We had been there a bit months ago for some days. Had been a long time desire to be there and spend some days at Leh. After 30 minutes of flight, we began to realize that this trip is going to be different. We were amazed from the views we seeing from the window of our seat. Real Himalayan beauty. Unfortunately I could not take photos at that moment.In 1 hr, we elevated to 12,000 ft of height !! The airport is controlled and maintained there by Indian army and its an Army Airport. No cameras etc are allowed inside so the airport. So It was different :)
Some background abt Leh. Leh was the capital of the Himalayan kingdom of Ladakh, now the Leh District in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India. The town is still dominated by the now ruined Leh Palace, former home of the royal family of Ladakh, which resembles a mini-Potala Palace. Leh is at an altitude of 3,500 meters.
Leh has a cold, arid climate with long, harsh winters from October to early March, with minimum temperatures well below freezing for most of the winter. The city gets occasional snowfall during winter. The weather in the remaining months is generally fine.
Some very unique census statistics. According to 1981 Census, 81.18 % of Leh District's population is Buddhist, 15.32 % Muslim, 2.99 % Hindus, 0.27 % Sikh and 0.23% Christians.
We went to stupa the same day. May be we shld not have gone the first day as its suggested to stay at hotel for the first day for good acclimatisation. I shld first paste a good photo of our resort . I shld say thats one on of the best resorts we could find there. Excellent food and good services. It was of wood and okay centrally heated. I liked all fod except the laddakhi tea. More of bad soup kind :(.
The stupa we saw was shanti stupa and was at a bit height from the city central. This was the second time I saw stupa after Sarnath.
We took rest that day and prepared for the big drive to Khardungla pass, highest motorable road. Khardung La (la means pass in Tibetan) (elevation 5359 m) is a high mountain pass located in the Ladakh region, Jammu and Kashmir, India. The international spelling is used here, but it is locally spelt "Khardong La".
The pass on the Ladakh Range lies north of Leh and is the gateway to the Shyok and Nubra valleys. The Siachen Glacier lies partway
up the latter valley. Built in 1976, it was opened to motor vehicles in 1988 and has since seen many automobile, motorbike and mountain biking expeditions. Maintained by the Border Roads Organisation, the pass is strategically important to India as it is used to carry essential supplies to the Siachen.Khardung La is situated 37 km by road from Leh. The first 24 km, as far as the South Pullu check point, are paved. From there to the North Pullu check point about 15 km beyond the pass the roadway is primarily loose rock, dirt, and occasional rivulets of snow melt.
We were not able to stay there longer as we felt we needed more oxygen. Thanks to the army medical officers for helping my mother and wife with oxygen supply. Yeah a bit risky. We went down withing 10 minutes. But not before taking some family pictures in front of this board :)
The same day we did some shopping in the evening and some really good tibetian food :)
The next day had a big aim. The place I wanted to see from many many years. Pangong lake. The images itself speak. I mean at first one can't realize that such place exists. So much near to the nature.
Pangong lake can be reached in a five-hour drive from Leh, most of it on a rough and dramatic mountain road. The road
traverses the third-highest pass in the world, the Changla pass, where army sentries and a small teahouse greet visitors. The spectacular lakeside is open during the tourist season, from May to September. A special permit is required to visit the lake. While Indian nationals can obtain individual permits, others must have group permits (with a minimum of four persons) accompanied by an accredited guide; the tourist office in Leh issues the permits for a small fee. For security reasons, India does not permit boating. Now next just see the images. I mean amazing !!!!I felt some one has made so live 3D paitings. I have never ever seen such a place in my all travel trips. We did face some health issues due to extreme height, less pressure and oxygen.
One more thing I shld mention here. Army there is extremely helpful. They live in such miserable conditions. Its not the resources, but the natural conditions are so harsh. But they are really very very helpful. A must visit place for anyone. Shld be in the list of "100 Places to visit before you die".
