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                LADAKH TRAVEL GUIDE

Ladakh is a province in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir sandwiched
between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and the main Great Himalayas to
the south, inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent. It is one of the
most sparsely populated regions in Kashmir. Historically, the region included the
Baltistan (Baltiyul) valleys

Ladakh is renowned for its remote mountain beauty and Buddhist culture. It is
sometimes called "Little Tibet" as it has been strongly influenced by Tibetan culture.
In the past Ladakh gained importance from its strategic location at the crossroads of
important trade routes, but since the Chinese authorities closed the borders with
Tibet and Central Asia in the 1960, international trade has dwindled. Since 1974 the
Indian Government has encouraged tourism in Ladakh.

Rock carvings have been found in many parts of Ladakh, showing that the area has
been inhabited from the Neolithic times. Ladakh's earliest inhabitants consisted of a
mixed Indo-Aryan population of Mons and Dards, who find mention in the works of
Herodotus, [?] Nearchus, Megasthenes, Pliny, Ptolemy, and the geographical lists of
the Puranas. Around the 1st century, Ladakh was a part of the Kushana empire.
Buddhism came to western Ladakh via Kashmir in the 2nd century when much of
eastern Ladakh and western Tibet was still practising the Bon religion. The 7th
century Buddhist traveler Xuanzang also describes the region in his accounts.

In the 8th century, Ladakh was involved in the clash between Tibetan expansion
pressing from the East and Chinese influence exerted from Central Asia through the
passes, and suzerainty over Ladakh frequently changed hands between China and
Tibet. In 842 Nyima-Gon, a Tibetan royal representative annexed Ladakh for himself
after the break-up of the Tibetan empire, and founded a separate Ladakh dynasty.
During this period Ladakh underwent Tibetanization resulting in a predominantly
Tibetan population. The dynasty spearheaded the "Second Spreading of Buddhism"
importing religious ideas from north-west India, particularly from Kashmir.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Time zone           IST (UTC+5:30)
Area                     45,110 km² (17,417 sq mi)[ß]
Largest city         Leh
Population          270,126 (2001)
Density                6/km² (16/sq mi)
Language(s)      Ladakhi, Urdu


PLACE TO VISIT


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 3,650 meters (11,975 feet).

Drass - is a tiny town in the Kargil District of Jammu and Kashmir, India. The town,
reportedly the second coldest inhabited town in the world shot into prominence in
the summer of 1999 following Pakistani backed incursions into the Jammu and
Kashmir. The Kargil War saw the town being shelled by infiltrators and the war
ended with Indian Army recapturing the areas surrounding the town and the kargil
district.

Inhabitants of Drass are of Dard descent, an Indo-Aryan race believed to have
originally migrated to Ladakh from Central Asia. They speak Shina, an Indo-Aryan
language.

Kargil -  district is nestled in the Himalayas, giving it a cool, temperate climate.
Summers are warm with cool nights, while winters are long and cold with
temperatures often dropping to -40 °C with recorded temperatures of -60°C in
Drass, especially in the tiny town of Drass which is situated 56 km from the Kargil
town. The Zanskar plateau is even colder, thus making it a near-uninhabitable place
for humans to stay, except for the hardy Khampas. The entire Kargil district is spread
over 14,086 km².

Zanskar -  covers an area of some 7,000 square kilometres (2,700 square
miles), at a height of between 3,500 and 7,000 metres (11,500–23,000 feet). It
consists of the country lying along the two main branches of the Zanskar river. The
first, the Doda, has its source near the Pensi-la (4,400 metres) (14,450 feet)
mountain-pass, and then flows south-eastwards along the main valley leading
towards Padum, the capital of Zanskar.

Zangla -  is a town in Zanskar, in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. It is located 35
km from Padum. The town is the nodal point on the popular Padum-Strongdey-
Zangla-Karsha-Padum round trip.

Rangdum - is a valley situated 3657 m above the sea level, in an isolated region
of the Suru valley in the Ladakh region in the state of Jammu and Kashmir . At one of
its sides are the colorful hills while on the other side are rocky mountains and
glaciers. It is located midway between Kargil and Padum.

Padum - Is the largest town and administrative centre of Zanskar
The town is located at 3,500m (11,640ft) in the Himalayas. There are several small
villages around Padum.

The traditional heart of the village is below the gompa where two large chortens
stand above old buildings. A road was constructed in 1980 across Pensi-La. Padum
has several hotels and restaurants meant for tourists.


HOW TO REACH


Buses run directly to Leh from either Manali or Srinagar. The sensible choice from
Manali is to take the bus that goes as directly as possible as there are few sites
worth visiting until near Leh. This is the choice that most travelers will want to take
due to the tense security situaton in Kashmir, however the road is only open from
June to mid October due to snow fall. There are shared taxis from manali which start
early in the morning and reach Leh in the night. Buses, however, stop overnight in
Sarchu. Coming from Srinagar there are a few interesting places to stop on route
(Lamayuru and Alchi that offer accommodation). Status of both roads can be
checked anytime at the official Leh website

Daily flights to Leh are run by Indian, Jet Airways and Air Deccan from Delhi,
Srinagar, Jammu and elsewhere. These are, however, subject to inclement weather
and may be cancelled at any time, keep your schedule flexible. Altitude sickness is
also a worry given the altitude.