Over 2000 Km by road, in around 10 days. Stunning landscapes, wonderful people. That sums up our Ladakh trip. But how did it actually work? How did we make it happen? Read on to find out! Leh, the capital of Ladakh , is accessible by air and road. Flying into Leh is the easiest, and time-saving option, while the road is the time consuming one, but with the added advantage of driving past some of the most beautiful landscapes in our country. Each option has much to recommend it, and we chose the road for just one reason – altitude sickness. Altitude sickness was one of my biggest concerns, since I suffer from motion-sickness. Yes, I do travel a lot, but that is despite my condition, and, over the years, have learnt how to handle it. I struggled with it when we visited Nathu-La in Sikkim, and wondered if I would be able to manage a week at the even higher altitudes that we would encounter in Ladakh. This was the reason we stuck to a basic plan, of only 9 days in Ladakh, thoug...
Pangong Tso, or Pangong Lake , situated at an elevation of about 4,300m (around 14,000ft), is the highest saltwater lake in the world. It is 134km long and covers an area of over 600 square metres. Only 40% of the lake lies within Ladakh. The rest is controlled by China. The lake is a picturesque sight, and is one of the most popular destinations in Ladakh. We set off from Leh at 9 AM, eager to be on the road once again. Passing the 17 th century Chemrey monastery along the way, I realized just how little of Ladakh we were actually seeing on this trip. We crossed the pass at Chang La (~17,000ft) and saw a different facet of Ladakh. The mountains were the constant, but now rivers and sandy beds alternated every now and then with muddy areas and lush green patches of vegetation. Spots of colour were added by wildflowers, yet another difference on this route. We spotted a number of yaks and horses grazing along the road, and were told that while the yaks belonged to herders, ...