Ladakh, Spiti, Travel Planning, Travel Tips
Winter Drive Essential Clothing
Winters in Himalayas are brutal with temperatures dipping to -30 C at high altitudes especially at 15,000 ft. At around the 11,000 to 12,000 ft the temperatures drops to -18 C which is good enough to freeze water / food / vegetables.
One needs special clothing for this climate so that you can enjoy the outdoors.
- The extremities of the body i.e. head, feet and hands needs to be specially protected as maximum heat loss happens through here.
- If your feet gets cold once, it may take few hours to get your core temperature up and you will feel extremely cold.
- Covering your head with a beanie or a hood will immediately bring more warmth
- It’s important to keep hands covered. Gloves are essential
- Even, warm socks are very very important for the trip
- Snow Shoes are critical too. Shoes that are warm and water proof.
- Sun is extremely bright and blinding on a clear day. The snow reflects the sun light and can blind you totally. So anti glares are also vitally important
- 2 Pair of Warm Socks and Warm Shoes from Decathlon
- Snow shoes help to keep your feet warm in snow for long. It repels water and choose one with high ankle as it will prevent snow to enter inside.
- Do carry Regular Socks as well where the temperatures are moderate
Wear Clothing in layers
- Layer 1: Thermal Inner Layer, this is your inner most layer. If the temperature is not extreme, you can replace this with a quick dry T Shirt. Even thermal lower is important in extreme weather.
- If you can, buy a special winter lower as well
- Layer 2: A fleece Jacket or a pullover ( tight fit )
- Layer3: Down Jacket. Buy 2 of these one for extreme temperatures and one for regular winter temperatures.
Cover your Feet and Hands.
- Ensure your hands can do work with the gloves, for example fixing the snow chains, shovel, driving etc.
- Buy active gloves
- Buy a jacket with a hoodie or better have both a hat and a hood.
