Ladakh: Likir + Saspotse – In the far distance the snow leopard cubs are playing joyfully

23. December 2025

 

 

Juhu – the sun was shining from a deep blue sky, exactly as wished for and hoped! One thing that is always wonderful in winter is the color of the rivers. However, there was not as much water in them as usual. As a result, my photo collection of the confluence of the Indus and Zanskar rivers gained yet another variation (see above). We drove down, and one traveler lay down in the water..

 

 

 

Afterwards, we drove to Likir Monastery, home to Ladakh’s oldest large outdoor statue. Only a few monks were present, but they offered us tea and biscuits.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had packed lunches with us and enjoyed them on a meadow. It was really lovely. Dolma then received the news that a snow leopard had been spotted in Saspotse – which was where we wanted to go anyway! So off we went. There were already groups waiting there with binoculars, spotting scopes, and telephoto cameras. Usually, activity only starts after 15:00, so there was plenty of time beforehand to look at the wooden Buddhas. These are located slightly above the village. The statues had been moved into another room that was drier. The wall paintings remain in place, but are of course still endangered. However, no one really knew much about their significance or origin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Down below, there was nothing to see at first, but then some people suddenly started cheering. The snow leopard mother was lying around, and her cubs were playfully moving about. Nothing was visible to the naked eye. Even when looking through the spotting scope I still felt rather “blind,” but in the photo taken with my phone through the scope I could finally make something out!

 

 

What was really wonderful is that people genuinely work together – there is no competition or “my clients versus your clients” attitude. As a result, we were able to look through each other’s equipment, and our phones were held up to the scopes to take photos or record videos.

 

 

 

I still don’t get that much out of wildlife sightings, especially when they are so far away that you can’t see anything with the naked eye. But it also wasn’t unpleasant to stand around there. The man from Ulley whom I met there three years ago was there again, and we recognized each other. That was nice too.

 

The group was happy and I was satisfied. Afterwards, however, something unfortunate happened: our new accommodation in Uleytokpo was not at all what we had imagined. Not at all. In particular, it was too cold and very unwelcoming. We decided to stay for one night only and then return to Leh. That would mean a longer drive, but the thought of spending Christmas Eve here in the cold and discomfort was really not appealing at all.

 

 

The next day was Christmas Eve! Would we feel at all Christmassy?