surreal real:
Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan

July 2: Gilgit

For a while now, I have been planning to bring the family to the majestic Karakoram and Himalayas. Since my 2019 drive to the northern mountains of Pakistan, I have been itching to return as well. I finally got my wish, and here we are on an adventurous journey to the Gilgit-Baltistan region.

Unlike my prior trip that included a 2-day drive on one part of the very exciting and dangerous Karakoram Highway (KKH), this time we decided to skip that part (we will still get to "enjoy" the other parts later in our trip). Instead, we took a 50-minutes hop from Islamabad to Gilgit on a propeller plane. This turned out to be a gorgeous but highly technical flight that seemed to be barely clearing some of the high peaks. Luckily, our flight was not bumpy (which is usual we are told), but I am sure that would have made this a bit too exciting for us.

The Gilgit airport itself is a small non-pretentious affair. We felt as if the plane landed in our backyard. The change in weather and scenery is amazing. It was in the 100s in Islamabad, but only in low 70s here.

Enjoy the video of our flight, and views from our hotel room and the dinning hall.

We went from the oldest mountains (Appalachian range) in the world to the newest ones (Himalayas) and in-between (Karakoram). Read on to join us on an amazing journey of this beautiful place!

Kargah Buddha, Gilgit

Since we started early today in Islamabad, we had planned to stay in. But, instead we decided to go to this place ~30 mins from our hotel. There is some elevation gain along the way. Once there, we crossed a rickety-looking bridge over a full stream (Kargah Nala). People were confident enough to drive motorbikes on the bridge, and we felt it wouldn’t hold even all four of us together. Anyway, we crossed it on foot to see an ancient carving of “Buddha” on a cliff side.

A sign there informed us that while some Buddha scholars have associated the image to him, locals consider this carving a witch that was banished to the wall for tormenting people. Either way, at what appears to be a 50 ft+ carving from single-digit century, the carving is quite impressive.

There is a small picnic area at the base of the cliff, and then a set of stairs take you up 70 ft or so to a viewing deck for a closer look at Buddha. There is also what appears to be an Apple-shaped shelter here. Our teen refused to be photographed with/inside it. But luckily the rest of us are not that old yet!

Overall, the excursion was worth the 2.5 hrs. We did not find much else to do around here besides taking pictures and may be getting in the water at one or two relatively safer appearing spots for a dip, rather touch. The water was cold.

See if you can spot the carving in the picture from across the stream.

Also an aside: I have noticed a new trend around PK of putting smaller sculptures in what appears to be “penny roundabouts.” We saw one, photographed below, which I assume is honoring doctors and medical professionals.

Gilgit Serena Hotel

In Gilgit, we stayed at Serena. This place has gorgeous gardens and delicious food surpassed only by the friendliness of the locals. We made full use of that… and the boys also found some activities.

July 3 & 4: Fairy Meadows

I have heard about Fairy Meadows (altitude 10,810 ft) and that the place offered killer views of Nanga Parbat, or naked mountain, so called for the lack of vegetation at its high altitudes. Its peak is at 26,660 feet. The mountain is also called the Killer Mountain as it has resulted in the deaths of more mountaineers. I have also seen the gorgeous pictures of the area. So we had to try to come here.

The fam signed up too. It took six hours of four modes of transportation from our Gilgit hotel to get to the meadows. First, an hour or so ride in our car to get to the access point to the meadows, Raikot bridge. It is here, where the Raikot river (from the glacier from Nanga Parbat) merges with the Indus river along KKH. This point is at 3920 feet according to a sign board posted there.

From here, you take the Fairy Meadows road for a 16 Km 1.5 hrs upward journey on colorful WW2 modded jeeps through gravel, bumps, too precarious to describe narrow paths with cliff drops of thousands of feet into the river below, and hundreds of switchbacks. The road is barely wide enough for one jeep, and for the uninitiated it becomes clear in first 15 minutes that a bad life decision has been made! The “road” seems not good enough to go forward, yet the jeeps sometimes also reverse to accommodate each other. The road is listed as among the worlds most (or second most) treacherous, and once you have been on it, you won’t use that word lightly.

