Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_1.JPG (244431 bytes)

PHOTO DOCUMENTATION: INDIAN HIMALAYA'2003

Klaus Dierks

©  Dr. Klaus Dierks 2004

With nearly seventy years of age (myself) and my wife (much younger) we dared again to cross the High Himalaya Main Range in the Indian Himalayas. From September to November 2003 we visited the formerly autonomous Tibetan provinces (polities) of Lahaul, Spiti and Kinnaur in the Himachal Pradesh. We trekked to the Tibetan border and Changra Tal (Moon Lake: 4 270 m) and crossed the 4 650 m Kunzum La from Lahaul to Spiti. From the capital of Spiti, Kaza (3 600 m), we visited some the best preserved monasteries of the Tibetan Buddhism like Ki Gompa, Kibber Gompa, Tabo Gompa, Dankar Gompa, Lachung Gompa and Kungri Gompa. These monasteries are mostly more than 1 000 years in age and belonged to the West-Tibetan kingdom of Guge. They are in contrast to the monasteries in Tibet (People's Republic of China) not destroyed like the monasteries in Tholing and Tsaparang (we visited them in the year 1998) and many others, which were demolished in the Chinese Cultural Revolution in the 1960s and 1970s. The many wall paintings and frescoes which are more than 1 000 years old, are the best Buddhist art works still to be found. Some of them are documented by photography for the first time.

We also visited the highest, permanently inhabited settlement in the world, Kibber Gompa (4 230 m). These and many other villages in the remote Spiti preserved their Tibetan character much better than many villages on the other side of the border. We lived with the Tibetan people and experienced a traditional Tibetan wedding ceremony in Kaza.

From Kungri Gompa we started our trek via main range of the High Himalaya, the Tarik La (5 230 m), into the Kinnaur, to Rekong Peo and Kalpa (Chini) with the mighty Kinnaur (Kinner) Kailash (6 050 m) in the background. From Kalpa we again moved to the Tibetan border at Nako where the Sutlej River crosses the Indo-Tibetan border. Here again we had the opportunity to be invited to a traditional Tibetan wedding which is documented by photography.

Our trekking expedition started in Shimla, the capital of the Himachal Pradesh.

(The photo documentation will be built up in the coming months, early 2004).

horizontal rule

Journey into the High Himalayas

 

Himalaya_Kalka-Shimla_Train_28.09.jpg (269985 bytes)

The 600 mm Toy Train from Kalka to Shimla: From 650 m to 2 200 m: With hundreds of Tunnels and Bridges 
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Shimla_1.JPG (294286 bytes)

View on Shimla to the West 
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Shimla_2.JPG (253279 bytes)Himalaya_Shimla_6.JPG (329473 bytes)

View on Shimla to the North 
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Shimla_3.JPG (259252 bytes)Himalaya_Shimla_7.JPG (283983 bytes)

View from Shimla into the Sutlej Valley: View to the Northwest 
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Shimla_Bazar.JPG (288566 bytes)Himalaya_Shimla_5.JPG (233056 bytes)Himalaya_Shimla_4.JPG (244702 bytes)

Shimla Bazaar 
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Shimla_8.JPG (284222 bytes)

Shimla: The Mall: Reflecting India's Colonial Past of the "Raj": Shimla was the Summer Capital of the British Indian Empire until 1947 
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Shimla_Hanuman_1.JPG (253169 bytes)

Shimla: Hinduistic Hanuman (Monkey God) Temple ( 2 500 m): View to the East  
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Shimla_Hanuman_2.JPG (235885 bytes)Himalaya_Shimla_Hanuman_4.JPG (271509 bytes)Himalaya_Shimla_Hanuman_3.JPG (311892 bytes)

Shimla: Hinduistic Hanuman (Monkey God) Temple ( 2 500 m): View on Shimla  
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Shimla-Mandi.JPG (237923 bytes)

Between Shimla and Bilaspur: View into the Sutlej and Beas Rivers to the North: in Direction Mandi and Manali  
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Manali_1.JPG (227928 bytes)Himalaya_Manali_4.JPG (141142 bytes)

View on Manali  
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Manali_2.JPG (245990 bytes)Himalaya_Manali_3.JPG (204103 bytes)

My Daughter Annette Dierks with Manali in the Background: November 2003  
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Manali_5.JPG (226545 bytes)

