I met a 12-year-old shepherd in the Trans Himalayas

The boy in today's post, who has been grazing his sheep and goats and now watering them at the "More Plains" lake, is now taking his animals back to camp...his name is Lobche. He is 12 years old and a resident of Chumathang village.

This place, known as "More Plains," is located on the Manali-Leh Highway and is at an altitude of 4,600 meters. At this altitude in the Trans-Himalayas, there is little greenery, and the sheep and goats feed on the little grass that grows.

So, Lobche comes here with his family after April to help out. Lobche explains that his work begins every day in the afternoon. In the morning, his father takes all the animals up the mountain to feed them, and when Lobche reaches the top in the afternoon, his father comes down, and Lobche stays with the animals until evening.

Every evening, before sunset, Lobche leads his animals back to his camp. Meanwhile, the animals drink water from the lake along the way and return to their camp in the daylight. Upon reaching their camp, Lobche's father milks the animals and gives Lobche hot, salty tea with butter.

When I ask Lobche if he doesn't go to school, he replies, "No, I don't go to school, but my elder sister teaches me every day." Lobche says that if he doesn't help his family, his father will be left alone, and if we don't earn money now, we won't have anything to eat in the winter.

They belong to the Changpa tribe and earn money by selling sheep and goat hair. In the harsh terrain of Ladakh, temperatures can drop to -40 degrees Celsius in winter, and to survive in such cold weather, they need a 6-8 month supply of rations, which can only be achieved if the sheep and goats are properly fed.

I was both surprised and impressed by Lobche's lifestyle. I decided to bring him shoes the following year, as his shoes were torn.

Disclaimer: This post is originally written in Hindi and I have used Google Translator to translate the Hindi text in English. All the photos have been clicked by me from canon 77d (55-250mm) and edited on laptop lightroom app.

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