A Memorable Evening at Nubra Valley

Snow capped mountains of Himalaya always fascinates me and it was yet another fantastic trip during 23-30 June 2018. This time, we had opted for Ladakh region in the Great Himalaya, located in Jammu & Kashmir state of India. 

We were travelling in and around Leh, the main city of Ladakh. On June 25, 2018, we decided to visit Nubra Valley, appr. 160 KM away from Leh city.

Nubra Valley has an ancient history. During 2 BC till  15 century, Chinese merchants used to transport  goods on  camel’s back and were travelling across the cold and tough terrain of Himalayas, through Tibet. The goods, mainly the precious ‘Silk’ would move further on this trading path, till the Middle East Countries of those days. This was a long, strenuous trading path named as ‘Silk route’. With the advent of many developments in trading patterns and platforms all over the world in later days, this route lost its trading significance, but the name still remains as such. The name sounds silky smooth, but the terrain is very difficult to access even now in 21 century, despite we have many modern amenities. Travelling on Silk route is not smooth with mountain roads with  many hairpin curves,  snow fall, fluctuating  weather, land slides…etc  

Silk Route

Our journey to Nubra valley started at early morning from Leh. It was a long drive of nearly 160 km, through the rough dry, dusty roads.  We encompassed few green hamlets on the way, where there are small villages.  

It is thrilling to note that, this route crosses ‘Khardung La Pass’ , which is at 17982 ft elevation  from sea level and it is the highest motorable road in the world! Wonderful it was, we got down to take few snaps of picturesque Himalayas, moving clouds around, snow fall, avalanche, snow capped mountains….bundle of Himalayan splendor!  There is a canteen at Khargung La Pass and we had hot soup and momos to the beat the cold.

From Khardung La Pass, it takes almost 4 hours to reach Nubra Valley.  It is located between the Ladakh and Karakoram mountains. The rivers Shoyak and Siyachin have created a green belt in Nubra valley. Despite, adverse conditions and   very less suitable land  available for agriculture, local people cultivate  Wheat, Barley, Mustard Seeds and  vegetables. 

We reached Nubra valley by noon. Our accommodation was booked at Hotel Mountain Camp. It was a silent, picturesque place and we had a wonderful stay in fully equipped tents. 

In Nubra valley, tourists could enjoy local cultural show.  Though we did not understand the local language, the simple music and rhythm of ‘Tama’ a local drum really enthralled us.

We were told that, Ladakhis  are  happiest  people in India. They believe in community living, share agriculture work and support each other and they are content  with low income. However, this trend is changing with the advent of commercial activities everywhere. Locals say that   lot of construction activities and infrastructure development is happening in the region and this spoils not only the environment but also the impeccable culture of the region.

Double humped camels of Nubra Valley

Though Ladakh is part of India, it has very different lifestyle. Further, most of the people follow Buddhism and their culture and beliefs are influenced by Tibetan lifestyle. There are many Buddhist temples and Monasteries in Ladakh. 

A  Ladakhi Dance

Ladakhi people are very warm and their hospitality is outstanding.  Main source of their income was agriculture till recent past. Tourism is their important source of income now days. They take care of tourists very well. Since the winter is too cold to bear  in Ladakh region, most of them go to lower levels like Jammu in winter.

How to go to Nubra Valley:
There are flights from Delhi to Leh airport. Local transportation is available in the airport. Online booking is possible for accommodation and travel assistance.

Hemamala.B, Mysore