After a yummy breakfast of steaming idlis at trek leader Jayant's house early in the morning the group departed for Mumbai airport at 7 am. The group boarded the 9.25 am indigo flight to Chandigarh with high hopes and enthusiasm. We landed at Chandigarh airport around 11.15 am, where our driver Urgen Lama was eagerly waiting for us.
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| The gang after landing at Chandigarh airport. Our driver was waiting here to drive us to Solang |
Our thirteen member group departed for Solang (8500 feet) around 12 noon. We halted for lunch at one of the hotels on the highway and gorged ourselves on some tasty punjabi food. Post lunch our pace got slower as we hit the Ghat section towards Himachal. This turned out to be a long and tiring journey and we finally reached our destination at Solang around 2.00 am in the night. We were glad to hit the bed and were snoring in no time.
After a good night's sleep, we woke up fully rested and were pleasantly surprised to see the snow capped tips of friendship and kshitidhar peaks from our room balcony.
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| View of the friendship and kshitidhar peaks in Himachal from our hotel balcony at Salong. |
Salong is a nice village with good facilities for activities like skiing and paragliding. I would strongly recommended it over Manali if you are looking for a quiter and less commercial place to spend your vacation.After a yummy breakfast at iceland hotel, we collected our packed lunch and proceeded to the acclimatization trek to Patalsu peak, which is at an altitude of 13800 feet. We crossed the Beas river and the Solang village and started ascending the steep slopes of Patalsu. The view of the surrounding mountains and the solang valley below was heavenly. After trekking about 4 hours we had covered only 50% of the ascent and it started drizzling. The group decided to turn back so we can reach the hotel before dark. On the way back we enjoyed our packed lunch on a green meadow. We reached our hotel by 5 pm and settled down for the day. We tucked into bed after a sumptuous dinner all excited about our road trip to Leh the following day.
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| Crossing the Beas River |
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| The steep ascent to Patalsu peak begins |
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| Lunch Break |
Sep 15 2014 - day 3
We left from Salong at 9.30 am for our destination Jispa (10500 feet). It was a 7 hour drive through a scenic route via Gulaba, Rohtang pass, Tandi (last petrol pump before Ladakh), Chandrabhaga river sangam and Keylong. This route is so scenic that you feel like stopping every 10 minutes for photographs. All of us in the group were going beyond the Rohtang pass on the Manali Leh highway for the first time. We had a lunch break at Keylong and reached Jispa around 5 pm. Most people stop over at Sarchu on the way to Leh, which is 3 hours further ahead from Jispa. Sarchu is at a much higher altitude and much colder. When travelling on this section it is always recommended to spend the night at lower altitudes to avoid AMS. We camped overnight at Padma lodge in Jispa, which was a nice camp site on banks of Bhaga river. After spending a quite evening on the banks of the Bhaga river the group retired to bed with most of us dreaming about Ladakh and Stok Kangri.
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| The gang posing at Rohtang Pass |
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| The gang winding down at Jispa on the banks of Bhaga river. |
Since we had a really long drive ahead of us to Leh (380 km) the group woke up early and left Jispa at 6.30 am. We crossed Baralacha pass at 15750 feet after taking a few photographs. We stopped briefly at Sarchu for a tea break where we met couple of royal Enfield bikers from Kalyan (Mumbai), who were on their way back from Leh to Manali. We then went through the 21 hairpin bends of the famous Gatta loop to reach Nakeela pass which is at 15547 feet. We then crossed Lachungla pass which is at 16616 feet. We then took a lunch break at pang in a gypsy tent which was a good experience. Post lunch we drove through the flat mori plains with some amazingly beautiful landscapes. We then crossed the second highest motor-able pass in the world Taglangla which is at 17652 feet. The ascent was quick which caused some folks to feel the side affects of high altitude. We finally reached Leh (11400 feet) at 6 pm and checked into the Leh Chen hotel which was to be our base at Leh for the next 10 days.
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| Baralacha Pass |
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| Crossing the Nakeela pass at 15500 Feet. The air got thinner and colder as we moved up. |
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| Mind Blowing Roads and Landcapes |
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| Taglangla Pass - Second highest road in the world |
Sep 17 2014 - day 5
Today was an acclimatization/rest/shopping day. In the morning the group enjoyed some initial views of stok kangri peak from hotel. Then we visited Shanti Stupa, where we had to climb 500 plus steps. In the afternoon we met up with our trek organizer to iron out the itinerary. Later in the evening we visited Leh palace and the monastery which also involved a steep climb. We ended the day with some trekking gear shopping at leh market, which was fun. Overall the group acclimatized well at leh.