The jeep drivers had their own protocols to stay safe, which may not be immediately visible to visitors. In my dark logic, I reckoned that the fierceness with which the drivers argue for the price of the jeep ride, they must very much have the desire to live and spend that money. So I deem it’s safe.

The jeep ride brings you to the village of Tatu at 8400 feet. But you are far from your destination. From Tatu, you can walk up 2400 feet for about three hours or rent horses that will take 1.5-2 hrs. We rented the horses, as the altitude gain, distance, and time seemed too much. Half way up, and groups of twenty somethings panting and slumping along, as well as direct sunlight and heat, more than justified the decision. On a lighter note, I felt like a king riding my high horse (“sir aap to bil kul ertagul lug rahay hain”, quipped one fellow walker!). The horses bring you to the meadows access point at 11k feet, and then it takes another 15-20 minutes of walking/hiking to reach the Fairy Meadows. Yeah.

We stayed at a place called Broadview Hotel, which is a collection of wooden cottages and a camping ground, right at the edge of a cliff overlooking the glacier and Nanga Parbat. It offered a nice stay.

Is it all worth it? You bet. The views are gorgeous beyond believe. Early Dutch mountaineers found this place and named it Fairy Meadows for obvious reasons. In the night sky, you can see the Milky Way (sorry I don’t have the equipment to capture that picture).

The next day, I started at 5:30 am on a 7 mile roundtrip trek with an altitude gain of 1300 feet to a viewpoint at 12k+ feet. The viewpoint offers views of the Raikot glacier and the Nanga Parbat peak. The whole track was one gorgeous view after another and screensaver worthy brooks.

We also got very lucky. Weather around the mountain had been tricky the past five days, and it did rain a little bit as we were coming up. But that also meant that the clouds around the peak cleared up, and we were treated to the views we share here.

The reflection pool is along a polo ground in a more flat part of the meadows, about 10 minutes walk from our hotel. Interestingly, the reflection pool, that serves as the mirror for thousands of pictures taken here, is actually a wonder on its own. It is pond brimming with life. The kids enjoyed watching tadpoles in it.

Getting to Fairy Meadows is super demanding and absolutely not for everyone. We got to do it once. For which I’ll be always grateful.

Enjoy the pictures and videos, and again those cliffs along the jeep ride are thousands of feet!

Less than four weeks after we visited, rains caused landslides that washed away portions of the road. This forced stranded tourists to walk hours to get out. It is such unexpected weather conditions that make this road a risky adventure.

July 5: Rakaposhi viewpoint and Karimabad Hunza

A slow and restful day. We left Gilgit for Hunza about 2 hrs away. On the way, we stopped at a roadside attraction that has popped up at the Rakaposhi viewpoint. The Rakaposhi peak is at 25,551 ft, and it’s Gulmit glacier creates a gushing stream that passes from this viewpoint. The sound of water drowns the traffic noises and creates a peaceful atmosphere. There is also bakery here, The Walnut, that had a pretty good walnut cake.

Once we arrived in Hunza, we promptly got to shopping for knick knacks. Another highlight of the day, an impromptu dinner with a couple of my (really) old friends and their families. What a delight!

July 6: Hunza Darbar Hotel Karimabad

We stayed at the Darbar as its more centrally located than some of the other options. The people here are friendly and professional. And the views galore! Bay windows with a valley view. Breakfast with mountain views. And a terrace with 360 degree views.

Baltit Fort

We headed to the historic Baltit Fort nearby for a guided tour. Once at the center of Karimabad, we took about 2/3 of a kilometer of somewhat steep hike through an old bazaar offering dry fruits, handicrafts, and local gems etc. I did notice a 300% price hike in the fort entrance price since my 2019 visit. But at $4 I am not complaining. The fort served as the base of government for the Hunza rulers for 700-800 years until the 19th century. It offers gorgeous views, which is pretty much the theme around here.