Yak in Manali: November 2003  
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Manali-Rhotang_1.JPG (285345 bytes)Himalaya_Manali-Rhotang_2.JPG (300768 bytes)Himalaya_Manali-Rhotang_3.JPG (273916 bytes)Himalaya_Manali-Rhotang_4.JPG (279474 bytes)Himalaya_Manali-Rhotang_5.JPG (229063 bytes)

The Road from Manali to the Rohtang Pass 3 980 m: September 2003  
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Rhotang_1.JPG (265351 bytes)Himalaya_Rhotang_2.JPG (250792 bytes)Himalaya_Rhotang_3.JPG (317128 bytes)

Rohtang Pass 3 980 m: Between Manali and Lahaul: The Tibetan Praying Flags mark the Transition from the Hinduistic World of the Himachal Pradesh to the Buddhist World of Lahaul and Spiti   
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Chandra_1.JPG (274029 bytes)

View north of the Rohtang Pass into the Chandra (Chenab) Valley and Lahaul: Direction to the East  
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Chandra_2.JPG (258702 bytes)

View north of the Rohtang Pass into the Chandra (Chenab) Valley and Lahaul: Direction to the Northwest  
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Lahaul_Battal_1.JPG (260284 bytes)

Battal (4 012 m) in the Chandra (Chenab) Valley: Direction to the West (Rohtang Pass) with the nearly 7 000 m high Sail Peak in the Background  
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Lahaul_Battal_2.JPG (258973 bytes)

Battal (4 012 m) in the Chandra (Chenab) Valley: The Interior of the Tibetan "Luxury" Hotel in Battal: The Kitchen  
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

horizontal rule

Trek to the Tibetan Border, to the Chandra Tal (Moon Lake) and Kunzum La (Pass)

 

Himalaya_Lahaul_Chandra-Tal_1.JPG (236570 bytes)Himalaya_Lahaul_Chandra-Tal_2.JPG (226476 bytes)Himalaya_Lahaul_Chandra-Tal_5.JPG (256618 bytes)

Trek from Battal (4 012 m) to the Chandra Tal (4 270 m)(Moon Lake): Near the Tibetan Border (People's Republic of China)  
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Lahaul_Chandra-Tal_3.JPG (256197 bytes)Himalaya_Lahaul_Chandra-Tal_4.JPG (240661 bytes)

Chandra Tal (4 270 m)(Moon Lake): Chandra Tal is one of the Sources of the Chenab River  
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Lahaul_Kunzum-La_1.JPG (287588 bytes)Himalaya_Lahaul_Kunzum-La_2.JPG (313010 bytes)Himalaya_Lahaul_Kunzum-La_3.JPG (277404 bytes)Himalaya_Lahaul_Kunzum-La_4.JPG (244077 bytes)Himalaya_Lahaul_Kunzum-La_5.JPG (222139 bytes)

The Kunzum La (Pass)(4 650 m) is the Border between Lahaul and Spiti: The former Tibetan Polity Spiti lies to the East of Lahaul  
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

horizontal rule

The Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries in Spiti

 

Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_1.JPG (249549 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_2.JPG (225333 bytes)

Kaza (3 650 m) is the Capital of Spiti: View to the West in Direction Kunzum La  
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_9.JPG (207645 bytes)

Kaza (3 650 m) is the Capital of Spiti: View to the East in Direction Tabo  
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_10.JPG (277919 bytes)

Tibetan-Buddhist Mani Stones (Om Mani Peme Hum) in Kaza  
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_6.JPG (283862 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_3.JPG (269171 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_4.JPG (200725 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_5.JPG (202637 bytes)


Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_7.JPG (250611 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_8.JPG (250909 bytes)

Preparations for a Traditional Tibetan Wedding in Kaza during the Khasera Festival 2003
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_1.JPG (236381 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_2.JPG (241022 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_3.JPG (236204 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_4.JPG (224595 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_5.JPG (260314 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_6.JPG (245543 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_7.JPG (212380 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_8.JPG (229410 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_9.JPG (235616 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_10.JPG (193482 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_11.JPG (195590 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_12.JPG (205920 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_13.JPG (242359 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_14.JPG (217791 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_15.JPG (210567 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_16.JPG (261993 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_17.JPG (232886 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza_Wedding_18.JPG (225651 bytes)

Traditional Tibetan Wedding in Kaza during the Khasera Festival 2003: The two Clans of the Bride and the Bridegroom compete to each other with Dancing and Singing, with many Spectators in festive Clothes around
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_5.JPG (268841 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_1.JPG (324152 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_3.JPG (284591 bytes)

