Ladakh | Phyang to Hunder Trek across the Lasermo La by Ashesh Ambasta

2 Sept 2023: Atop Lasermo La. Left to right -- Prasad, Ashesh, and Kunsal, and Stanzin (kneeling) posing for the regulation photo, clicked by Glory! 

 Ashesh Ambasta is a experienced trekker who has been with South Col Expeditions on numerous treks including many in Ladakh. In this guest post he recounts his experiences on the recently concluded Phyang to Hunder trek across the 5440 m high Lasermo La - from the Indus to the Nubra valley.

I am sure that trails in Ladakh never fail to amaze and delight trekkers. For starters, it is possible to experience what can truly be called wilderness treks barely a few hours from Leh. How cool is that? Then, there are the breathtaking vistas. Scarps with steep acclivities rise to dizzying heights on either side of the trails, which usually follow water courses resulting in narrow – and the only – bands of vegetation for miles on end, combined with multi-hued slope surfaces, all conspiring to produce enchanted, fairy-tale panoramas.  Not surprisingly, even though the Phyang to Hundar trek was my fifth in Ladakh with South Col  Expeditions, the anticipation gripped me well before I took off from Delhi.

30^th August to 1^st September, 2023

A fitting start to the trek was a visit to the sixteenth century Phyang monastery. It falls on the way to Murubok, where the road ends and the trail begins. The gompa itself is inspiring and we were fortunate to arrive at a time when the resident monks were in prayer in the main hall.  The sonorous chanting lulled us into a meditative and peaceful repose, an appropriate mood for the trek. 

30 Aug 2023: A propitious start to the Phyang-to-Hunder trek is a visit to the 16th century Phyang monastery.  This gompa is on the way to Murubok, where the road ends and the walking trail begins.

In the shadow of Shipton and Tilman - Part II

Nanda Devi from Saini Kharak sunrise

This is  the second and concluding part of this essay. Readers are advised to read the first part at http://sujoyrdas.blogspot.com/2020/03/in-shadow-of-shipton-and-tilman-part-i.html before reading this final part.

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We started climbing again heading for the camp site of Jhandidhar (4200 metres) and reached it by 2 pm. It was a small clearing at the edge of a cliff commanding a view of Dunagiri to the north east and looking down into the Dhauli Ganga valley far below us. The tents were quickly set up and Prem and Monu left to get water from Lata Kharak, 3 km away. While we waited we received our first visitor. A forest guard returning on his beat from Dibrugheta stopped for a drink of water. We asked him about the bharal (blue sheep) which was to be seen in the sanctuary. "“The lack of water on these craggy cliffs has pushed the bharal down near the river”, he said “you will not be able to see them at this time”. However, close to camp we spotted a marmot and an alpine marten gazing at us from behind the rocks with great curiosity.

In the shadow of Shipton and Tilman - Part I

The Nanda Devi Sanctuary

This is the first part of a photo essay I wrote many years ago for a book on the Indian Himalaya. The book was never published and I forgot about this essay. Going through my computer files at home due to the coronavirus lock down I found it along with some other essays as well. So here it is finally published in my blog. I hope you do enjoy it!
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It was an oppressive and muggy pre-monsoon afternoon in early June 2003. I was sitting in Calcutta staring blankly at the computer screen mulling over the arrival or rather the non-arrival of the monsoon. The newspapers had said that it was delayed and as usual the build up of moisture over the Bay of Bengal had lead to an unbearable combination of high humidity and scorching temperatures over the plains of India.

Suddenly a message flashed in my Inbox with the heading “Nanda Devi”. It was from a friend informing me that the Nanda Devi outer sanctuary rim, which had been closed to visitors from 1982, had been formally opened for restricted trekking regulated by permits from the Forest Department.

The e-mail jolted me out of my reverie: Nanda Devi! The very name itself conjured up visions of a mountain goddess who had safeguard her fortress so securely for so many years that it took three generation of climbers and eight attempts to penetrate her sanctuary and that too after one of the most arduous treks in the world.