Our unique best Zanskar trek; the updated Darcha to Lamayuru route
Simply heavenly, adventurous India trekking. Tucked away in the far northwest of the Indian Himalaya, Zanskar and Ladakh are
ancient Buddhist kingdoms hushed every year by the winter; summer is a
time of warmth and joy as the barley that is their life ripens and the
high desert is splashed with the vivid green of their oasis-like villages. The
chortens are whitewashed again, the five-coloured prayer flags flutter against the
cerulean sky, and with the winter snow melting,
the tinkle of azure water is everywhere. We journey to the highlights, connecting them with rarely visited wilderness, the cliff haunts of ibex and snow leopard (seen in 2013 by one of our trekkers!), and this is still one of the very finest treks in the region.
Beginning in Leh with time to unwind we then take one of the most scenic road journeys there is, the Leh-Manali highway to start our Zanskar trek. Meeting our
crew and horse team, we leave the honking road behind to follow the powerful Tsarap Chu (river) straight into oldest Zanskar. Our first challenge is crossing the Zara Chu, with the river starting to rise with snow melt (although perhaps there is a new bridge). A couple of minor passes later, the reward is Shade, one of the remotest villages in the region where life timelessly passes by. We are trekking in the season of wildflowers.
Leaving villages behind for majestically rugged wilderness our route is a
series of peaceful camps, dramatic canyons and expansive passes to Zangla, the heart of Zanskar.
After a brief resupply we continue through stunning landscapes to famed Lingshed, and the friendly monks there. (Or our other option is a remote valley trek to Nyeraks, another little-visited, friendly village.) We end the trek at scenic Yulchung, now the roadhead.
This Zanskar trek is a visual feast, every single day has jaw-dropping, expansive panoramas, and every single day seems different and distinct, rare in the trekking world. The sublime colours and textures have to be experienced to be believed and surely this is one of the very most scenic landscape treks there is on the planet. With a couple of canyon days, multiple stream crossings, it is also distinctly adventurous, trekking where few others dare.
We have trekked Zanskar many times and feel
privileged to introduce this very special place to trekkers.
Delhi airport transfer and hotel, but we can advise
Insurance, India visa, international flights, equipment rental, alcohol and soft drinks, laundry,
tipping and other items of a personal nature
Tips & extra cash
allow approx $150 for Leh meals
we suggest $150 per trekker for the crew tips pool
(Day 0 - arrive Delhi / early Leh arrival)
Do plan your arrival time well, considering your flight to Leh, see Delhi-Leh travel.
We are happy to assist planning, and with early arrival provide transfer and
hotel booking.
Day 1 - Sunday 9 June 2019 - meet in Leh 3480m
We meet you at Leh airport (code IXL) and now you can relax.
2 - Leh 3480m
3 - Leh 3480m
4 - drive Lhatoo 4000m with sightseeing
5 - drive Gatta Loops, trek Tsometsik 4140m
6 - trek Tichhip 4000m
7 - trek Normoche 4000m via Zara Chu crossing
8 - trek Trantrag 4100m via Gotunda La 5100m & Nialo Kontse 4850m
Now acclimatized, we have a double pass day.
9 - trek Shade village 4220m
10 - rest Shade village 4220m
11 - trek stream camp 4280m via Rotang La 4900m, Lar La 4680m
12 - trek Yarinchun 4430m
13 - trek Zangla Sumdo 3850m via Pandang La 5160m
14 - trek Zangla camp 3600m
15 - trek Hanumil 3600m
We resupply and you can visit Karsha and Padum.
16 - trek Nyete via Parpi La 3900m
17 - trek Sumdo via Hanuma La 4710m
18 - trek Lingshed 3940m
This is a shorter trekking day so giving time to visit the monastery.
19 - trek Yelchung 3900m
20 - drive Leh
Day 21 - Saturday 29 June - trip ends
Or have a day in Leh for cleaning up, shopping and relaxing and leave tomorrow.
Day 22 - optional departure
Route notes
Zanskar is changing with strategic roads under construction. The most recent casualty was the Shingo La, which we farewelled in 2016. This means our trek now misses the dramatically set Phuktal Gompa so instead at the end of the trek we visit Lingshed, another stunning and friendly gompa. This means it is a 21 day trip, down from 24 days (and indeed the trek took more than a month a decade ago).
Bear Valley alternative
There is a remote valley alternative to the end of the trek that we know and love, and it takes the same number of days but skips Lingshed so we add Lamayuru Gompa. We need perfect conditions for this wild section.
14 - trek Zangla camp 3600m
15 - trek-rest Honara 3600m
We resupply and you can visit Karsha and Padum.
16 - trek Bear Valley camp via Namtse La 4430m
17 - trek Changma Bongbong (Lankat)
A canyons day with a couple of tricky sections where we may have to rebuilt a small section of the trail.