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| The Stok Kangri Team. That's the hotel where we stayed and the Stok mountain range right behind us. |
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| The iconic Shanti Stupa. Leh's most famous landmark. |
Sep 18 2014 - day 6
Finally d-day arrived and we departed from Leh Chen hotel for our much awaited Stok Kangri trek. We drove for 45 mins to Stok village from where the trek started at 9 am. You feel really small in the vastness of Ladakh surrounded by those huge rocky mountains. Even though it gets really cold in the evenings and the temperature is quite low even during day time, you tend to feel hot when walking for long distances under the harsh sun of the Himalayas. However you start feeling cold as soon as you stop. We trekked through the dry rocky terrain to our first camp at Mankorma and reached the campsite around 4 pm. This was a 6 hour tiring walk where we climbed from 11400 feet to 14000 feet.
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| Group started the trek at Stok Village |
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| We felt so small among these huge rocky mountains |
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| Mankorma camp site at 14000 feet. You can see the temporary stone toilet structures behind. These toilets are constructed by an association called Ladakh Mitra |
Sep 19 2014 - day 7
We started from mankorma camp at 9.30 am and trekked for about 4 hours through similar terrain as the previous day. The altitude was affecting the group slightly. 62 year old Chaudhari kaka had to quit midway due to breathlessness and a guide escorted him back to Leh. We were walking through the Hemis national park which has become famous due to an increase in sightings of the elusive snow leopard. Though we did not spot any snow leopards, we saw a bunch of Marmots (Himalayan rodent that is slightly larger than a rabbit) and Bharals (Himalayan blue sheep which are the snow leopard's favourite prey). Team finally reached the Stok base camp at 16000 feet around 1 pm. This was the highest most of the group members had ever trekked with the exception of a couple of members who had been to Everest base camp.Team relaxed at Stok base camp for rest of the day.
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| We start our march from Mankorma to Stok Base Camp |
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| A pair of Marmots. These guys were fattening for the harsh winter that lies ahead |
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| Bharal also known as Himalayan blue sheep. |
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| Gang pushing on towards the base camp |
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| Finally reached the base camp @ 16000 feet |
Sep 20 2014 - day 8
Today was an acclimation day. Group decided to acclimatize some more at this altitude and trekked about 700 feet towards stok kangri peak in the morning. After climbing a steep section of scree trail, team soaked in the first clear views of the summit. After returning to base camp, Raju, Sumit and Pallavi decided to return to leh as they did not want to continue the trek further. The rest of the day was for relaxing as group had decided to head out for summit at 2.00 am in the night. Team had a yummy lunch of french fries and pasta at 16000 feet followed by Crampon distribution and adjustment. Team had early dinner at 6 pm and retired to the warmth of the sleeping bags with alarms set for 1.00 am.
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| Climbing the steep scree laden section was tricky. |
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| Gang posing with Stok Kangri in the backdrop. |
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| Me and Krits below Stok Kangri peak |
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| Gang soaking in the view and thinking what lies ahead |
Sep 21 2014 - day 9
Group woke up at 1 am for a 2 am start. Krithika opted out of the summit attempt. The final head count was 10. We had hot porridge and we marched on at 2.30 am with high hopes. After trekking about 3 hours we reached advance base camp where conditions were brutal. As the day broke we saw dark clouds all around. The temperature was around -15 degrees. The windchill made it feel a lot more colder.To top it all it started snowing too. The guides informed us that weather conditions were not ideal to carry on and we still had the hardest part of crossing the glacier and ascending the shoulder and the ridge to the peak. We were about 2000 feet short of the summit but decided to turn back as per the majority's decision. It was better to turn back and live another day to climb another mountain. Though I was personally heartbroken to abandon the expedition at this point after 6 months of intense preparation, I have now made peace with what happened at the base of the highest non technical trekking peak in the world. Stok Kangri had humbled us and we learnt that we have no control over anything at such altitudes and we need to respect the weather conditions.
After clicking a few last group pictures (it was extremely painful to even take out your hands out of the gloves to click pictures in the mind numbing cold), the group returned to base camp around 8 am. We saw that it was snowing lightly at base camp too and decided it was best to head back to Leh to the luxury of Leh chen hotel. The group then embarked on a marathon trek from base camp back to stok village, which was the starting point of the trek. The group had started walking at 2.00 am and walked till 5.00 pm to reach stok village (14 hours). A vehicle picked us up and dropped us at the hotel by 6.30 pm. Each one of us was delighted to have a hot shower and sleep on a soft bed after 4 days of trek in rugged terrain.
One of the learnings I would like to share with anyone who wishes to attempt Stok Kangri is that you should leave the base camp for the summit at 12 midnight so as to give your self sufficient time to reach the summit by 10 am. We had started at 2.30 am and were a bit behind schedule.
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| Our breath turned to ice on the face mask |
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| Group approaches the large ice glacier at 5.30 am after crossing advanced base camp |
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| Last group picture before turning back |
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| Finally the sun decided to show up briefly. |
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| Breakfast just before reaching base camp. This was the same spot where the team had climbed to as part of the acclimatization walk the previous day |
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| Long walk back to Leh. We walked about 14 hours in a day |
Sep 22 2014 - day 10
We had decided to use the day as a recovery day. However the team woke up early as usual and walked to Shanti Stupa. Post lunch we visited Thikshey monastery, white lotus school (3 idiots fame) and the military museum / war memorial. The day ended with a nice pizza dinner at Gesmos in Leh market.
