THE QUEST FOR SNOW LEOPARD

Snow Leopard tour from Ladakh

BEST TIME – January to March

OUTLINE SUMMARY

Day 01: Fly Delhi / Leh
Day 02: Leh
Day 03: Leh – Zinchen to Husing Nala
Day 04 to 11: Hemis National Park
Day 12: Hemis NP to Ulley
Day 13: Ulley – Leh & fly to Delhi
Day 14: Delhi – Sultanpur – Delhi Departure

OVERVIEW

The Snow Leopard is considered the most elusive of the great cats of the world. Nikhil Devasar has been travelling to Ladakh for over 15 years now and has for the past many years been on the quest for the Snow Leopard. With a 100% sighting record, Nikhil leads select small groups to Ladakh to search for Snow Leopards each year. The photographs you see on this document have been taken by clients last year, when three snow leopards were sighted.

In an effort to support snow leopard conservation through the involvement of the community, Nikhil works exclusively with guides from villages in snow leopard terrain. This brings first hand local knowledge of the movement of the cats and allows direct benefits to local communities from tourism. By including home stays as a part of the trip, he also ensures that stakeholders at every level are benefitted from your visit. Researchers confirm that perceived direct economic benefit from snow leopard related tourism helps villagers tolerate loss of sheep to snow leopard and reduces snow leopard-human conflict and cat mortality rates have dropped considerably over the years.

INTRODUCTION

We fly from Delhi to Leh – the ancient capital of the Ladakhi Kingdom, situated at a height of 3500m with a stunning 16th century palace in the background. The drastic altitudinal gain from Delhi requires
complete acclimatization to be able to adapt to the new height. After acclimatizing at Leh for two nights, we drive to Hemis National Park in our quest for the Snow Leopard. Given the recent spate of sightings in the past few years, the area around the Rumbak catchment has proved itself as undoubtedly the best place in the world to try to sight this near mythical creature.

Since Snow Leopards are generally found at elevations between 3350-6500m, this epic adventure takes us through stunning Himalayan alpine and sub-alpine zones where vegetation is sparse and temperatures are extreme. Accompanying us are expert local guides whose expertise in this harsh terrain is unmatched and we use their intrinsic training to look for the minutest evidences like pugmarks, scrapes and scats to track this elusive cat. While we are in the lookout for the cat, we will have opportunities to observe and photograph the other unique mammals found in these mountains. The Bharal or Blue Sheep is the most common ungulate here and constitutes the main prey base of the Snow Leopard. The Tibetan Argali, the largest sheep in the world is found near Gandala Pass in this region and strangely unlike other ungulates it climbs higher up during the winter months. The Tibetan Wolf is also a possibility here and lesser mammals include the Red Fox, Royle’s Pika, Mountain Weasel, Stoliczka’s Mountain Vole and the Wooly Hare.
The birdlife is scarce in this harsh environment. Golden Eagle, Lammergeier and Himalayan Vulture are the common raptors along with Northern Goshwak, Upland & Himalayan Buzzard, Eurasian Sparrohawk & Saker Falcon. The vocal Red and Yellow billed Choughs can seen foraging on the slopes. White winged Redstarts and Chukars are abundant all along the Indus valley, Hill Pigeons are commonly seen and smaller numbers of Snow Pigeons could be observed near the Rumbak village. The scrubs hold good numbers of Robin Accentors along with White browed Tit Warbler, occasional Brown Accentors & the Eurasian Wren. The huge Himalayan Snowcock can be seen in the meadows, sometimes in groups of 12-15 birds. Other species include the Brown and White throated Dipper, Blue Rock Thrush, Tibetan Snow Finch, Horned Lark, Fire Fronted Serin, Streaked Rosefinch, Plain Mountain Finch and the Enigmatic Wallcreeper.