18 - trek Nyeraks via Tarti La 5000m
19 - trek Yelchung 3900m
20 - drive Leh via Lamayuru Gompa
Day 21 - Saturday 29 June - trip ends
Camping in Zanskar, near where Philip saw a snow leopard; dining tent and members tents not shown - Jamie McGuinness
To see the detailed itinerary and more photos use a laptop/desktop browser or tablet in landscape (and hit refresh).
Inspiration
Here is a album of our epic 2017 trek on Flickr:
Click the photo to go to Flickr or use the arrow keys to see them here within this page.
Detailed itinerary
We plan to follow the itinerary however roads wash
out, or are extended, occasionally people get sick, logistical challenges arise,
or we hear of a better campsite, and so
we will adapt it as needed.
This longform itinerary is a work in progress!
(Day 0 - arrive Delhi / early Leh arrival)
We spend three nights in Leh, so reasonable acclimatization to the
3480m/11,415ft altitude but if you are new
to altitude or to Leh, perhaps plan to arrive one day early and we will
arrange transfers and hotel and show you around.
Included in all our Ladakh treks are a couple of sightseeing trips, with or
without a cultural guide (your choice) and it is your choice of where to go;
many people joining are previous trekkers so have seen some places previously.
If you are more ambitious we can also help you arrange a day or overnight trip
to Alchi (~3100m) and Basgo Gompas or further afield Lamayuru (~3500m), a day rafting trip on the Zanskar River or or hammer down the Khardung La on a mountain bike (best a few days into your Leh
sojourn). If you have been working flat out you are welcome to just relax, kick
back and de-stress too, and adjust a little more slowly to the time zone change.
Sophie admires the mural at Basgo - Jamie
Day 1 - meet in Leh 3480m
Phew, after a long series of flights, you are here - welcome to Leh! Look for a Project Himalaya sign or a simple sign with your
name on it at the airport, and our wonderful drivers Ang Chuk or Pasang will pick you up.
Jamie meets you at the hotel on your arrival and we discuss altitude health over
tea/coffee or breakfast and introduce Leh (if you are a first timer) and show you the better places
to eat. Most people crash out for a few hours and spend the day relaxing; do drink
plenty of fluids which helps the acclimatization process, perhaps pop some vitamins and let your body adjust to the new time zone.
We normally go out to
dinner together, let's meet in the peaceful hotel garden at 6:30pm. We eat at some of our favourite clean (very important!) restaurants: Chopsticks, G Kitchen, Tibet Kitchen, Open Hand and Summer Harvest.
2 - Leh 3480m
This is a day for experiencing the revered gompas, monasteries and palaces of the Indus Valley, ie a short drive from Leh. We arrange a jeep or two (and a local
culture guide if you like, included). Usually, we arrange as a morning trip with a late lunch out of Leh then
you can relax in the afternoon although we can easily arrange a full day trip as an alternative.
Choosing what to see is the biggest
challenge, there are so many special places to visit. Close by are Spituk Gompa and Stok Palace. To the east is Shey Palace, and the gompas Thikse, Hemis, Chemde, Thagthok, Stakna and Matho, although don't plan on visiting all of them in one day. Thikse also has a good restaurant for lunch.
Heading west out of Leh are Spituk, Phyang, Nyemo where the Indus meets the Zanskar River, and further afield are Basgo, Likir and Alchi.
Visiting a gompa is atmospheric and a timeless experience engendering respect for their philosophy.
We chanced upon this moving ceremony at Matho Gompa - Jamie
3 - Leh 3480m
After gentle sightseeing yesterday we exercise a little more today. In the morning we might wander up to the palace and gompa above Leh, and before dinner, perhaps up to the Peace/Shanti Stupa for a Leh
sunset panorama.
Tomorrow we stay at ~4000m so at minimum we need three nights here in Leh prior to moving
higher - which we have :)
Leh from Shanti Stupa - Jamie
4 - drive Lhatoo 4000m with sightseeing
At last we are on our way. It is only a couple of hours drive so we will stop at a gompa or two en route. Once at our camp, there are amazing views of the rugged canyon walls that hem in teh road just a few minutes walk away.
Lunch laid out, come and get it - Jamie
5 - drive Gatta Loops, trek Tsometsik 4100m
Our horses are waiting for us and once we are loaded up we trek a few hours along the river to leave the road behind and get into true wilderness. We are following the Tsarap Chu, a river well known to us both in its upper reaches, and also where it meets the Zanskar, doubling the volume and turning into a fearsome river.
Magnificent scenery and a view of one of our favorite camps on another area, taken from the road - Jamie
6 - trek Tichhip 4000m
7 - trek Normoche 4000m via Zara Chu crossing
8 - trek Trantrag 4100m
Have you ever seen water this crystal-clear? - Jamie
9 - trek Shade 4220m
Another glorious day's trekking.
A truly captivating scene in real life - Jamie
10 - rest Shade 4220m
This is one of the remotest villages in Ladakh. In 2013 we asked the locals how many
trekkers come through in a season, the first answer was "lots". However asking
further, lots meant perhaps five groups, of which Project Himalaya is usually one ...