The Tibetan Buddhist Monastery of Ki Gompa (4 130 m) is situated 15 km west of Kaza. The Gompa is more than one thousand years old and belonged to the West Tibetan Kingdom of Guge. To-day Ki Gompa belongs to the Tibetan religious Order of the Gelug-Pa.
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_4.JPG (232738 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_6.JPG (257231 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_7.JPG (267947 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_2.JPG (239858 bytes)

Below the Ki Gompa there is Ki Village with the Spiti River in the Background which comes from the Kunzum La
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_16.JPG (235224 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_17.JPG (247962 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_18.JPG (216975 bytes)

On the Roof of the Ki Gompa
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_19.JPG (201140 bytes)

On the Roof of the Ki Gompa: View to the East in Direction Kaza with Spiti River
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_20.JPG (216742 bytes)

On the Roof of the Ki Gompa: View to the West in Direction Kunzum La with Spiti River
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_21.JPG (290573 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_8.JPG (284367 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_9.JPG (281462 bytes)

Ki Gompa: Lhakang (Prayer Hall) and Room of the Big Praying Wheel (Mani Wheel)
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_12.JPG (296121 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_13.JPG (223931 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_14.JPG (250840 bytes)

Ki Gompa: Tschörte (Reliquary: Tomb) of one of the Head Lamas of the Monastery
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_15.JPG (226707 bytes)

Ki Gompa: Lobsang Palden Lama who lives for Decades in the Monastery. He hails from Tibet and accompanied the Dalai Lama during his Escape form Tibet in March 1959
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_11.JPG (268248 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_10.JPG (252358 bytes)

Ki Gompa: Kitchen Lama of the Monastery
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Ki-Gompa_22.JPG (244988 bytes)

Between Ki Gompa and Kaza: View to the East
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_2.JPG (286122 bytes)

Between Ki Gompa and Kibber: View to the West
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_1.JPG (279588 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_3.JPG (277511 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_4.JPG (260695 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_5.JPG (262879 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_6.JPG (280912 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_7.JPG (250600 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_8.JPG (237457 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_9.JPG (267771 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_10.JPG (288337 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_11.JPG (248103 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_15.JPG (209254 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_17.JPG (274533 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_18.JPG (234934 bytes)

The Tibetan Village Kibber (4 230 m ) is said to be the highest permanently inhabited Settlement in the World
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_14.JPG (227354 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_16.JPG (292810 bytes)

The Tibetan Monastery Kibber Gompa (4 350 m)
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_12.JPG (251756 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kibber_13.JPG (233289 bytes)

Kibber Gompa: A Village Woman turns for one whole Week the Praying (Mani) Wheel
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza-Tabo_1.JPG (257691 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kaza-Tabo_2.JPG (276271 bytes)

Between Kaza and Tabo Gompa: The Spiti River which flows to the East and joins the Sutlej River near Puh
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_5.JPG (288545 bytes)

Tabo Village (3 050 m): View to the North in direction of the Tibetan Border
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_1.JPG (233182 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_3.JPG (195601 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_4.JPG (206721 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_6.JPG (208028 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_2.JPG (301558 bytes)

Tabo Gompa: One of the most important Monasteries of the Tibeto-Buddhism. The Gompa was built more than 1 000 Years ago in Clay Architecture and belonged to the West-Tibetan Kingdom of Guge. The Clay Monasteries on the other Side of the Indo/Tibetan Border were all destroyed during the Chinese Cultural Revolution in the 1960s and 1970s.
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_7.JPG (312309 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_8.JPG (270744 bytes)

Tabo Gompa: Centuries old Wood Carvings at the Entrance Door to the Maitreya Temple (Buddha of the Future)
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_10.JPG (257826 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo_9.JPG (255326 bytes)

Tabo Gompa: Puja (Prayer) Ceremony in the Lhakang in the early Morning
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tabo-Dankar_1.JPG (243515 bytes)

Between Tabo Gompa and Dankar Gompa: View to the East in Direction Tabo and Sutlej Valley towards the Tibetan Border
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_1.JPG (241853 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_2.JPG (235638 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_3.JPG (266114 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_4.JPG (263646 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_5.JPG (277542 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_6.JPG (268607 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_7.JPG (298171 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_8.JPG (229429 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_21.JPG (260053 bytes)

