Dras is a town in the Kargil District of Jammu and Kashmir, India on National Highway 1D (India) NH 1D. It is often called 'The Gateway to Ladakh'. The town shot into prominence in the summer of 1999 following Pakistani army incursions into Jammu and Kashmir. The Kargil War saw the town being shelled by the Pakistani army and the war ended with the Indian Army recapturing the areas surrounding the town and the Kargil district. Dras is a town in the Kargil District of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is often called 'The Gateway to Ladakh'. It is at a height of 3230 m or 10990 ft. The mountain ridges however range from 16000 feet to 21000 feet. The Dras valley starts from the base of the Zojila pass, the Himalayan gateway to Ladakh. For centuries, its inhabitants have been known to have negotiated this formidable pass even during the riskiest period (in late autumn or early spring, when the whole sector remains snow-bound and is subject to frequent snow storms) to transport trading merchandise and to help stranded travellers traverse the pass. They thereby established a monopoly over porterage during the heyday of the pan-Asian trade. A hardy people enduring with fortitude the harshness of the valley's winter, the inhabitants of Dras can well be described as the guardians of Ladakh's gateway. Trekking base: Dras is a convenient base for a 3-day-long trek to the Suru valley across the sub-range separating the two valleys. This trek passes through some of the most beautiful upland villages and flower sprinkled meadows on both sides of the 4500m Ambala pass, which is along the way. The trek to the holy cave of Amarnath (in neighbouring Kashmir) starts from Minamarg above Zojila, takes three days and involves crossing a pass at 5200m.Three Days trek from Mushku Valley in Dras to Tilail in Gurez of Kashmir, Two Days Trek from Dras to Saliskot through the picturesque Laser La top. Dras also offers numerous shorter treks and hikes to the upland villages. Dras is the coldest place in India, experiencing an altitude-influenced dry summer continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dsb). Winters are cold with average lows around −22 °C (−10 °F), and as low as −45 °C at the height of winter, which lasts from mid-October to mid-May. Summers start in June and go on up till early September, with average temperatures near 15 °C (60 °F) and little precipitation. Annual precipitation is almost entirely concentrated in the months from December to May when Dras gets around 550 millimetres (21.7 in) water equivalent of snowfall.
