Pensi-la (Pensi Pass) is a mountain pass in the
Ladakh
Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory and constitutes an eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a Kashmir#Kashmir dispute, dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and India an ...
union territory
Among the states and union territories of India, a Union Territory (UT) is a region that is directly governed by the Government of India, central government of India, as opposed to the states, which have their own State governments of India, s ...
of
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, which is known as the Gateway to
Zanskar
Zanskar, Zahar (locally) or Zangskar, is the southwestern region of Kargil district in the Indian union territory of Ladakh. The administrative centre of Zanskar is Padum. Zanskar, together with the rest of Ladakh, was briefly a part of the kin ...
. Pensi La is above sea level and connects the
Suru Valley region to the Zanskar Valley region. The summit at this end of the
Suru Valley, the only peak which can be seen, is high, while the mountain to the north is . The pass is about 25 km from
Rangdum Monastery.
Geography
To the west of Pensi La watershed flows the
Suru River, an important tributary of the Indus, which it meets at Kargil. The
Drang-Drung Glacier on the eastern flank of Pensi La is the source of Stod or
Doda River, which flows into the Padum Valley, and joins with Tsarap Chu to form the Zanskar River.
"The descent from the Pensi La into the Stod Valley n Zanskaris steeper than the climb up from Rangdum Gompa, but not too difficult. The road winds about with many hairpin turns, which can be cut across on foot, to the river below. Wild rhubarb can be seen growing on the slopes. The generally used trekking route follows the road on the left bank of the Stod (or Doda). . . . The grass at the foot of the Pensi La furnishes a good pasturage and this is a fine camping spot."
Pensi-La is also the gateway to
Padum, the headquarters of
Zanskar
Zanskar, Zahar (locally) or Zangskar, is the southwestern region of Kargil district in the Indian union territory of Ladakh. The administrative centre of Zanskar is Padum. Zanskar, together with the rest of Ladakh, was briefly a part of the kin ...
sub-division of Kargil district. A 240 km road connecting
Kargil
Kargil or Kargyil is a City in Indian-administered Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir region. The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the WP:TERTIARY, tert ...
town to Padum through the Pensi La is open between May and October.
Before the modern road was built, the pass, apparently, used to be open only three months of the year because of heavy snows.
[Rizvi. (1996), p. 118.]
References
* Janet Rizvi. (1996). ''Ladakh: Crossroads of High Asia''. Second Edition. Oxford University Press, Delhi. .
* Schettler, Margaret & Rolf (1981). Kashmir, Ladakh & Zanskar. Lonely Planet Publications. South Yarra, Victoria, Australia. .
Mountain passes of Ladakh
Geography of Ladakh
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