Altit Fort is another historical place in the neighboring Altit village which is under development and will be open for tourists in coming days. (5/6 hours).īaltit Fort, the 7,00 years old building made of mud, rocks and wood is impressive, which has recently been renovated and turned into a heritage museum. Furzin, a narrow camp along the side stream is known for its Birch trees. Enroute enjoy views of Kunianchish and Yazgildoom. Mostly the trek is safe, although at few places you would need good balance on the narrow foot track. Soon we leave the main valley and turn to left to enter the gorge. But our walk from the village for the first two hours today is in the open valley along the river. (2/3 hours, 3300m) For the next two days, our walk would mostly be traverse through the really narrow gorge of Shimshal river. 300 years ago Shimshal Valley was discovered by a Sufi Saint he settled here and all Shimshali people are from his family. Shimshal is one of the remotest areas of Karakoram.

The jeep track passes through the narrow gorge of Shimshal river. This jeep road has been recently completed after years of efforts by village volunteers and road engineers to carve the road in this difficult gorge. Now start the day with a short ride on soft top 4x4 jeeps from Passu village towards Shimshal valley. After a rest at the meadows, embark on a six day trek over three passes to arrive at the Karakoram Highway, just south of Khunjerab Pass at Pak China border. It is a 4 day trek to the summer settlement, towering above the lakes and flower filled meadows roamed by yaks. You start the trip in Islamabad and drive on legendary Karakoram Highway to Passu in Upper Hunza from where we take soft top 4x4 jeeps onto the newly built jeep road to reach the main village Shimshal. Situated in the heart of the Karakorams, is Shimshal with its high virgin peaks, its rugged terrain, its roaring rivers and green pastures. The five districts of the Northern Areas Gilgit, Diamar, Ghanche, Baltistan and Ghizer are run by DC's and concerned authority duly controlled from Gilgit (the capital of Northern Areas) by the Chief Secretary who is controlled by the Federal Gov't in Islamabad. The Northern Areas, lying under the great mountain ranges of Himalaya,Karakorum, Hindu Kush, Hindu Raj and Pamir, surrounded by high peaks of 6500 m to 8600 meters, is the most spectacular and fascinating region of Pakistan famous as paradise.

Some of the most popular are the Baltoro Concordia-K2 base camp known as “In the thrown room of mountain Gods” Gondogoro La circle trek Biafo-Hisper classical traverse, known in Baltistan as Little Tibet to Hunza Shangrila the land of peace and the three passes of the Wakhan Corridor trek along the border with Afghanistan The most popular trekking routes are located in the heart of Karakoram, Hindukush, the western Himalaya, and the Pamirs.

High mountain peaks, enchanting valleys, large glaciers, fast flowing rivers, and blue water lakes make this region an excellent adventure tourism destination. The Northern Areas of Pakistan are renowned for their natural beauty and attractive charm for trekking.

Alex black ink