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The alpine beauty of Europe is manifest in the Kaghan Valley, that is located in the north-east corner of the Frontier Province. Its picturesque beauty makes it a virtual paradise. Unspoiled by the human race, it holds spots that are still in their pristine state. The landscape varies from snow or cloud covered Himalayan peaks to placid, celestial lakes. Before the opening of the all-weather Karakoram Highway in the 1970s, the Kaghan Valley had acted as a summer route to the northern areas.
PLACES OF INTEREST This is the site of Ashoka's rock inscriptions which are just by the road side at a junction. Approaching Ghari Habibullah, 13 km further east, the mountains start to converge onto the road and the river, which squeezes through Balakot, 14 km away. This is the gateway to the Kaghan Valley and from here on the valleys widen and narrow alternately. Balakot Though only a transit point situated at around 900 meters, Balakot is very beautiful. The surfaced road slithers out of the village following the Kunar River through a valley with wide, terraced grain fields. The place cannot be separated from the names of two Muslim warriors, Syed Ahmed Shaheed Brelvi and Shah Ismail, who fought against the Sikhs in the 18th century and lost their lives. Kawai It is 13 miles from Balakot on the route to Kaghan. However, it is within this short distance that you gain a thousand feet in altitude. Visit Shogran from here, which is at a distance of five miles, and in these five miles, you rise another 3000 feet. The place is marked by a dense growth of pine forests. Not wrongly, Shogran means "Forest in the sky", for it lies at a height of 7000 feet (2,362 meters) above sea level. From here can be viewed some lofty peaks, such as Moosa Ka Musalla and Makra (14000 feet), and Malika-e-Parbat (Queen of the Mountains) (17000 feet). Kaghan Village Near Mahandri (5,800 feet), 46 km away, the metal road peters out and becomes a dirt track, gravelly and rough in places, and basically just a jeep road used by trucks and buses to go to Naran. Approaching Kaghan village 14 km (11 miles) away from Mahandri and 61 kilometers from Balakot, the valley gets very narrow. The Kaghan Valley takes its name from this small, unimportant village, which is a very small tiny bazaar lining one side of the main road and at a height of 7000 feet. It is fascinating to watch the river, which is 800 feet below the road. Snow begins to appear on the crests of mountains from now on and in several places there are grayish-black glaciers, virtually indistinguishable from the earth, which thaw in the summer hear and rain. They melt from below first, forming caves which eventually collapse. From Naran, where the sides of the mountains crowd in on the river, the road is jeep able only. Naran Naran is a popular tourist spot in the valley and is 82 km (51 miles) from Balakot. It is 2427 meters (7963 feet) above sea level and offers reasonable accommodation facilities with a PTDC motel and a number of local hotels. The place lies at the top end of Kaghan Valley, and its landscape can boast of open fields surrounded by mountains. Here, you must not be looking for tall buildings, but a pictorial landscape that serves as a good spot for camping, mountaineering, trekking, hiking, walking and fishing. The Kunar River, flowing between Kaghan and Naran, is stocked with Mansehra and Brown Trout; the trout fished here is believed to be the best in South Asia. The Fisheries Department at Naran or the Trout Hatchery at Shinu issue fishing licenses. Lake Saif-ul-Muluk The one and a half mile long and 300 meters wide Lake Saif-ul-Muluk is five miles away and 3000 feet above Naran. A dirt road climbs up the hill in a winding posture with a lot of U-turns. To get to the lake, either hire a jeep or choose tracking. Some years back, it was so narrow and steep that people going up to the lake closed their eyes and prepared themselves for a fall. While constructing the new route, many engineers met some sort of accident and lost their lives. This new route cuts through a glacier, which can be seen on the way up. On one side of the road, the glacier slides down a hill while the part of it that hindered the path can be seen lying on the other side of the road that steeps down into the gorge. The glacier is clothed in sand so much so that it cannot be distinguished from its immediate mountainous surroundings. Yet, it never remains unnoticed because as you pass by it, the air gets cool and it seems as if somebody has opened the door of a huge refrigerator. And not wrongly, the glacier is used as a refrigerator, for I saw sealed packets of juice lying on arm of the glacier that has projected out and served as a shelf. The part of the road that runs adjacent to the length of the glacier is eroded by a constant flow of water issuing forth from the glacier. At a height of more than 3,212 meters (about 11,000 feet), the beautiful, oval-shaped, romantic lake is stocked with brown trout and mirrors the towering peaks that cup it. One of these is Malike Parbat, the "Queen of the Mountains" which rises to an altitude of about 5300 meters (about 17500 feet). Old men living near the lake make a living by relating the legend of Saif-ul-Muluk, the Persian prince, who came to know of the beauty of, and fell in love with Badar Jamal, the fairy princess and the daughter of the king of Caucasus. After wandering through lands and enduring hardship, Saif-ul-Muluk won the love of Badar Jamal. The lovers met by the lake to lay bare their heart and heir life together. However, jealousy forced the jinn/demon guard of the queen of Parbat to breach the bank of the lake in order to drown them. Some legends say that they were drowned while others hint that they escaped and took shelter in a nearby grotto that can still be seen there. As the local lore puts it, the lake is still visited by fairies, who dance and swim in it on moonlit nights. The lake, with its interplay of light