Nubra Valley Circuit
The upper Shayok and Nubra rivers drain the east and west sides of the Saser
Spur, the eastern most outcrop of the Karakoram. The name Nubra is applied to
the district comprising the valley of the Nubra river.
The route from Leh takes the traveler over the Khardung-la, the highest motorable
road in the world. The line of the road is different from that of the old pony-trail
- longer and actually higher (18,300 feet / 5,578 m). The view from the top
of the pass is amazing. One can see all the way south over the Indus valley
to the seemingly endless peaks and ridges of the Zanskar range, and north to
the giants of the Saser massif. For several kilometres, on each side of the
pass, the road covered by deep snow in winter, is rough; for the rest of the
way the surface is good.
At the confluence of the two rivers there is no dearth of water, but the sandy
soil is not suitable for agriculture, which is confined to the alluvial fans
where side streams debouch into the main valley. The valley floor itself is
covered with dense thickets of seabuckthorn - a thorny shrub- which the villagers
use for fuel and for fencing their fields ; though indeed, there is now less
need for this than there was in the days of the caravan trade with Central Asia
when up to 10,000 horses a year are said to have traversed the district. The
villages are large and seem prosperous, and have thick plantations of willow
and popular. The altitude is little less than that of Leh, varying between 10,000
feet (3,048 m) at Hundar, and 10,600 feet (3,231 m) at Panamik. Summer temperatures
vary between 15 degree celcuis and 28 degree celcuis.
The main village is Deskit, which has a regular bazaar consisting of a single
line of shops, and a gompa. This is situated on a rocky spur above the village
with commanding views up and down the valley. From Deskit, the tour circuit
proceeds down the Shayok to Hundar, past an area of rolling sanddunes, their
contours apparently solid, yet liable to shift with every gale. Here there is
a small population of Bactrain camels, shaggy double-humped animals, which in
the old days, were used as pack animals on the Central Asian trade routes.
The other circuit proceeds up the Nubra river, taking in the pretty villages
of Tirit, Lukung, Tegar and Sumur. Nubra's other kanor monastery, Samstaling
is situated on the mountainside just above Sumur. This was the route taken by
the trade caravans, and Panamik, the last village on this circuit, wsa at that
time a busy centre, the last major settlement before the caravans plunged into
the mountains of the Karakoram and the Kun-Lu. Here they invariable halted for
a few days to make final preparations for getting over the mountains, or to
recuperate afterwards. There would be no supplies, not even grazing for the
animals, for about 12 days after Panamik, so they had to carry all their provisions
for that time.
