Rich Geological History of Ladakh
The region of Ladakh was formed 50 million years ago by the collision of the Indian sub-continental tectonic plate with the Asian land mass.
Today it is an uplifted high-altitude desert, mostly devoid of vegetation, and sculpted over millennia into fantastic contours by wind and water erosion. It is bordered on the north by the Karakorams and on the south by the Himalayas, with the Indus River valley and tributaries forming its central heartland. Ladakh ranges in altitude from 8,800 feet in Kargil to 25,170 feet at Saser Kangri in the Karakorams. The capital city, Leh, is at 11,500 feet.
Ladakh or ’Little Tibet’, is one of the most remote areas north of the Himalayas on the Tibetan Plateau. Isolated for centuries from the outside world due to its geographic location, it occupies a strategic position on India’s northwest frontier, with some areas today closed to tourism.
