Frozen Chadar Trek

We've noticed that there have been too many firms operating on the trail in recent years, taking thousands of trekkers! This has wreaked havoc, and the path is rapidly deteriorating. The trail, which follows the frozen Zanskar River, is a customary way for locals to communicate with the rest of Ladakh during the winter when the highways are closed. This was only possible until 2010, because there were so few groups trekking in the winter. In fact, tens of thousands of tourists visit Chadar each year in a little more than a month.

During the cold and hard winter, Chadar, the frozen Zanskar river trip, is remarkable in many ways. Whether in terms of geography, geology, or culture. Padum, Zanskar's heartland, is cut off from the rest of the country throughout the winter. This is a historic route used by the inhabitants of Zanskar to connect to Leh and other Ladakh districts. When the Zanskar River freezes in the winter, the ice sheet is known as "Chadar" (Hindi for "Cover"). The Chadar takes at least a month to form once winter arrives. People simply cross the river on foot, with children and luggage being transported on locally produced wooden ski sledges.