Julley!
Ladakh is as unlikely a birding destination as is possible to get. One normally associates birds with verdant forest, coasts or even scrub and grassland. What avian life could a barren, high altitude, cold desert possibly support? Yet, defying conventional wisdom, Ladakh plays host to an incredible array of bird (and even mammal) species, some of which are seldom found elsewhere in this vast country of ours. And so, a trip to this most exotic (and extreme) of bird havens was always an exciting and potentially rewarding prospect. And when Lakpa Tenzing, close friend and naturalist extraordinaire, suggested a trip, a plan quickly fell into place. And before we could say Leh, a group of five - Lakpa, Ramesh, Manju, Jaysingh (arriving fashionably late) and yours truly were already there, acclimatising to the high-altitude, low oxygen environs.
Chang-La, Pangong-Tso
The route from Leh to Pangong Tso takes us across the Chang-La Pass, one of the three highest motorable passes in the world. For us, it held some special avian treasures as well, with the Tibetan Snowcock at the top of the wishlist. First up though we got a couple of beautiful Chukar Partridges, a Robin Accentor making a meal of his breakfast worm and a Himalayan Weasel trying to purloin some Chukar eggs for brekkies. The Snowcock proved elusive but we would have another bite at the cherry on the way back. Once across, the proverbial floodgates completely opened up. First, Lakpa's eagle eyes spotted a White-throated Dipper in a fast flowing stream next to the road. Then, we hit pay dirt on the banks of another stream, with lifers flowing thick and fast; a beautiful White-winged (or Guldenstadt's) Redstart, followed by Tibetan Snowfinches, Horned Larks and Twite. A little further along the same stream and we came across two beautiful Red-billed Choughs with their bright red 'lipstick' beaks. A close up of a Marmot (albeit with a paper bag in its mouth) completed a scintillating morning, topped up with a splendid breakfast of egg-noodles.
Our tented camp was about 20 kms before Pangong-Tso (the local government not allowing any camps or resorts near the lake itself) and we checked in, had a bite and headed to the lake. The lake itself is stunning, with some breathtaking views as you approach it. There were a fair amount of tourists at the lake itself, posing for selfies with '3 Idiots' poses (which we would happily take on later) Our immediate priority though was to find one really special bird - The Common Merganser or Goosander. And lo, on the banks of the lake, a little away from the tourist spots we spotted a couple of them. They were very wary, even though we were really far away and at quite a height. A passing jeep made them hustle into the water and to our delight we saw that they were followed by a bunch of chicks! We watched with great joy as they swam around with their little brood; taking care to never get too close. A few decent (if distant) frames and we were happy to slot back into tourist mode. As we headed back to camp, we realised that our birding in Pangong was pretty much done and Lakpa suggested that we head onwards to Tso Kar a day ahead of schedule.
Chang-La, Tso Kar
Very early the next morning, we headed to Tso Kar, again crossing Chang-La pass. We forded the pass just around day-break and on our way down, Lakpa kept his eyes peeled for the Snowcock. And on one particularly rocky slope, he found it! Imagine spotting a bird that is perfectly camouflaged in rocks, in pretty poor light and from a vehicle driving at 30 kms per hour. But then, that is the magic of that man. He exclaimed 'Snowcock' and we all descended from the car at the rate of knots. And as we peered into the rocky hillside, we saw a pair of Tibetan Snowcocks, with great difficulty at first as they blended into the hillside. They gave us a few decent images before melting into the rocks and we headed forth to our next destination - Tso Kar. En route, we got a couple of lifers in the form of Hill Pigeons and Fork-tailed Swifts. And then we forded the magnificent Taglangla Pass, another in the Top 3. And that was when the weather turned - suddenly, at the pass, it turned freezing cold and then actually snowed! This weird weather would set the tone for the rest of our trip.
The birds did make an appearance, in the form of a majestic Lammergeier (who perched a light year away) and a Yellow-billed Chough. And then as we stopped for lunch, we got a couple of lifers right next to our restaurant - A Hume's Short Toed Lark and a pair of Northern Ravens. Lunch giving us more than just a full stomach, we were decidedly well fortified on the drive to Tso Kar - a flock of Brandt's Mountain finches added to the overall well-being. And as we arrived in Tso Kar, Lakpa pointed to a bird on the cliffs - a Saker Falcon! I'd missed this bird by a whisker in Gujarat and it was special to to see it now, even a few hundred feet above my head. And as we were savouring this sighting, Lakpa turned us around and pointed to a faraway dot in the marsh below... through the binoculars we got our first sighter of Ladakh's signature bird - the enigmatic Black-necked Crane!
