Pangong Lake

The mountains of Chang Chemo range leading to the disputed Aksai Chin plateau.

The mountains of the Chang Chemo range on the far side of the Pangong Lake. The Change Chemo range of mountains lead to the disputed Aksai Chin plateau. The dispute over the control of the Aksai Chin plateau is the reason for the 1962 war between India and China when India discovered that China was building a road through the Aksai Chin plateau to connect its Xinjiang region with Tibet.To learn more about the mountain ranges and geography of Ladakh, check out the following Kettik article. Getting to know the Mountain ranges of Ladakh

A lone horse grazing by the wetlands near the Tsokar lake.

Photo taken at the Thukje village.

Can you see it ? Rainbow over the Tsomoriri lake in Ladakh.

A rainbow was the last thing i expected to see on a sunny October morning in Ladakh. But this magical land is always full of surprises and this was a special one.I arrived at the banks of the Tsomoriri lake late on the previous evening and unable to find the way to the Korzok village, i camped by the lakeside. At 4400m, the night was slightly cold and windy and i had just a packet of biscuits for dinner. You might think that its a tough situation to be in, but i enjoyed every minute of it.The next morning i woke up to a beautiful sunny day and spent the morning basking in the warm sunlight. There was nobody around for miles and i felt that i had the lake all to myself. And if that wasn't enough, i spotted the mountains putting on a small welcome show for me with this beautiful subtle little rainbow.Its days like this that make you feel as if you are the luckiest person alive.

Guiding the flock home. Village scene from Hymia in the Indus valley.

A typical evening scene probably played out at every village in Ladakh everyday. Shepherds guiding their flock home through the fields of their village. This particular photo was taken at the Hymia village along the Indus valley.

A magical sunset scene from the Stok village in Ladakh.

Sunset is always a magical time in Ladakh with the mountain ranges throwing out various hues of yellow and orange light as the shadows slowly creep up their sides. This is a view of one such sunset from the Stok village with the Stok palace in the foreground.Photo Note: This is a perfect scenario for using a GND filter. But even with a GND (3 stop) the range between the lights and shadows was so great that i had to use 'soft' filters in Lightroom to balance the exposure.

Oh those piercing eyes. A Ladakhi portrait in the Indus Valley.

I love the captivating eyes and the warm smiles (you'll see) of the Ladakhi/Tibetan people. This photo was taken at a restaurant in the Hymia village where i camped overnight while cycling along the Indus valley. This kid was so fascinated by me, the he(/she) sat observing me the whole time i was at the restaurant. And, I in turn was captivated as well.

View from the Merak monastery

Pangong Lake reflections near Lukung

Lake view near the Merak Village

Pangong range towering over the Merak Village

The snowcapped peaks of the Pangong range mountains towering over the Merak village.

Maan village

Pangong Lake near Spangmik village

A Indian army truck with snow chains.

"It was exciting being part of the huge convoy snaking up the mountain roads. We made good progress and i was enjoying the ride.But soon we came across the snow and the whole convoy slowed down to a crawl. The temperature got colder and the convoy was getting slower by the minute. After a while the entire convoy stopped to put snow chains around the wheels of the trucks."From Story : Rescued again... How the Indian army helped me cross a snowed out Chang La pass for the 2nd time.

Mountains on the route from Spangmik to Maan village along the Pangong Lake

Army jawans putting snow chains around the wheels of a truck to tackle the slippery roads

"It was exciting being part of the huge convoy snaking up the mountain roads. We made good progress and i was enjoying the ride.But soon we came across the snow and the whole convoy slowed down to a crawl. The temperature got colder and the convoy was getting slower by the minute. After a while the entire convoy stopped to put snow chains around the wheels of the trucks."From Story : Rescued again... How the Indian army helped me cross a snowed out Chang La pass for the 2nd time.

Reflections of a mountain range.

This one takes my breath away every time i look at it ? I'd usually dismiss these kinda photos as a lucky shot, being at the right place at the right time, but i had to work a bit to get this one. I was definitely at the right place.. but the time wasn't right as a light breeze was disturbing the puddle's surface. I hung around by these puddles for over an hour and finally when the breeze died down for a moment... CLICK !!

Pangong Lake near Spangmik village

Pangong Lake reflections near Lukung

Army convoy waiting at a TCP checkpost below Chang La for paperwork to clear.

"Traveling in an army convoy is a slow business. Every 15 to 20 km the convoy would stop at a check point (TCP) and wait 30 minutes or more to get all their paper work started again. Then its off to the next check point, another long wait and so on. It seemed like the famed Indian bureaucracy did not spare its army either."From Story : Rescued again... How the Indian army helped me cross a snowed out Chang La pass for the 2nd time.

Army convoy waiting at a TCP checkpost for paperwork to clear.

"Traveling in an army convoy is a slow business. Every 15 to 20 km the convoy would stop at a check point (TCP) and wait 30 minutes or more to get all their paper work started again. Then its off to the next check point, another long wait and so on. It seemed like the famed Indian bureaucracy did not spare its army either."From Story : Rescued again... How the Indian army helped me cross a snowed out Chang La pass for the 2nd time.

Army jawans putting snow chains around the wheels of a truck to tackle the slippery roads

"It was exciting being part of the huge convoy snaking up the mountain roads. We made good progress and i was enjoying the ride.But soon we came across the snow and the whole convoy slowed down to a crawl. The temperature got colder and the convoy was getting slower by the minute. After a while the entire convoy stopped to put snow chains around the wheels of the trucks."From Story : Rescued again... How the Indian army helped me cross a snowed out Chang La pass for the 2nd time.

First light over Merak village.

The first light of the day making its way down the peaks of the Pangong range towering over the Merak village. Merak is one of the four villages on the shores of the Pangong Lake. Read more about the Pangong lake. 

Tranquility

Mountainscape near the Pangong Lake site

Pangong Lake reflections

Ibex guardian at the Merak Gompa.