Dankar Gompa is like other Spiti Gompas one of the oldest (maybe the oldest) Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries in Western Tibet (formerly belonging to the Guge Kingdom). Dankar was also the first Capital of the Spiti Polity
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_9.JPG (271777 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_10.JPG (233378 bytes)

View from the Dankar Gompa to the East into the Spiti River Valley and in Direction Tabo and Sutlej Valley towards the Tibetan Border
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_11.JPG (218099 bytes)

Dankar Gompa: The inner Yard of the Monastery
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_12.JPG (294505 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_13.JPG (303316 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_16.JPG (305286 bytes)

Dankar Gompa: The Lhakang (Prayer Hall) of the Monastery
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_17.JPG (302733 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_14.JPG (313002 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_15.JPG (281803 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_20.JPG (289230 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_19.JPG (300258 bytes)

Dankar Gompa: More than 1 000 Years old Buddhist Frescoes (Guge Culture) in the Lhakang (Prayer Hall) of the Monastery
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Dankar_18.JPG (227230 bytes)

Karen Dierks, née von Bremen, in the   Dankar Gompa
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

horizontal rule

Trek from Lalung Gompa via Kungri Gompa and Mud and the Great Himalaya Main Range at Tarik La into the Kinnaur (Kafnu)

 

Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_1.JPG (258988 bytes)

At Lalung Gompa (4 165 m), near the  Tibetan border, commences our Trek over the Great Himalaya Range from Spiti into the Kinnaur. We moved in a southerly Direction from Lalung via the Spiti River Valley into the Pin Valley to Kungri Gompa
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_2.JPG (249031 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_3.JPG (270008 bytes)

Lalung Gompa is like other Spiti Gompas one of the oldest Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries in Western Tibet (formerly belonging to the Guge Kingdom).
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_5.JPG (280576 bytes)

Lalung Gompa: More than 1 000 Years old Buddhist Frescoes (Guge Culture) in the Lhakang (Prayer Hall) of the Monastery. The Lhakang has no natural Light Source, therefore my Wife (to the left), Karen Dierks, née von Bremen, has to keep the Torch in order to focus on the Frescoes (for the first Time published)
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_16.JPG (314975 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_6.JPG (311654 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_7.JPG (322221 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_8.JPG (290666 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_9.JPG (285779 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_10.JPG (290754 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_11.JPG (284776 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_12.JPG (273691 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_13.JPG (289994 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_14.JPG (282834 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_15.JPG (322613 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_4.JPG (314057 bytes)

Lalung Gompa: More than 1 000 Years old Buddhist Frescoes (Guge Culture) in the Lhakang (Prayer Hall) of the Monastery
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_17.JPG (274164 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_18.JPG (270105 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Lalung_19.JPG (235718 bytes)

Lalung Gompa: Entrance Hall
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kungri_1.JPG (247287 bytes)

Kungri Gompa is situated in the Pin Valley (in the Background). The Pin River originates from the Pin Parbati La (5 319 m) which leads into the Kulu Valley in the West. Kungri Gompa is like other Spiti Gompas one of the oldest Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries (more than 1 000 Years old) in Western Tibet (formerly belonging to the Guge Kingdom).
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kungri_2.JPG (300121 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kungri_3.JPG (305685 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Kungri_4.JPG (302003 bytes)

Kungri Gompa: The Lhakang (Praying Hall)
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Kungri_5.JPG (313979 bytes)

Kungri Gompa: More than 1 000 Years old Buddhist Frescoes (Guge Culture) in the Lhakang (Prayer Hall) of the Monastery: To the Right the Kanjur (108 Volumes of the Tibetan Buddhist "Bible")
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_1.JPG (261436 bytes)

The Village Mud is the last human Settlement before we enter the Wilderness of the High Himalayas. The first Village on the other Side of the Himalaya Main Range is Kafnu in Kinnaur
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_2.JPG (286431 bytes)

View from our Camping Site near Mud to the North into the Pin Valley with a hair rising Bridge over the Pin River which we just have crossed
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_3.JPG (279139 bytes)

Our Camping Site near Mud: View to the West into the Pin Valley with Mud in the Background. Our small Trekking Expedition has one Guide (Nittin), one Cook, one Assistant Cook, four Porters and four Mules: Photo taken in the Evening
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_4.JPG (249438 bytes)

Our Camping Site near Mud: View to the West into the Pin Valley with Mud in the Background. Our small Trekking Expedition has one Guide (Nittin), one Cook, one Assistant Cook, four Porters and four Mules: Photo taken the next Morning
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_5.JPG (250297 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_6.JPG (243498 bytes)

