Three passes, each of them above 5,000 m., to cross in dust, snow and ice. Three caravan leaders, Shiring, Sherap and Tempa reach the Northern Himalayas with their yaks every year. Their animals carry rice, salt and cereals from Tibet to Nepal, where they are to be sold. The three peasants are heavily shocked by climate change, especially in the Dolpo area which always had been a dry region, but for the past two years has not received a drop of rain. In Northern Dolpo they don’t even know if they will have enough food to feed the precious Yaks, the only source of income for these people. After having crossed mountains and valleys in extreme conditions, the most terrible and hardest pass is the Khang-La, where some hundred Yaks have already frozen to death. The film not only deals with the journey of the caravan, but also shows the indissoluble relationship between men and their animals, thanks to which these populations manage to survive.
Director
JAN KERCKHOFF
He graduated with honours in Social Sciences at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität in Nuremberg. He worked for ZDF and Bayerischen Rundfunk at Munich, especially in the scientific editorial staff of political and social news. Journalist and professional film-maker, his filmography, rich with sociological television reports, includes: Auf dem Dach der Welt (2003), Faszination Wissen (2003), Windräder im Höhenflug (2004), Wie andere heilen: Tibetische Medizin (2004), Auf der Suche nach dem Jungbrunnen – das Geheimnis der Gene (2005), Klettern macht glücklich (2005), Wankende Riesen – der Überlebenskampf der Bäume (2006), Überleben am Berg (2007) and Gelobtes Land – trockenes Land. Israels Kampf ums Wasser (2008). He participated at TrentoFilmfestival with the film Faszination Todeszone – Forschung auf 8000 Meter Höhe (2003) in 2004.