The rooms here have very low doors. We were told that this is because of several reasons: (1) if under attack, attackers would be forced to come in one by one, thus mitigating the threat; (2) everyone who enters a room has to bow down their head (to avoid hitting the wall), and thus show respect to the occupants; and (3) since hot air rises, low doorways help in preserving the heat inside.

On the way back, I remembered to stop at the shop of Shukrat Bibi, a presidential award winning artisan. We bought some excellent needlework. We also took a picture with her. Here is a nice article describing her many contributions.

Hoper Valley and Glacier

After our visit of the Baltit fort, we had time, and the weather was good. So we headed to Hoper Valley 1.5 hrs away from our hotel to see the Hoper Glacier. This is the second fastest moving glacier in the world. We walked up to a nice viewpoint, and also had lunch here.

I noticed a path that takes you down to the glacier, and had to go. A 40 minute hike down ~500 feet on a steep path offered me the unique experience of touching a glacier. I really enjoyed exploring and listening to the water melt and ice break. The hike back up not so much!

We wrapped up the day with dinner at always yummy Pizza Pamir, followed with some deserts at the famous Café de Hunza and Sweet Tooth (where we went all five days we were in Karimabad!). You can never have enough desserts.

July 7: Hussaini Suspension Bridge and Khunjerab National Park

Today, we went on a typical touristy journey to Khunjarab pass that was about 4 hrs away.

First, a stop at my favorite Hussaini suspension bridge. The kids took a few steps to feel the fun, we did way more, but in the interest of time we didn’t do the whole thing this time. They now do require and offer life jackets for people going on the bridge (to fish you out whole I guess).

After exploring the bridge, we made a stop at the “rock bank” here at Yaadghar Cafe (memorable cafe). I was delighted to locate and update my rock with new information ("Please write REVIST on it").

Next, we made a couple of roadside stops to take pictures, and also visit he Passu cones viewpoint and glacier.

After a long journey over winding but nicely maintained road that was peppered with recent rock slide damages, we arrived at Khunkerab pass and the border checkpost between Pakistan and China. At 15.5k feet elevation, this is the highest border crossing in the world. But that also means that the air was thin and the temperature was pretty cold. It was also flurrying, and we could only manage to stick around for ~40 minutes. Unlike in 2019, I couldn’t find locals with traditionally decorated Yaks to take pictures with this time, but we did spot wild ones, and also a saw a herd of Ibex way too hight on a steep mountain cliff.

On the way back, we stopped for lunch and some rest at Sost. The town served as a border post back in the days on the old silk route. After, we headed back to Karimabad for a much deserved rest. Long day!

July 9: Altit Fort

A rest day to recoup and recover. We slept in, then hit the bazaar for some local fare. It was mid-80s here today, which is uncharacteristically hot.

We decided to visit another fort, Altit Fort, about 10 minutes away. Not many people make time to visit here. The fort turned out to be a unique experience as not only the fort is at least 11 centuries old and the first one in the area, our guide Mr. Karim happened to be someone who enjoyed taking pictures more than we do. He took advantage of our small group with just our family. Enjoy his creativity. We played along as willing muses.

We had a traditional meal at Hidden Paradise Hunza, which turned out to be awesome. The fresh Apricot juice they offered had a unique taste. Their local food special is highly recommended.

July 10: Drive from Hunza to Skardu and Shigar

We bid farewell to the surreal Hunza valley. However, unlike most who usually finish their trip here, we had planned to take a left turn at Skardu Morr (junction) on KKH, go up along the mighty Indus River and head to Skardu valley at ~8200 feet.

200 km+ of our 325 km journey today only had a road in spirit. The journey took us 10 hrs, with a 2.5+ hr wait in the middle of nowhere for construction and blasting work that has been happening (in July 2021) to widen and carpet the road.

