The geography of Ladakh comprises the surrounding hilly highland. Ladakh is situated at quite a high altitude and the geographical location of Ladakh ranges from 9,000 ft (2,750 m) high at Kargil to 25,170 ft (7,672m) high at Saser Kangri, in the Karakoram Range. As far as the climate of Ladakh is concerned, it remains very cold with short lived summer bringing a pleasant weather to the valley.

At the western extremity of Ladakh, the Great Himalaya which stands as the barrier between the Indian subcontinent and the Tibetan plateau proliferates into an astonishing complex of ranges and sub-ranges. These, and the river valleys dividing them, form a system of rough parallels in the general direction south-east to north-west. The Shivaliks form the foothills that connect the whole system with the Indo-Gangetic plain; the Dhauladhar and the Pir Panjal, also south of the main range, enfold the valleys of Kangra and Kashmir. North and east of Kashmir, from the crest of the Great Himalaya to that of the Karakoram, stands Ladakh, athwart the ridges and valleys of yet more major mountain systems. Taking them from south to north, these consist of the Great Himalaya itself, falling to the trough of the Zanskar and Suru valleys; the Zanskar range; the Indus valley, the Ladakh range, extending into Tibet as the Kailash range, and giving rise to the Pang-gong range.

Crossing the Great Himalaya by the dip of the Zoji-la, the road opens to Ladakh from Kashmir. Indeed, at this point the crest-line of the range remains at a relatively modest level, the highest peaks near the pass being little more than 5000 to 5500 metres above sea-level. The Suru and Zanskar valleys form a great trough at the foot of the heavily glaciated northern flank of the Great Himalaya, while in the opposite direction, rise the mountains of the Zanskar range. Zanskar has a distinct geographical character of its own. It consists of the troughs of two rivers, the Stod and the Lungnak. These are the authentic local names, though on many maps they are marked as the Doda and the Lingti, or Tsarap Lingti. The summits of the Zanskar range are in the region of 5500 to 6400 metres; the elegant Stok Kangri lies just across the Indus.

Geographically, the Indus valley is the backbone of Ladakh; historically, from Upshi down to Khaltse, it is Ladakh`s heartland. The significance of Upshi and Khaltse is that these were the points where the routes from the Punjab and from Kashmir emerged into the valley. These routes of course were far from being Ladakh`s only links with the outside world, but they were the main links with the subcontinent south of the Himalaya. The land of Ladakh is reckoned as the valley of mountain ranges and passes. The Ladakh range has no major peaks; its average height is a little less than 6000 metres, and few of its passes are less than 5000 metres. Within Ladakh it forms the northern boundary wall of the Indus valley though when the river enters Ladakh at Dem-chok, it is actually flowing along the foot of the northern flank of these granite mountains. The Ladakh range has a magnificent subsidiary, the Pang-gong range, running parallel to it some 100 kilometres north-west from Chushul, along the southern shore of the Pang-gong Lake and a short way along the Shayok River. It is divided from the main range by the Tangtse River, and is actually a more imposing chain of mountains than the parent range. The highest peak of this mountain rises to over 6700 metres, while its northern slopes are heavily glaciated.

The alignment of the Shayok River is unusual. Its longest headwater, the Chip-chap stream, rises just below the Karakoram Pass. This runs almost due west and meets some of the main glaciers of the eastern Karakoram like the South Rimo, the Chong Kum-dan, the Kichik Kumdan (or Thangman) and the Ak Tash. It is the overflow from these rivers of ice that transforms it from a minor stream into a raging torrent. Ultimately it drains the entire southern flank of the eastern Karakoram, including the Saser Spur, as well as the mountains and high plateaux to the east. After receiving the meltwater from the Rimo Glacier, it takes a southerly direction with a slight eastward trend. Its tributary, the Nubra, accelerates in a similar way, flowing south for some 70 kilometres after it issues from the Siachen Glacier which is the longest glacier in the world outside the Polar Regions, to drain the western flank of the Saser Spur. It meets the parent river on a wide sandy flat through which they both rove in a number of shifting channels. A few kilometres beyond the confluence the valley narrows, and there are only a few isolated villages on occasional ledges or alluvial fans adjoining the river, of which Bogdang and Turtuk are the most important. Then it enters Baltistan to meet the Indus at Keris.

The region comprising the valley of the Shayok from its acute-angled bend down to where it narrows below the confluence, together with the valley of the Nubra itself, is known simply as Nubra, and has several large and pretty villages, among them Deskit, Hundar, Tirit, Tigur, Sumur and Panamik. The fall of the rivers is gradual and less than 200 metres between Panamik. The massifs to the north and east of the Nubra-Siachen line include the Apsarasas Group (highest point 7245 metres), the Rimo Group (highest point 7385 metres), and the Teram Kangri Group (highest point 7464 metres), together with Mamostong Kangri (7526 metres) and Singhi Kangri (7751 metres). Another complex range is the Kun-lun which lies in the north of the Karakoram. A triple barrier has been established naturally between Leh and eastern central Asia which is made by the Ladakh range, the Karakoram and the Kunlun.

In south-east Ladakh the parallelism of range and valley dissolves. The regions on the northern flank of the Great Himalaya - Dras, the Suru valley and Zanskar - experience heavy snowfall and remain virtually disconnect from the rest of the country for several months in the year. The climate of Ladakh is dry due to the lack of rainfall but the local people have found a way to grow fodder in the infertile land. The land for agriculture is though few and less fertile but with the help of irrigation and manure, the people of Ladakh manage to harvest some crops like barley, buckwheat, or turnips or other vegetables and the climate allows a lush growth of fruit trees and crops, including wheat.

Though the summers are short lived, but are appropriate for growing crops and some of the lands were made fertile by the availability of water. Summers are pleasant, though short. In the valleys of central Ladakh and Nubra, on the other hand, and even more in the high-altitude valleys and plateaux of Rupshu, precipitation is minimal.