Up in the mountains (part-4)
On 3 July at 9:30 pm, we left GB Scouts Hut in Karimabad, Hunza for the internationally famed Khunjab Pass. Stopped at different famous tourist spots on the way, did photography and reached Sost at 11:30. The historic pass is located at a distance of 75 km from Sost, a commercial hub of Upper Hunza where the customs and immigration post/dry port are established. It serves as the gateway for all traffic carrying commercial goods crossing the Pak-China border. The Pakistani immigration and customs intelligence departments based at Sost are operating here for border clearance and administrative procedures.
After a brief stopover at Sost, we continued our journey towards Khunjrab Pass and reached there at 1:45 pm. Spent about an hour at the pass, took pictures, feasted our eyes on the scenic beauty so generously bestowed by God on the snow-clad mountains and the highland beneath where we saw a swarm of visitors with their vehicles parked in the parking area earmarked for the purpose, and resumed our journey backwards with an intent to reach Hunza before nightfall. The pass is teeming with tourists these days. Here, smartly turned out uniformed personnel could be seen astride the crossing point to keep a vigilant eye on the visitors.
The pass is situated at an elevation of 15,400 feet above sea level. It holds a strategic and economic significance for both China and Pakistan being a connecting link between the two countries. It holds the distinction of being the highest international border crossing.The pass wears a blanket of snow during winter season and remains closed for vehicular traffic from end of December to the beginning of April. We saw the mountains surrounding the pass covered with a thick layer of snow even in the first week of July.
On asking a uniformed guard on duty at the crossing point, it transpired that since 2006 a daily passenger bus service is operating from Gilgit city to Kashgar, Xinjiang. The bus service was discontinued for some time due to security reasons and was resumed later. Moreover, it came as a pleasant surprise to us to see two ATMs, one belonging to National Bank of Pakistan and the other owned by HBL, functioning successfully there. These are the world’s highest ATMs ever installed at an elevation of 15,400 feet above sea level.
On our way back to Hunza, we had a stopover at the much-famed Attaabad Lake, a marvel of nature. On our arrival at the lake, we were received by the GM Luxus Lake Resort, Attaabad Syed Talha, who happens to be the classmate of my ![Atabad lake, LUXUS resort]()
son. Luxus is a chain of summer resorts operating in the mountainous regions of Pakistan like GB and Swat. It was established in 2019 on the edge of the gorgeous Attaabad Lake.
son. Luxus is a chain of summer resorts operating in the mountainous regions of Pakistan like GB and Swat. It was established in 2019 on the edge of the gorgeous Attaabad Lake. Luxus Lake Resort Attaabad comprises 86 rooms, including two presidential suites, three royal suites and four honeymoon suites with 100pc occupancy rate. I was stunned to hear from the GM about room charges per night. Here the charges of a suite per night starts from Rs40,000 and goes up to Rs80,000.
The GM had arranged an elaborate lunch for us. But before taking lunch, we enjoyed boating which was virtually an exciting experience. After taking late lunch, we resumed our ride towards Hunza and arrived at GB Scouts Hut, Karimabad at 9pm and had a comfortable night stay.
On 4 July we bid adieu to Hunza and left for the picturesque Naltar valley, a paradise on earth. This beautiful valley can rightly be called ‘Murree of Northern Areas’. On the way, we had a brief stopover at Nasirabad, a beautiful village on Gilgit-Hunza road, 25 km away from Hunza. We captured the picture of the majestic Rakaposhi from the famous view point at Nasirabad where from this lofty-mountain peak is most pronouncedly visible to the naked eye. After capturing pictures, we continued our journey and after half-an-hour drive, we reached Rahimabad situated at a distance of around 65 km from Hunza where we took diversion towards right and continued on Naltar road, a beautiful two-lane metaled road.
The landscape of the entire Naltar Valley is inviting and absolutely awesome. Its scenic beauty is unmatched. At around 2 pm, we reached GB Scouts Hut built on a beautiful hillock from where we had a panoramic view of Nalter Valley. GB Scouts Hut surrounded by majestic pine trees is an extremely beautiful summer resort with exquisite arrangements. We took lunch and then visited a few tourist spots before leaving for Gilgit. At around 6 pm we left for Gilgit and reached Gilgit at 7:30 pm.![Naltar valley GB,]()
Lastly, I would succinctly dwell on the strategically important Karakoram Highway, more famously known by its initials KKH, also called Pak-China Friendship Highway and is considered to be the core element in the all-weather Pak-China friendship. This perennial friendship is very proudly described as “sweeter than honey, higher than mountains, deeper than oceans and stronger than steel”.
KKH is a 1300 km national nighway which starts from Hasanabdal Punjab and goes up to Khunjrab Pass where it crosses into China extending up to Kashgar, a city in the Xinjiang region of China and assumes the name of China National Highway. Passing through the Karakoram mountain range, KKH makes one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations. Due to its high elevation, extraordinary length and difficult terrain, it’s often called the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World’.
It was constructed by the governments of Pakistan and China as a joint-venture project and took 16 long years to complete. It was started in 1962 and completed and opened to the public in 1978. During its construction, around 800 Pakistani and 200 Chinese workers are reported to have died.
It may be mentioned here that in 2006, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between Pakistan and China to rebuild and upgrade the KKH. The upgrade work has been designed keeping in view the heavy-laden vehicles and extreme weather conditions. Moreover, under the flagship project of CPEC, KKH is being linked to the Gwadar Port and in this regard, reconstruction and upgrade work is underway on the Pakistani portion of KKH for which a hefty amount of 2 billion dollars has been allocated.
Having an exciting experience of visiting the beautiful mountainous region of Gilgit-Baltistan adorned with unbounded natural beauty and its lovely people with amiable and welcoming disposition inhabiting the region, remains a dream of everyone who loves nature, and I would urge upon all those who foster even an iota of desire to be in communion with Mother Nature, to steal a few days out of their urban rut, disengage themselves from the highly mechanical, pretended and spurious urban living which has become an inextricable component of our daily routine and has incapacitated our very existence in an alarming way, spend a few dollars/rupees from their discreet savings and visit these marvels of nature containing incredible beauty, a beauty which has a healing effect on the visitors’ physical as well as mental health.
So enjoy the paradisiacal beauty and diversity of Gilgit-Baltistan, the captivating tourist destinations swarming with foreign as well as domestic tourists these days, and see ‘Nature’ from close proximity, save yourselves from the infernal heat of the congested and overcrowded cities and feel the celestial bliss of the mountain life, enjoy hassle-free time ‘up in the mountains’, roam around and explore nature during days and have a baby’s sleep during nights which you have always been pining for but haven’t been able to experience. Satiate your desire of experiencing nature in its entirety and relish the local cuisine carrying organic contents with tantalizing aroma and natural taste never experienced before and eat it to your heart’s content.
Though, amidst the mountains you find yourself disconnected from the rest of the world, yet you get connected with ‘Nature’ and experience its sublime beauty in its pristine purity with a feeling of being seated on cloud nine. (Cont…)