"LADAKH-A LITTLE TIBET IN AN ANCIENT LAND OF MOUNTAIN PASSES"
This trip will be led by professional photographer, Clive Grylls, who will act as your photographic tutor and tour guide. He will also be a fellow paying guest on this tour.
It is an invitation to join me on an adventure that will allow you to witness some of the most stunning landscapes, temples, festivals and people found in Asia. (Duration: 21 days).
This Trip is only open to my FRIENDS and FRIENDS OF FRIENDS and FOLLOWERS on Facebook and Instagram.
I need FOUR other friends/guests to join me on this trip.
The confluence of the Indus and Zanskar rivers outside Leh. © clive grylls
Key Information Box
Date: July the 8th - July the 28th, 2020
Starts in Delhi-ends July 28th in Leh, Ladakh.
Duration: 21 days.
Cost: $1390(USD) inclusive of hotels & tented camps, transportation, local taxes & permits.
The cost does NOT include the Return airline fare from your country of domicile to Delhi, India and meals and personal expenses.
The price does NOT include the cost of a domestic or internal flight from Leh back to Delhi. This can be booked/arranged at an additional cost.
Deposit: 50% of the cost of the trip placed at least two months before duration.
Places: 4
INVITATIONS TO JOIN THIS TRIP WILL BE ADVERTISED ON FACEBOOK STARTING FROM THE 7th of JANUARY 2020.
If you want to arrange your own itinerary, outside of the specified dates mentioned above…..Clive Grylls can help you to arrange bespoke tours to this region.
Clive Grylls is the coordinator of this tour and your photographic tutor. He will also be a paying guest on this tour. If you have any questions about this tour click on CONTACT ……or I can also be messaged on: www.facebook.com/clivegryllsarticlesandimages or www.facebook.com/clivegryllsphotography
Overview
Ladakh is the largest province within the North Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir, covering approximately 60,000 square miles (100,000 sq. km.)
Roughly, the size of Switzerland, it is surrounded and bisected by some of the highest mountain ranges and passes in the world.
The Gatta Loops, a series of switch backs on the Manali-Leh road. © clive grylls
Thanks to its remoteness, Ladakh was one of the last cultures on earth to come in contact with westerners and it was only in 1974 that the region was opened up to tourists.
An arid, high altitude paradise (part of the Greater Tibetan plateau ) of spectacular ever changing vistas bathed in surreal light and worshipped by monks that practice and embrace ancient Buddhist philosophy in gompas perched precariously on wind eroded cliffs. This region, unlike Tibet, remains unfettered by outside control.
A land guarded by chortens that stand like giant, immovable chess pieces and watched over by elusive snow leopards and giant birds of prey.
Multi coloured rock formations. © clive grylls
A region of intrepid weather worn people, their lifestyles adapted to the changing hues of a Himalayan wilderness dictated not by mankind, but by nature, and thus cut off by the demands of modernity or time.
Locals with prayer wheels. Lamayuru Temple. © clive grylls
You will be travelling into one of the least inhabited and rugged regions on earth. As a photographer or guest just sit back and enjoy……using your senses to soak up an ambience both ‘unworldly’ and magnificent……..Ladakh will cast an intoxicating and mystical spell on you that is unlikely to wear off for the rest of your life.
Clive Grylls (photojournalist)
Clive Grylls is the coordinator of this tour and your photographic tutor. He will also be a paying guest on this tour. If you have any questions about this tour click on CONTACT……or I can also be reached on: www.facebook.com/clivegryllsphotography
Lake Tso Moriri © clive grylls
Pray Flags outside Shey. © clive grylls
ITINERARY
ITINERARY
Map of Ladakhi region
Day One ( July the 8th ): Arrive at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport. From here you will be met by our rep and ferried by taxi or minibus to your comfortable hotel.
Day Two: In the afternoon you board an air-conditioned bus that will take you on the 12-14 hour overnight journey to Vashisht, our base in Himachal Pradesh. Here you will stay in our comfortable hotel overlooking the raging and turbulent waters of the Beas River surrounded by hills cloaked in alpine forest.
