The first day on your Dzo Jongo trek. On arrival at the Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport, also referred to as the Leh Airport, you will immediately be overcome by a sense of awe and wonder with respect to the stark contrast of the landscape when compared to the Indian and Nepal Himalayas. You immediately notice the cold, the complete absence of vegetation, as well as the effort it takes to possibly walk up or downstairs due to the rarity of the atmospheric oxygen. When you exit the airport, look out for the ADVENTURE PULSE BANNER (that’s us, by the way), which will be your ride to our Hotel, ‘The Himalayan Residency’. The first day is spent just resting in and around the hotel so that you allow yourself to acclimatize to the environment and the high altitude. In the evening, we will go for a small walk to the City market, where if you like, you can explore the local culture, purchase souvenirs, and indulge in the local cuisine.

As Leh is located at an altitude of 3,524m, acclimatizing is very important. The second day in Leh is spent resting and walking around the Leh Market, the heart of the city. In the evening, we will trek up to the mesmerizing Shanti Stupa where you can get a view of the entire city of Leh with extended views of the valley. Shanti Stupa is truly one of the most beautiful pieces of architecture in Leh. Dinner will be served after we make our way back from the Stupa.

We start by driving away from Leh and cross the famous Pathar Sahab Gurudwara. Continuing the same road, we hit the confluence of the river Indus and Zaskar. This is the start of Hemis National Park. The drive to Chilling (Yup, it’s named Chilling) is around 3 hours from Leh. From Chilling, we’ll make our way to Skiu. There is a road that is under construction to Skiu, and the trek duration can be affected by where the road has reached.

Our first day of trekking on the Dzo Jongo trek. This is one of the longest days of trekking as we start our journey trekking close to 15kms. The trek through the Markha valley is different from trekking in the rest of Ladakh especially the area near Stok Kangri. The valley is greener, and the vegetation is significantly more. We will also have to wade through the Markha river. This will also be the first day of camping. Our camp will be set a couple of kilometres ahead of the village. Hot tea and snacks will await your arrival.

After a long day yesterday, today’s trek is a relatively shorter one. Today will also be the day we have our first site of Dzo Jongo. The trek crosses a rough terrain with plenty of small shrubs and some smaller animals. The trail will lead you to the village of Umlung. We’ll have some tea in the quaint village. From here you will be able to see the beautiful Dzo Jongo Peak.

Today is the day, we make our way to Dzo Jongo base camp. The trek is a short one but has an altitude ascent of 700m. The trek itself should take around 5 hours. On the way, we’ll cross many Mani Walls (Buddhist Prayer Walls) and journey up to Nimaling. Base Camp is a short way from Nimaling. This will be our Head Quarters for our attack on the mountain.

Today, we will spend the day resting and preparing for tomorrow’s summit push. If there is heavy snow near the summit, we will require the use of crampons. Our guide will teach you how to use them.

Today is the big day. We start at midnight and slowly make our way up the mountain. We will climb from 5100m to 6200m. We’ll then walk on the moraine and make our way up the glacier, navigating crevasses and roping up where required. After a steep climb, we will reach the summit of Dzo Jongo. From the summit, you get a view of the entire valley. You might even get a glimpse of the second-highest peak in the world, K2. We will then descend back to base camp.

This day will be used as a buffer day in case of bad weather. This will also allow to make another attempt to summit in case the bad weather prevent the first attempt.

From base camp, we will start our journey back to Leh. After a 3-hour steep descend, we will make our way to Chuskirmo.

Our last day on the Dzo Jongo trek. We make our way to Chokdo, from where our cabs will escort us back to civilization at Leh.