Pangong Tso Lake

Pangong Tso is a lake in the Himalayas situated at a height of about 4250 m (13,900 ft). It is 134 km (83.3 mi) long and extends from India to Tibet. Two thirds of the length of this lake falls in the People's Republic of China. It is 5 km (3 mi) wide at its broadest point. In winter, the lake surface freezes completely despite being salt water.

Pangong Tso can be reached in a five-hour drive from Leh, most of it on a rough and dramatic mountain road. The road traverses the third-highest pass in the world, the Changla pass, where army sentries and a small teahouse greet visitors. The spectacular lakeside is open during the tourist season, from May to September. A special permit is required to visit the lake. While an Indian can get his individual permit at Leh, non-Indian nationals need to be in a group of at least four. For security reasons, no boating is allowed. There is a small hostel as well as campsites and houses with primitive guestrooms in the village a few miles towards Tibet.

The lake is in the process of being identified under the Ramsar Convention as a wetland of international importance. This will be the first trans-boundary wetland in South Asia under the convention.

Flora and fauna

The brackish water of the lake is devoid of any micro-vegetation. There are some species of scrub and perennial herbs that grow in the marshes around the lake. The lake acts as an important breeding ground for a variety of birds including a number of migratory birds. The region around the lake supports a number of species of wildlife including the kiang.

Valley of Ladakh

The Suru Valley

Diving two of the world's most formidable mountain ranges, the Suru Valley winds south from Kargil to the desolate Pensi La the main entry point for Zanskar. 

North of Leh : Nubra Valley

Until 1994, the lands north of Leh were off limits to tourists and had been unexplored by outsiders since the nineteenth century.

Drass Valley

Drass (3230 m), 60 km west of Kargil on the road to Srinagar, is a small township lying in the centre of the valley of the same name .

Shyok Valley

The Shyok River receives the waters of the Nubra and Changchenmo rivers. It rises from the Khumdang glacier, which can be approached from Shyok. 

Salt Valley

The Salt Lake Valley is one of the widest open areas in Rupshu. It can be approached from Leh across the Tanglang La pass.

Lake of Ladakh

Pangong Tso

Pangong Tso, 15km to the southeast of Leh, is one of the largest saltwater lakes in Asia, a long narrow strip of water stretching from Ladakh east into Tibet.

Tso Moriri

Tso Moriri or "Mountain Lake" is Famous for the large herds of king, or wild ass, which graze on its shores, the lake of Tso Moriri, 210km southeast of Leh, lies in the sparsely populated region of Rupshu.