Snow Leopard Photography Tour
Join Dan in the wondrous world of Ladakh, home to the majestic and mysterious snow leopard.
About this expedition
It’s time for an adventure! Join Dan in the wondrous world of Ladakh, home to the majestic and mysterious snow leopard. From Delhi, we’ll fly north to Leh, an enchanting village enclosed in the world’s two mightiest mountain ranges, the Himalayas and Karakoram. We’ll spend three days here to acclimate and take in Leh’s modest culture, beautiful monasteries and palace, interesting markets, and of course, the picturesque snow-capped mountains that surround us.
From Leh we’ll make our way to the Ulley Snow Leopard Lodge in northern India. No tenting! Recently built as an alternative to tenting, the Snow Leopard Lodge provides comfortable accommodations while searching for the snow leopards that reside in this area. It’s likely we’ll have this lodge all to ourselves, making for a private, comfortable stay.
Daily treks will be organized based on morning scouting reports from our expert trackers and spotters. With their expertise and a bit of luck, encounters with these beautiful yet elusive cats are very possible. Keep your eyes peeled for the many awe-inspiring ungulates and other creatures that also inhabit this extreme terrain.
We’ll have access vehicles available to get you as close as possible to any cats. Every sighting will be different. We’ll do our best to work around everyone’s physical abilities, but you do have to be in good health and mobile to join this tour.
A snow leopard sighting may be one of the highlights of this trip, but not the only one! We hope to see and photograph ibex, urial (wild sheep with long legs and relatively small horns), wolves, red foxes, bearded and Himalayan griffon vultures, and golden eagles. Expansive landscapes and the rich Himalayan culture will make this the trip of a lifetime.
Itinerary
Friday, January 24
Arrive at Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL) in Delhi, India, any time of day. Our welcome team will meet you at the airport and transfer you to our five-star hotel for a couple of days of relaxation and being pampered. Feel a little “Royal” at the Capital’s only Modern Palace hotel. Always a great way to start a trip!
Overnight at the luxurious Leela Palace Hotel
Saturday, January 25 (B, L, D)
Today is a buffer day to recoup from jetlag and get ready for our adventure north! Take advantage of the spa or infinity pool at the hotel, or maybe take a rickshaw ride through the narrow alleys among 350-year-old markets built by the Mughal Empire. Pass through the shops of bustling Chandai Chowk, one of the largest wholesale markets in Asia. We’ll have an optional sightseeing tour in the Walled City of Old Delhi. Colorful, vibrant, noisy, and chaotic are words that best describe Old Delhi. The photography opportunities are endless! We’ll gather for our welcome dinner tonight at the famous Jamavar Restaurant, a culinary experience not to be missed!
Overnight at the Leela Palace Hotel
Sunday, January 26 (B, L, D)
Grand buffet breakfast at the hotel and then we’ll head to the airport to catch our flight to Leh. Upon arrival in Leh we’ll transfer to the Grand Dragon Ladakh. We’ll take some time to get settled in, behold the breathtaking views, and breathe the pristine mountain air.
We’ll spend two days in Leh to acclimate to the altitude and prepare for our snow leopard safari. Sitting at nearly 12,000 feet amongst the mighty Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges, it’s important to take it slow, drink lots of water, and not put too much stress on the body these first couple of days.
Overnight Grand Dragon Ladakh for two nights
Monday, January 27 (B, L, D)
Spend the day at leisure for proper acclimatization.
Leh sits in the high altitude desert plateau of Ladakh. Once an important stopover along trade routes between Tibet, India, and China, it’s now a favorite destination for adventure seekers in trekking, mountaineering, and whitewater rafting.
Beautiful monasteries, interesting markets, and picturesque views provide a great deal to photograph. Visit charming Old Town Leh, where traditional stupas and Ladakhi mud-brick houses connect by a labyrinth of narrow, winding alleys and stairways. Dating back to the 17th century, Old Town is considered one of the most historic places to visit in all of Ladakh.
The once royal Leh Palace, snuggled among the mountainside, towers nine stories and is the dominant structure in Leh. Built by King Sengge Namgyal in the 16th century, the palace today remains an important hub of Buddhist culture and religion. The Palace Museum holds a rich collection of crowns, ceremonial dresses, jewelry, and 450-year-old paintings, which still hold their vivid appearance from the powdered gems and stones that were used to create them.
Yes, there is plenty to explore in Leh, and it’s small enough that you can walk to many places. Just remember to take it slow and keep it to a minimum, a strenuous trek lies ahead!
In the early evening, as the sun sets, we’ll gather as a group and go to Leh Palace to photograph the Buddhist white-domed Shanti Stupa from a distance, the stunning snowcapped Himilayas as our backdrop.
