Nubra Valley

Nubra Valley, in northern Ladakh, has a history shaped by trade, Buddhism and borders. Formed by the meeting of the Shyok and Nubra rivers, it lay on one of the most important branches of the old Silk Route that linked Leh to Yarkand and Central Asia. For centuries, caravans carrying pashmina wool, silk, tea, spices and turquoise passed through villages like Diskit, Hunder, Turtuk and Panamik, using double-humped Bactrian camels as pack animals across high passes and cold deserts.

Culturally, Nubra developed a blend of Tibetan Buddhist and Balti Muslim influences. Monasteries such as Diskit and Samstanling became religious and educational centres, while small forts and watchtowers guarded fields and routes. Villages survived on glacier-fed irrigation, barley and pea farming, apricot orchards and animal husbandry, with life strongly shaped by harsh winters and isolation.

In the 19th century, Nubra came firmly under the Ladakhi kingdom and then the Dogra-ruled state of Jammu & Kashmir, but daily life remained much the same—rural, caravan-linked and monastery-centred.

The 20th century brought border tensions: the upper Nubra region leads towards the Siachen Glacier, which became a high-altitude conflict zone from the 1980s. Later, as roads improved and parts of the valley were opened to visitors, Nubra transformed into a major tourism destination, known for its sand dunes, camels, monasteries and stark trans-Himalayan landscapes, while still carrying memories of its Silk Route past.