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| Khardung La | |
|---|---|
| Tibetan:མཁར་གདོང་ལ་ | |
  Location of Khardung La Show map of Ladakh Khardung La (India) Show map of India | |
| Elevation | 5,359 m (17,582 ft) |
| Location | Ladakh,India |
| Range | Ladakh Range |
| Coordinates | 34°16′42″N77°36′15″E / 34.27833°N 77.60417°E /34.27833; 77.60417 |
Khardung La (Tibetan:མཁར་གདོང་ལ་,Wylie:mkhar gdong la,THL:khar dong la) orKhardung Pass is amountain pass in theLeh district of theIndian union territory ofLadakh.
The pass is on theLadakh Range, north ofLeh, and connects theIndus river valley and theShyok river valley. It also forms the gateway to theNubra Valley, beyond which lies theSiachen Glacier. A motorable road through the pass was built in 1976, and opened to public motor vehicles in 1988. Maintained by theBorder Roads Organisation, the pass is strategically important to India as it is used to carry supplies to the Siachen Glacier. The road is one of the world's highest motoroable roads.[1]
The elevation of Khardung La is 5,359 m (17,582 ft).[2] Local summit signs and dozens of stores selling shirts in Leh incorrectly claim its elevation to be in the vicinity of 5,602 m (18,379 ft) and that it is the world's third highest motorable pass.
Khardong La is historically important as it lies on the majorcaravan route from Leh toKashgar inCentral Asia. About 10,000 horses and camels used to take the route annually, and a small population ofBactrian camels can still be seen at Hunder, in the area north of the pass. In the early 1950s,William O. Douglas described "the trail, after crossing the Indus, divides, one fork going south along the river's edge to Spitok, Khalatse and Khargil, the other turning north to Leh, the Khardong Pass (...), and Yarkand, an ancient trading center of Sinkiang."[3] He continues, "Leh is on a historic caravan route that leads not only to Yarkand in Sinkiang but to Lhasa in Tibet. (...) the stream of trade. Wool, silver, felts, tea, candy, skins, velvets, silk, gold, carpets, musk,coral,borax, jade cups, salt came down from the north. Cotton goods, shawls, brocades, opium, indigo, plumes, shoes, pearls, ginger, cloves, pepper, honey, tobacco, sugar cane, barley rice, wheat, corn came up from the south."[4] DuringWorld War II there was an attempt to transfer war material toChina through this route.[citation needed]
Khardung La is 39 km by road from Leh. Earlier, the first 24 km, as far as the South Pullu check point, were paved. From there to the North Pullu checkpoint about 15 km beyond the pass the roadway was primarily loose rock, dirt, and occasional rivulets of snow melt. Now, all the way is properly paved. The road approaching the Nubra Valley is very well maintained (except in a few places where washouts or falling rock occur). Hired vehicles (two and four-wheel-drive), heavytrucks, andmotorcycles regularly travel into the Nubra Valley, though special permits are required to be arranged for travellers.
The 5,359 m (17,582 ft) elevation measure from hundreds ofGPS surveys matchesSRTM data,ASTER GDEM data, andRussian topographic mapping. It is broadly consistent with numerousGPS reports.
The nearest sizable town isLeh. Leh is connected by road from Manali and Srinagar, and daily flights are operated from Delhi. From Leh, a daily bus service toNubra Valley passes over Khardung La which may also be reached by a hired car with an experienced driver or bymotorcycle. The two bases on either side of Khardung La are North Pullu and South Pullu.
AnInner Line Permit (ILP), which can be acquired at the District Commissioner's office in Leh, is required for tourists (not needed for Ladakh citizens). People are required to check in en route and must provide photocopies of the permits to be deposited at each checkpoint.
Altitude sickness is a serious health concern for people not acclimatised to high altitudes. From 2022 minimum two days mandatory acclimatisation in Leh is required before crossing the pass[5] Preventive medication, i.e.acetazolamide, can be used in this period to boost acclimatisation.
The road is often subject to long delays due to traffic congestion on narrow one-lane sections, washouts, avalanches and road accidents, but with no permanent winter closure. Updates on road conditions can be found at the official Leh site.[6]
Khardung La has an arctic tundra climate (ET) with short, cool summers and long, very cold winters.
| Climate data for Khardung La | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −19 (−2) | −18 (0) | −14 (7) | −11 (12) | −5 (23) | 1 (34) | 7 (45) | 7 (45) | 1 (34) | −8 (18) | −14 (7) | −18 (0) | −8 (19) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −36 (−33) | −34 (−29) | −31 (−24) | −25 (−13) | −15 (5) | −9 (16) | −6 (21) | −6 (21) | −10 (14) | −18 (0) | −25 (−13) | −31 (−24) | −20 (−5) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 29 (1.1) | 41 (1.6) | 53 (2.1) | 38 (1.5) | 28 (1.1) | 9 (0.4) | 9 (0.4) | 8 (0.3) | 8 (0.3) | 8 (0.3) | 13 (0.5) | 22 (0.9) | 266 (10.5) |
| Source:[7] | |||||||||||||
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%2c_Mountain_road%2c_Ladakh%2c_North_India.jpg)
the trail, after crossing the Indus, divides, one fork going south along the river's edge to Spitok, Khalatse and Khargil, the other turning north to Leh, the Khardong Pass (18, 380 feet), and Yarkand, an ancient trading center of Sinkiang.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)Leh is on a historic caravan route that leads not only to Yarkand in Sinkiang but to Lhasa in Tibet. (...) the stream of trade. Wool, silver, felts, tea, candy, skins, velvets, silk, gold, carpets, musk, coral, borax, jade cups, salt came down from the north. Cotton goods, shawls, brocades, opium, indigo, plumes, shoes, pearls, ginger, cloves, pepper, honey, tobacco, suger cane, barley rice, wheat, corn came up from the south.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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