and dark and its harmony of colors is an enchanting spectacle. Saif-ul-Muluk Lake can better be developed as a resort. At present, nothing much has been added to the natural scenery. There is a shed to make reservations for boating, with a few life jackets hanging. These are so ragged that nobody rents them. Or maybe this is because nobody uses a life jacket in Pakistan. Kamalban It is eight miles on the western slopes of Kaghan. This forest is inhabited by black bears and leopards, who harm crops and young trees. Hunting a bear is not only a big game; it also means a reward from the forest officer. A little higher up, you will come across red bears, snow leopards, ibexes, and snow partridges. Himalayan pheasants can be seen all over the valley. According to geologists the Kaghan area falls within the Himalayan disturbance belt. Four different categories of rocks can be found here; as we move higher westward, the successive layers exhibit more placation. Lalusar Lake It is a camping spot near Gittidas (3,634 meters), on the Naran-Babusar road, at a distance of 48 kilometers from Naran. Hemmed by wild flowers, the serene green-blue water captures the various forms of the snow-capped hills that cup it. From this 11,000 feet high lake, River Kunar issues forth and flows down the valley; the calm stream gives way to a tumultuous river before it ends in River Jehlum. One of the world's highest roads goes from Gittidas and through the Babusar Pass into Gilgit. Battakundi Battakundi is a recreation spot 16 Kilometers from Naran. From here, you can turn for Lalazar, which is a plateau enriched with natural beauty. Exploring Further Lands at an altitude of 4,146 meters (13,600 feet), Babusar Pass denotes the end of the Kaghan valley and links it to Gilgit via the Chilas Valley. From the pass, you can catch a glimpse of Nanga Parbat (The Naked Mountain), which towers to a height of 26,660 feet (8,126 meters) The 37 km (23 miles) journey from the top of the pass down to Chilas registers a variety of landscapes - the path begin by a difficult zigzag road to a valley that is green and fertile, and thence to a dry, barren Indus whose share of monsoon rains is reduced to nil by the mountains. Due to snow, the road at Babusar Pass remains closed from October to June. The monsoon season also puts a check on traffic. Exploring Further Lands At an altitude of 4,146 meters (13,600 feet), Babusar Pass denotes the end of the Kaghan valley and links it to Gilgit via the Chilas Valley. From the pass, you can catch a glimpse of Nanga Parbat (The Naked Mountain), which towers to a height of 26,660 feet (8,126 meters) The 37 km (23 miles) journey from the top of the pass down to Chilas registers a variety of landscapes - the path begin by a difficult zigzag road to a valley that is green and fertile, and thence to a dry, barren Indus whose share of monsoon rains is reduced to nil by the mountains. Due to snow, the road at Babusar Pass remains closed from October to June. The monsoon season also puts a check on traffic. GEOGRAPHY The160 km (100 mile) long Kaghan valley slopes up from Balakot, which is at a height of 900 meters (3000 feet), to 12,000 feet at Gittdas. Beyond Gittdas, it crosses the Babusar Pass, 4,073 meters (13,690 feet) high. On the west of Kaghan is Swat, on the north is Gilgit and on the east lies Azad Kashmir. High-peaked mountains, ranging from 12,000 to 17,000 feet and more in height, surround the valley. The eastern range is higher than the western. Due to its location on the northern edge on the monsoon belt, its southern part is a stretch of greenery with woodlands. The green valley is adorned with huge Himalayan pine forests. Moreover, the land is wet enough and cultivation has not to depend on irrigation. The Kunar River flows parallel to the length of the narrow valley and joins River Jehlum at Muzaffarabad. The initial ten miles of the journey through the valley are marked by barrenness. Pine and fir forests nourish the sight when you get to a height of 5,000 feet, and continue till Naran, which lies at a height of about 8,000 feet. These forests stand out for their dense overgrowth of various types pf plants, making them somewhat of a botanical garden. CLIMATE The best time to tour the Kaghan Valley is during the summer months, more precisely, from May to September. When it is scorching hot in many areas of Pakistan, the weather of the valley is cool and pleasant. Taking May, the maximum temperature is 11oC while the minimum is 3oC. From the middle of July up to the end of September the temperature oscillates between 3oC and 14oC. Many people from the hot areas of Punjab (where the temperature goes up to 50°C in June/July) tour the valley from June through early September. And though the Babusar Pass may sometimes be closed due to snow from April to October, these are the months best suited to visit the place. After October-November, the road from Balakot to Naran is blocked by snow. GETTING THERE There is no railway or air transport available to go to Kaghan, a journey by road being the only option. Buses for Abbottabad or Mansehra are stationed at Pir Wadhai, Rawalpindi. Balakot, the gateway to the Kaghan Valley, is 72 kilometer from Abbottabad. From Balakot, a hundred kilometer drive would take you to Kaghan. It's a 3 1/2- hour trip to Mansehra from Pir Washai costing Rs 15. If you're heading for Balakot catch a bus from Mansehra; it only takes an hour and the fare is Rs 7. (Without breaking the journey at any point, it takes four hours to get to Balakot from Rawalpindi-Islamabad. From Balakot you can go to Naran by bus Rs 50 or Rs 60 by minibus. It takes about five hours. From Balakot there is also a minibus service to Kaghan, which takes 3 ½ hours and costs Rs 35. But it's better to take the direct bus it Naran. Kaghan Valley can also be reached via Murree and Muzaffarabad; though this route is more scenic, it consumes more time and is more difficult on public transport.
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