View to the West in Direction Pin Parbati La (5 319 m)(Right Photograph with our Guide Nittin)
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_7.JPG (257178 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_8.JPG (257439 bytes)

View to the North in Direction Mud: With our Mules and some of the Porters
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_9.JPG (264766 bytes)

One of our Camp Sites in the Pin Valley: View to the West in Direction Pin Parbati La
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_10.JPG (282708 bytes)

View to the North in Direction Mud: The next Day
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_11.JPG (234128 bytes)

View to the West in Direction Pin Parbati La
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_12.JPG (234458 bytes)

View to the North in Direction Mud: With our Mules and some of the Porters
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_13.JPG (259672 bytes)

View to the West in Direction Pin Parbati La to the Right and to the South to the Tarik La (5 230 m) to the Left
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_14.JPG (288570 bytes)

View to the South to the Tarik La (5 230 m)
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Mud-Tarik-La_15.JPG (312754 bytes)

View to the South to the Tarik La (5 230 m) with our Guide Nittin in the Foreground: In the Background there is the Great Himalaya Main Range which has to be crossed by us: We are struggling over millions of constantly rolling Stones our Way up over the Glacier to the Tarik La Base Camp
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_Base_1.JPG (309056 bytes)

Tarik La Base Camp (4 650 m) which is established on the Tarik Glacier with Night Temperatures to nearly minus 30 Degrees Celsius. The more serious Symptoms of the High Altitude Sickness are troubling us. The Morning promises the most difficult Day: The Crossing of the more than 5 000 m high Tarik La: W. Tilman expressed our feelings more than 60 Years ago: Another miserable Day in the High Himalayas
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_2.JPG (268371 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_3.JPG (270505 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_4.JPG (264754 bytes)

View to the South to the Tarik La (5 230 m): We have already passed the 5 000 Meter Mark. Every Step means Struggling and Suffering in the thin Air of the Himalayas. I am only able to do 15 counted Steps and then have to regain my Breath again, sometimes for five Minutes: Self-Inflicted Torture
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_5.JPG (225615 bytes)

View from the Ascent to Tarik La back to the North into the Spiti
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_6.JPG (287724 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_7.JPG (185751 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_8.JPG (174379 bytes)

We are struggling our Way up the last Couple of hundred Metres to the Top to the Tarik La
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_1.JPG (244431 bytes)

We reached the Top: Tarik La, 5 230 m between Spiti and Kinnaur: My Wife, Karen Dierks, née von Bremen, and our Guide, Nittin, with the Namibian Flag: View to the South into the Kinnaur 
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_10.JPG (254145 bytes)

View from the Top of the Tarik La to the North into the Spiti: "Cha Gyal Lho"
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Tarik-La_9.JPG (299111 bytes)

View from the Top of the Tarik La to the South into the Kinnaur
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Tarik_1.JPG (248948 bytes)

In order to arrive at an Avalanche safe Camping Site (Fauti) we have to descent more than 1 000 m on the Kinnaur Side. Firstly we have to negotiate a couple of big Crevasses on the Glacier
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Tarik_2.JPG (248136 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Tarik_3.JPG (236116 bytes)

Before we reach Fauti we have to descent over more than 1 000 Metres of some unstable, permanently moving Moraine Slopes of the Glacier: View to the South into the Kinnaur
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti_1.JPG (280916 bytes)

Our Camping Site of Fauti (4 160 m): View to the South into the Kinnaur
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_1.JPG (316460 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_2.JPG (287996 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_3.JPG (300448 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_4.JPG (270650 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_5.JPG (288948 bytes)

The next Shift goes from Fauti (4 160 m) to Lanak (3 130 m): View to the South into the Kinnaur
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_6.JPG (294053 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_7.JPG (318649 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_8.JPG (326180 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_9.JPG (306774 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_10.JPG (311561 bytes)

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_11.JPG (313360 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_12.JPG (297826 bytes)

We have to cross numerous ice-cold torrential Glacier Streams: It is a torturous exercise for our Porters
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_13.JPG (278044 bytes)

View back to the North East in Direction Spiti: We came down the Glacier Valley to the far Left from Tarik La
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_14.JPG (261530 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_16.JPG (270991 bytes)

First Glimpse into the forested Kinnaur Valley to the South in Direction Kafnu and the Sutlej River Valley: Our next Camping Site is one of the Meadows among nice Trees
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_15.JPG (257372 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_17.JPG (273091 bytes)

