it was the hardest story I’ve ever done
physically because of the altitude and
the steepness of the mountains visually
it looks like you’re on the moon the
cats very shy and elusive they can see
for very long distances we are
constantly scanning with binoculars to
try to see them and I would be of the
opinion that they’re looking to see us
I myself brought 33 bags with me of
equipment sleeping bags warm clothes I
mean you think of what move so you know
we moved from Delhi and then Delhi up to
lay the capital of Ladakh this is what
we’re gonna start our Snow Leopard
expedition we’ll be here a few days to
acclimate to the altitudes at 12,000
feet and then got the bags into where
the road ends by truck and Jeep and then
we had to load everything on horseback
and walk in we took in 14 remote cameras
and a whole camp tents sleeping bags
Cod’s pads we bought food from the US
and then we lost some
at night it was 30 below zero and I’ve
spent my whole career working in jungles
so this was a real switch for me we
looked for locations with the help of
the local people that worked with the
snow leopard NGOs they had already ID’d
locations where the cat comes to mark
the new drag force Molly for Lucas you
know they’re female 1 this is the last
two days you know very first step can
see someone who knows pain here with
this knowledge we were able to find
locations to set up cameras where we
knew that cats would come to visit once
we knew we were having success in like a
specific trail 11 then I would I quote
mind that trail with remote cameras ok
put the caps on get the Rope up we’re
done
it’s very interesting for people to
realize that no matter where you’re
working with animals if there’s a trail
in the jungle that’s where the cats will
walk they may not hunt on that trail
because they’re going to hunt wherever
they need to go where the scent is for
the prey but they will walk on these
trails and you will see areas that
they’ll mark
the first image is a curious cat behind
him is the trail he’s looking up to see
what the flash is and it says flashing
him in the face of flash twice he turned
around any walked away the next image is
on a high ridge this is a cat at a
marking spot where they spray to really
give their scent to that location they
mark to tell other snow leopards this is
my area
not yours the next image is very
important to me and it took five and a
half months to get one picture but I
loved this image with the mountains in
the background and had the closeness of
the animal it’s very intimate to me I
feel like I can just reach out and
Stroke is fur though he’d bite me this
is where the Snow Leopard lives he does
not roam the open areas except for
following prey he will sit in the rocks
so he’s camouflaged and one of the
reasons the Snow Leopard has such a long
tail which is the longest tail of any
cat in the world is that when he’s on
those rocky areas and the blue sheep
come in to feed on the small plants that
are in the rocks he will chase them an
almost vertical rock faces and he uses
the tail for balance
we look at the snow leopard as being in
danger
in 2005 the Dalai Lama organized a
campaign to help save Himalayan species
to grow a greater respect towards the
environment and all forms of life on
Earth and so he’s essentially saving the
Snow Leopard
