ZojiLa (La == Pass in Ladakhi, so it is either Zoji Pass, or simply ZojiLa)

ZojiLa (La == Pass in Ladakhi, so it is either Zoji Pass, or simply ZojiLa)

Standing between Kashmir Valley and Ladakh, 3528 meter high ZojiLa, is toughest among all passes on Srinagar-Leh route, sees through most dramatic change in landscape and to me, the most beautiful.

Within few kilometers (4-5km) after crossing gorgeous Sonamarg, you start climbing up the pass. The start is nice and easy, hill with running stream one side and valley at other. Things started turning bad there after – as a motorist, you will face all the hurdles that you can imagine; Constant landslides, snow in winter, rain, mud, slush and narrow passage, broken down vehicle, traffic jam and yes, low oxygen. People coming from planes, suddenly test of guts! Our vehicle (Toyota Innova) stuck in mud, thrice. Driver asked us walk. Already suffering from low oxygen, we walked around 1.5 km on Zozila top and occasionally pushed our car out of slush!

This is how we pushed our car. www.youtube.com/watch?v=D93k9N0CoFU

But all the pain – totally worth, if you care to look around. The view from here is stunning. River flowing on deep valley, lush green mountains slowly transitioning to treeless black rocks, clouds hovering on mountain tops. Look closely on the valley; you will see tents for Amarnath pilgrims. So, walking here may be good idea, as you get plenty of opportunity to capture those beautiful frames. But, if you still wondering, this 5-6km toughie is only bad patch on entire Srinagar to Leh route.

This pass is also full of history; and the latest one was 1947-48 First Indo-Pak war. A column of tanks made its way through a near-blizzard, up this punishing ascent, to attack and dislodge the Pakistani forces who held the pass. The attempt was so improbable that when defeated Pak troop reported this to their commands, they refused to believe. The Ladakh is still with India, just because of this win. So, when you travel through this pass, you are someway saluting the courage and ingenuity of Indian Army, for attempting such brilliantly unorthodox tactics in such harsh condition and altitude.

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Taken on: August 19, 2013

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Camera: Canon EOS 600D, f/7.1, 1/60 sec, 27mm, ISO 200 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 600D
Lens:	EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II
Aperture:	f/7.1
Exposure Time:	0.017 sec (1/60)
Focal Length:	27mm
ISO:	200
Exposure Bias:	-1/3 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Aperture-priority AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CS6 (Windows)
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