AOA dear pakwheelers
this was my second tour of the current season....first an unsuccessful one to rawalakot region (details in the following thread https://www.pakwheels.com/forums/road-trips-vacations/250381-theft-kashmir-ruined-trip ) so i was left unsatisfied and planned another trip to swat with two of my office buddies......this time destination was SWAT since all threats of terrorims were wiped out and it was long (almost twenty years) that I had visited it......
the trip was great but tiring specifically due to bahrain-kalam road which was an ultimate torture.....secondly we made a disastrous error by missing the new mingora- bahrain road which travels on the other side of the river, an mistake we had to mourn for long afterwards.....
so here are the details
day 1 : (wednesday) lahore to taxilla...night stay at HIT taxilla.....most vip stay during the journay
Day 2 : (thursday) start early 5.30 reached mardan by 7.30.... a bit of stay for car problem...reached mingora by almost 10..too much traffic on the way..self-prepared breakfast at river side on mingora bypass.....then head straight to a torture....(later it was told that we had to take left turn for the new road ......it took almost 2.5 hrs to reach bahrain.....not until madyian that we started travelling on the mountains.....as hot and plain as southern punjab road....
from bahrain to kalam.....it was literally a jeep track used by many cars .....thank God my tiny bity car took the pounding and in three hours we covered 34 km of bahrain-kalam road...reached at 5pm.. night stay at honey moon hotel....some walk around the jungle in kalam
Day 3: started early for mahodand....hired a fiedler....very comfortable....due to non-custom cars swat is a heaven in pakistan for vehicles.....this was best part of the journey...whole day fun.....ushu...mahodand....saif-ullah lake....since i was not driving so i was enjoying a lot....
Day 4....back journey started early at five....took almost two hours from kalam to bahrain..breakfast at bahrain...we had decided not to go back from mingora to mardan but besham/ abbottabad side..... that road is good.....so turned on khawazakhela-besham road.....that sixty five km patch leads to the KKH....lunch at NHA camp office in besham.....was happy to see indus river and that patch of kkh from besham to butgram is very fascinating.....i was rather drifting on that road.....tyres were screeching.....reached mansehra at 5.30....i was tired so decided to stay in mansehra (not a good decision).....not a quality food in mansehra
Day 5....(sunday) back journey started early at six as usual.....went to abbottabad....visited Illiyasi mosque....decided to take nathia gali/murree route....stayed for a while at some water stream enroute to natia gali...a picnic spot in fact....no crowed as early morning....then went to nathia gali....weather was very pleasent there and since it was only 10am in the morning so did not encounter much traffic.....stayed there for an hour....took two hours to reach murree.../jeekha gali....roads are underconstruction/ expansion....traffic block as usual with some landsliding....again one hour wasted to reach express way....and then it was journey back home which took some 6 hours with a savour food break at isb....
Drive : Santro 2005.....previously experienced for naran/shogran (two times), neelum upto sharda, tolipeer/banjosa/dhirkot (twice)....proved to be both economical and reliable
Accommodation : day 1 (HIT = nil) day 2/3: Hotel honey moon kalam 1500/- (this fare is only because road is disastrous otherwise if that 32km patch is carpeted it would be four to five times ) , mansera 900/-
to mahodand : 3200/- car + 900 boating
fuel expenses 8200/- for 1600 km of travelling remember cheapest fuel is on motorway and its rate increases as we go deep into swat valley....
food expenses : i usually carry my food and a cylinder so we make our own tea and breakfast etc....so not much expense on food....may be around two thousands.....
and offcourse there are lots of checkposts while entering into SWAT last one at khwazakhela.....every passenger must carry NIC.....