INSIDE HIMALAYAS | NEPAL | TIBET | BHUTAN
INSIDE HIMALAYAS | NEPAL | TIBET | BHUTAN
In Search of the Yak in Ladakh
by Devorah Klein Lev-Tov
If one creates in earnest the armor of bodhicitta,
It is like the treasury of space offering unlimited largesse.
For fortunate beings, this temple and all it contains
Are like the wondrous bursting forth of spring.
Thrangu Tashi Yangtse Monastery is located at the sacred pilgrimage site of Namo Buddha,
Nepal. It is home to more than 250 monks and includes a monastic college, a school for young
monks and a Tibetan Medical clinic.
Maybe a mini yak... but then again, maybe not. Photo: Elen Turner.
“My heart leapt:
it was a yak! I
was sure of it.
The brown and
white animal
had large horns
framing its boxy
face and a long
skirt of fur that
swept the dusty
ground”
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P.O. Box: 8720 Lal Durbar Marg, Kathmandu, Nepal Tel: +977-1-4444376 / 78 / 79 Fax: +977-1-4444380
Email: [email protected] URL: www.royalmt.com.np
www.insidehimalayas.com | By Royal Mountain Travel
While India is indeed a beautiful country,
I hadn’t thought of it as a destination
for nature or animal lovers, per se. Yes,
there are some Bengal tigers hiding (I
tried and was unsuccessful at spotting
one in the Sunderbans) and of course
cows galore. But what’s always drawn
me to India is the fascinating culture.
That changed last summer when
my husband and I headed to a very
different part of the country: Jammu and
Kashmir. This state has a unique and
captivating culture, but it also happens
to be one of the most geographically
stunning places in the world. There’s
also a special animal to be seen there,
located in the Indian Himalayas: the yak.
I quickly became obsessed. These
woolly animals have amazing horns and
full, furry skirts to keep them warm. I
had to see one, maybe even touch one.
We arrived in Leh, the capital city of the
Ladakh region, after a gorgeous, thrilling
two-day drive from Kashmir, through
high mountain passes and moonscape
vistas. We immediately went to rest: our
bodies were not used to the extremely
high altitude—Leh sits at 3500 metres.
I found a book about the region and
soon learned more about my beloved
yak. The nomad tribes living in the
nearby Changtang Valley rely heavily on
yaks for survival. They use them for their
milk, but once it’s determined that a yak
must be killed for the tribe to survive the
winter (with its Arctic-like conditions),
every part of the yak’s body is used.
The yak is skinned and the hair of the tail
is used to make ropes. The leather from
the skin is used to make shoes and to
carpet the floor of tents. The horns are
used to make buttons, and the yak’s fat
is preserved and used for cooking and
lighting lamps. The meat is air dried
www.insidehimalayas.com | By Royal Mountain Travel
17