Day Three: Guests will arrive in Vashisht by mid-morning and have the whole day to themselves to adjust to the change in altitude (2050m) and perhaps visit the historic Vashisht temple and its hot springs located a stone’s throw away from your hotel.
Vashisht Temple and Hot Springs.
Day Four: Morning of rest. In the afternoon there will be the chance to visit the village of Old Manali. (optional)
Day Five: Your adventure to Ladakh begins. Depart at 3 am in 4 X 4 jeeps on the start of a breathtaking 470 km road trip to the heart of the Ladakh region, spread for your comfort, over two days. The road will circumnavigate through extraordinary hillsides as it climbs 1930m to the austere Rohtang pass before meandering downwards on its way to the picturesque town of Keylong where an early lunch or refreshments will be taken. Overnight accommodation will be taken at the hamlet of Jispa overlooking the banks of the Bhaga river and surrounded by glorious stands of juniper and snow-capped mountains.
The multi-hued hills close to the hamlet of Jispa. © clive grylls
Day Six: Depart at 6am to Leh, the capital of the Ladakh region. If you thought the landscape on the first day of this road trip was special…. take a deep breathe of invigourating alpine air and be prepared to be surprised. This section of road is internationally recognised as one of the most scenic on earth, zig-zagging its way through impossibly remote and barren mountain vistas punctuated by sapphire-blue lakes and rivers. Estimated arrival time at our comfortable hotel in Leh (3600m) will be approximately 6-8pm.
The brilliant blue water of the Tse Rup river, Sarchu. © clive grylls
Stark and barren mountains accentuate Ladakh's arid wilderness. © clive grylls
Day Seven: A rest day in Leh allowing you to acclimatize to the change in altitude. Take it easy in your comfortable hotel…..DO NOT OVER EXERCISE …….so put your feet up and get an early night.
Day Eight: After breakfast, spend a lazy morning walking in Leh’s pedestrianized thorough fare, the Main Bazaar Road. Here you will find shops laden with Tibetan curios and wizened folk selling their vegetables and wares. Take your lunch in one of many eateries selling delicious international or local food. The afternoon will be spent visiting the ancient and magnificent Leh Palace and adjoining Namgyal Tsemo and temples. All adorned with idols and prayer flags and offering a breathtaking overview of the town.
A curio shop on the Main Bazaar Road, Leh. © clive grylls
Ladakh Palace and the adjoining Namgtal Tsemo temple complex. © clive grylls
Day Nine: A visit to Thiksey Gompa, probably the most stunning temple in Ladakh. Watch the sun rise as monks perform early morning prayers and mantras. Mid-morning you will visit the equally picturesque Hemis Gompa to wander around its ancient chambers and marvel at its glorious murals.
After lunch at a local eatery we finish off our day of sightseeing with an afternoon visit to Shey, the ancient capital of Ladakh, with its ruined castle and Gompa enshrining a giant Sakyamuni Buddha statue.
Thiksey Gompa. © clive grylls
Sumptuous murals adorn the walls at the Hemis Gompa. © clive grylls
Day Ten: Another very early morning start for a day long return trip to the 131km long Pangong Lake (4241m) taking us through some of the most spectacular scenery in the region.
Pangong Lake, a high altitude Lake set amidst a desolate wilderness. © clive grylls
Day Eleven: All day trip to the Phyang Gompa to visit the annual Tse-Dup festival to watch sacred dance-dramas or Chams that form the core part of this celebration.
Monk performing a Cham (dance) at the Tse Dup festival, Phyang Gompa. © clive grylls
Local praying at a Ladakhi festival. © clive grylls
Day Twelve: An early morning start on a two day return trip to the awe-inspiring Lamayuru Gompa set in an eerie lunar-like landscape. The morning drive will take in a visit to the Likir Gompa, guarded by a 23m high Maitreya statue. In the afternoon we will reach the Alchi Gompa to visit its 12th century shrines that boast the most beautiful and important murals found in the whole of Ladakh. Overnight stay in a local guest house in the quaint village of Lamayuru.