I suspect in another two years, this would be a great road. Not so much at the moment. Moreover, the vagaries of the extreme weather will make this a hard task to finish and maintain. We eventually reached Skardu, which is at the crossing of Indus and Shigar rivers. We saw many apricot and cherry orchards near Skardu. At many places women were working on drying apricots on rooftops.

We had anticipated today's journey will be demanding given the road condition. However, it was relatively hot today. This was not something we had planned for, and the weather, construction delays, and bumpy road made our journey very exhausting.

We headed north to Shigar from Skardu. Shigar is high dessert, and reminded me of our drive through Idaho and eastern Portland back in ‘18. Our hotel was in Shigar Fort. Built in the 16th century, the fort is next to a nala (stream) that feeds into the Shigar river. Luckily, the area offered much pleasant weather.

The fort represents a confluence of local, mogul, and Kashmiri architecture and woodwork. Especially the heritage rooms we got are set up in a traditional setting that preserves much of the original rooms. I made several videos, enjoy. This is going to be an experience.

Finally, we wrapped up this long and tiring day with a dinner next to a pleasant looking and sounding stream.

July 11: Shigar Fort and hotel

The trip is injected with new energy with cousins joining us.

Our day was filled with new sightseeing. As we were about to leave, I noticed that the fort greeter has a unique name badge H.H.H.H.H. He explained that it’s his actual full name with titles (Hawaldar Haji Hameed Hussain Hasrat for those of you who wanted to know). Some quick pictures at the cool benches they have set up for the tour visitors.

Enjoy a tour of this beautiful fort that has been converted into a Serena hotel. A highlight here is the baradari—a building/gazebo with twelve openings—which looked amazing in the night.

A fun thing is that the fort runs active tours, and if you don’t keep your room door locked, expect some unexpected guests to wander in :)

The flood of visitors is a bit of a bother, but serenity reigned once again in the evening.

Hushupi Bagh Apple Orchard

Finally, we decided to squeeze in one more stop into out day. Hashupi Bagh, an apple orchard, is at 7797 ft, announced a blue sign. The trees were full of young apples, likely getting ready in about three months for the October harvest. The cherries were ready. We did get a chance to pick and eat them, and kids tested out the playground.

In between our different stops today, the kids also got a chance to talk to a local news channel. All in a day’s work.

July 13: Shangrila Resort Skardu

We traded our fort residence for a lakeside apartment in the Shangrila resort—a much hyped about place in Skardu. While on paper it was supposed to be just 34 miles from Shigar, it took us almost two hours to get here.

There are three lakes in this part of Skardu valley. The Lower Kachura lake is where the resort is situated, and thus it’s also called Shangrila Lake. It’s a beautiful place to relax, and like everywhere else here, it’s picture perfect. The resort is an overpriced joint though and needs to be upgraded and remodeled, but the views cannot be beat.

The second, Upper Kachura lake offered boating and some water sports. The third is a lesser known smallish Zambakha Lake. We had planned to visit it as well, but skipped that plan in favor of walking and exploring Shangrila at night. We ended the day with a bonfire and a nice BBQ dinner.

Upper Kachura Lake

The upper Kachura lake about 15 mins from the resort is bigger. You can do trout fishing here, and that is why we initially headed to the lake; to fish and have lunch. Instead we ended up having tea and doing all kinds of boating: from paddle boats to speed boats.

To top it all off, a local family invited us to their home. We were served fresh apricots, cherries, and dry fruit. What a pleasure. The families here subsist mostly from their land: wheat is ready for harvest, so are the fruits.

July 14: Basho Valley

ہم وطن میں ہیں، اپ سفر میں ہیں

“We are at home, but you are traveling (and thus the ones who haven’t reached your destination).”

It had rained in the early morning, so we changed our plans and decided to visit Basho Valley. But first, the kids and I went boating in Shangrila Lake. It was fun, and offered us even more amazing views of the mountains.

