Nubra Valley
Encyclopedia
Nubra Valley is about 150 km north of Leh, the capital town of Ladakh
, India. Local scholars say that its original name was Ldumra (the valley of flowers). The Shyok River meets the Nubra or Siachan River to form a large valley that separates the Ladakh and the Karakoram Ranges. The average altitude of the valley is about 10,000 ft. above the sea level. The common way to access this valley is to travel over the Khardung La
from Leh. Non-locals require an Inner Line Permit
(obtainable in Leh town) to enter Nubra.
, the inhabitants are Balti
, speak Balti, and are Shia and Sufia Nurbakhshia
Muslims.
Siachen Glacier
lies to the north of the valley. The Sasser Pass
and the famous Karakoram Pass
lie to the northwest of the valley and connect Nubra with Xinjiang
. Previously there was much trade passing through the area with East Turkestan
and Central Asia.
On the Shyok River, the main village, Diskit, is home to the dramatically positioned Diskit Monastery
. Hundar was the capital of the erstwhile Nubra kingdom in the 17th century, and is home to the Chamba Gompa. Between Hundar and Diskit lie several kilometres of sand dunes, and (two-humped) bactrian camel
s graze in the neighbouring "forests" of seabuckthorn. Non-locals are not allowed below Hundar village into the Balti area, as it is a border area. The beautiful village of Baigdandu is also located in this area. There is a marked presence of people with startling blue eyes, auburn hair and rosy cheeks as against the typical mongoloid features of the Ladakhis. Local lore has it that they were a Greek tribe who came in search of Jesus Christ's tomb and eventually settled here. Baigdandu is also known for the goats that give you the famous Pashmina shawls.
Currently the only road access to the Nubra Valley is over Khardung La
pass, whose status as the highest motorable road in the world is no longer accepted by most authorities. The Indian Government has completed another road pass over Wari La from Sakti, to the east of Khardung La, and the road connecting it to central Nubra along the Shyok River is said to be almost completed as of 2008. There are also trekkable passes over the Ladakh Range from the Indus Valley at various points. Routes from Nubra to Baltistan or Yarkand, though historically important, have been closed since 1947 and 1950 respectively.
, which flows through the Nubra region of Ladakh, into the Indus River
to the east of Skardu
, Pakistan. The Siachen Glacier
melts into this river.
Ladakh
Ladakh is a region of Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state of the Republic of India. It lies between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and the main Great Himalayas to the south, inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent...
, India. Local scholars say that its original name was Ldumra (the valley of flowers). The Shyok River meets the Nubra or Siachan River to form a large valley that separates the Ladakh and the Karakoram Ranges. The average altitude of the valley is about 10,000 ft. above the sea level. The common way to access this valley is to travel over the Khardung La
Khardung La
Khardung La is a high mountain pass located in the Ladakh region, Jammu and Kashmir, India...
from Leh. Non-locals require an Inner Line Permit
Inner Line Permit
Inner Line Permit is an official travel document issued by the Government of India to allow inward travel of an Indian citizen into a protected/restricted area for a limited period. It is obligatory for Indian citizens from outside those states to obtain permit for entering into the protected state...
(obtainable in Leh town) to enter Nubra.
Geography
Like the rest of Ladakh, Nubra is a high altitude desert with rare precipitation and scant vegetation except along river beds, where irrigated, and on high slopes. The villages are irrigated and fertile, producing wheat, barley, peas, mustard for oil, and a variety of fruits and nuts, including apple, walnut, apricot and even a few almond trees. Most of the Nubra Valley is inhabited by Ladakhis who speak Ladakhi; the majority of them are Buddhist, with a minority of Shia and Sunni Muslims. In the western or lowest altitude end of Nubra Valley, along the Shyok RiverShyok River
The Shyok River flows through northern Ladakh in India and the Northern Areas of Pakistan , spanning some .The Shyok River, a tributary of the Indus River, originates from the Rimo Glacier, one of the tongues of Siachen Glacier. The river widens at the confluence with the Nubra River...
, the inhabitants are Balti
Balti people
The Balti are an ethnic group of Tibetan descent with some Dardic admixture located in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan and Ladakh, a region in Jammu & Kashmir, India; as well as scattered in Pakistan's major urban centres of Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad/Rawalpindi. The Balti language belongs to the...
, speak Balti, and are Shia and Sufia Nurbakhshia
Sufia Nurbakhshia
Nurbakhshiya also written as Noorbakhshiya, is an Islamic sect. The followers of this sect are called Nurbakhshis. The name has been derived by their founder Mir Syed Muhammad Nurbakhsh Qahistani.-Doctrine:...
Muslims.