DETAILED ITINERARY

DAY 01: FLY DELHI TO LEH
– Transfer to the domestic airport to board the flight for Leh
– Fly Delhi/Leh (9W 2345 – 0630/0750 hrs)
– Arrive Leh and transfer to hotel
– Rest of the day at leisure or free to acclimatize to the high
altitude. We have the option to walk to the Leh market and have limited options to bird around town
-Overnight at hotel or similar -Lunch and Dinner

DAY 02: LEH INTRODUCTORY TOUR
– Morning attends prayer at Thiksey monastery and later bird in the nearby Shey marshes and Sindhughat.(The Ibisbill and Solitary Snipe are possibilities)
– Overnight at hotel
– Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 03: LEH – ZINGCHEN- HEMIS
– Morning drive to Zingchen and trek to our tented camp at Husing Nallah. Afternoon scan the slopes near the camp to look for signs of the elusive Snow Leopard
– Overnight in tents.
– Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 04 TO 11: HEMIS
– The next eight days would be spent in the valleys of Husing, Tarbung and the Rumbak area; which offer us the best chance of sighting this elusive cat. During these days we will not follow a fixed itinerary and follow a plan based on the inputs of our accompanying team to maximize our chances of sighting Snow Leopards
– Overnight in tents
– Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 12: HEMIS to ULLEY
– Morning continue return trek to Zingchen and drive to Uley. Mammals we can expect to see here are the Ladakh Urial, Asiatic Ibex here and the Tibetan Wolf
– Overnight at Homestay
– Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 13: ULLEY – LEH – DELHI
– In time transfer to airport to board the flight for Delhi
– Fly Leh/ Delhi (G8 194 at 1020/1140 hrs)
– Arrive Delhi and transfer to the hotel close to the international airport
– Rest of the day at leisure or free for optional activities
– Overnight at the hotel
– City Park Airport
– Breakfast

DAY 14: DELHI
– Early morning departure to catch flight back home

Net Land quote for the above itinerary for 02 – 08 people traveling
together would be US $ 2400 per person on twin sharing room basis
Single Room Supplement would be US $ 675 per single room
Airfare supplement for Delhi/Leh/Delhi to travel by scheduled flight
would be US $ 250 per person in economy class; actual airfare would be
applicable at the time of booking

There would be a 3.09% service tax applicable on the above quote

Cost inclusions:
– Accommodation for 13 nights on twin share room/tent basis: inclusive
of all applicable taxes at the time of quoting
– Meals as indicated in the itinerary as B, L, D (B = Breakfast, L =
Lunch, D = Dinner)
– All transfers at Delhi will be done by one private mini Van (Seats
up to 9 people) – All transfers, drives, excursions and sightseeing by
02 Non A/c MUV at Leh
– Service of Kitchen staffs, camp attendants, porter/ ponies etc.
Service of an English speaking local guides/ naturalist & trackers:
inclusive of guiding fees, monument and park entry fees payable
– All necessary permits and permissions
– Assistance on arrival and departure at each destination

Cost exclusions:
– Airfare to Delhi/Leh/Delhi
– Any expenses of personal nature such as telephone calls, laundry,
aerated drinks etc.
– Personal clothing during the trek, sleeping bags, emergency
evacuation and medical insurance
– Meals are not included in the cost unless specified in the inclusions
– Camera fees to be paid extra directly in monuments/ park if applicable
– Tips/ gratuities paid to naturalists, drivers, bellboys, waiters and
staff members accompanying you on the trek
– Cost incurred in obtaining visa, insurance etc.
– Cost incurred incase of hospitalization, evacuation etc.

Note:
The trip is for a fortnight and requires average fitness. We recommend that you get clearance from your doctor for visiting high altitude areas. Accomodation is in comfortable 2 man tents with field toilets and limited hot water.

Payment Options:
– Overseas Bank Wire Transfer. Cost of transfer to be borne by the client. Wire transfer details is provided in invoice

Payment Policy:
– 20% upon receipt of invoice. Booking will be confirmed up on receipt
of this 20% non-refundable deposit
– 100%in case of availing Apex airfare
– 80% balance 60 days prior to the date of travel

Cancellation Policy:
– If cancelled prior to 60 days of travel date – non refundable 20%
deposit – If cancelled prior to 30 days of travel date – 50% (50% refund)
– If cancelled less than 20 days of travel date – 100% (0% refund)

Requirements from travellers:
– Passport details required for making reservations with local airlines and forest department. Please provide full name as it appears on passport, age, address and nationality.

Contact: Nikhil Devasar
Mobile: +91 98100 08625
E-mail: nikhil@enchantedindia.com