The Black-necked crane is almost exclusively found across the Tibetan Plateau and adjoining Bhutan. In India, the most reliable place to spot it is Ladakh and Tso Kar within Ladakh. Over the next few days, we'd be fortunate enough to see a few birds and some sightings at very close quarters. For now, we settled into our camp, licking our lips at the prospect of a stellar line-up of birds that Tso Kar was famous for. And then the rain came. It pelted, poured, drizzled and generally arrived in every form it knows, killing off the entire evening session. Being inherently optimistic, we were convinced that this was freak weather, an aberration to the cloudless skies that Ladakh is renowned for. How wrong we were!
Tso Kar and around
Blanford's Snowfinch |
Tso Kar to Tso Moriri
Great Rosefinch |
Brown Accentor |
Hanle
Red-fronted Serin |
We drove out to the spot for the Owl but found no joy there. Some other friends spotted a Red Fox in another location but we missed that too. And the next morning, we hunted for the Owl again and surprisingly, it was missing again! What was usually a reliable roosting spot for the Owl was bare. And no signs of any of the other species, so we retired for a bit of a snooze. That afternoon, Lakpa's eagle eyes got us an elusive Tibetan Lark, albeit from afar. A much needed lifer to boost the spirits. That afternoon we set out in search of the Owl again. No luck at the usual perches, but we did get another Ladakhi lifer - a Hailstorm! It started pelting down on us early evening, putting paid to any birding hopes. And that's when we decided that if it had to rain and hail in Hanle, then the weather gods were seriously upset with us. And we decided to cut short our Hanle visit and head back to Leh.
Hanle to Leh and Nubra
Eurasian Hobby |
The next morning, we headed to the majestic Khardung-la Pass, to try for an equally majestic bird - the Golden Eagle. Khardung-la is the highest motorable pass on the planet, at a jaw dropping 17,580 feet. Literally a view from the top of the world! But all we could see was cloud, as the weather turned against us once more, with the top of the pass at a bone-chilling -5 Celcius. Talk about a summer holiday! There was obviously no hope of anything resembling an eagle, so we meekly quietly crossed over and headed towards the Nubra valley, keeping our hopes up for raptors but getting only false alerts for all our efforts. We went down the Nubra Valley, checked in to our lovely hotel in Hunder and headed to find the Eurasian Eagle Owl. The afternoon brought no joy so we decided to come back in the evening, because the terrain looked very promising.
We resumed our search for this elusive Owl in the evening and found absolutely no sign of life, even as 6 people fanned out and searched every nook and cranny in the rock faces of that gorge. And then it was almost dark and Jay decided to put out his scope for some star-gazing. Even as we were admiring Jupiter, a shadowy form took wing from a nearby rock face. The Owl then glided to a spot literally above us and sat there looking down at us, mildly amused at our efforts at stargazing. It was too dark for photography, but thanks to the spotting scope, we could observe the bird and its features. It then took flight and flew to the opposite face of the gorge, only a silhouette now. But for all of us, starved of anything resembling an Owl all these days, it was manna from heaven. And then, magically it doubled! One more Eurasian Eagle Owl appeared out of nowhere and sat with our friend in companionable silence. Cognizant that we were intruding into their hunting time, we quickly hastened back home.
The Golden Eagle |
A lovely Tibetan dinner in Leh was the perfect way to end what was a brilliant trip for all of us. There's much unfinished business in Ladakh, starting with the Sandgrouse, so we'll be back for sure.
Till then...
Getting there
Ladakh is pretty well connected via its capital Leh. There are regular flights to Leh, mostly via Delhi.
There are also two options to drive, one via Srinagar (420 kms, 10 hours) - this passes through Kargil which is now a tourist destination and also a decent birding spot, especially for some of the crow species. The other option is to drive via Manali (470kms and 10-12 hours); this is more touristy and well known. The advantage of driving is that it does away with the need to acclimatise in Ladakh, given that you're ascending gradually.