Siachen Glacier
Siachen Glacier
The Siachen Glacier is located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalaya Mountains at about , just east of the Line of Control between India-Pakistan. India controls all of the Siachen Glacier itself, including all tributary glaciers. At long, it is the longest glacier in the Karakoram and...
lies to the north of the valley. The Sasser Pass
Sasser Pass
Saser Pass, Saser La, or Sasser Pass is a high mountain pass in Ladakh and India on the ancient summer caravan route from Leh in Ladakh to Yarkand in the Tarim Basin...
and the famous Karakoram Pass
Karakoram Pass
The Karakoram Pass is a mountain pass between India and China in the Karakoram Range. It is the highest pass on the ancient caravan route between Leh in Ladakh and Yarkand in the Tarim Basin...
lie to the northwest of the valley and connect Nubra with Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
. Previously there was much trade passing through the area with East Turkestan
East Turkestan
East Turkestan is a controversial political term with multiple meanings depending on context and usage...
and Central Asia.
Places
Along the Nubra or Siachan River lie the villages of Sumur, Kyagar (called Tiger by the Indian Army), Tirith, Panamik and many others. Samstanling monastery is between Kyagar and Sumur villages, and Panamik is noted for its hot springs. Across the Nubra or Siachan River at Panamik, is the isolated Ensa Gompa.On the Shyok River, the main village, Diskit, is home to the dramatically positioned Diskit Monastery
Diskit Monastery
Diskit Monastery also known as Deskit Gompa or Diskit Gompa is the oldest and largest Buddhist monastery in the Nubra Valley of Ladakh, northern India....
. Hundar was the capital of the erstwhile Nubra kingdom in the 17th century, and is home to the Chamba Gompa. Between Hundar and Diskit lie several kilometres of sand dunes, and (two-humped) bactrian camel
Bactrian camel
The Bactrian camel is a large, even-toed ungulate native to the steppes of central Asia. It is presently restricted in the wild to remote regions of the Gobi and Taklamakan Deserts of Mongolia and Xinjiang. A small number of wild Bactrian camels still roam the Mangystau Province of southwest...
s graze in the neighbouring "forests" of seabuckthorn. Non-locals are not allowed below Hundar village into the Balti area, as it is a border area. The beautiful village of Baigdandu is also located in this area. There is a marked presence of people with startling blue eyes, auburn hair and rosy cheeks as against the typical mongoloid features of the Ladakhis. Local lore has it that they were a Greek tribe who came in search of Jesus Christ's tomb and eventually settled here. Baigdandu is also known for the goats that give you the famous Pashmina shawls.
Currently the only road access to the Nubra Valley is over Khardung La
Khardung La
Khardung La is a high mountain pass located in the Ladakh region, Jammu and Kashmir, India...
pass, whose status as the highest motorable road in the world is no longer accepted by most authorities. The Indian Government has completed another road pass over Wari La from Sakti, to the east of Khardung La, and the road connecting it to central Nubra along the Shyok River is said to be almost completed as of 2008. There are also trekkable passes over the Ladakh Range from the Indus Valley at various points. Routes from Nubra to Baltistan or Yarkand, though historically important, have been closed since 1947 and 1950 respectively.
Nubra River
The Nubra River is a tributary of the Shyok RiverShyok River
The Shyok River flows through northern Ladakh in India and the Northern Areas of Pakistan , spanning some .The Shyok River, a tributary of the Indus River, originates from the Rimo Glacier, one of the tongues of Siachen Glacier. The river widens at the confluence with the Nubra River...
, which flows through the Nubra region of Ladakh, into the Indus River
Indus River
The Indus River is a major river which flows through Pakistan. It also has courses through China and India.Originating in the Tibetan plateau of western China in the vicinity of Lake Mansarovar in Tibet Autonomous Region, the river runs a course through the Ladakh district of Jammu and Kashmir and...
to the east of Skardu
Skardu
Skardu , is the main town of the region Baltistan and the capital of Skardu District, one of the districts making up Pakistan's Gilgit Baltistan....
, Pakistan. The Siachen Glacier
Siachen Glacier
The Siachen Glacier is located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalaya Mountains at about , just east of the Line of Control between India-Pakistan. India controls all of the Siachen Glacier itself, including all tributary glaciers. At long, it is the longest glacier in the Karakoram and...
melts into this river.
See also
- LadakhLadakhLadakh is a region of Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state of the Republic of India. It lies between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and the main Great Himalayas to the south, inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent...
- Khardung LaKhardung LaKhardung La is a high mountain pass located in the Ladakh region, Jammu and Kashmir, India...
pass - Siachen GlacierSiachen GlacierThe Siachen Glacier is located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalaya Mountains at about , just east of the Line of Control between India-Pakistan. India controls all of the Siachen Glacier itself, including all tributary glaciers. At long, it is the longest glacier in the Karakoram and...
- ThoiseThoiseThoise is a military airfield and small village in Shyok Valley, Jammu and Kashmir, India, occupying the only large piece of flat land in the area...
- ChalunkaChalunkaChalunka is a small village in the Shyok River valley, which was on the India-Pakistan border till 1971 when Indian colonel Chewang Rinchen raised the Nubra river valley guards from local men and captured considerable territory along the valley until they got near the village Turtuk where the...
- Project HIMANKHimankHimank is a project of the Border Roads Organisation in the Ladakh region of northernmost India that started in August 1985. Himank is responsible for the construction and maintenance of roads and related infrastructure including the world's highest motorable roads across the Khardung La, Tanglang...
, road builders in the valley and creaters of curious sign boards
