21st July 2023, 6.00 Am to 10.30 AM
After a rather restless night, I wasn't sure why; I was up at 5.30 AM. Since the world outside didn't seem very welcoming, I decided to snuggle under the quilt for a bit longer. The cook at the restaurant had provided us a large flask of hot water with instructions to drink a little every time we woke up. The high altitude dehydrates you and I did take few sips at night. Despite that, the inside of my nose was dry and crusted up, though there wasn't any bleeding. How much the hot water helped, I don't know, but one thing I did learn about a flask of hot water was that it came in handy for brushing my teeth, shaving and washing my face! Bath was out anyway. It was too cold and I doubt, I'd have dared to bathe even if there was running hot water.
I had enquired about the whereabouts of the black necked crane after dinner, the previous evening. The manager, who was the local birding expert wasn't available, but once again the cook came to my aid. He told us that the black necked cranes were usually found on the road side, at the edge of the lake, about two kilometres towards Puga. Unfortunately, we hadn't seen them because we were driving in the rain the previous evening. It meant we'd have to backtrack along the road we came on the previous afternoon.
After tossing around for another half an hour, I decided to get up and take a look around. We had planned to leave after breakfast, and since our destination was Leh, we were in no hurry. Leh was around 150 kilometres from Thukje and we'd hit the NH 3, the Manali - Leh highway, 15 kilometres from Tso Kar. It would take us a little over three hours to reach Leh as most of our drive would be on the highway.
Our cook was on the road with a toothbrush in one hand and a jug of warm water in the other! He had promised breakfast at 7.30 but there he was standing on an empty road in his night dress, at a quarter past six in the morning, probably planning the menu for breakfast. That was another lesson. When in Ladakh, remove your watch and keep it at the bottom of your bag! He had told us at dinner the previous night, that he'd have breakfast ready by half past seven, so we could eat and go to catch the cranes and any other birds that would be awake on that cold morning. Now, it seemed a good time to make some change in plans.
Anyway, I asked him what his plan for breakfast was. He told me that we could go to see the birds and return in an hour's time, by which time he'd keep hot pooris and channa ready for us. It sounded like a good idea as an early breakfast would make us hungry halfway to Leh. So while waiting for everyone to get ready, I trained my camera on some drab birds foraging in the waste dump.
We rolled out after seven, planning to be back in good time for a hot breakfast. The skies were relatively clear by now and it looked like a promising morning for some birding. About a kilometre from the Druk, off to our right was a sandbank. On it, were a large flock of brownish-orange coloured, geese like birds. They were ruddy shelducks, or brahminy ducks, probably in the middle of their breeding season. It is considered a sacred bird by the Buddhists.
A few minutes later, a little further down, we came across a solitary raptor sitting on a rock on the edge of the road. It seemed to be contemplating about breakfast like us. It was unmindful of our presence even though we passed it only a few feet away. It was in intense meditation, and probably didn't care about a couple of guys taking photographs! Another lifer for me, in birding terminology. It was the upland buzzard, one of the raptors I had on my target list for Ladakh.
It decided that we were unlikely prey and decided to shift to a better vantage point, slightly away from the road's edge.
We left it to its meditation and decided to drive further down the road. We didn't have to go too far. The bird that I had travelled to Ladakh to see, was there in the grassy patch just off the road. I had the black necked cranes in my sights! Unfortunately for me, there were no chicks. I was hoping that there would be a family in the grass, as this was the breeding season.
Though my desire of seeing a family with chicks would have to wait for the next season, I wasn't disappointed. It was another lifer for me anyway. I was also happy that Tso Kar had lived up to its reputation as one of the best birding destinations in Ladakh. It gives me an excuse to plan a trip to Ladakh again. Next time, it would be an exclusively birding and astrophotography trip.
It was 7.45 AM. We'd have time to return to the hotel, finish breakfast and check out. On the way back the upland buzzard was back on his old rock. We clicked a few pictures and left him to his contemplation. Like us, he would also be feeling hungry.
We left at a quarter past eight, driving through some beautifully desolate landscapes. No villages or signs of habitation except for what Tsewangji pointed out was some sort of kraals for goats, circular walls of stone with a hut like structure in one corner, that would be occupied by wandering nomads who bring their flocks for grazing.
We'd be crossing one more high pass on our way to Leh. Only one solitary raven indicated that life is possible even in such areas.
Tanglang La at 5328 metres (17480 feet) is just slightly lower than Khardung La (5359 metres). It is the sixth highest pass in India and 12th in the world. Tsewangji had told me that one of the birds in my list was usually found just across the pass. As we approached the pass the landscape was becoming increasingly surreal with the rain clouds skimming the mountain tops.
We eventually crossed Tanglang La and as we were descending there were a couple of vehicles with some birders scanning the slopes below the for the birds. They hadn't had any luck at the particular place they had halted.
Since they had not had any luck, it seemed better to push on down the mountain, hoping that we'd have better luck. As the car rolled slowly down I was scanning the slopes below us. I thought I spied some movement and told Tsewangji to stop. Jumping out of the car, I cautiously approached the edge of the road where I had seen the movement but despite my stealthy approach the birds seemed to have got wind of the danger. As soon as my head popped over the edge, four birds took of protesting loudly. I had seen my next lifer, the Tibetan snowcock. I managed to squeeze of a few shots of the flying birds.
It seemed that the morning was turning out to be a great one. I had already had so many new species to add to my life list. I was having a birding high. Every bird in Ladakh was new to me but some species were special. I had made a list of target species and like the Big Five of Africa, my list too had a few 'Big' ones. I had ticked off a few but few big ones were still eluding me. A birding friend from Coimbatore had told me that Hanle was a good place for one of them but we weren't going there this trip. I had sort of decided that I'd need another trip for that.
That was when Tsewangji looked out of his side of the car and told me there was a large bird in the sky over the mountain top. I told him to stop and got out and when I saw, not one but two birds circling overhead, I nearly swooned. I wouldn't have to go to Hanle after all, the birds had come looking for me. Flying overhead in lazy circles were two bearded vultures or Lammergeiers! A bird that I had decided, would not be on my list on this trip.
It was turning out to be a morning full of surprises at every turn. Weather notwithstanding, I was winning a birding treasure hunt. I could go back feeling very satisfied. I seemed that nature was compensating for the compromise I had to make when undertaking this trip.
In a few hours we'd be In Leh getting ready to say good bye. I was already wishing that I had a few extra days in Ladakh!
