112 photos
In August 2024, after the difficult Changtang traverse of the previous month (see related gallery), we kept walking west into the Zanskar region. This is a slightly lower and warmer area (average 4000 meters) but more picturesque and inhabitated; it's home to many Tibetan monasteries and a few remote villages hidden in the himalaya.
We started near Pughtal gompa, now quite close to a 4x4 road (and it's getting closer!) and walked trought long gorges with the goal of reaching one of the last truly remote villages in this region of the world, Shade. It was beyond expectations and we stayed two long days as guests of its kind people. We reached the main Zanskar valley again, further north, 10 days after we started.
After a short rest (and a few hours of 4x4) we improvised a 3 days trek to reach Ladakh, near the village of Kanji. I visited this place eight years ago, when the road was being built: now it's twice the size and very much changed, altough still quite charming.
As usual all those treks were done independently (no guides, no mules, no agencies - just maps and heavy backpacks!). For me this is the only way to be able to experience the local culture - none (shepherds, monks, villagers) would have invited us as guest in their homes otherwise.
The two most famous trekking traverse of Zanskar just became 4x4 roads, and many remote villages suddenly jumped into the 21st century. But there is still hundreds of kilometers of remote valleys - a true labyrinth - to be explored here.
Some captions in the photos!
We started near Pughtal gompa, now quite close to a 4x4 road (and it's getting closer!) and walked trought long gorges with the goal of reaching one of the last truly remote villages in this region of the world, Shade. It was beyond expectations and we stayed two long days as guests of its kind people. We reached the main Zanskar valley again, further north, 10 days after we started.
After a short rest (and a few hours of 4x4) we improvised a 3 days trek to reach Ladakh, near the village of Kanji. I visited this place eight years ago, when the road was being built: now it's twice the size and very much changed, altough still quite charming.
As usual all those treks were done independently (no guides, no mules, no agencies - just maps and heavy backpacks!). For me this is the only way to be able to experience the local culture - none (shepherds, monks, villagers) would have invited us as guest in their homes otherwise.
The two most famous trekking traverse of Zanskar just became 4x4 roads, and many remote villages suddenly jumped into the 21st century. But there is still hundreds of kilometers of remote valleys - a true labyrinth - to be explored here.
Some captions in the photos!
© matteo bedendo