Do watch the sheep-goat flocks being herded in during the early evening. Often they come right through our camp, so you will get some warning.
Sadly, most of the younger people have left this village, a lack of opportunity and especially a lack of healthcare.
Remote, peaceful Shade village - Jamie
11 - trek Nuri Chu side stream camp 4280m via Rotang La 4900m, Lar La 4680m
Leaving Shade we take a yak herding route up a side valley, climbing to a pass with ever more expansive views behind us. Over the first pass we normally meet Shade families camped in yak hair tents tending the animals, which are kept out of the village area when there are crops in the fields. Tea in a tent?
Continuing, we drop down to cross the stream and climb again for the second pass of the day, perhaps having a lunch break part way up. We are treated to more stunning panoramas at the top, and thankfully it isn't too far down to our camp by the sparkling stream.
The colours and textures are striking around here - Jamie
12 - trek Yarinchun 4430m
This is a remote area but there is still a definite trail with never-ending views of the "flame" rocks opposite. We have some steam crossings ahead, carry your river sandals, and don't dawdle too much as the streams rise in the later afternoon. Camp is gorgeous, as usual!
Don't they just look like flame rocks? Especially on sunset too - Jamie
13 - trek Zangla Sumdo 3850m via Pangdang La 5150m
It is another sandals day, although not initially. Leaving camp, the ascent is gentle at first but becomes a steady climb to the top of the Pandang La, 5150m, the highest pass on our trek. The extensive views are glorious, especially out towards the Chacha La and Jumlam route. The price though, after an initial straightforward descent to our lunch spot,
is increasing steep areas and crossings of the steam amid the willows.
Across the Pangdang La, the panorama is simply gorgeous - Jamie
14 - trek Zangla camp 3600m
It feels refreshingly remote and simply refreshing too, as we cross the stream repeatedly, making our way down the valley. At a main river junction we see signs of shepherd camps again but don't be lulled by this or the relatively flat nature of the small trail so far.
Now we descend into another adventurous and forbidding but photogenic gorge with perhaps 15 stream crossings before the terrain eases. This is also ibex country, and we have spotted some on most treks through here; it could be ibex have spotted us every trek though, as they are hard to spot. Look and you will see!
Entering the steep-sided Zangla canyon - Jamie
Suddenly the valley opens out as we are close to the village of Zangla, only a ridge to traverse up and around to the ridge top palace-gompa. Suddenly we see the huge main Zanskar valley, dotted with small villages surrounded by fields. We drop down to camp on a grassy area near the main Zanskar river, that like everything else in the valley,
is a bit bigger; wider and faster too, that we are accustomed to. By now it is apparent why we take our side route through Shade, and just what an amazing and adventurous route it is.
15 - trek Hanumil / Zanskar sightseeing 3600m
The crew will resupply, perhaps taking a jeep in to Padum, and we can trek or take a jeep to the next camp, the location of which will depend on our route choice ahead. If by jeep, then it is partly a rest day.
Camping in the huge main Zanskar Valley - Jamie
16 - trek Nyete via Parpi La 3900m
17 - trek Sumdo via Hanuma La 4710m
Esther jumps for joy, another pass crossing - Jamie
18 - trek Lingshed
This is a shorter trekking day so giving time to visit the monastery.
Approaching Lingshed (and see the top banner for a Lingshed Monastery photo) - Jamie
19 - trek Yelchung 3900m / road head camp
Yulchung was once the best-kept secret of the Lingshed area, a delightfully friendly and stunningly set village but now increasingly popular with jeep tours; and this is indeed where we will meet our jeeps too.
Having tea, Yelchung - Jamie
20 - drive Leh
Sadly, our trekking has come to an end as we hop into our waiting jeeps for the approximately 8 hour drive back to Leh.
The first obstacle is the 4960m Sengge La (Snow Lion Pass), a once remote pass that has poisonous flowers over the other side. Poisonous to horses,
but hopefully not to our jeeps. The view from the top is as stunning as any, those colours and textures. Down the pass and over a
small bump comes perhaps what was the most photographed or certainly the most admired village view in the region, Photoksar.
Again, it was a dramatic photo of this village that surely inspired not just me but dozens of trekkers, years ago.
We are not done with the passes yet, the Sirsir La at 4805m comes next, and another majestic panorama that Jaroslav Poncar snapped,
providing inspiration years ago. Instead of taking days to discover these views we take hours, and in some way lessening the achievement;
luckily by trekking through Kargyak, Phuktal and Shun Shade we have explored on foot some other utterly memorable panoramas.
Depending on how the last section of the trek has worked out, we also have the option of visiting Lamayuru Gompa on the way back, let's see how the timing is.
Stakna Gompa, with this view we know we are getting close to Leh - Jamie
Day 21 - trip end
You are free to take the morning flight to Delhi or bus to Manali for the long way back, or just enjoy more time in this central Asian town of yore.
