Exploring Neelum Valley (10-13 July)

[imarshad]

i am new comer on pakwheel.
with such detailed journey and sceneries i think atleast this year i missd it but inshallah next year will definately go with family.

approx. how much it will cost for whole trip from isd and back for 4 persons.

Well the main expenditure will be transportation. The hotels/rest houses are very cheap and so is the meal in Neelum valley.
From Kel onwards the jeep rent was Rs. 4000 for shonter and Rs. 5000 for Taobut. The main expenditure will be travelling from Muzaffarabad to Kel. If you don't have a jeep or high ground clearance vehicle then you can hire a jeep from Muzaffarabad for 3-4 days. It will definitely be very expensive but with minimum risk. Other option is to take the buses plying to Kel from Muzaffarabad. This will be very cheap but you will miss all the scenery/locations in between.

[qadeergillani]

Arshad Bhai U done very well with ur extreeeeem beautiful Pictures I like ur effort and ur trip and ur photos was (no words find for ur photos) ............... like it. very like it so amazing so markable best photos from Neelum Valley is ur photos................

[imarshad]

Arshad Bhai U done very well with ur extreeeeem beautiful Pictures I like ur effort and ur trip and ur photos was (no words find for ur photos) ............... like it. very like it so amazing so markable best photos from Neelum Valley is ur photos................

Thanks Qadeer for liking my trip and photos....

[imarshad]

I am back with last few pics of this tour....

On our way back to Kel from Taobut we stopped near Helmat. Our driver had some family friends over there and they wont let us pass without tasting some of their delicacies

Home of our hosts... The scenery was excellent and I could easily lose 10 KG's of fats if I could live in this home for a couple of weeks as I will be hiking all day long in those mountains behind the house.

Drawing room/Guest Room.... It was quite uniquely decorated.

Along with other traditional things(like biscuits etc.) we got Paratha's , fresh cow's Makhan (Butter) and the famous Pink Tea (Kashmiri Chai). Although it was saltish and they called it Salooni Cha.

[imarshad]

Some more scenery around Helmat.

[imarshad]

Near the Army Installation in Helmat the army people didn't allow us to pass on the road but asked us to drive through the river....

It was much more scarier then what it looks in these pics....

[imarshad]

On our way back to Kel....

[imarshad]

When we were still 1.5 Hours away from Kel the jeep started to produce some strange noises from the rear suspension. The driver stopped and after observing told us that a Pin has broken (I think of the rear Shocks or Kamani or what so ever). Fortunately he got one spare with him and was able to mend it and our stop was only for 30 min.

[imarshad]

Fortunately this stop allowed me to capture some scenes with my Camera.

[imarshad]

Tried to capture some pics of the beautiful flowery grass but the wind was too strong and the flowers/grass was waving too fast for a really good Focused pics... and I ended up taking following blurry pics....

[imarshad]

Another view of the Neelum River where our jeep stopped.

A Chashma was also nearby.

Spotted a log flowing through the river. It was moving at a very high speed and it over took our jeep.

Some Bakarwals..... Delicious Bar B.Q. or Dum Pukht or Sajji

[imarshad]

Finally we managed to reach Kel at round about 3 PM. It was raining Cats and Dogs at Kel and some local people suggested that we should not attempt to go to Sharda as it is raining quite heavily and the Water Nala's crossing the road might be higher and our cars might not pass. But our jeep driver suggested that it will be OK for us to leave. So we left Kel at about 4 : 30 PM and the rain followed us all the way to Sharda but we managed to cross all Nala crossings and reached Dowarian at about 1900 and stayed at Dowarian rest house.

Muddy Road while leaving Kel.

Still raining quite heavily after reaching Sharda

[imarshad]

Well this is all from my side on this tour.

Just for entertainment here are some local trucks/buses that we saw in the Neelum valley.

Local Bus that travels from Muzaffarabad to Sharda.

Common Bedford Truck

The Most Hilarius truck that I have ever seen. My brother called it a "PHEENA TRUCK"

[SalmanZ.]

Excellent coverage! It reminds me, my trip to pir chunasi, dauo-khan (Just stayed for a night camping) then moved to main destination i.e. leepa valley (Including 12 Haazari i.e. 12 Thousand Feet & Highest Check post in that region controlled by PK Army)... n other trip to Jaagran. I Love AJK for its greenery.<input id="gwProxy" type="hidden"><input onclick="jsCall();" id="jsProxy" type="hidden">

[nomi700]

@iamarshad

excellent trip and photography. i have been to rawalakot and suburbs in may 2010 and since then i am in love with beauty of azad kashmir and its greenery.

well done

[aks_e_ahmed]

Superb Trip and really nice pics and also very informative thread great job....!

[baburawan]

I love Neelum Vally... visited many time... Zabardast

[wittycranium]

Now some pics of the Hari Parbat which is the specialty of this area.

Hari Parbat

Tried to take a somewhat zoomed picture of the mountain

This one's like the Pakistani version of Matterhorn.

[Zeeshan206]

Very nice coverage

[tauseef]

excellent trip mate.