We present multi-proxy records of bulk chemistry, clay mineralogy, stable isotope composition of soil organic matter (delta C-13(SOM)) and pedogenic carbonate (delta O-18(SC)), and mineral magnetic parameters of a loess-paleosol sequence from Kashmir Valley, India, to infer paleoclimate and paleovegetation during Late Pleistocene. C-14 AMS dating brackets the age of paleosols between 40 and 19.6 ka and suggests loess to be > 40 ka. Our study shows that a cold/dry climate prevailed at >40 ka (Late Pleistocene), during which the loess accumulation took place, and a warm/humid climate after that led to the development of soil units, with a prominent warm/humid phase around 35 ka. The range of Chemical Index of Alteration (72-78) and significant amounts of illite and chlorite in the section indicate moderate weathering. High kaolinite content, low chlorite, increased K/C, I/C, K/ (I + C) ratio, and presence of poorly crystalline and Al-rich illite by similar to 36 ka indicates increasing weathering intensity, likely due to an enhanced Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM). High magnetic susceptibility during 35-32 ka indicates enhanced pedogenesis due to a warm-humid climate. Paleotemperature estimates reveal a relatively warmer (by similar to 7 degrees C) climate during pedogenesis than that at >40 ka. delta C-13(SOM) values (-17 parts per thousand to -22.2 parts per thousand) suggest C-3 plants dominated the Kashmir Valley through the Late Pleistocene, however, a short period of enhanced summer monsoon at similar to 35 ka favored C-4 plant growth. The paleoclimate variability in the loess-paleosol sequence presented here agrees with the Guliya Ice Core delta O-18 record and high lake water levels in the Tibetan Plateau.
