| 12 New Global Treks |
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Flickr/Mielna
Ladakh, India Route: Spituk to Stok Miles: 65 Duration: Nine days trekking Difficulty: • • • • • On the Tibetan plateau between the great Karakoram and Himalayan mountain ranges lies Ladakh, the remote Indian region of eastern Kashmir. A fully catered 60-mile trek through its Markha Valley offers an intimate look at both an ancient Tibetan-influenced culture and some of the world’s loftiest peaks. Days Setting aside nine days for the hike allows plenty of time to catch one’s breath. The mountains rise to 21,000 feet above footpaths that meander through broad river valleys, glacial lakes painted improbable shades of blue, and jagged passes that top 17,000 feet. Along the way, trekkers encounter yak herders and crimson-clad monks wandering the trails and stop at farmhouses, where locals often offer up Indian chai and yak-butter tea. Nights Trekking in a remote area needn’t involve unsavory lodging. On Absolute Travel’s custom itinerary, ponies carry a number of comforts, including spacious and elegant sleeping, dining, and bathing tents; portable beds; and spirits and wines. Each evening, a chef from Delhi and his assistant prepare curries, Tibetan dumplings, and other regional specialties from fresh local produce. Best moment Sitting in the parlor of a remote farmhouse and watching a traveling Buddhist lama utter an intricate blessing over a newborn baby. About $7,800 for a 20-day itinerary, including sightseeing and transfers from New Delhi; absolutetravel.com 
Flickr/law_keven
Cornwall, England Route: Portloe to Fowey Miles: 30 Duration: Three days trekking Difficulty: • • • • • The 630-mile South West Coast Path, skirting Dorset, Devon, and Cornwall, may prove once and for all that England in April doesn’t have to mean cold breezes and dreary skies. In spring, warm maritime weather colors this coastline with wildflowers. Encounter Cornwall’s three-day walk takes in a choice 30 miles of path between Portloe and Fowe, combining the coast’s most rugged scenery with its most stylish lodging. Days As you traverse the seaboard, you’ll pass statuesque topsail schooners perched in picturesque harbors and backstreets lined with medieval and Tudor cottages. What’s most surprising about these three ten-mile, rolling countryside hikes is that they’re so naturally quiet: Except for the occasional tiny fishing village, it’s all empty coastal heathlands awash in heather, seaside cliffs, and sweeping bays. Nights Historic charm meets modern comfort in a series of refurbished hotels in the seaside towns of Mevagissey, Charlestown, and Fowey. The latter’s Old Quay House, an 1859 brick-and-stone bed-and-breakfast, whose 11 newly designed rooms feature views of the bay, cane-style furniture, and Egyptian cotton linens, is a prime example. And traveling through Cornwall, with its farms and rich seafood, affords a measure of culinary luxury unknown elsewhere in the British Isles. At Trevalsa Court Hotel’s restaurant, choices like Cornish venison with black currant sauce and local sea bass with passion fruit sauce and ginger risotto make choosing tricky. Best moment Spotting bottlenose dolphins, whales, gray seals, or the fin of an elusive basking shark (the second-largest fish species on the planet) just offshore. $1,320 for a supported, self-guided four-day itinerary; encountercornwall.com |
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