What is a Mountain Pass?

Mountain Passes in India – A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route. Since many of the world’s mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have been important since before recorded history, and have played a key role in trade, war, and migration. At lower elevations, it may be called a hill pass.

Mountain passes make use of a gap, col (also sometimes a notch, the low point in a ridge). On a topographic map, passes are characterized by contour lines, with an hourglass shape, which indicates a low spot between two higher points.

As well as offering relatively easy travel between valleys, passes also provide a route between two mountain tops with a minimum of descent. As a result, it is common for tracks to meet at a pass; this often makes them convenient routes even when travelling between a summit and the valley floor. Passes traditionally were places for trade routes, communications, cultural exchange, military expeditions etc. A typical example is the Brenner pass in the Alps.

Some mountain passes above the tree line have problems with snow drift in the winter. This might be alleviated by building the road a few meters above the ground, which will make snow blow off the road.

“The jewels of India”, a term that truly describes the Top 10 highest mountain peaks of India. These snow-capped mountains attract thousands of visitors from across the globe for various exploration and expedition projects. Since time immemorial the Himalayas have attracted millions of tourist because of its mountain peaks and snowy glaciers. The two major mountain ranges of North and North East India are the Karakoram Range and Himalayan Range. These two ranges are home to a few of India’s highest peaks which are also the part of the top 100 highest peaks of the world.

List of Mountain Passes in India