View to the North in Direction Spiti
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Fauti-Lanak_18.JPG (352599 bytes)

In the Average the Tree Limit can be found in the High Himalayas at around 14 000 Feet (approximately 4 000 m)
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak_2.JPG (287397 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak_1.JPG (275007 bytes)

Our Camping Site at Lanak (3 130 m): Our Porters bake Tschapatis (Indian Bread)
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_1.JPG (304728 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_2.JPG (308142 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_3.JPG (326720 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_4.JPG (359872 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_5.JPG (270731 bytes)

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_6.JPG (322019 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_7.JPG (376825 bytes)

We are leaving the High Altitude Meadows around 3 000 m and enter the deep Virgin Forests of the Kinnaur in Direction Kafnu
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_8.JPG (299131 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_9.JPG (311921 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_10.JPG (318662 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_11.JPG (312182 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Lanak-Kafnu_12.JPG (318373 bytes)

Also in the deep Forests of the Kinnaur we have to pass some interesting Bridge Structures over torrential Glacier Streams
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Kafnu_1.JPG (338512 bytes)

In Kafnu (2 540 m) we have reached the End of our Trek
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

horizontal rule

Hinduistic and Buddhist Cultures in the Kinnaur

 

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_1.JPG (224277 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_3.JPG (259436 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_2.JPG (256441 bytes)

Chini (2 960 m) is the old Capital of the Kinnaur-Kings (Maharajas). The new Name (since the Chinese-Indian Border War, 1960) is Kalpa, because the Indians feared the Chinese could derive a Claim on "Chini". Since then the Kinnaur Capital has been shifted to Rekong Peo (2 290 m), just below Kalpa. In the Background is the Sutlej River Valley and behind it the mighty Kinnaur (Kinner) Kailash Range with more than 6 000 m Altitude. The Kinner Kailash is a holy mountain for Buddhists and Hindus alike. According to Hindu Mythology the God Shiva has its Winter Abode on the Peak 
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_4.JPG (272594 bytes)

Kalpa's wooden Kinnaur-Architecture reflects the rich Forests of the Province
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_5.JPG (226933 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_6.JPG (265485 bytes)

Kalpa's Temples are characterised by both, Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_12.JPG (234398 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_15.JPG (267030 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_7.JPG (254099 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_8.JPG (252717 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_11.JPG (226272 bytes)

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_13.JPG (259720 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_9.JPG (247629 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_10.JPG (297176 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_14.JPG (288217 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_21.JPG (242195 bytes)

The more than 1 000 Years old Hinduistic Shiva Temple in Kalpa
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_16.JPG (259333 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_17.JPG (234265 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_22.JPG (244036 bytes)

The Shiva Temple in Kalpa with the Holy Kinner Kailash (6 050 m) in the Background: View to the East
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_20.JPG (249022 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_18.JPG (206839 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_19.JPG (159922 bytes)

Kinnaur Women process the Seed of Pine Trees: Kalpa: Shiva Temple
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_23.JPG (283407 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_28.JPG (283828 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_29.JPG (295973 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_24.JPG (257094 bytes)

Afternoon View on Kalpa (to the East) and Kinner Kailash
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_25.JPG (271041 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_26.JPG (243640 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_27.JPG (260661 bytes)

A Hinduistic Sadhu (Holy Man) in Kalpa: Ram Raj Baba
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_30.JPG (203129 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_31.JPG (203453 bytes)

The Kinner Kailash at Sunset
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chini_32.JPG (152177 bytes)

The Kinner Kailash at Sunrise
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

horizontal rule

Back to Spiti and the Tibetan Border at Nako: Along the Sutlej and Spiti Rivers

 

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sutlej_1.JPG (207427 bytes)

View into the Sutlej River Gorge in Direction South
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sutlej_2.JPG (274498 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sutlej_3.jpg (280156 bytes)

View into the Sutlej River Gorge near Ribba (2 745 m) in Direction South: Here we leave the Forests of Kinnaur and approach the Desert Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and Spiti
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Sutlej-Spiti_1.JPG (291819 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Sutlej-Spiti_2.JPG (332806 bytes)

North of Puh (2 837 m) we have entered the barren Spiti again. There is the Confluence of the Sutlej River (to the right, coming from Tibet (Kailash)) and the Spiti River to the left
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Sutlej-Spiti_5.JPG (260657 bytes)

