Markha valley trek
Discover one of the most beautiful valley of Ladakh going through the Hemis National Park
The Markha valley has a lot to offer to the avid trekkers. You will cross traditional villages with their irrigated fields, meet the very hospitable Ladakhi at their home, discover the stunning landscapes of the Hemis National Park, crosses high altitude lakes and passes, and spot many species of birds and mammals.
There is no technical difficulties on most of the trails around the Markha valley, until you want to climb the Stok Kangri of course !
As there are several options to trek the Markha valley and the Stok Kangri range, you can easily adjust your trek according to the time you have in hands and according to physical fitness.
Markha valley trek features (Skiu to Lato)
Duration of your trek
Day-min : The minimum number of days required for the trek (from Leh to Leh)
Day-max : The maximum number of days you can spend on this trek. Prolonged itinerary can be discussed with our team.
AWTD : Average walking time per day (<3 : easy, 3 to 5 : moderate, >5 : strenuous
Altitudes of your trek
Min : Minimum altitude of your trek.
Max : Maximum altitude of your trek.
Ascent : The total ascending difference of altitude on the trek.
Descent : The total descending difference of altitude on the trek.
+
Difficulty of your trek
Stamina : The physical effort involved during your trek. Rated from 0 (easiest) to 100 (most strenuous). If you have an average fitness you can consider all the treks up to 50. See here for more details
Technical : Difficulty of your trek in terms of exposure to danger and required experience.
0 to 20 : No difficulties,
20 to 40 : Walking on good mountain trails,
40 to 60 : Some walking on difficult mountain trails (steep slopes, rocks, etc.),
60 to 80: You are exposed to some dangers (void, snow, falling rocks, etc.),
80 to 100 : Experience required (please inquire).
Overall : Average between Stamina and Technical rating.
Duration
Altitudes
Difficulty
Markha valley trek map
MARKHA VALLEY TREKS ITINERARIES
There are several options for your trek in the Markha valley. There are all shown on the map in green. In this page the main itinerary starts from the village Skiu and ends at Lato.
Markha valley trek, best time to go
Best time to trek into the Markha valley is from May to September In early season you may not be able to cross the high passes because of the snow.
The Markha valley is known for the presence of the Snow Leopard. If your purpose is to observe the Snow Leopard, you must trek the valley in winter time and cope with the extremely low temperatures that fall to minus 20 or 30 degree Celcius.
JAN
Avoid
FEB
Avoid
MAR
Avoid
APR
Avoid
MAY
You may go
JUN
Best time to go
JUL
Best time to go
AUG
Best time to go
SEP
Best time to go
OCT
You may go
NOV
Avoid
DEC
Avoid
From our gallery
Zanskar trek photos
Itinerary
Day One : From Leh to Skiu
| FEATURES | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|
| No walk Homestay | We leave Leh in the morning. As there is only a short drive to Skiu, the trek starting point we may decide to do rafting on the Zanskar river in the morning. After the lunch we drive to the village Skiu. Night in a homestay. |
Day Two : Skiu to Markha
| FEATURES | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|
| 7 to 8 hours +460m / -0m under tents | The trek starts ! Today we have the longest day of hiking as we have to reach the village of Markha which is about 19 km ahead in the valley. No worries, the climb is only 460 m which is very reasonable, and we remain well below the 4000 m. Enjoy observing the life of the locals in this lower part of the valley. |
Day Three : Markha to Thoachungtse
| FEATURES | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|
| 4 to 5 hours +450m / -0m under tents | Today we will leave the inhabited part of the valley ! We will cross the last village of the valley called Hankar. Then we continue the climb up to a meadow (Thoachungtse) where we will camp. |
Day Four : Thoachungtse to Nyimaling
| FEATURES | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|
| 5 to 6 hours +600m / -0m under tents | Today we reach the higher altitude of the Markha valley. The objective is to reach a large meadow which is just down the Kongmaru La that leads to Hemis and on the other side we have the majestic Kang Yatse. The hike is really exciting as the valley unveils all its beauty. We will spend a night at around 4840m, which is really high. Night under tent. |
Day Five : Nyimaling to Lalung
| FEATURES | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|
| 5 to 6 hours +490m / -820m under tents | Probably the most exciting part of the trek today. After breakfast we start the last climb in the Markha valley to reach a high pass at 5330 m, the Lalung La where you can have your lunch. You can see most of the Hemis National Park from the pass. Some of the mountains have amazing rock formations. We go down through another valley completely wild and isolated. Camp near a stream. |
Day six : Lalung to Lato
| FEATURES | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|
| 5 hours +390m / -1500m homestay or hotel in Leh | To reach Lato, the end of our trek, we need to cross another pass : Poze La that we reach in one or two hours. The descent to Lato is spectacular, with one of the most incredible valley of Ladakh. At Lato we can either stay in a homestay or move to Leh to be in a hotel. |
Gallery
Zanskar trek photos
Reviews Scores and Score Breakdown
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