From Delhi, India its an inland flight to Jammu, capital of the state of Jammu & Kashmir at the border to Pakistan. From Jammu it’s 10 hours by bus to Kishtwar. Here we hire a driver for the last couple of hours to the end of the road network. It is hot and humid on the southern side of the Himalaya range. There was a Tiger in the village last week. The windows are rolled down and the radio of our Mahindra 4x4 blasts Punjabi music as we’re making slow and bumpy progress, passing military checkpoint after military checkpoint.
Kashmir is heavily disputed between three atomic powers as well as suffering from an often violent ongoing religious & cultural conflict. Increasing tension between India and China and occasional sighting of IS flags in the area make us monitor the news situation very closely. “Us” is a team of three: Bernd, Paul and me.
Bernd is likely Germany’s if not Europe’s most experienced wilderness adventurer. Bernd is the definition of understatement and flies almost entirely under the radar. What others call an “expedition of a lifetime” financed with tens of thousands of sponsorship money and loud marketing, is merely short holidays for him. For 30 years he’s spent half of the year traversing the remotest areas of the planet. Against all odds. Thousands of kilometers on glaciers. Thousands of kilometers of ugly bushwacking (ugly is my assesment – he kind of likes it…). Tens of thousands of kilometers of everything in between. From fending off grizzly bear entering his tent to being arrested in military prison in southeast Asia. No sponsors, no marketing. Instead, incredible talent in navigating difficult terrain and seemingly impossible political situations with a blunt disrespect for authorities and rules. Everything he does he does for himself. No bragging, no airs and graces. You have to beg him for stories. And stories there are plenty. I’m proud to have him as my mentor and friend.
Our goal is to traverse the Himalayan range in an area that we could not find any information about. With 3 weeks of supplies & glacier equipment our backpacks are heavy af. I am nervous. I am excited.
When we reach the end of the dirt road we grab our backpacks and set out. Our plan for the first 10 days is to follow the Marwa and Kiar Nalla valleys up to their source: A labyrinth of glaciers and rugged peaks that form the spine of the Himalaya range and separate the wet & hot lower lands in the south from the dry and high Tibetan plateau in the north.
Six days into the hike we have left the last traces of civilization behind. We are now at around 3.500 m and rain forest has given way to alpine scenery.
Paul approaches an improvised bridge over the raging glacial river.
Yours truly not entirely trusting the shaking and swinging improvised bridge. Photo credit Bernd Looft
Paul in the background and me traversing above the river. Photo credit Bernd Looft
Paul capturing my best “it’s bloody cold” expression. Photo credit Paul Türk
After a long day of navigating through the steep valley and it’s glacial tributories, we have finally set up camp for the day when three men appear out of nowhere.
They make it obvious that they want us to follow them. Excuses are not accepted.
Reluctantly we abandon our camp and follow the men uphill. A few minutes later we approach several shepherds' sheds. Women and children wait there with a mixture of excitement and shyness and immediately serve tea and dinner.
The three men, who initially seemed threatening to me, had invited us, who were as much strangers to them as they were strangers to us, into their hut for shelter. They are just as thrilled with every image lighting up on the camera’s display as I am about being allowed to take these photos.
Closeup-view of the photo above.
It’s not unreasonable to assume that these people have never before seen a camera in their life. Their gaze seems to penetrate the camera and looks straight at your soul. At least that’s the impression I always have when I review these photos. Proud, determined, distanced yet piercing and deep. I’m not a poet. I’m just a photographer. Maybe you understand what I’m trying to express here but lack the words.
Next morning we leave towards the glaciers in the background. Two days later, we set foot on the ice and slowly make progress up the extensive glacier system. Much to my disliking I’m brought down by food poisoning and soon feel crap as hell. I’ll spare you the details. We set up an unplanned camp on the glacier and stay here at 4.500 m for a full four days until I feel somewhat strong enough to tackle the 5k-something pass ahead to the valley system on the other side.
Even after over a week the backpacks are still loaded to the brim. Hyperlite Mountain Gear’s Porter packs perform great as always. Photo credit Bernd Looft
I’m preparing for the heavily crevassed part of the next glacial traverse. Photo credit Bernd Looft
Bernd and I near the top of the pass. Photo credit Paul Türk
Paul and I descending from a pass into the next valley system. Photo credit Bernd Looft
Three days into the next valley system I’ve made the decision to head out. This is the only place during the entire traverse where civilization is close. I still feel weak. I’m still…leaking. If all goes to plan I will meet back up with Paul in two weeks. From here it’s just 2-3 days of hiking to reach a road. And what a road this is: The Kishtwar-Keylong road is notorious for a reason.
From here its one day by 4x4 and one more by bus to reach the Manali-Leh highway which will take me to Ladakh and the Chinese border. It’s exciting two days!