Sep 23 2014 - day 11
Team woke up early at 4 am and headed out for a day trip to the scenic Pangong lake (15500 feet), which is about 5-6 hour drive from Leh. The vastness and the colours of this highest salt water lake in the world cannot be captured easily in cameras. It was mesmerising and we all soaked in the splendour of this blue green lake for as long as we could. Team left pangong lake about 1.30 pm and had a great lunch at one of the houses at thangste village (a typical carpet baithak lunch). The route from leh to pangong passes via changla pass (17688 feet) and is one of the most treacherous and rugged mountain passes I have ever crossed. Huge rocks jut out of the hills at precarious angles and avalanches are quite common here. The day ended after a tiring drive back to the hotel.
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| Mighty changla pass |
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| Panaromic View of Pangong lake |
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| We were truly happy to be at this magical place |
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| Dreamland |
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| Mesmerizing colours of Pangong |
Sep 24 2014 - day 12
After a lazy breakfast team left for Nubra valley around 11 am. We crossed the highest motorable road in the world through the famous Khardungla pass (18380 feet). We had lunch at a village called Khalsar and reached the sand dunes of hunder at 4.30 pm. After clicking pics of the famous double humped camels and enjoying the sand dunes for about an hour we checked into the beautiful property of desert himlayas at diskit. Our tents were right under the gaze of the giant maitreya buddha statue of the diskit monastery. We all enjoyed the luxury tents with attached designer bathroom.Team retired to bed early after a good dinner.
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| At Khardungla top |
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| Sand dunes at Nubra |
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| Cold desert of Ladakh |
Sep 25 2014 - day 13
After enjoying the morning on the lawns of the property and having breakfast, team departed back to leh via khardungla. The weather turned bad on the way back with a snow storm and strong winds. Khardungla turned into a beast and showed us why it is called one of the most dangerous roads in the world. With in a span of couple of hours the roads and the surrounding mountains were covered in a thick blanket of fresh snow. The roads were treacherously slippery and bikers were skidding all over the place. Our vehicle skidded once and stopped precariously at the edge of the road prompting me to jump into action. I jumped out of the front seat and popped a large stone under the rear wheel. The group decided to walk till khardungla top to avoid any further debacles. Luckily for us the road beyond khardungla top towards leh was clear. We reached the hotel at leh by 6 pm and retired to bed after dinner.
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| Scenic campsite of Desert Himalayas |
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| Vehicles were skidding badly on fresh snow |
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| This car driver struggled a lot on snow covered roads before our driver helped him out of a slippery patch |
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| Gang walking to Khardungla Top |
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| The great White Wash at Khardungla |
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| It was a beautiful sight from Khardungla top as the Valley resembled a bride dressed in White |
Today was a rest day at Leh reserved for some last minute shopping. Team spent most of the day shopping at the leh flea market.
Sep 27 2014 - day 15
We woke up at 5 am to leave for Gulmarg via the leh srinagar national highway 1. It has always been my dream to complete the manali leh and leh srinagar circuit by road. We visited the patthar saheb gurudwara at Leh in the morning and had a lovely breakfast of alu parathas at a small village. Enroute we passed Alchi and the beatiful moonland landscapes of Lamayeru. We passed Kargil and stopped at the kargil war memorial in Dras. This is scenic place and a must visit for all Indians. An army officer briefed us about the 1999 kargil war and the brave tales of numerous indian soldiers. The brutal winter conditions on the peaks of tiger hill, point 4875 and tololing proved to be a huge challenge for the Indian army as the enemy had occupied the vantage positions on these peaks. We left the place feeling extremely proud of our armed forces and their supreme sacrifices. We then proceeded to cross the zozilla pass at 12000 feet which was one of the most challenging mountain passes on this stretch. This pass has a very steep decline into srinagar and overlooks bal taal which is the starting point for the amaranth yatra. We finally reached sonmarg at 7.30 pm and retired for the night.
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| Moonland near Lamayeru on the way to Srinagar |
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| Veer Bhumi at Kargil war memorial in Dras |
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| Felt proud to be an Indian after hearing the battle stories. Did you know that the 99 kargil war is considered one of the most difficult high altitude battles in human history? |
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| You can see the famous tiger hill and point 4875 (batra top) in the backdrop (extreme left) which saw fierce battles and exemplary courage from the Indian Jawans. |
Sep 28 2014 - day 16
Team left sonmarg at 8.30 am and proceeded towards srinagar airport. Enroute we stopped at an apple farm and bought some fresh farm picked kashmir apples. We reached the airport around 12 noon and completed the multiple security screenings at srinagar airport. We enjoyed some more shopping at Srinagar Airport and finally boarded the mumbai flight at 4 pm. We reached mumbai around 6.30 pm to end a memorable trip to Ladakh.
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| Homeward bound from Srinagar airport |