Overnight Grand Dragon Ladakh
Tuesday, January 28 (B, L, D)
Today we’ll head west, following the Indus River on the road to Kargil and Srinagar. We’ll pass through some notable areas, including the small town of Nimmu, a popular rafting destination where the Zanskar River meets the Indus, and Likir, the site of one of the most famous Buddhist monasteries in all of Ladakh.
Be on the lookout for snow leopards and ibex as we head up the winding, narrow dirt road to our final destination, Ulley. For the next several days, we’ll stay at the new Snow Leopard Lodge in Ulley. Past trips to this region consisted of only tented camps and had no vehicle access, things have changed. There is now more access and comfort, but it is still remote and adventurous.
Sitting at 13,000 feet, the lodge commands excellent views of the valley and surrounding mountains. Eleven bedrooms and dining and sitting rooms provide simple yet comfortable accommodations with heat(!) and little luxuries like real coffee, cozy beds, toilets, and washing facilities. Indulge in traditional flavorful cuisine prepared fresh daily and learn of the lifestyle of the in-house Ladakhi family.
Recently built for snow leopard tracking, Ulley offers a pleasant alternative to camping and is relatively free of tourism and the chaos that has enveloped other snow leopard destinations. It began as a home owned by one of Ladakh’s top snow leopard trackers, Tchewang Norbu, under the auspice of a program initiated by the Snow Leopard Conservancy. Tourism revenues go directly into the local community and toward preservation of the snow leopards and their ecosystem. Included in your tour is a $200 donation to support the Snow Leopard Conservancy.
Overnight at the Snow Leopard Lodge
Wednesday, January 29 – Sunday, February 2 (B, L, D)
Today we begin our search for one of the world’s most mysterious cats, the beautiful and elusive snow leopard.
Ulley is not only renowned for its high numbers of snow leopards, but it’s also one of the best areas to see Asiatic ibex, urial, bharal (Himalayan blue sheep), Tibetan wolf, red fox, yak (wild ox), bearded and Himalayan griffon vultures, and golden eagles. This is excellent ibex country, and there are few more evocative sights than a magnificently horned male ibex standing vigil on some impossibly narrow outcropping, a few thousand feet over a plunging cliff.
Our exceptional and experienced trackers and spotters will wake before us to interact with the locals and search the three surrounding valleys for any hints of snow leopard movement. They are experts in snow leopard behavior and tracking this evasive cat’s movements. Feel free to join them if you’re up for it!
After breakfast, excursions will be organized based on the their findings. Lodge vehicles coupled with short walks (easy to medium difficulty) will take us to vantage points and possible sighting areas. Depending on the day’s plan, hot lunch will be served either at the lodge or in the field. We’ll return to the lodge in the evenings for dinner and a recap of the day’s events.
January through March is the best time to spot snow leopards. This is when the ungulates move to the lower, often snow-free, valleys to feed and graze. Snow leopards and other predators, like the Tibetan wolf, will follow, since the ungulates are the primary source of their diets.
Overnight at the Snow Leopard Lodge for five more nights (six nights total)
Monday, February 3 (B, L, D)
A final breakfast at the Snow Leopard Lodge, and then we’ll make our way back to Leh. Upon arrival, we’ll check into the Grand Dragon Ladakh. Spend the day at leisure; tomorrow we’ll head back to Delhi. Take the opportunity to further explore the town of Leh. Visit the hotel’s spa for a little R&R or simply sit back, reflect, and take in the spectacular views of the magnificent scenery that the snow leopards call home.
Overnight Grand Dragon Ladakh
Tuesday, February 4 (B, L, D)
All good things must come to an end. After breakfast at the hotel, we’ll transfer as a group to the Leh airport for our flight back to Delhi. Day rooms at the Radisson Blu Plaza Delhi Airport. We’ll bid our farewells during our group dinner tonight before transferring to the airport for our evening flights home.
Wednesday, February 5 (B)
Most flights leave Delhi after midnight so your flight will likely depart early morning (after midnight) today.
Please Note: We’re so fortunate to be getting into this area now that it’s more accessible and comfortable. The lodge we’ll stay at was just recently built. We’ll be at altitudes of 4,000-4,200 meters (approximately 13,000 to 13,800 feet) maximum.
All tracking is done mainly by car with variable amounts of walking, which you can adjust to your own requirements. Mules and porters can be provided if requested in advance. Walking varies based on sightings. Generally we’re not walking up steep hills. This has been the case in the past, but we can now get to good heights with the vehicles. We need people to be good hikers/walkers in their own backyards in the US. You do not need to go out and train for this trip, but you should be reasonably fit and able to walk and hike, especially considering the altitude change.
Please talk to your doctor about your health and visiting a high altitude location. They may prescribe Diamox (Acetazolamide) for high altitude sickness which would be good to have on hand if you have any issues. Emergency evacuation insurance is required by all participants due to the remoteness of the area.
This trip is more adventurous than our typical photography tours. This region has a lot to offer beyond snow leopards; it will be a true adventure.
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