Ladakh is a land like no other. Bounded by
two of the world's mightiest mountain ranges, the Great Himalaya and the
Korakaram, it lies athwart two other, the Ladakh range and the Zanskar
range.
In geological terms, this is a young land, formed only a
few million years ago by the buckling and folding of the earth's crust as
the Indian sub-continent pushed with irresistible force against the
immovable mass of Asia. Its basic contours, uplifted by these unimaginable
tectonic movements, have been modified over the millennia by the opposite
process of erosion, sculpted into the form we see today by wind and water.
Yes, water! Today, a high -altitude desert, sheltered from the
rain-bearing clouds of the Indian monsoon by the barrier of the Great
Himalaya, Ladakh was once covered by an extensive lake system, the vestiges
of which still exist on its south -east plateau of Rupshu and Chushul - in
drainage basins with evocative names like Tso-moriri, Tsokar, and grandest
of all, Pangong-tso.
Occasionally, some stray monsoon clouds do
find their way over the Himalaya, and lately this seems to be happening with
increasing frequency. But the main source of water remains the winter
snowfall. Dras, Zanskar and the Suru Valley on the Himalayas northern flank
receive heavy snow in winter; this feeds the glaciers whose meltwater,
carried down by streams, irrigates the fields in summer.
For the
rest of the region, the snow on the peaks is virtually the only source of
water. As the crops grow, the villagers pray not for rain, but for sun to
melt the glaciers and liberate their water. Usually their prayers are
answered, for the skies are clear and the sun shines for over 300 days in
the year.
Ladakh lies at altitudes ranging from about 9,000 feet
(2750m) at Kargil to 25,170 feet (7,672m) at Saser Kangri in the Korakaram.
Thus summer temperatures rarely exceed about 27-degree celcuis in the shade,
while in winter they may plummet to minus 20-degree celcuis even in Leh.
Surprisingly,
though, the thin air makes the heat of the sun even more intense than at
lower altitudes; it is said that only in Ladakh can a man sitting in the sun
with his feet in the shade suffer from sunstroke and frostbite at the same
time!
Ladakh >>> Religion
& Culture -|-
Historical Background -|-How
to Reach Drass-|-Kargil
-|-Suru Valley-|-Zanskar
-|-Zangla
Cities
To VisitJammu & Kashmir Home
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Jammu -|-Kashmir-|-Ladakh-|-Leh-|-Nubra
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