Hammock In The Hills

A Himalayan Retreat With Ladakhi Charms, Leh’s Shey Bhumi Even Makes Good of Bad Weather

- Lakshmi Sankaran

Shey Bhumi is the kind of place that sends the “panorama” feature on smartphones into overdrive. To be fair, that could also double as an accurate general assessment of Ladakh’s beaten-down and barren magnificence, which seems to evoke inexhaustible astonishment from any vantage point. Shey, in particular though, is unlike many of the other stay options available in Leh, Ladakh’s focal city nestled in the Himalayas. Most hotels or guest houses here are located in and around the central shopping square, and as is wont in so many hinterland towns of India, they strive for urbanity. I, however, was headed to an escape removed from all the hubbub.

From the airport, it took nearly 30 minutes for my pick-up to drive past the property’s unfussy iron gates on a narrow road in the tiny hamlet of Chuchot-Yokma. My arrival here had coincided with truant weather. It was supposed to be summertime in Leh— usually a vibrant visual palette of crystal-blue skies and icy peaks bleeding into a landscape of dusty brown slopes and willowy plains. But as I scampered out of my vehicle, I met my worst fear: the steady drizzle of rain and the lashing force of the wind.