The Spiti River Gorge: View to the East in Direction Puh
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Sutlej-Spiti_3.JPG (264913 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Sutlej-Spiti_4.JPG (286591 bytes)

View into the Spiti River Gorge to the East
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_1.JPG (267958 bytes)

Above the Spiti River Gorge we have again crossed the 4 000 Meter Mark: View to the Northwest into Tibet
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_2.JPG (286157 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_3.JPG (282343 bytes)

The Village Nako (3 662 m) again belongs to the Tibetan Buddhist Culture and is situated near the Tibetan Border (four Kilometers away only): View to the West in Direction Tabo
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_7.JPG (315006 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_4.JPG (302118 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_5.JPG (278924 bytes)

Village Scenes at Nako: In the right Photography a young Dzo or Dzomo (Yak)
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_6.JPG (279498 bytes)

Nako Lake: View to the West
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_8.JPG (272111 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_9.JPG (266037 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_10.JPG (269513 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_11.JPG (281158 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_12.JPG (240423 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_13.JPG (300957 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_14.JPG (316623 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_15.JPG (244587 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_16.JPG (233206 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_17.JPG (318431 bytes)

Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_23.JPG (249155 bytes)

Traditional Tibetan Wedding at Nako
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_18.JPG (225152 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_19.JPG (239450 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_20.JPG (228101 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_21.JPG (242706 bytes)Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_22.JPG (255418 bytes)

Traditional Tibetan Wedding at Nako: The Bride
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Spiti_Nako_24.JPG (192462 bytes)

The Morning after the Wedding: Nako sleeps
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

horizontal rule

Back from the Tibetan High Plateau into the Forests of Kinnaur: Baspa Valley, Sarahan and Rampur

 

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sangla_1.JPG (321675 bytes)

The Baspa River Valley runs from the Sutlej River to the East to the Tibetan Border: South of Kinner Kailash: Photography was made east of Sangla, the Main Settlement in the Baspa Valley: View to the North in Direction Kinner Kailash
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sangla_2.JPG (305965 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sangla_5.JPG (335545 bytes)

Sangla: View to the North in Direction Kinner Kailash
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sangla_3.JPG (280861 bytes)

Sangla: View to the East in Direction Chitkul
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sangla_8.JPG (345130 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sangla_7.JPG (376323 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sangla_4.JPG (323208 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sangla_6.JPG (264307 bytes)

The Fort and the Hindu Temple in Sangla are more than 1 500 Years old
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_1.JPG (240656 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_7.JPG (244528 bytes)

At the End of the Baspa River Valley in the East lies the old Kinnaur Town of Chitkul: View to the East in Direction Tibetan Border
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_10.JPG (316409 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_9.JPG (320943 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_12.JPG (261665 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_11.JPG (285321 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_3.JPG (306727 bytes)

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_2.JPG (205271 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_6.JPG (317659 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_4.JPG (274513 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_5.JPG (267664 bytes)

The wooden Architecture of Chitkul
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Chitkul_8.JPG (340826 bytes)

The Buddhist Temple of Chitkul
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sutlej_4.JPG (248948 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sutlej_5.JPG (266459 bytes)

The Sutlej River Gorge near Wangtu with Hindustan-Tibet Highway: View to the South in Direction Rampur
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_4.JPG (164416 bytes)

Sunrise over Sarahan (1 920 m): View to the North into the High Himalaya and the Sutlej Valley
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_6.JPG (257301 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_7.JPG (308162 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_3.JPG (226363 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_1.JPG (230126 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_2.JPG (253884 bytes)

The Hinduistic Bhima Kali Temple of Sarahan: View to the North into the High Himalaya (the highest Peak is the Srikhand Mahadev with 5 227 m) and the Sutlej Valley
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_5.JPG (288168 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_8.JPG (245585 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_10.JPG (273757 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_9.JPG (320406 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_11.JPG (266181 bytes)

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_12.JPG (254950 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_13.JPG (231249 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_15.JPG (264662 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Sarahan_14.JPG (236619 bytes)

The Bhima Kali Temple of Sarahan is more than 1 500 Years old
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Sarahan: Flashback into the Year 1960

Himachal.Pradesh'60.Sarahan.jpg (137033 bytes)

The Bhima Kali Temple of Sarahan in the Year 1960: There are no big Hotels, Power Lines, Telecommunications and no Access Road to Sarahan
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himachal.Pradesh'60.Sarahan_2.jpg (138920 bytes)Himachal.Pradesh'60_Saharan_3.jpg (119915 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Sarahan_4.jpg (122055 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Saharan_5.JPG (124657 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Sarahan_6.jpg (104196 bytes)

