Ladakh: On the Snow Leopard Trail

January 15, 2018 - By Devayani Khare

Ladakh: On the Snow Leopard Trail

Text and Images: Devayani Khare (except where stated otherwise)

I flew into Leh, the capital of Ladakh in the last week of November when winter’s chill had set in. The Indus river snaked its way across the sleepy town, and the Zanskar range created a jagged horizon against picture perfect skies.

After a couple of days’ acclimatization to Leh’s altitude of 13,500 ft above mean sea level, we set off northwestwards for Ulley – our destination to track the elusive snow leopard.

On our three hour drive through the Leh valley towards the ridges, we came across many small towns, military encampments, hilltop monasteries – like the Stakna (just visible to the right where the river disappears into the distance)…

…and beautiful snow-melt stream beds – sometimes frozen, sometimes a trickle, growing wild with heather and shrubs. We stopped off several times along the way for some birdwatching and to admire the spectacular panoramas.

By mid-afternoon, we reached Ulley – a village with a handful of wood-and-stone cottages, overlooking a valley carved by a glacier, fringed by the ice-capped Zanskar range.
Image credits: Kaafila Camps

Over a hot cup of tea in the colourful lounge, we were introduced to the concept of the Snow Leopard Lodge – run by the Kaafila Camps group and marketed by RARE destinations & experiences. Thanks to these partners, we were here on this snow leopard tracking adventure!
Image credits: Kaafila Camps

Over the next few days, we scoured the low ranges and high, the neighbouring valleys and villages – for a glimpse of the snow leopard. We stalked groups of its prey, like the bharal or blue sheep…

Watched groups of female urial – a species of wild sheep grazing placidly before heading to higher ridges to be serenaded…

…by the impressive males in mating regalia – black ruff and big horns! The ritual involves a series of head-butting matches on scree slopes between males to decide on who gets to mate with all the females.

We also saw other wildlife like the timid Ladak pika…

The Chukar partridge – an upland gamebird from the pheasant family…

Flocks of choughs…alpine and red-billed, that looked like shadows in the valley…

The lammergeier or the bearded vulture soaring high above the ridges to scavenge on the marrow from animal bones…

On the last day of our stay, we found fresh snow leopard pugmarks – our expert trackers told us that it was a female with two cubs that would have passed by in the early morning hours. As snow leopards are mostly active during dawn and twilight hours, the family would have sought refuge in the crags and we scanned the valley in vain…Yet the ‘ghost of the Himalayas’ eluded us. However, we were far from disappointed.With a geology sculpted by the birth of the Himalayas, rivers fed by glaciers,the subtle shades of winter vegetation like willow and heather, the incredible biodiversity, and the warmth and hospitality of its humble folk, Ladakh’s stark beauty was so much more than we could have expected.

After a couple of days’ acclimatization to Leh’s altitude of 13,500 ft above mean sea level, we set off northwestwards for Ulley – our destination to track the elusive snow leopard.

On our three hour drive through the Leh valley towards the ridges, we came across many small towns, military encampments, hilltop monasteries – like the Stakna (just visible to the right where the river disappears into the distance)…

Ladakh: On the Snow Leopard Trail

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