While traveling in Ladakh, my plans changed suddenly due to a friend's illness, and I wound up with a few spare days in Leh. Before coming to India on this trip, I'd thought about the possibility of finding gear and a guide to go up Stok Kangri, and now that idea suddenly returned. If I wanted to do the climb, though, I had to find the right guiding and outfitting company fast, because I only had a few days to spare. Most of the trekking companies in Leh did not impress me, but Venture Ladakh's office caught my eye at first sight. It was clear at a glance that the company was orderly, efficient, no-nonsense, competent, and responsible, simply from the way the office and the gear in it were arranged. All of these impressions were reinforced when I went in and spoke with Sonam Chosphel. He has a strong professional ethic and a deep background of experience, and I had the feeling that he was sizing me up quickly and accurately not just as a potential client, but as someone that one of his guides would be tied to high up on a mountain. He was straightforward about the uncertainty of reaching the summit and the high proportion of trekkers who have to turn around due to altitude sickness, and he went well out of his way to convince a friend of mine who could have been a paying customer NOT to sign on for the climb, because the situation didn't square with his judgment. The guide I went with, Thinless Tamchos, had twelve years of experience working his way up in his profession, and had climbed Stok Kangri so many times that he was completely at home. We communicated well; I trusted him; he was fast when I wanted to go fast and patient when I needed a moment to breathe or some help with unfamiliar equipment; and he was good, steady company, too. Logistics worked perfectly, and the gear was solid. They found me a pair of hardshell boots that may have been the second-biggest pair in town, as well as corresponding crampons, without which I couldn't have done the climb at all. Throughout my experience with Venture Ladakh, I felt like I was dealing with my kind of people. Visited July 2015.