trek ladakh
14,000 strong, mainly Buddhist population, live.
Spread over an estimated geographical area of 5000 sq kms of mountainous territory, Zanskar is surrounded by high-rise mountains and deep gorges.It remains inaccessible for nearly 8 months a year due to heavy winter snowfall resulting in closure of all access passes, including the Penzi-la. This geographical isolation and the esoteric nature of Buddhism practised here have enabled its inhabitants to preserve their identity, so that to-day Zanskar is the least interfered with microcosms of Ladakh. Closer observation of the lifestyle evokes admiration for a people who have learnt to live in perfect harmony with the unique.
About 20 kms south-east of Rangdum stands As the Zanskar road winds down the steep slopes of Penzi-la to the head of the Stod valley, the majestic ” Drang-Drung” glacier looms into full view. A long and winding river of ice and snow, “Drang-Drung” is perhaps the largest glacier in Ladakh, outside the Siachen formation. It is from the cliff-like snout of this extensive glacier that the Stod or Doda tributary of the Zanskar River rises.
chadar trek In winter when the road to Zanskar is closed by snow on the high passes, the only overland route to Padum is by walking along the frozen river, a multi-day hike that is now sold as an adventure activity called the Chadar (‘ice sheet’) Trek. This trek will eventually be rendered obsolete once the road from Chiling to Padum is completed.
chadar trek ladakh
Now, I should make it clear that the Zanskar river is big and fast-flowing. For most of its length between Chilling and the Zanskar valleythe river is confined within a steep canyon. If the idea of walking over frozen river ice with a large pack on your back and very cold rushing water a few inches below your feet is terrifying, then you are not alone. People sometimes die on the chadar trek, usually local porters who carry goods on the river for their livelihood and can’t afford to be conservative. The hike from Chilling to the Zanskar valley takes more than a week, and at night porters usually sleep in caves in the canyon walls.
Zanskar is a tri-armed valley system situated between the Great Himalayan Range and the Zanskar mountains, the three arms radiating star-like towards the west, north and south from a wide central expanse. Here the Zanskar River comes into being by the confluence of its two Himalaya n tributaries, the Stod/Doda and the Lingti-Tsarap rivers. It is mainly along the course of this valley system that the region’s approximately
