
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
hanging glacier
http://www.jktourism.org/cities/ladakh/getting/index.htm
on the way to leh
we started out around 6am from manali. our initial climb took us up into the nearby mountains and although the weather was somewhat overcast we still got some view of the peaks and their glaciers. the first pass is called rohtang pass and it offered great views and a look at high altitude village life. locals make camp up here during the warm months to graze livestock.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rohtang_Pass
after rohtang we continued on to another little town where we had breakfast and experienced our first checkpoint. checkpoints are where foreigners have to have their passports checked and recorded. there were several along the way due to the sensitive nature of the area to india. these areas are very close to the borders of pakistan and china and are the cause of much tension and conflict. after breakfast we found out we would be delayed while the 1st damage bridge of our trip was repaired. an hour and a half later we were on our way. the landscaped changed to a winding road following a swollen and raging glacial fed river. although still overcast we could make out many of the jagged peaks and the hanging glaciers that rested upon them. we climbed again and went up and over another pass baralacha (4,892 m, 16,050 ft)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bara-lacha-la
top of the pass
the weather became less cloudy and the rain stopped. we went thru 2 more check points and had lunch. the road became very narrow and the dropoffs steep. the skill with which our driver passed other buses and trucks would have been amazing if it hadn't been so scary. after a beautiful sunset it began to get cold. we came upon a small group of parked vehicles as the last of the light faded away. they were stopped because another bridge was out.
we were told to prepare for a night on the bus as our camp was still quite a few kms on the other side of the water. we all got our warm clothes out of our backpacks. i went to look at the bridge and it didn't look good. the steel plates covering the frame of the bridge had been torn out of place exposing the 5 foot gaps between girders. we were just settling down for an uncomfortable night on the bus when the driver's assistant excitedly boarderd the bus and told everyone to get off. the driver started the bus up and before we could all get off was heading for the bridge (i guess he didn't want to let the traffic from the other side get the jump on him). we watched as the headlights revealed the plates which had been placed back in their positions and rested gingerly on the frame. the driver slowly crossed the bridge and you could hear the plates moving but thankfully none shifted enough to drop between girders and we were across and on our way again.
sleeper
we arrived at our camp around 11:30pm. camp was a group of canvas tents with cots. a meal was included but we passed as the price had been severely inflated. we were told that we were leaving at 6 so we hit it. at 4300m it was a very cold night and our summer bags helped but we were a little stiff by the morning. what a sunrise though! the climate had changed dramatically to high (very high) desert. with no clouds we soon felt the warmth of the sun. the landscape reminded us of death valley (plus 10,000 feet). iron rich mountains and a wide rolling valley.
camp
kids playing a game in a small village
following the source of the zanskar river we made our way down to leh.
as we descended we started to see ancient looking stupas (buddhist monuments). we also started to see houses with a tibetan design. flat roofs with ornate wood work around the windows. we have been considering a flat roof when we finally build a little house and we we're immediately inspired by what we saw.
on the way down to leh
we also passed by 2 spectacular gompas (buddhist temples/monasteries). the architecture was sublime. the ladakh area is home to the ladakh people who have much in common with tibetans. which is evident in their culture and architecture. historically they were occupied by china or tibet. today they are occupied by india. it seem to be a fairly amicable relationship but as more indians move into the area there may be some strains.
hanging glacier
leh gompa
as we got close to leh we started to follow the indus river. roaring with glacial silt it joins the zanskar river near leh. together the two provide water for hundreds of communities and millions of people in india and pakistan. its devastating to think what the climate change is going to mean for all of those people. following the river a few more click we arrived in leh. bigger than we expected for being so remote but not too big. disembarking the bus we looked around and noticed the great views.
we decided to stay in changspa which is up above town a little bit (because we weren't high enough). it offered nice views of the valley, mts, and town and it was were a lot of people in town to trek stayed. we ended up in a little guest house with a local family. it was very interesting to see how they lived. they had a great garden and a very intricate irrigation system that fed the garden from a small glacial stream that had been diverted from the melt. the whole valley used this complex yet simple system to create an almost lush environment in the high desert.
our plan was to take one of several treks in the area after a few days of rest and acclimatization. a few days turned into a few weeks and although we were active (yoga, day hikes, climbing up to stupas and gompas) we weren't motivated to take a trek. we were very comfortable in our little room with a view. we got into a nice rountine something we hadn't been able to do for a while. very interesting and friendy people whether they were the local lakakhis, nepalese, or indians. small town vibe with a buddhist feel.
baby at a festival
with only a few days left i got itchy to do something and after looking at it day after day i decided to to a climb stok kangri is the tallest peak in the area (6120m or 20,078ft) but it isn't a technical ascent (so they said). the stok kangri story will be separate for those interested.
amy made a wise choice and took a meditation course while i was gone. when i got back we had to more days to make our travel arrangements and say good bye to leh. we had been there just over 3 weeks. longer than we'd spent anywhere thus far. it was beginning to feel like home but such is the life of a traveller, time to move on. we had to get back to delhi and take care of a few minor things like getting a ghanaian visa, being innoculated with yellow fever(some say against) and making more travel arrangements (planes, trains, and buses) in preparation for our journey to africa...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladakh
see lots more photos at
http://mountainsouls.smugmug.com/
