23 Aug-2 Sep 2012: Heavens of Leepa & Neelum Valley, AJK - As Never Seen Before :)

[aesiege]

Valley view which leads to Patlian Lake and Domail village in middle right side

The camping area is the lowest most green patch in this pic. You can see a local boy on extreme bottom left of the pic. After this green patch there is a deep passage for Dowarian nallah and then next green patch starts on which u can see village.

1293 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

Camping area = bottom left
Then passage for Dowarian nallah
Then Domail village on far side green meadows

1294 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

Moving away from Domail into right side valley leading to Ratti Gali Lake and Ratti Gali pass

1295 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[nomi700]

aaj aap nay lake tak pohancha kar hi dam lena hay:)

[aesiege]

The easiest part of the trek is just about to start.

This will continue till basecamp area of the lake.

1296 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[asifraza81]

Thx a lot Asif

I don't have any pics of the backpack but it contained the following:

- raincoat
- first aid kit
- tripod
- 3 lenses
- 6 batteries
- 6 memory cards
- chocolates, dates and tang pack
- winter head cap / regular cap (one in use and one in bag)
- neck cover muffler
- high beam torch

These are all light weight items except lenses and tripod. Total weight was i think around 3-4 kg.

Changing lenses is still a pain specially during treks. I had to remove backpack, open it and change lens each time. But the variety of shots i get with 3 lenses is just priceless so had no choice but to change it whenever i felt the need

I heard of a lens cross shoulder belt but couldn't find it. I will try to buy it online.

main bhi tripod lekar gaya tha on chitha katha lake but trek was tough so it was hard to photograph properly or do the trekking :D. you really did the great job, only a trekker photographer with dslr will know this feeling. mujhe se to bag se camera nikal kar pics lena problem kar raha tha while going top and i thought k wapsi pe li jayengi but snow fall & rain me ya to trekking karte ya photography

[aesiege]

aaj aap nay lake tak pohancha kar hi dam lena hay:)

Friday is off here so enjoying weekend

I would be a bit busy tomorrow so will reach basecamp today inshallah and lake tomorrow.

[aesiege]

main bhi tripod lekar gaya tha on chitha katha lake but trek was tough so it was hard to photograph properly or do the trekking :D. you really did the great job, only a trekker photographer with dslr will know this feeling. mujhe se to bag se camera nikal kar pics lena problem kar raha tha while going top and i thought k wapsi pe li jayengi but snow fall & rain me ya to trekking karte ya photography

Ture !!

Very tough to manage trek + photography with multiple lenses but results are so rewarding

For me toughest thing during trek is DSLR hanging around my neck which has weight of around 1.3-1.5 kg all the time. It is easy to move around for an hour or so but in full day treks, this 1.5 kg weight becomes tough to manage but now i am used to it

yaar mai ne aik cheez note ki hai keh tour ke beech mei agar koi location ya scenery drop kar do keh wapsi par kar lein gey to woh kabhi nahi hoti .... hamesha wapsi par miss ho jata hai

So, now i have made a thumb rule keh jo opportunity miley us ko avail karo !!

[aesiege]

Trek passing through green pastures and wild flowers.

For the first time, the slopes of the mountains eased off to very low gradient.

1297 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

Crossing another side stream

1298 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

Team climbing back to main trek after crossing the side stream

1299 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

A look back towards Domail area

1300 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

Lovely clouds hovering over Domail peaks

1301 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

Now me, Hafiz sahib and one porter moved ahead from remaining group and continued at faster speed.

Views towards basecamp area. You can see multiple treks running parallel from top to bottom of these slopes.

1302 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

Nearing the basecamp area

1303 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

Wild flowers, green trek, lovely clouds and excitement of proximity of Ratti Gali Lake

1304 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

I was changing lanes one after the other to slowly climb from lower treks to higher treks

1305 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[aesiege]

Approaching basecamp

1306 by Sabrite, on Flickr

[asifraza81]

you are right wapsi pe reh hi jata hai and dslr around the neck during trekking is very difficult. Hats off for your efforts and energy level and such a stunning photography.

[aesiege]

1307 by Sabrite, on Flickr