Fun things to do in Hunza

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The first glimpse of the glacier fed streams you will get is in the Kohistan region, north of Besham at a place called Dubair. From a distance we saw someone dumping blue chemicals into the muddy Indus, and exclaimed that this industrialization is ruining everything.

However when we arrived at that spot, the scene was totally different as we saw a fast flowing, ice cold Turquoise colored river/stream flowing into the mighty muddy murky Indus, and developing into this extraordinary mixture.

If you miss one, do not fret as there are several on the way (between Besham and Gilgit on KKH)...both side of the river.

Situated almost 6km from Gilgit, the Buddha statue dates back to 7th or 8th century. It is carved on a cliff face at Kargah, and is quite similar to Tibetian carvings found in the Baltistan region.

Several humdred meters upstream there are remains of an old monastery and several stuppas (found this out after we returned).

The legend is that a image is of giant who terrorized the people of this area, and a passing saint was enlisted to get rid of this giant. The saint was successful in pinning the giant to the rock face and tld the villagers that on giant's death, he should be burried right at the bottom and they will be safe. The resourceful villagers immediately killed the giant and buried him at the foothills.

It was a bit difficult to find as there were no markings directing us to this location. Had to ask locals who were also a bit confused (may be language barrier). But after a short walk 10 minute along a stream, we did arrive to a location to view this statue.

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The beautiful scenery that we witnessed on our way to Gilgit from Islamabad is a historical ambush site where Dard tribes annihilated a contingent of the Kashmir army in 1852 during the rule of Mahraja Ghulab Singh. 1200 Dogra soldiers under Bhoop Singh marched from Bunji to reinforce their besieged troops fighting a loosing battle at Gilgit fort against Dards of Yasin, Gupis, Ishkoman, Punial and Gilgit. The Dards were under the command of Raja Gohar Aman, the ruler of Yasin. When Gohar Aman came to know about the advance of General Bhoop Singh, he appealed to all Dards of area to choke him. In response to his call they planned an ambush at this place. A testimony to great military acumen of locals.

When Bhoop Singh’s forces reach this gorge, the gunmen of Minawar, Sal, and Darail blocked the front line and cut their retreat. The marksman of Bagrote, Nagar, and Hunza took position across the river to prevent any escape by the retreating army. After seven days of fighting when Singh’s Dogra soldiers got weak and tired, Dards moved down from the top and attacked from all sides. They pelted their enemy with stones and boulders from above and crushed the trapped soldiers. All attempts to break the siege were foiled, and more than a 1000 soldiers were killed; majority by stones, along with General Bhoop Singh. 200 were taken prisoners and only two escaped to Bunji Garrison by jumping into Gilgit River to tell the tale of carnage.

When the news of this victory reached Gilgit the Dards stormed the fort and captured it. Only a Gorkha woman could escape to Bunji from the fort by swimming in River Gilgit. After this defeat the Dogras could not muster courage to cross River Bunji and invade this part of Dardistan, nor fight for many years to come.

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Shortly after the construction of the Karakorum Highway connecting Pakistan and China through the Himalayan and Karakorum mountains, researchers discovered thousands of petroglyphs and inscriptions along the Indus valley. These are mainly concentrated in the area east and west of the village of Chilas.

The carvings are pecked or chiseled into the dark brown varnished surface of the boulders scattered on the riverbanks and the terraces of the valley.

The earliest examples of Indus valley rock art are dating back to prehistoric times. The most recent belong to the period before the Islamization of the region in the 14th to 15th cent. AD. The prehistoric carvings in general show animals, hunting scenes and demon-like creatures in different styles.

The Buddhist phase starts around the 1st cent. AD and lasts until 10th cent AD. The main subjects represented in the carvings are stupas, Buddha and other Buddhist symbols. Another important element of this period is inscriptions, mostly consisting of personal names and dedicational phrases. The majority of the inscriptions are executed in Indian scripts like Brahmin, Kharosthi and Proto-Sarada. Of special interest are those in Sogdian (ca. 700), Chinese (13) and Hebrew (1).

The old paths along the Indus valley constituted a branch of the Silk Road system. Travelers like merchants and pilgrims from Central Asia, China and India therefore executed many of the carvings of this period. But there are a lot of carvings obviously made by the inhabitants of the region as well.

During the 9th or 10th cent. AD, the Buddhist belief was replaced by a new socio-religious movement. Axes and sun-symbols are the new signs of this last major phase of the Indus valley rock art.

The complex of rock carvings and inscriptions in the upper Indus valley provides a remarkable source for the study of the cultural history of Central and South Asia.

from: http://www.rzuser.uni-heidelberg.de/~u71/kara/intro.html

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9 hours drive from Natlar village Along the Gilgit river with beautiful scenery of Ghizr valley will take you to Phander Lake. Besides it scenic beauty, Phander lake is well known for its trout fishing. This is one of the best fishing spots in Pakistan.Phander Lake whose other name is "Angler's Paradise" is a trout-laden serene lake allowing one to forget the bumpy and trying jeep journey.The lake is about 11,000 feet above sea level. There is a rest house with cheap accomodation & beautiful views. Different tour operators organize a trip in to Phander valley which is worth visiting because of its scenic beauty & cool weather.

Near Sust (a little further south down the road) there is a road going up to a village, it is quite a long walk, but it is very rewarding. There is a very old mosque and some old houses. The village goes way back in time. A lady who lives there told us that her ancestry has lived there for generations. We drove there with people who live in Sust, a few boys wanted to guide us up there.

Hunza is famous for its mountains. They are huge, most of them above 7500 metres and change colours throughout the day according to the angle of sunlight. They are different in shape, some peaks are so steep that no ice sticks to them while some are very broad and so on.

Although I didnt go in the autumn, I heard it has its own beauty in these areas. The colours of the trees are pretty interesting in autumn and the weather is still pleasant.