Ladakh Attractions

Dal Lake is in Srinagar, which is the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir. It is also recognized as "Jewel in the crown of Kashmir" or "Srinagar's Jewel". It is the second main lake in the state and it is vital to tourism and leisure in Kashmir. The lake is also important with commercial point of view as operations in fishing and water plant harvesting are carried out here.
The shore line of the lake, about 15.5 kilometres (9.6 mi), is encompassed by a avenue lined with Mughal age gardens, parks, houseboats and hotels. From the magnificent Mughal Gardens the pictorial shoreline of Dal Lake, the houseboats and the colourful shikara's sailing through can be observed and this Mughal Gardens such as Nishat Bagh and Shalimar Bagh were brought together at some stage during the Mughal Emperor Jahangir's period. Through the winter season, the temperature sometimes reaches -11 °C (12 °F), freezing the lake.

In India, nearly 35 monasteries in Ladak of Buddhist are extended across the region. Ladakh monasteries hold carvings, gilded statues, religious icons, exquisite murals, scrolls and these remain alive with the devotions of monks. The Ladakh monastery are situated in attractive places such as mountains,hills and and have rich collections of artifacts, Buddhist Thangka paintings and sculpture. These are various monastries in Ladakh.

The Palace in Leh also called as Leh Palace is positioned above the Ladakhi Himalayan town of Leh, built on top of the Potala Palace in Lhasa in Tibet. The Sengge Namgyal King during 17th Century constructed this Leh Palace but later disposed of by Dogra forces in 19th Century when they took power over Ladakh. The royal family moved to Stok Palace. Leh Palace is nine storeys high; the royal family stayed on the upper floors, the stables and store rooms were in the lower floors. The palace, a ruin, is currently being restored by the Archaeological Survey of India. The palace is open to the public and one can get panoramic views of Leh and the surrounding areas from the roof. Stock Kangri is mountain among Zanskar mountains range and it is able to be seen via Indus valley to south along with other Ladakh mount series which are growing behind the fort of north.

The Gravity Hill in Leh, Ladakh is also called as Magnetic hill since it posses magnetic powers that are sturdy enough to pull your cars and other vehicles uphill and force the aircrafts to fly much above in altitude to getaway with magnetic inquisitive. In reality, the effect is an optical illusion and there is no magnetic commotion in the area at all.
The "Magnetic Hill" is positioned on the Leh-Kargil-Srinagar national highway route. It is approximately 50 km away from Leh as well as at an altitude of 3353 m over sea level. On its south side flows the Indus, which originates in Tibet and goes to Pakistan. The so-called magnetic hill has become a well-liked stop for domestic tourists on car journeys.

Pangong Lake is a most Salty lake in the Himalayas positioned at an elevation of about 4,350 m. It is 134 km elongated and enlarged from India to Tibet. 60% length of the Pangong Lake lies in Tibet. The lake is 5 km (3.1 mi) wide at its broadest point. The Pangong Lake Ladakh envelops nearly 604 kms and during winters it freezes entirely although it contains saline water.
The lake is in the procedure of being recognized under the Ramsar Convention as a wetland of international importance. This will be the first trans-boundary wetland in South Asia under the convention.

Major Gompas are situated in the central area of Ladak in which 13 monasteries are located near Indus Valley and all these Ladak monasteries belong to the Red Hat of Tibetan Monastic Order.
Most of the visitors come to Ladakh in order to enjoy beautiful scenery or the Gompas. Ladakh has many significant monasteries which are known as Gompas and these Buddhist practices their religion,study.

Zanskar valley lies to the south-west of leh, surrounded by the Himalayan and zanskar ranges, which is the most isolated of all the trans-himalayan valley. It takes two days, with a nigh halt at kargil, to reach Zanskar negotiating the rough road beginning from kargil.
Zanskar valley encompasses two important valleys of Stod (Doda Chu) and Lungnak (Tsarab Chu ) that congregate beneath at Padum. The Zanskar valley covers an area around 5,000 square kms and a height of about 13,154 feet. For about 7 months in a year this area is difficult to get through by anyone. All the high passes gets closed in winters. The only alternate route out of Zanskar river, which has become a popular destiny for winter tourist hikers.it is nearly week long walk on frozen river from Zanskar to reach leh. This is popular as chadar trek.

Hemis High Altitude National Park is a park situated on the Eastern Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir State in India. It is the only National park with high altitude in north of the Himalayas in India, it is not only the largest warned isolated area but the biggest national park of India. And after the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, it is the 2nd largest neighboring protected area that is surrounded by private and secluded vicinities. The park is home to a number of species of endangered mammals including the snow leopard. Hemis National Park is India's only private area inside the Palearctic ecozone, outside the Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary northeast of Hemis, and the planned Tso Lhamo Cold wasteland preservation Area in North Sikkim.
The Hemis National Park is bounded on the north by the banks of the Indus River, and consists of the cachements of Markha, Sumdah and Rumbak, and division of the Zanskar mountain series.

The original name used for Nubra Valley is Ldumra meaning the 'valley of flowers' It is situated in the north of Ladakh region. The average altitude of the valley is about 10,000 mtrs above sea level. The main settlements are along the shayok River and the siachen river. The river belt is sandy and the vegetation includes green Farmarisk and Myricaria. One of the unique features of the landscapes in Nubra is the sand dunes between Deskit (administrative center) Hundar villages

There are many hotspring in the valleys of ladakh, panamik, chumathang, puga and demchok are chief among them. Hotsprings have a special value in ladakh for the medicinal value and their therapeutic benefits based on local system of medicine called amchi. Amchi's use these hotsprings to cure different diseases. The local hill council is even exploring the hydrothermal potential of puga hotspring to generate some 45 megawatt electricity.

Although the origins are unclear, polo has for centuries, been a popular sport in the rugged mountain valley of karakoram range, particularly in remote and inaccessible Himalayan region of Gilgit, Hunza, skardo, and khapulooin baltistan and ladakh in the north and Manipur in the east.

Since Ladakh is very spiritual and religious in its approach, so the Oracles are a vital element of its religious and spiritual rituals. The Ladakhis trust entirely in the power of spirits and Gods on the material world and so without taking this power into concern they do not take any major undertakings. They perform the money necessary to propitiate the gods- in personal houses also in the Gompas. They also often take on the task of astrologers and oracles who can envisage the propitious way of going about it.

Every monastery in ladakh and indeed in the larger Tibetan Buddhist cultural region, houses volumes of sacred texts which served as the critical focus for rituals and prayers conducted by the monks within the monasteries. Today some of these texts are the only source of original Buddhist text in the world.

The somewhat austere environment of the region has sustained over the centuries a vibrant and rich cultural heritage which is evident in almost all facets of ladakhi life. Given the close linkages that ladakh has historically enjoyed with neighbouring regions, it is not surprising to see strong influences of Tibetan & kashmiri regions its art forms. But what makes this unique is the manner in which it has been amalgamated into a distincr tradition.