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India
“Gaddi Shepherds”
These shepherds were migrating to the lower Kulu valley for winter when we met at this 15,000 Indrahar Pass above McLeod Ganj, the Dalai Lama’s home in exile. It was late October and there already was snow on the pass. They were the last ones to leave the upper valleys before winter and we were the last ones trekking in the opposite direction before the snows closed the pass.
Each spring they migrate from the lower valleys over the Dhaula Dhar range to the rich grazing areas of the Himalayas. They reconstruct bridges and clear the scree from the mountain trails as they go. In the fall they again return to the lower valleys.
They have lived this way and in the area since the late Moghul period. These are a gentle and welcoming people who enjoy smoking the hookah pipe and having different shelters that they stay in as they move with their sheep.
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