 Situation : | Zanskar is a small valley of the Indian Himalayas, in which approximately 15 000 people live, spread out over 25 villages, one of which is Padum, the most important, which has a thousand permanent residents (see maps opposite).
Apart from a small muslim community at Padum, the Zanskarpas are Lamaist Buddhists (Tibetan Buddhism).
Zanskar is part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, the most northern state of the Indian Union. Kashmir is strongly coveted by the two big neighbours of India, China and Pakistan. In a near past, several conflicts caused the armies of these different countries to fight one another in the region. Consequently, the Indian army is still very present in the North of the state.
Culturally, Zanskar is part of Laddakh, " Little Tibet ", which main town is Leh, in the Indus Valley. But it is dependant on the administration of Khargil, to the West, which is mostly Muslim ... paradoxical situation, which can be explained by the fact that the only "jeepable" track to Padum in the Summer goes from Khargil and then crosses the Pensi La, at an altitude of 4 400 metres.
Reaching Zanskar, in the Summer, " directly " from Leh takes approximately one week, walking along mule paths and crossing over passes 5000 metres high.
In January and February, however, one can reach it by the " Tchadar " or several weeks (see below). |
| | Tchadar: | In the Winter, the snow blocks the track and the paths. Zanskar is cut away from the rest of the world.
In January and February, however, thanks to the cold, one can use the " Tchadar " for several weeks, the frozen Zanskar river, which thus becomes a communicating route to enter or leave the valley.
A track, which should be finished in a couple of years, will connect the Indus valley to Zanskar all year round. This will open up the valley and help the Zanskarpas reach Leh more easily. |
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The climate :
| Situated North of the Great Himalayas Range, Zanskar has a generally warm and dry climate in the Summer: daytime temperature can rise above 30° to 35° in the valleys, nights are cooler, especially at a high altitude, and yearly precipitations range from 200 to 250 mm.
However, these last few years, on several occasions, the damp air masses of the monsoon passed the Himalayan barrier in the Summer, causing violent, devastating downpours on Zanskar.
During the Winter, it can snow heavily (from 1 to 2 metres at Padum) and the snow tends to last a long time because the temperatures are generally very low (down to - 30° or - 35°).
But, here too, the climatic change is noticeable, and Winter 2008 was rather "mild" (the Tchadar wasn't passable for many days), the snowfalls started late, in January, though it normally snows mostly in November or December.
Winter snowfalls are vital for the Zanskarpas because the summer thaws feed the irrigation canals used to cultivate in the valleys. |
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|  | |  | | Passport for Zanskar (By the AAZ association) | State : Jammu and Kashmir, Sub-district within the district of Khargil
Capital: Padum
Population of Zanskar: approx 15 000 inhabitants.
Population of Padum: approx. 1000 inhabitants.
Language: Zanskari (similar to Tibetan), Urdu (official language) and English.
Writing: Bodyik (very similar to Tibetan).
Religion: Tibetan Buddhism (apart from a small Muslim community at Padum).
Altitude : between 3500 and 7000 metres.
Highest peaks: the Nun at 7135 metres and the Kun at 7087 metres.
Agriculture: barley, wheat, buckwheat, peas, mustard, lucern.
Breeding: cattle (yak and dimo, dzo and dzomo), goats pashmina, sheep, horses, donkeys and mules. |
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| | | | How to get to Zanskar |
From France, you must first take an international flight to Delhi.
Then, you must, either:
* take a domestic flight from Delhi to Leh ;
* take a bus that will also lead you to Leh after a rather unpleasant two-day journey.
On arrival in Leh, you will then again have the choice between:
* going to Padum by road in two days, with a halt in Karghil. The first day of the journey is on a newly-asphalted road. It will take approximately 8 hours to travel 250 kilometres. The second day will be rougher because you will travel along a track, which is in a bad state in some parts and which crosses the pass of Pensi at an altitude of 4 400 metres. It will take 11 hours to get to Padum (green circuit on the map)
* reaching Zanskar on foot, by one of the many trekking itineraries of the region. The most commonly used, but also the most beautiful, goes from Lamayuru, in the North, to Padum after a 10-day walk, crossing over several passes, some of which are over 5000 metres high. It's the northern part of the Great Crossing of Zanskar, which goes from Lamayuru to Darcha. |
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