Dear Fellow Pakwheelers,
I have been a frequent traveller and love to hit the craziest spots in & out of Pakistan. I am a silent viewer of Pakwheels up till date but now i decided to break my silence and post a thread of my itinerary in 2013. Pakwheels is contributing a lot to Travel & i consider it my duty to give my share of Knowledge to all Pakistani Brothers.
So it all started with the thread of Hanif bhai when he visited the KKH with a media team. It insisted & guided me alot to plan my own trip to these areas. I started to plan a year earlier and when coming to the travel distance and days, it gave me a shiver not to travel alone. My partner of Life i.e. My Wife is also a travelholic like me, but we needed a couple more with us who can spend 17 days with us and love to travel like us. Forecasting the travel distance, pros & cons of a long ride it was necessary that i have a partner to drive with me. Our search finally ended on a very very close friend of mine who got newly married. As on one fine morning he came to me, telling that he has resigned from the job and now in search of some. I gave him an Evil smile and asked, to leave tension for a month, as we should plan a holiday together. It was his kindness and Bhabhi's greatness that they both agreed to go with us.
We had a memorable trip. I am a believer of strong planning and then travelling, so i booked every single hotel & destination before hand. It took me at least 10 to 15 write ups to finalize a route and total days to travel. Let me be honest with all of you and i should start the thread now.
Well plans are not always to be fulfilled & specially on such a long route. So i am sharing you the planned program vs the executed program which we travelled;
PLANNED PROGRAM:
30-May-2013 to 17-May-2013 (18 Days)
Day 1: Lahore to Besham (Stay @ PTDC Besham)
Day 2: Besham to Gilgit (Stay @ Army Rest House)
Day 3: Gilgit to Hunza (Stay @ Serena)
Day 4: Hunza
Day 5: Hunza to Gulmit & Visit to Khunjerab (Stay @ Gulmit Continental Hotel)
Day 6: Gulmit to Hunza (Stay @ Eagle Nest Hotel)
Day 7: Hunza to Gilgit (Stay @ Army Rest House)
Day 8: Gilgit to Skardu (Stay @ Shiger Fort Residence)
Day 9: Skardu
Day 10: Skardu to Khaplu (Stay @ Khaplu Fort Residence)
Day 11: Khaplu
Day 12: Khaplu to Skardu (Stay @ Shangrilla Hotel, Skardu)
Day 13: Skardu to Deosai to Rama (Stay @ PTDC Rama Lake)
Day 14: Rama
Day 15: Rama to Chillas to Babusar Top to Naran (Stay @ Hotel Demanchi)
Day 16: Naran
Day 17: Naran to Abbotabad (Stay @ Army Rest House)
Day 18: Abbotabad to Lahore
Executed travel altered at two Major locations;
1. Deosai Plan was unreachable so we dropped to go to Rama
2. Babusar Top near Lulusar Lake was closed so we had to drop Naran
So The final Executed Program Goes Hereunder;
EXECUTED PROGRAM:
30-May-2013 to 16-May-2013 (17 Days)
Day 1: Lahore to Besham (Stay @ PTDC Besham)
Day 2: Besham to Gilgit (Stay @ Army Rest House)
Day 3: Gilgit to Hunza (Stay @ Serena)
Day 4: Hunza
Day 5: Hunza to Gulmit & Visit to Khunjerab (Stay @ Gulmit Continental Hotel)
Day 6: Gulmit to Hunza (Stay @ Eagle Nest Hotel)
Day 7: Hunza to Gilgit (Stay @ Army Rest House)
Day 8: Gilgit to Skardu (Stay @ Shiger Fort Residence)
Day 9: Skardu
Day 10: Skardu to Khaplu (Stay @ Khaplu Fort Residence)
Day 11: Khaplu
Day 12: Khaplu to Skardu (Stay @ Shangrilla Hotel, Skardu)
<strike>Day 13: Skardu to Deosai to Rama (Stay @ PTDC Rama Lake)</strike>
Day 13: Skardu to Deosai to Skardu to Astak (Stay @ PTDC Astak)
<strike>Day 14: Rama</strike>
Day 14: Astak to Bunji to Chillas (Stay @ Shandrilla Hotel Chillas)
<strike>Day 15: Rama to Chillas to Babusar Top to Naran (Stay @ Hotel Demanchi)</strike>
Day 15: Chillas to Babusar Top & Back to Chillas (Stay @ Shandrilla Hotel Chillas)
<strike>Day 16: Naran</strike>
Day 16: Chillas to Abbotabad (Stay @ Private Rest House)
<strike>Day 17: Naran to Abbotabad (Stay @ Army Rest House)</strike>
Day 17: Abbotabad to Lahore
<strike>Day 18: Abbotabad to Lahore
</strike>
IMPORTANS BULLETS
1. Total Stay Cost Approx 135 K
2. Total Distance Travelled 3500 Km
3. Car Used was Toyota Land Cruiser Prado TZ 2006 Model
4. Petrol Cost, not exactly but my animal has an average of 6.5 km/ltr
5. Camera Used: Mobiles & Nikon D5200
SUGGESTIONS FOR TRAVELLERS:
1. Never travel alone
2. Always, Always avoid travelling in night specially in these areas. As streams on roads get very heavy (Not crossable) in evenings
3. Travel light
4. Travel from Mid July to Mid August. As this is the best when you can find all roads open and greenery everywhere
5. Plan ahead and travel early morning.
6. Always be ready for Plan-B
7. Know your vehicle
8. Respect Locals & their culture
9. Keep CNIC with you
Now as a teaser i am attaching following pictures after which i shall start the detailed thread;
Yes Video of the loaded and unloaded to Boat for Attabad Lake will also be uploaded in detail of Day 5