The imposing Maitreya (future Buddha) at the Likir Temple. © clive grylls
The Kangyur Lhakhang filled with ancient scriptures at the Alchi temple. © clive grylls
Day Thirteen: A morning spent visiting the mystical Lamayuru Gompa a lost Shangri La set amongst impossibly steep scree slopes and one of the last Buddhist settlements before you pass into the predominately Islamic region of Kashmir. Our afternoon drive back to Leh will take in a visit to Mulbekh and its imposing rock carving of the future Buddha. Time and weather permitting you will also visit the Basgo Gompa set amongst fields of golden barley.
Time-worn people amidst the magical landscape of Lamayuru. © clive grylls
Chortens guard the entrance to the Lamayuru Gompa. © clive grylls
Day fourteen: Rest day in Leh.
The turquoise waters of Tso Moriri Lake. © clive grylls
Women from the Chang Pa people. © clive grylls
An old inhabitant of Korzok village. © clive grylls
Day Fifteen-Seventeen: Depart to Lake Tso Moriri. At an elevation of 4,5200m this ‘Mountain Lake’ is located in the Changthang Plateau-the wildest and most bio-diverse region in Ladakh. The Lake is ringed by hills rising over 6,000m and the surrounding area is inhabited by the nomadic and migratory “Chang Pa" people. You will stay altogether for three nights in a tented village located close to the village of Korzok and bordering Tso Moriri Lake. From here you will attend a rarely visited two-day festival, called the Gu Stor, attended by the Chang Pa people and performed by mask clad monks as a celebration of their Buddhist way of life.
The Gu Stor festival, Lake Tso Moriri. © clive grylls
Day Eighteen: An early morning departure to Leh visiting along the way the saline waters of Tso Kar Lake located in the barren Rupshu Plains. Gloriously uninhabited and isolated, the mountain peaks behind it offer a breathtaking backdrop to its desolate beauty.
The utter serenity of Tso Kar Lake. © clive grylls
Day Nineteen and Day Twenty: You depart to the Nebru Region set between two spectacular river valleys and their scenic confluence. On your way there you will cross the Khardung La Pass( 5602m)- arguably the highest motorable passage on earth. You will stay overnight in the charming village of Hundar.
A traditional Ladakhi house in the Nubra region. © clive grylls
Other highlights will be a visit to the Diskit Gompa, the most important in the region. A visit to the sand dunes between Diskit and Hundar that look like they have been transplanted from the Sahara. Here you will ride two-humped Bactrian camels on a scenic ride in this mini desert. A visit to the village of Turtok surrounded by glorious fields of ripening apricots and also a trip to the sulphurous hot springs before the small town of Panamik.
A young boy from the Chang Pa people. © clive grylls
Day Twenty One: Drive back to Leh where you will spend the last evening of your tour.
Traditional Ladakhi dancing in Leh. © clive grylls
Finish of the Tour. If you want me to book you an internal flight to Delhi or any other destination please do not hesitate to contact me. Please note, this is NOT included in the price of the trip.
OUR TEAM
OUR TEAM
OUR TEAM
OUR TEAM
OUR TEAM
Clive Grylls: Tour Coordinator and Photographic Tutor/Adviser.
Clive was born in Cornwall in the UK and raised in London. In his early thirties he trained as a photojournalist at the ‘London College of Printing’. He has over thirty years of experience traveling around Asia photographing the people, landscapes and the wildlife of the Indian sub-continent.This will be his fourth time visiting and documenting the Ladakhi region and he has covered every blade of grass included in this itinerary. He is a pragmatic and objective conservationist who believes that to save the world’s natural wonders you must first give the local people that surround it a vested economic reason to protect it. His articles and photographs have appeared in the following UK publications: the Guardian, the Independent on Sunday, the Daily Express, the Evening Standard, the Observer, Focus Magazine, Geographical Magazine, Travel Africa Magazine, BBC Wildlife, the New Statesman as well as numerous publications worldwide.
