Ladakh Itinerary suggestions - 8n/9D June 2018

[Yogesh Sarkar]

There is one permit.

For normal routes eg. Leh to Nubra Valley or Pangong Tso etc. you just need to select the route in application form and apply for permit. For places like Chushul, you need to mention places en route i.e. Pangong Tso, Chushul, Tsaga, Loma, Nyoma and Tso Moriri. Then the authorities decide whether or not to allow you permit for that circuit or they strike it out. For this route, it is best to visit the permit office personally. For normal circuit, you can depend on your hotel or travel agent.

 

[gkapoor]

That means if you wish to keep agham shyok and chushul route in your plan, you need to visit DC office and apply for permits for these places, explicitly mentioning nubra, agham-shyok, pangong, man, merak, chushul, korzok.

YS please add on if required.

 

[SHILADITYA CHAUDHURY]

This is extremely useful information.
I can get the permit done personally on day one or two.

I watched lot of videos about TsoMoriri and Turtuk .
And I absolutely want to visit Tso Moriri. Turtuk is different and looks interesting no doubt but Tso Moriri looks out of the world.

So, I am thinking to stick to Plan A. Even if the Chushul route is closed, we can come back to Kharu and head to Tso Moriri.
I spoke to a few drivers as well and they claim that Pangong to Tso Moriri through Chushul will be around 8 hours and through Kharu will be 9-10 hours.
So, definitely feasible if we start early by 7-7:30.
Obiously, it depends on how you are feeling after spending the night at Tso Moriri.
Do you think this is a good plan?

Or, since I am keen to visit Tso Moriri, I should drop Turtuk which gives me the option to go to TsoMoriri directly from Pangong or worst case, come back to Leh and visit Tso Moriri the next day

 

[Yogesh Sarkar]

In that case, skip Turtuk and visit Tso Moriri instead. Keep a rest day in Leh towards the end; it will come in handy, especially if you like good food and cafes.

 

[gkapoor]

Not only for going to Tso Moriri, I would suggest you to be on the road by 7.30 - 8AM everyday (when going outside Leh) so that you have ample time and sunlight left when you reach the day's destination and also tackle any delays due to jams, unforeseen events, etc. Stick to this thumb rule.

 

[SHILADITYA CHAUDHURY]

Yes, will try to stick to that schedule.
Early to bed and early to rise

So, this is the final plan -

Leh,Nubra,Pangong,Tso Moriri - 1 nights at Nubra, 1 night at Pangong, 1 night at Tso Moriri (skip Turtuk)
Day1 -LEH - rest, local market, Shanti stupa,
Day2 - Sham valley - alchi/likir monastery, sangam, Gurudwara, magnetic hill etc, night at Leh
Day 3 - Leh to Nubra - diskit, camel safari, night at hundar
Day4 - Nubra to Leh, night at Leh
Day5 - Leh to Pangong, night at Pangong
Day6 - Pangong to Tso moriri, night at Tso moriri
Day 7-Tso Moriri to Leh, night at Leh
Day8 - Leh local sightseeing, shopping, monasteries, night at Leh (spare day if we can't go directly from Pangong to Tso Moriri)
Day9- fly back

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Feeling bad for skipping Turtuk, I should have booked for 2 more days.
Am I right about the travel time from Pangong to TsoMoriri - 8 hours via Chushul and 10 hours via Karu?

 

[gkapoor]

Can I be a little unconventional and suggest you to reverse the plan? ie Leh to Pangong to Tso Moriri first and then Nubra valley in later part of the trip. This will allow you to better decide about going to Turtuk (if you manage to take agham shyok route to Pangong and/or chushul route to tso moriri- it will give you an extra day).
You are having first 2 days for acclimatisation so this should work fine.

@Yogesh Sarkar , your thoughts?

 

[Yogesh Sarkar]

2 nights of acclimatization at 11,400 ft won’t be enough to get ready for 14,800 ft altitude of Tso Moriri. Especially considering they would actually be traveling downhill on the second day, instead of climbing up and sleeping low to help acclimatize better (that is what you end up doing by going to Nubra.)

 

[SHILADITYA CHAUDHURY]

I agree with YS. Whatever I have read about acclimitization , I think going to Pangong on Day 3 is not advisable.
I will stick with the plan above unless we have a bad experience at Pangong.
In that case, we might skip Tso Moriri and enjoy 2 days at leisure at Leh.

 

[gkapoor]

Cool. You can try these shenanigans after couple of trips to high altitude places when you know how your and family's bodies react to such conditions.