After Nubra, it was back to Leh to Delhi to Frankfurt to Chicago. A long trip, both in Ladakh and in the air, but immensely satisfying.

It's always difficult coping with altitude, strange food, drinking only bottled or boiled water, using bushes for toilet facilities and hiking to the top of a mountain....but so worthwhile! And, what a sense of accomplishment.

I love countries where people can still be seen in their native costumes; interacting with them; and meeting fellow travelers from other countries.

Continue reading "The Trip is Over - Ladakh" »

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The drive to the Nubra Valley from Leh, goes over the Kardung La pass, considered the highest road in the world at 18,372 feet above sea level. Everyone stops their vehicle at the top for photo ops, puts on their warmest jacket, and staggers around, gasping for breath.

Out hats are off to everyone who climbs at, and above, that altitude! There is always a risk of high-altitude pulmonary and cerebral edema, headaches and hypertension

The Nubra Valley was one of the last staging areas for the caravan trade with Central Asia, The climate is a little milder than the rest of Ladakh, and there are still small amount of Bactrian (double-humped) camels. You can even take a camel trek from Hunder (a town in the valley) for a day. I love to watch camels....they have such great personalities and make wonderful noises.

Continue reading "Nubra Valley, Ladakh" »

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From Lamaryu, it was off to Dha Hanu, an area only 19 Kilometers from the Pakistani border. It doesn't take much imagination to visualize the military presence in that area. Dha Hanu is in the Kargil region west of Leh. The people are of pure Indo-Aryan stock, perhaps descending from the army of Alexander of Macedonia. There are only about 2,000 people settled in five villages high above the river.

Once again, we made camp, this time in the midst of trees laden with ripe apricots. I got a major "fiber-fix" - picking apricots, eating apricots, for two days. They were SO delicious.

Continue reading "Dha Hanu, Ladakh" »

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The last day of our trek, we came down to a road where our jeep was waiting, and continued to Lamayuru. You have to cross the Fatu-la pass, an extremely scary winding road. It was hard to decide whether or not I was more frightened going up the mountain or going down the other side.

The first sight of Lamayuru gompa and town was stupifying. (The work that went into building anything in (and on) these stark mountains, and that people live here is amazing.) It is the oldest monastery in Ladakh, belonging to the 10th century with some richly furnished rooms..... .

Continue reading "Lamayuru Gompa, Ladakh" »

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I love destination trekking - going from place-to-place, and don't even mind sleeping in tents. What I do mind is, getting out of the tents at night for toilet reasons. Anyone who camps knows exactly what I mean. You have to unzip your sleeping bag, unzip the tent, put on Tevas, find a flashlight, and make your way to a toilet area - looking out for snakes and other beasties!

But this was going to be a a "piece of cake" - we had a four or five mules - plus mule tender - to haul everything, a guide, and, not one, but two cooks/assistants (from Nepal). View image

Footloose Travel's local operator consulted us on every aspect of the trek including: what foods we liked; any allergies; and was very patient answering our questions.

The Sham trekking route is a very well-traveled . It was fun meeting other trekking groups, from other countries, and "schmoozing", comparing notes and getting new ideas.

Continue reading "Sham Trek" »

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We spent our first few days in Leh trying to breath at an altitude of over 11,000 feet - ex-Marine always has trouble with altitude sickness, even with "Diamox" (a prescription drug for altitude) - resting as much as possible.

Leh is situated on a plateau formed by the Indus river and was founded in the 14th century by a king who built over 108 chortens (or stupas).

Buddhism is the major religion in Ladakh which emerged in the third century BC, and we did a lot of day-tripping to different "gompas" (monasteries). Almost every "gompa" is built UP on a hill in some remote destination. The reason was that seclusion is the essence of Buddhism. Therefore, gompas were built high on the mountains because the higher their faith was, the closer they would be to the diety.

Continue reading "In Leh" »

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Thinking about some exotic place to go this summer? Somewhere reasonable (if not downright cheap)? How about Ladakh. It is a land of monasteries or "gompas" (as they are called there)...surreal landscape...situated in Northern India. Ladakh is surrounded by the Zanskar range in the South, Ladakh range in the North and great Karakoram range in the Northwest

The Indus Valley civilization is one of the oldest in the world and dates back around 5,000 years. Centuries ago, it was a place where merchants from Tibet, Kashmir and China passed through, exchanging ideas and goods. Now, we tourists pass through, exchanging ideas and taking a little of Ladkh back with us.

I had always thought of Ladakh as a barren, lunar place to go but glaciers feed the many streams and irrigate the fields. This creates brilliant patches of green valleys against the lunar background.

Continue reading "Ladakh, India - A Summer Destination" »

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