Birding spots in Ladakh
Ladakh has many hotspots where the avid birder will find joy. Some of the unmissables:
1. Shey Marshes - even as an appetiser while you're acclimatising in Leh. This can throw up some very nice surprises.
2. Chang-la to Pangong-Tso - this route throws up all the usual suspects and also some specials like the Snowcock
3. Tso Kar - This is the home of the Black-necked crane and many many more.
4. Tso Moriri, Sumdo - Many overlapping species
5. Hanle - Famed for the Tibetan Lark, Mongolian Finch and Eurasian Eagle Owl plus others
6. Nubra (Hunder and Diksit) - for the owl and other beauties like the White-browed Tit Warbler.
Ladakh Trip Guide
Getting there
Ladakh is pretty well connected via its capital Leh. There are regular flights to Leh, mostly via Delhi.
There are also two options to drive, one via Srinagar (420 kms, 10 hours) - this passes through Kargil which is now a tourist destination and also a decent birding spot, especially for some of the crow species. The other option is to drive via Manali (470kms and 10-12 hours); this is more touristy and well known. The advantage of driving is that it does away with the need to acclimatise in Ladakh, given that you're ascending gradually.
Birding spots in Ladakh
Ladakh has many hotspots where the avid birder will find joy. Some of the unmissables:
1. Shey Marshes - even as an appetiser while you're acclimatising in Leh. This can throw up some very nice surprises.
2. Chang-la to Pangong-Tso - this route throws up all the usual suspects and also some specials like the Snowcock
3. Tso Kar - This is the home of the Black-necked crane and many many more.
4. Tso Moriri, Sumdo - Many overlapping species
5. Hanle - Famed for the Tibetan Lark, Mongolian Finch and Eurasian Eagle Owl plus others
6. Nubra (Hunder and Diksit) - for the owl and other beauties like the White-browed Tit Warbler.
Stay
Apart from Leh and Nubra, which are on the tourist trail, the rest of Ladakh is (thankfully) under exploited. Which also means that the places to stay are reasonably basic, but almost always comfortable. Your guide/naturalist will find you the best places to stay across the board.
Naturalists
Ladakh has no local bird guides, but a few people from across the country also cover it off as part of their itineraries. We went with Lakpa Tenzing, friend, brother and birder extraordinaire. You can reach him at lakpatenzing84@gmail.com or on +91 9733018122
Things to note
Ladakh is situated at extremely high altitudes, so acclimatising is critical and not optional. Please plan at least 2 days in Leh if you're flying in. If you're driving from Srinagar or Manali, the drive itself takes care of the acclimatising so you're fine.
Carry warm clothing at all times. Even in summer, it can get freezing cold in an instant so you need to be prepared.
We carried portable oxygen cylinders with us, just in case someone needed it. Thankfully, they were passed on to the drivers, never having been used. But please do carry some.You can buy them in Leh market.
Plastic is a scourge in Ladakh. They have no way to dispose plastic, so they now bury them, potentially contaminating their water sources. So please avoid plastic as much as you can. We bought regular water bottles and refilled them at every place we stayed in, thus avoiding buying bottled water. Whatever little plastic we accumulated, we carried it back to Delhi and disposed it off there.
Please do your little bit to preserve this last piece of wonderland!
Apart from Leh and Nubra, which are on the tourist trail, the rest of Ladakh is (thankfully) under exploited. Which also means that the places to stay are reasonably basic, but almost always comfortable. Your guide/naturalist will find you the best places to stay across the board.
Naturalists
Ladakh has no local bird guides, but a few people from across the country also cover it off as part of their itineraries. We went with Lakpa Tenzing, friend, brother and birder extraordinaire. You can reach him at lakpatenzing84@gmail.com or on +91 9733018122
Things to note
Ladakh is situated at extremely high altitudes, so acclimatising is critical and not optional. Please plan at least 2 days in Leh if you're flying in. If you're driving from Srinagar or Manali, the drive itself takes care of the acclimatising so you're fine.
Carry warm clothing at all times. Even in summer, it can get freezing cold in an instant so you need to be prepared.
We carried portable oxygen cylinders with us, just in case someone needed it. Thankfully, they were passed on to the drivers, never having been used. But please do carry some.You can buy them in Leh market.
Plastic is a scourge in Ladakh. They have no way to dispose plastic, so they now bury them, potentially contaminating their water sources. So please avoid plastic as much as you can. We bought regular water bottles and refilled them at every place we stayed in, thus avoiding buying bottled water. Whatever little plastic we accumulated, we carried it back to Delhi and disposed it off there.
Please do your little bit to preserve this last piece of wonderland!