To get to Basho, first a 40 minutes drive brought us to the valley access track at Basho bridge. From there, we once again rented our trusted jeeps to take us 10 Km and 3000 ft up. By now, a bumpy, cliffy ride seems all normal to us. This trip did have a suspension bridge over Indus, the Basho bridge, which was just wide enough for the jeep and wobbled as we drove over it. If I was not distracted by the views, the engineer in me would have worried a lot about safety margins here.

Two thirds into our journey, we hit a snag when one of our jeeps broke down. Others had gone ahead, and we had no cell signal, which is always the case in these situations. So we decided to walk the rest of the ~3 km and 1300 ft. It was an interesting and tiring hike.

But all was worth it when we got to the valley meadows—a flat plane at 10 k feet surrounded by huge mountains. On one side, the mountains are black and had snow and ice, while on the other they are brown and dry. Numerous brooks and streams flow through the lush green area. Locals have set up camping areas where people can chill as long as they buy some food from them. We had tea next to a picturesque stream and took in the beauty.

After that, we decided to visit a group of nomadic herders. These herders leave their villages in the summer and bring their cattle and goats to higher altitudes (11k ft) where the pastures are better. A 30 minute true off-roading through creek beds brought us close to their summer abode. A flood in 2010 has strewn the area with huge boulders, making it impossible for jeeps to go further, so we had to hike the remaining 1/2 a mile up, which felt much longer with high altitude and uneven ground.

The place is called Lassi Point. The herders keep their animals here, churn milk, make lassi, which is then processed further to create ghee (clarified butter). The products are mostly used by the locals for themselves and their families during the winter months, but some are also sold to visitors. A group of old men greeted us. Some lamented about how their trade is dying as the new generation moves to cities. A few were old retired soldiers. I enjoyed a drink of lassi, and gave a very interesting hukkah a try—I was told it has some local “tobacco.” All in the name of adventure. The men also demonstrated how they use cow hide to make bags for holding lassi, and then roll the bags to churn milk. They demonstrated the process. We were offered tea as well, which turned out to be really good.

As we were leaving, we tried to offer the herders some money. But they refused and said the above statement, implying that since we are travelers it is us who may need help and we should hold on to our resources (money). Beautiful people.

We returned to the hotel just in time to enjoy a bonfire and another delicious dinner.

July 15: Deosai National Park

A long and tiring trip to Deosai Plateau was on the docket today. This plateau is a wonder. At an average altitude of 13k ft, it is also called the Roof of the World and is second highest behind the Tibetan plateau. The rolling hills and the landscape reminded me of SWVA, just a few thousand feet higher.

The journey was the destination on this one. Our one way trip was 93 km but that took us almost 6 hrs. The hazards included beautiful spots for pictures, non-existent roads, and many goat crossings.

Our first stop was the gorgeous Sadpara Lake at 8600ft. While you can take pictures here, the water is not accessible, so we moved on quickly. Most of the road is along a full stream, which at many spots was still covered with snow/ice that has come down the surrounding steep slopes. The stream carves beautiful patterns in the ice. We also got to touch some ice!

It is amazing to see such vast flatness after crossing such huge mountains. TBH, it does get repetitive and boring, so kids addressed boredom by doing unsafe things like hanging out of moving cars, and having a car race at 7 mph!

We went as high as 15k during the trip. We made several stops: at Deosai Top, at a number of stream crossings such as Bara Pani, Chota/Kala Pani, and eventually reached Sheosar Lake (at 13.6 k feet). We also got a chance to dip our feet in the lake. The water was pretty cold so swimming was not an option.

BTW, it is possible to go further on the Deosai road, at least in the summer, and go down to another gorgeous valley, Astore, via Challam and then onwards back to Gilgit. We met a team of bikers who were doing the loop in the opposite direction. But, don’t forget to bring camping gear then, as weather and roads at such altitudes are always unpredictable.

About: The page is based on a series of FB posts from the trip . I decided to detail some more of my trips at https://sites.google.com/view/wanderingsramblings

Contact: You can reach me via @profAliRB on twitter