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Surrounded by the Kullu Valley in the south,
Ladakh in the north and Tibet in the east, the twin valleys
of Lahaul and Spiti is a region of nature at its wildest.
This land duplicates, possibly exceeds in many ways, the magical
ambience of Leh, Nubra and Zanskar valleys.This region remains
cut off from the rest of the world for much of the year. Apart
from geographical barriers, this area was closed, till 1994,
to visitors because of military and political reasons. These
valleys encompass glaciers, high ridges, broad valleys, pastures
and has a minimum elevation exceeding 3000m.
This area is more of a high altitude cold desert dotted with
famous monasteries, villages like little green oasis in a
stark, brown and dry landscape, miles of rolling pastures,
6000m peaks and swollen rivers which turn into mere trickles
in winter. Between the Shivaliks and the Greater Himalayas
is found another of India’s last unexplored posts, Kinnaur.
Situated on the old world trade route, its only link with
the outside world is by way of the Hindustan -Tibet road through
Simla. This district spans the entire width of the Himalayas
to the edge of the Tibetan plateau. This region being utterly
unspoilt and practically untouched by tourist traffic and
outside influence, remain a paradise for trekkers, river runners
and motorists alike.The valleys of Lahaul and Spiti are connected
by the 4500m Kunzum pass. It is a fascinating land for Buddhist
art and culture.
The monasteries here are rich repositories of ancient murals,
wood carvings and golden images of the Padmasambhava. The
people are charming and friendly with their own traditional
dances, ballads, folk tales and legends. Our Spiti –
Pin valleys expedition descends over a 100 kms of river in
the twin valleys of the Spiti and Pin rivers, gets in close
with the amazing culture of Spiti, and exits through the tribal
district of Kinnaur via the Sutlej and Baspa valleys, encompassing
some of the most amazing part of the Trans Himalaya. We run
down big volume rapids set in the land of 1000 year old monasteries,
and traverse the entire region in a fortnight of high adventure
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