Ladakh : Part 9 (Nubra Valley and The Way Back)

The plan for next one and half day was Nubra valley. Nubra valley is situated at the Northiest part of Ladakh, around 150 kms from Leh. Nubra valley is the only place in India where one can find double humped Bactrian camels in a desert of white sand dunes situated at a height over 10000 ft. A high altitude desert!! Y-shaped Nubra valley separates Ladakh and Karakoram mountain range. The valley is covered by mainly two rivers, Nubra or Siachen river and Shyok river. Nubra is a tributary of Shyok and Shyok is a tributary of Indus river. The world famous Siachen glacier is few kilometers from Panamik. Panamik is the last point which can be accessed by civilians. Siachen is the highest battlefield on the earth.

Nubra Valley, source: Wikipedia

In earlier centuries, there used to be trade passing through this area to Central Asia. Famous Karakoram pass lies northwest of the valley. In fact, Bactrian camels were brought to the valley by Mangol invaders in 17th century. 

We left early morning for Nubra valley. The charges for SUV were Rs. 5500/- (fixed). The way to Nubra goes through Khardung La which boasts "Highest Motorable Road" (though it is a debatable issue). Our permits were checked soon at North Pullu (There is no need of Inner Line Permit for only Khardung La). The check post on the other side of Khardung La is called South Pullu. The road between these two is pretty tricky. Landslides are very common..So it is advisable to cross this area as early in the morning as possible. We reached Khardung La in some one and half hour or two. But we could easily spot Leh lying in the lap of Indus valley with snow capped Zanskar range standing magnificently behind it. The signs at Khardung La show that it is the "Highest Motorable road" with some dispute attached to the claim. Never mind, still it was a proud feel :)

From Leh to Khardung La in a glance :)

Finally :)

At Khardung La..

We had a short break at Khardung La..Bought key-chain displaying "Highest Motorable Raod - I was there" :) It was a magnificent feel being at 18380 ft from mean sea level!! And that too without hiking :p Staying there for a long time may cause dizziness. Be sure you are hydrated all the time. We started downward journey to Nubra valley after breakfast. For some time, road was routine..Winding along treacherous mountains..Then came a divergence..One road went to Diskit/Hundur and other Panamik..We headed for Panmik where a hot spring was the main attraction..But it failed to amaze us..Frankly speaking, we all were pretty disappointed with it..We had enough time..So what to do?? Nothing to do?? Hike somewhere!! And we exactly did that..We tried to hike mountain tracing the path of hot water stream :p We aimed for top, but as we hiked to the top, another top was waiting for us..So real peak was eluding us :p We left with no drinking water after some time, so we gave up..Started climbing down..No one was expert..Result? It became a pretty tough task, but somehow we managed it :) It was fun to override our disappointment :) We were hungry and thirsty..So we left immediately to Hunder..

The way to Nubra!

Hiking desire stuck with obstacle :p

Where is the top buddy??

Y-shaped Nubra valley..Behind, it is Karakoram range..

Panamik lies on the right side of Y-shaped Nubra valley, while Hunder and Diskit lie on the left side. At Hunder, the high altitude desert begins..White sand dunes for several kilometers, clear blue sky above elegant Karakoram with Shyok river at the base :) Maybe a unique place on the earth!! Desert, mountain with snow, river all at one place! Bactrian camels were amazing, though we didn't take a ride..Flocks of fellow travelers were already there..We sat relaxed at water stream..Looking around at landscapes was a sight seeing..Played a paper boat race, a real race in the water, then a WWE in fine sand :p Then was the time to test our athletic skills..We couldn't resist ourselves to have a long jump and deep jump competition..Yup! Deep jump! :p It was a very incredible fun :) Though at Nubra valley, there was not much for specific sightseeing, we created our own fun & the time we spent at Hunder, jumping here and there, was one of the best times I have ever spent, one of the best fun I ever had :) It's true what Martin Buber says,

“All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.”

Bactrian camels at Hunder..

Deep Jump competition :p

What a jump it was!

White sand dunes with snow capped Karakoram behind!!

The temptation!

Dude, let's have long jump competition :p

We stayed at a guest house in Diskit as we couldn't find cheap tend accommodation..Guest house rate was Rs.1200/- per room per night including dinner. Next day early morning, we left for Leh. A nostalgic feeling was there because I didn't know whether in future I would come back to this amazing remote place again where we had a great fun..

We reached Leh in the afternoon..We found out Leh-Manali road had just opened, but it was risky to go that way..It was a big risk..The probability of getting stuck somewhere among remote area was very high.. So we cancelled that plan with very very very heavy heart and decided to return by the same road we came..We found a Sringar bounded taxi, which cost us Rs. 8000/-. We covered whole 440 kms in day, starting 4AM at Leh and reaching Sringar at 7PM on the same day..On the return, everything looked very different than what we experienced before a week..Snow had melted..Rivers had become more furious and roaring.. Tourist traffic had increased dramatically..We successfully managed to escape a traffic jam at Zozi La by a small margin, which I later heard that it lasted for whole one day!! 

The way back at a beautiful morning :( 

Zozila Kargil war memorial near Drass..

In Srinagar..At boat house in Dal lake!

Dal Lake!!

At Srinagar, finally our one uncompleted wish came true..We found a cheap boat house for Rs. 800/- at the outskirt of Srinagar, which was a great experience..Sitting silently at the deck, revising the beautiful and unforgettable memories of last 10 days..Ahh! I was gonna miss those beautiful and elegant landscapes, curvy and breathtaking roads leading me to those amazing terrains of Ladakh, amateur trekking efforts, the heat in a chill weather, the bike ride, heavenous Pangong lake, the highest motorable road, the feeling of reaching within a few kilometers of Siachen glacier, the high altitude desert and a silent evening at a boat house in Dal lake at Srinagar revising all the memories!! And today also I miss all these things as strongly as I missed them on  last evening in Jammu and Kashmir. The scenic beauty is not enough to keep you to attach to a place..It is because of the company of people you experienced at that place..It was a worth taking trip, but amazing and cheerful friends with me made it "A Life Time Trip" :)