Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both.
- Robert Frost
One lazy Saturday afternoon, I lay in bed contemplating over a similar choice - Spiti or Leh! Choosing between the two arid gems is hard when your attempts to search the internet results in a plethoric information overload and gets even harder when you suffer from FOMO. My proclivities were towards the lesser-explored Spiti and I had wanted to visit Spiti before its untarnished beauty is tainted by the skyrocketing tourist influx. However, winter sets in by mid of October and there was a good chance that I might miss Chandra Tal due to the routes being closed down. Going all the way to Spiti and missing Chandra Tal would be a sin. After weighing all the options, I eventually decided to save Spiti for the pleasanter months of June-July and decided to backpack my way to Ladakh.
Be it making an impulsive decision to do a 10 days long solo trip just a week before the trip or having no itinerary/plan in place or deciding to hitchhike my way through Ladakh, this trip was everything I had never done before and that added to the thrills that were welling up inside me. With just a week left, I couldn't do my research on where-what-how of Ladakh. I neither knew the geography of the place nor the commuting and stay options available nor a rough estimate of the expenses. More so, I wasn't even aware what was awaiting me in Ladakh. Until then, Ladakh only meant seeing the azure waters of the famous Pangong lake, thanks to Bollywood.
Landed in Delhi. What next ? A road trip to Leh is incomplete if the legendary Srinagar-Leh-Manali circuit is not done. However, due to recent abrogation of article 370, the Kashmir valley became a high tension zone and the Srinagar-Leh highway was rendered non-pliable. I had to anyways return back via Leh-Manali-Delhi route, so I chose to fly to Leh. The airfare was comparatively cheaper and by flying one way to Leh, I would also get to witness the Aerial view of the Karakoram-Himalayan range. I would rather let the pictures speak for itself than me trying to explain how magical the sight was.
Keep calm and Acclimatise : Juxtaposed between the mighty Himalayas and the great Karakoram range, Leh is located at an altitude of 11,500 ft which demands at least 1 day for acclimatizing especially when you land directly at that high altitude. So Day 1 was all about getting a whiff of the people of Leh and their lifestyle as well as allowing my body to adjust to the reduced air density. I did that by restaurant hopping and roaming around the city market while I put myself on a Diamox course and stayed sufficiently hydrated. Dotted with monasteries, whitewashed houses on narrow lanes,monks treading the streets in maroon robes, a bustling bazaar lined with souvenir shops and restaurants with the majestic Leh palace at the backdrop, the city in itself is a charm. My hunt for authentic Ladhaki food landed a bunch of friends I had made there and me in this restaurant name Alchi's kitchen. Spotting this place in itself was a task since it is located in an almost hidden narrow lane. The traditional decor coupled with the view of the mountains through the windows automatically kindles our appetite. Our initial excitement towards trying Ladhaki food gradually diminished as we started tasting the dishes. We tried Kambir - Ladhaki version of a stuffed bread, Chutagi - a dumpling stew and butter tea, which is the USP of Ladakh. They were disastrous, at least for my taste buds ! Of the lot, Kambir was a decent pick. I also utilized my time to find someone to tag along with for exploring places in and around Leh city the following day.
Before I get into further details of the trip, here are few pointers that anyone planning a Ladakh trip might want to know.
1. It's very important to Acclimate, how many ever times u visit Ladakh. The tablet Diamox helps but, water helps better, so stay hydrated.
2. Google AMS, HAPE, and HACE - Awareness is essential, never take Mountain sickness lightly.
3. It's normal for anyone to be tempted to smoke or drink especially to bear the cold weather, but please don't. Drinking causes dehydration and eventually AMS at high altitudes.
4. What to do when AMS hits: Although most places are very remote and isolated in Ladakh, there are army medical base camps at almost every prominent settlement. When AMS strikes, either descend immediately to a lower altitude or rush to one such medical camp.
5. Inner Line Permit: ILP is required to visit most of the protected areas in Ladakh. One can get this done online, www.lahdclehpermit.in and get the papers stamped in the DC office in Leh or get it done by the local tour operators. Make sufficient photocopies of the permit to be handed over at multiple check posts throughout the trip.
6. Carry sufficient woolens, most often it goes to sub-zero temperatures in Ladakh.
7. The snow is harsh, Sun is harsher - Carry moisturizers and cold cream for the night, but, never step out without applying sunscreen during the day. And possibly wear sun cap and sunglasses. I was applying sunscreen of SPF 50, and still I returned back super tanned.
8. Phone connectivity: Only BSNL postpaid connections work in Ladakh. Even that doesn't work in Tso Moriri. All postpaid connections work in Leh city.
9. In most places other than Leh city, electricity is available only between 7 pm and 11 pm. So carry a small head torch.
10. Travel light - Applies to any trip for that matter.
11. Bathe wherever there is a chance of getting hot water. Once we cross Leh city, forget getting hot water, gaining the will power to even bathe is a tough task.
12. Lastly, be a responsible traveler - travel green, do not litter and avoid wasting food and water. Ladhakis get their supplies all the way from Manali or Srinagar, so often food expenses take up a larger propotion.
13. Regarding stay, throughout Ladakh, you would find lots of travellers hostels and dormitories at a very affordable price, no worries there.
Around Leh city in a day: Early morning, frigid winds, shivering cold. That was enough for me to ditch my initial plan of hiring a 2-wheeler to visit places around Leh city. I instead, chose to hitchhike in a shared taxi with 2 girls from Nagaland. After visiting the Leh Palace and few Stupas and Gompas, it was almost noon when we hit the Leh-Kargil highway. Traipsing through the stunning mountains, we were following the Indus river to reach the Nimmo village which is around 35kms from Leh. Enroute we took a small halt at The hall of fame, a Kargil war memorial, and an even smaller halt at Guru Pathar Sahib Gurudwara.
Next in line was the magical Magnetic hill - a place that is so close to deceiving us into believing that Newton's gravity is messed up and make us start questioning the science we had always trusted ever since school. Imagine the confusion one would have when you get to witness a vehicle in neutral moving on its own along the road that appears to go uphill. People believe its because of the magnetic properties of the mountains but google gave a much more interesting explanation to this - optical illusion.
Driving further towards Nimmu vilage,we arrived at a vantage point where a greenish Indus river merged with a Cement-grey like Zanskar river. With clear blue sky on top, chestnut brown rugged mountains around and fluttering multicolored prayer flags along the highway, this confluence of Indus and Zanskar, called Sangam, was undoubtedly kaleidoscopic. The colors instantly lifts our moods and all I did was sit there and stare at this Shangri La of tranquility around.
From the time we entered the Leh-Kargil highway, I had been constantly oh-my-Goding at the awe-inspiring landsapes that looking at my bewilderment my driver rightly said "Eh toh sirf trailer hai madam ji". Little did I knw that the next few days of my trip had all the potential for a death-by-scenic-overload and it would do no justice if I were to pen it all down in a single post - part 2 will follow 😉
