Geography
Ladakh sits in the rain shadow of the Himalaya, the height of the Great Himalayan Range prevents the monsoon rains of India from pushing any further north, instead breaking like a wave on the southern side of mountains. This makes Ladakh a high altitude desert with very little rainfall, the main source of water being snow melt.
The Indus River, which separates the Himalaya from the Karakoram, the worlds second highest mountain range, passes through Ladakh and is surrounded by several lesser ranges. The Ladakh range forms the northern boundary of the Indus Valley and the Zanskar range the south. The Karakoram mountains have their south eastern end within Ladakh but culminate in the summit of K2 (8611m) further north in the Baltistan region of Pakistan.
Ladakh is a high altitude cross roads, sitting at the western end of the Himalaya, which run from here all the way through India and Nepal to distant Bhutan and the eastern end of the Karakoram, which can be followed from here all the way to Afghanistan and the Pamir mountains beyond. Ancient trade routes connecting the Middle East and Southern Asia with the Tibetan Plateau, all meet up here in this high and harsh Buddhist landscape, dotted with hill top monasteries and fluttering prayer flags.
Hemis National Park, west of the regional capital Leh, is the largest National Park in India and home to the largest population of endangered snow leopards anywhere in the world. As well as beautiful and illusive snow leopards, Ladakh is also home to Ibex, Lynx, Tibeatan Wolf, Red Fox and Himalayan Marmot. The protected area of Hemis NP also includes the 400 year old Hemis Monastery and encompasses the Markha and Rumbak Valleys as well as parts of the Zanskar Range.
