Spot a snow leopard in Ladakh India

Why? Few have seen this endangered cat. There are thought to be just 4 000 to 6 500 snow leopards left in the wild. Coupled with the fact that these charismatic big cats tend to live in cold inhospitable rocky clifftops at altitudes above 3 000m they re not that easy to spot. This makes a sighting very special and most trips that venture into their domain largely Tibet the Himalaya and the Stans make it clear that you d be fortunate to see even a paw print. However in recent years Ladakh s Hemis National Park has gained a reputation as the world s snow leopard capital with around 200 leopards and as time passes local guides gain an ever better understanding of their habits. There are still no guarantees but in Hemis s Husing Tarbuns and Rumbak Valleys sightings are relatively common; Husing is on a well known snow leopard corridor. Visit in winter when the snow brings the cats to lower ground and with the help of local knowledge trained trackers and spotting scopes you might be in luck.