Markha Valley Day 1 Spituk to Jingchan

Leh 26 July 2010 8am
I'm waiting for my taxi to arrive. It isn't fair after 2 days to acclimatise when I felt great I now have the headaches and insomnia of altitude sickness. Last night I tried to stay awake as long as possible to ensure I would sleep. By 10pm I was to tire to even watch TV but I couldn't get to sleep and then about midnight the headaches started. I'm feeling slightly shaky but hopefully I have the energy for the walk. At least there is very little climbing today. Jingchan is only 200m higher than Leh.

Jinchang 12:55pm 3600m
It took me just under 4 hours for what the guide book describes as 5-6 hours. There was a tea tent 30 minutes from the camp and I needed the break. While the breeze kept it from getting too hot the sun was fairly fierce and Pema my guide was very reluctant to let me stop for rests in the sun. The first hour I felt fantastic, the second hour was OK and after that I was tired but I knew it was only going to get hotter so there was little benefit in stopping.

After crossing the bridge at Spituk the road goes across a desert river bank plain, then through a gorge on the Indus River where the breeze disappeared. Three rafting parties went down the river while we were in the gorge. It looked like fun - the river has enough white water to get the adrenalin running but it isn't dangerous. After the Indus River gorge the road follows the Jinchang river through a gorge which opens out at the tea house. The campsite has heaps of trees for shade but there is very little grass an the horses have damage the trees by eating the bark.

I am very proud that I was the first trekker to the campsite arriving at the same time as the horses that Pema assured me were faster than I was (actually future days proved him right).

Other than people the only living things I saw during the walk to Jungchan were a rabbit, 3 mules near the tea house and the horses - 3 for me and 6 for a party of Czechs. The tea house is a tent with low stone walls around the edge. The "refrigeration" for drinks is a stream flowing alongside.

I saw 2 geckos in cracks of the rocks of the mani (prayer) wall at the campsite. There is also a clever little diversion of part of the flow of the Jingchan River above the camp site to provide 2 streams through the camp for a water supply.

8.22pm
Had a great evening. I played cards with the Czech party - a game I have never played before but I didn't get done too badly. I had a long chat with Julie from Belgium. She went to Spituk monastery and intended to hitch hike to Stok monastery. When she asked the way to Stok clearly the people thought she meant the 3 day Spituk to Stok trek and pointed her up the road to Jingchan. She has no tent or food but she has enough money to buy food at the teahouses. The camps all have tea tent shelters you can sleep in for a small fee. Just before dark 2 Wellingtonians strolled into camp. Lance & Ed have been in India for 3 months. They drove on motorbikes from Delhi - with a long stop in Spiti Valley in Himchal Pradesh. Yesterday they climbed Stok Kanze - the peak of the Stok Range. After a couple of days rest in Leh they plan to ride to Srinigar.

In an afternoon wandering around I got to photograph the gecko at last as well as a blue sheep that is kept by the 1 farm in Jingchan.