Walking and Praying

We’ve spent the last two and a half days descending from the pass at Stongde through what is known as the Shingri-chu valley, or Shingri river drainage. The valley starts out wide and gentle but after what must be a good 20 or more miles it narrows into a gorge with steep cliffs on both…

One of the things that distinguishes extended trekking in Ladakh from wilderness travel in the US is the degree to which one remains in a landscape everywhere marked by human activity and human-nonhuman interactions. Far from the pristine ideal of a landscape free of human presence, the whole enterprise of trekking in Ladakh is dependent…

I set out on this four-month journey with some pretty high-level questions, which I recorded in an earlier post. At least in the most recent portion of the journey, however, a more immediate question has been on my mind as i walk and contemplate and rest and pray: what, exactly, is the “mountain training” to…

A quick note: today, a day ahead of schedule, I’m heading off on a long trek, the longest I have ever been a part of here in Ladakh. I’ll be out for 18 days, traversing the Zanskar region, to the Southwest of the Indus River valley, along the Northernmost edge of the Himalayan range. I’ll…

After a six hour drive that included numerous adventures, not the least of which was joining a long line of cars and motorcycles navigating their way through a 4-foot deep rushing side-channel that had burst its banks, we arrived at Tsomoriri, a lake on the Tibetan plateau (Changtang) that constitutes the culmination of my annual…

In 2017, I had the opportunity to travel and do an extended trek in Ladakh with a beloved young friend of mine, who was 16 at the time. At one point in our trek, he asked Jigmet, our guide, what causes the mountains here to appear in such arresting shades of red, green, and purple.…

On September 1, 2018, I began a trek with my dear friend, Laurence, into the heart of Zanskar. Zanskar is the Southwest region of Ladakh, known for its jagged peaks, abundant rivers and streams, monasteries, villages, and staggering beauty. We began the trek at what was then the end of the motorable road, a single…

Today began with a walk up to Gotsang, a hermitage about two kilometres above the most resplendent monastery in Ladakh, Hemis. Where Hemis is a bustling maze of buildings, temples, schools, mess halls, and residences, Gotsang is a silent and striking retreat nearly hidden in the rock walls of a nearby valley. At the center…

Today was our first day venturing out to visit temples—here, Gompas, Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, most of which are still very much active and full of monks of all ages studying, practicing, welcoming visitors, and doing ceremonies. The day held multiple unforeseen and delightful surprises, including a lamp room that is usually locked with its door…

High speed air and train travel, continuous connectivity, and a kind of “optimizing” approach to planning have rendered intentional and measured transitions between different places and experiences in our lives something close to optional. Given the chance, I’ll barrel home from a trip or a visit with a friend or even a long retreat within…