WHERE
Village Nimoo is situated at the mouth of the Sham Valley, which is celebrated as the fruits and nuts basket of Ladakh for its superior quality produce. Nimoo, originally named “Snyimo”, is a quaint village located at 10,300 ft, 35 kms from Leh—the biggest city of the Indian union territory of Ladakh. While there exist several etymological conjectures for “Snyimo”, it is widely believed that it is derived from the Bhoti word snyema meaning the “ripe ear of grain”, owing to the geographical contours of the village. There live roughly 1100 villagers—largely involved in agriculture and allied activities.
Olthang Farms is the charming home to three generations of the Olthangpa, who are natives of Village Nimoo. Tsewang Nurbu started the farm in the early 1900s with his wife Sonam Dolma. The farmland was divided into nine portions for their next of kin. The Olthang Farms of today are nurtured by Tsering Dolma, daughter of Tsewang Nurbu, along with her husband, Tsetan Gyalpo. Stanba Gyaltsan, the youngest of their three children, has now opened the farms to health and climate-conscious individuals across the globe to experience the unique rhythms of highaltitude agriculture which have shaped him and many others in Ladakh.
WHAT
The day tour of Olthang Farms covers a range of agriculture activities, beginning with a walkthrough of the barley and wheat fields. Day tour participants engage in fresh fruit picking in summer: apricot, or chuli (July–August), apple, or kushu (September), walnut, or starga (September). Participants also get to witness the traditional method of sun drying fruits—which are signature Ladakhi treats around the year, specially the harsh winter months from December–March. Participants also walk through cattle sheds, and engage in farm-to-table practices, diving deeper into the agricultural traditions of Ladakh.Ladakh has a rich wealth of culture and traditions, and the Olthang-pa take pride in embracing them.
The farm tour ends with a dip into Ladakhi culture over a traditional, home cooked, Ladakhi meal with butter tea, or gur-gur cha, and other traditional snacks and beverages. Participants are shown features of the vernacular architecture and traditional customs, along with traditional tools and equipment unique to the region. Participants also witness the traditional technique of brewing and mixing butter tea in the cylindrical churn called gur-gur, where the tea gets its name from. Traditional snacks such as khambir (wholewheat bread), puli (wholewheat cookies) are served along with a special selection of premium products of Ladakh Orchards which are all-natural, hand-picked, and sun-dried over a period of two months.