People and land
Ladakh is located in northern India, in the Himalayas. The capital is Leh, which was our base for the first week we spent there between July 6th and August 15th, 1991. We visited the Lamdon School in Leh and were invited to the inauguration of their new science lab.
We also visited the many temples in the area — Alchi, Hemis, Likir, Stok and Rizong — whose Buddhist imagery and mandalas are fantastic.
Trekking from Hemis to Darcha
We enjoyed a trek between Hemis and Darcha, which took about 11 days to reach the road from Hemis to Manali. Starting from Martselang, near Hemis, we climbed our first pass, the Kongmaru‑La (5,150 m), with great views of Shang Sumdo. The Nimaling plain was still green despite its altitude of 4,700 m, and from there you can see the Kang Yatze (6,400 m).
The next day we crossed Zalung Karpo La (5,100 m), passing Konka Wangpo. Sorra, our arrival point, is a village used only in summer (4,200 m). We then spent a full rest day in the Dat valley.
From Dat we climbed the Yar La (4,900 m) past Dango. The next stop was Lungmo Che; as we approached the high Tibetan plateau we were lucky enough to spot a wild kiang. We continued on to Jakang and rejoined the road from Hemis to Manali.