Clive Grylls is the coordinator of this tour and your photographic tutor. He will also be a paying guest on this tour. If you have any questions about this tour click on CONTACT……or I can also be reached on: www.facebook.com/clivegryllsarticlesandimages or www.facebook.com/clivegryllsphotography
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Climate
Ladakh is one of the driest places in South Asia and rain in July is rare…..however it is beginning to see the effects of global warming. Expect to see azure blue skies and temperatures during the day of 75F…..25C.
Beware, you are in a high altitude region, the ultraviolet rays of the sun are thus much stronger. Bring plenty of sunscreen, a good pair of sunglasses and wear a hat. Night time temperatures can dip alarmingly especially at very high altitudes. Bring plenty of warm clothing. All weather/terrain boots or trainers are essential. So are a good torch and a comfortable backpack for day trips.
Photographic Equipment
If you use a DSLR camera for photography you should bring telephotos (or converters) that will cover the range of 28-200mm. Bring plenty of spare battery power. If you would like to talk over suitable equipment, please contact Clive Grylls……he will be happy to give his advice.
Accommodation, Transport and Meals
All hotels and tented camps will be comfortable and based on dual occupancy but please remember this is a very isolated region and in some locations facilities are limited. If you are a single traveler there is no additional charge for single occupancy. The price of this trip does NOT include breakfast lunch and dinner which will be taken at local eateries. The trip from Delhi to Vishisht will be by public bus…..all other travel will be in four wheel jeeps occupied by a maximum of four travelers plus myself and driver.
HIGH ALTITUDE BOX
Ladakh is a high altitude region at 3500m and above. Some visitors may suffer from headaches and dizziness on arrival. It is essential for the first couple of days to take things easy and not over to over exercise. Mild symptoms can be partly relieved by resting and drinking plenty of fluids or by taking one Diamox tablet morning and evening for three days.
Our trip is designed to take you up in altitude in gradual steps with rest days in between, thus allowing you the benefits of acclimatization. There is a no trekking or ‘adventure’ sports involved on this tour-you will be driven to every destination.
Acute mountain sickness is caused by ascending in altitude TOO fast and can be dangerous, and even fatal, if all the warning signals are ignored. In Leh there are specialist medical facilities that can deal with this problem. In higher climes, such as our visit to Lake Tso Moriri at Korzok (4300m) there are not and if your symptoms become severe the only remedy would be to take you down to a lower destination. Your insurance for this trip MUST cover you for the cost of this eventuality.
We carry a first aid kit with the standard medicines prescribed by most doctors and on Day five onwards an oxygen cylinder and mask will be available in the jeep.We recommend you to consult your own doctor at least 2 months prior to the beginning of your trip. We suggest protection against malaria, tetanus, typhoid etc.
WHAT THE TRIP DOES NOT INCLUDE
- Return Airline fare from your country of domicile to Delhi, India.
- Domestic or internal flight from Leh back to Delhi. Although this can be booked at an additional cost.
- Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner and personal expenses.
- Gratuities to members of staff…..tour leaders, drivers etc. A suggestion would be at least 2000 Indian rupees per person.
- Comprehensive travel insurance covering personal effects, theft and health……and most importantly the possible effects of traveling and residing at high altitudes.
Copyright Disclaimer
All images appearing on this web page, unless noted otherwise, are the exclusive property of Clive Grylls. The images may not be reproduced, copied, transmitted or manipulated without the written permission of Clive Grylls. These copyright laws impose substantial penalties for infringement, and violators will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
The use of any images or other materials included herein, in whole or in part, for any purpose other than the private purpose of viewing them online, including, but not limited to, copying, reproduction, publication (including on Internet Web Site), including third party web pages by any means, including "hotlinking", storage in a retrieval system (other than internet browser), manipulation (digital or otherwise), or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, is expressly prohibited without the written permission of Clive Grylls. All artistic and moral rights of the author are hereby asserted.
For online use on social media sites, you may use images from this webpage…. provided you keep the watermark intact, clearly credit Clive Grylls next to the image, and link back to his social media page…….www.facebook.com/clivegryllsphotography