Himachal_Pradesh'60_Sarahan_8.jpg (123384 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Sarahan_7.jpg (144489 bytes)

The old Rural Culture of the Kinnaur with old Farm Houses in the traditional Architecture which I still saw in 1960 have nearly disappeared in the Year 2003
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himachal_Pradesh'60_Sarahan_10.JPG (125061 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Sarahan_9.JPG (125287 bytes)

Sarahan'1960:  A local Hinduistic Goddess is worshipped by the Kinnaur People
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Rampur_1.JPG (263232 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Rampur_2.JPG (234614 bytes)

Rampur in the Sutlej Valley has an Altitude of only 942 m: View to the South
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Rampur: Flashback into the Year 1960

Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_1.JPG (131688 bytes)

Rampur in the Sutlej Valley in the Year 1960: View to the North
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_17.JPG (147066 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_18.JPG (130102 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_2.JPG (141502 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_19.JPG (131478 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_13.JPG (146769 bytes)

Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_15.JPG (118177 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_14.JPG (125564 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_3.JPG (141098 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_5.JPG (142552 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_4.JPG (109905 bytes)

Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_7.JPG (124054 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_8.JPG (108003 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_9.JPG (113048 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_10.JPG (117183 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_11.JPG (129166 bytes)

Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_12.jpg (98925 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_16.JPG (109538 bytes)Himachal_Pradesh'60_Rampur_6.JPG (128935 bytes)

Rampur'1960: Scenes from the Lavi Trade Fair: A Major Spectacle in the western Himalaya: November 1960
Photos Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

horizontal rule

From the Sutlej Valley into Kulu via Jalori Pass and Dharamsala

 

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Jalori_1.JPG (221746 bytes)Himalaya_Kinnaur_Jalori_2.JPG (251312 bytes)

The Jalori Pass (3 228 m)  leads from the Sutlej Valley into the Beas Valley (Kulu and Manali): View to the North into the Great Himalaya Range
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kinnaur_Jalori_3.JPG (301089 bytes)

The thick Virgin Forests below the Jalori Pass on the Kulu Side
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Kulu_Banjar_1.JPG (288794 bytes)Himalaya_Kulu_Banjar_2.JPG (344471 bytes)

Banjar is one of the first Settlements on the Kulu Side of the Jalori Pass
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Dharamsala_1.JPG (254235 bytes)

Dharamsala (Mc Leod Ganj) is the Seat of the "Tibet Exile Government" in India: with the exiled Dalai Lama (since 1959): Mc Leod Ganj lies approximately 1 000 m above Dharamsala (1 387 m): View on Mc Leod Ganj
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Dharamsala_4.JPG (261100 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_2.JPG (375525 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_3.JPG (240584 bytes)

The British Grave Yard in Mc Leod Ganj reflects the colonial Past of the British "Raj": The Cemetery is situated near the Church of St. John's in the Wilderness
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Dharamsala_5.JPG (265686 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_6.JPG (261176 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_7.JPG (258846 bytes)

The Tibetan Buddhist Dip-Tse-Chok-Ling Gompa remembers the destroyed  Monastery with the same Name in Tibet (south of Lhasa)
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Dharamsala_8.JPG (283227 bytes)

Dip-Tse-Chok-Ling Gompa: The Buddhist "Dharma Chakra": The Wheel of Life
Photo: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Dharamsala_9.JPG (292741 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_10.JPG (250769 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_11.JPG (272579 bytes)

View from the Seat of the exiled Dalai Lama, Tsug Lhakang Temple, on Mc Leod Ganj and the Dhauladar Mountain Range in the Background: View to the North
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Dharamsala_12.JPG (229187 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_13.JPG (244156 bytes)

The Temple of the Dalai Lama, Tsug Lhakang: The Interior of the Lhakang with the Historic Buddha Sakyamuni on the right Photography 
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Dharamsala_14.JPG (242912 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_15.JPG (259115 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_16.JPG (195808 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_17.JPG (184945 bytes)

Exiled Tibetans in Dharamsala 
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

Himalaya_Dharamsala_18.JPG (195410 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_19.JPG (146134 bytes)Himalaya_Dharamsala_20.JPG (137714 bytes)
Photos: Copyright: Dr. Klaus Dierks

[FRONTPAGE]

 forward.GIF (132 bytes)