Highlights
| Duration: | 09 days |
| Region: | Ladakh, India |
| Start: | Leh |
| End: | Leh |
| Difficulty: | Difficult |
Departures
Zanskar Rafting expedition is one of the top few, exotic and remote, river trips in the world.
Our river trip starts from Remala, which would qualify as one of the highest rafting put in locations possible on the planet. The river journey flows through deep gorges and traverses across harsh inhospitable geography of Ladakh, in one of the remotest and sparsely inhabited regions of the world.
The expedition starts as a road journey from Leh, and travels through scenic landscape to Kargil, and further to Remala near Padum. The river trip flows through the amazing sheer gorges of Zanskar right up to Nimo where the river confluences with Indus.
The trip can be further enhanced by taking up few exciting road excursions around Leh as per individual interests.
We recommend our guests to extend their stay at Leh to visit places of interest like Pangong lake, Khardongla, Tsomoriri, Shey, Thiksey, Hemis and Nubra to name a few. We can help in arranging the extension, or they are welcome to plan this part of the vacation on their own.
DETAILED ITINERARY
Day 01: Drive Leh to Kargil by road
Pickup guests from their hotel, drive to Kargil ( 10,500 ft ) across spectacular Himalayan views, overnight guest house at Kargil.
Day 02: Drive Kargil – Rangdum ( 12,000 ft )
Amazing views of Nun, Kun massifs and lush green meadows during the drive, overnight camp near the Rangdum gompa.
Day 03: Drive Rangdum – Remala ( 11,900 ft )
Drive across the Pensi La at 14000 ft to enter into the Zanskar valley. Overnight camp at Remala.
Day 04: Raft Remala – Karsha ( 11,500 ft )
Rafting trip starts with the safety talk. An easy day with class II, III rapids to get used to the high altitude as well as to improve upon the paddling skills. Raft about 4 hours to camp at Karsha. Hike to the Karsha gompa, or just choose to laze at the camp site. Overnight camp.
Day 05: Raft Karsha – Honia/Pidmo ( 11,000 ft )
Raft an easy class II, III section to camp at the mouth of the Zanskar gorge. Overnight camp.
Day 06: Raft Honia – Neyarak ( 10,800 ft )
Raft nearly 25 kms of class 3 section to Neyarak. The river banks would change into towering mountain walls rising to thousands of feet above you. We would camp at Neyarak village which is one of the few locations where camping is possible in the canyon. Overnight camp.
Day 07: Layover Day
Neyarak, a rest day at this camp site to prepare for the coming days of rafting. Hike up to the Neyarak village or enjoy your time at the stream near the camp site. Overnight camp.
Day 08: Neyarak – Lamaguru/Chilling ( 10,500 ft )
Raft about 35 kms through the deepest part of the Zanskar to reach Lamaguru which is the confluence of Zanskar river and Markha rivers. We would negotiate class IV rapids in this section, including the Gate, where the canyon narrows down and squeezes the river to almost 18 ft ! Lunch break near a big waterfall which plummets from the canyon walls. Overnight camp.
Day 09: Lamaguru – Nimu
Raft about 30 kms of class 3-4 section from Chilling to Nimu. The river finally plunges out of the canyon to confluence with Indus river at Nimu. Our river trip would end at Nimu at the confluence of Zanskar river and Indus. Further drive to Leh ( one hour ).
Inclusions
- Experienced team having appropriate training and certifications for whitewater rescue and wilderness first aid.
- All rafting gear - Life Jackets, helmets, paddles, splash jackets, safety kayaks, dry bags etc.
- Suitable camping gear including tents, sleeping bags, and cooking/mess arrangements.
- River permits, Forest/National parks entry fees/permits, inner line permits, all necessary legal paperwork & documentation.
- Comprehensive first aid kit.
- Travel arrangements connecting the starting and ending locations as detailed in the itinerary.
- Camp stay on twin share basis for 2 nights with all meals ( lunch of day 1 till lunch of day 3 ).
Exclusions
- Train/Air fares up to and from the starting and ending points.
- Meals and refreshments during the road journey,
- Insurance of any kind
- Expenses of personal nature, alcoholic drinks etc.
- Anything not mentioned explicitly in the schedule/program.
