Trip to Hunza, Hoper Valley, Nagar and Naltar Valley. Advise Needed

[armughans]

Hi All,
I have planned a trip with 4 friends for visiting Hunza and surrounding areas. Our dates are from 21st till 27th May. So we have six full days. We are gona fly into Gilgit on 21st at 11:30am and come back from Gilgit early morning on 27th May.

I need your advise on which areas to visit and which routes to take? We have previous hiking and camping experience so camping overnight and trekking up to 5-6 hrs a day will not be an issue. Currently I have only idea of visiting Gligit>Karimabad>Nagar>Hopar>Nomal>Naltar>Gilgit. But I don't know how to travel (whether by jeep or trek) or are there other better places or lakes i can visit in the area? Can i manage to visit Rakaposhi basecamp as well?

So anyone who has experience with these areas and can help with the trip details will be greatly appreciated

[asifcae]

if u wana visit rakaposhi base camp u ll have to go for Minapin Trek. minapin is a small town located in hunza well b4 kariamabad and gulmit etc. its a very simple trek and requires only 1 day if u r average hiker.
if u wana c Diran peak BC u can spend 2 dayz on the trek. also c Kacheli lake. then u shud/can go to ultar meadows (1 day trek) from Karimabad.
if u have time after the places u have mentioned then u shud visit the atabad lake and drive to Khunzrab as well. if u r flying to gilgit ten ul have enuf time. ul have to leave 1 of the above treks mayb.
dont c Naltar in this trip. its not in hunza and u l have to go off route.

because of atabad lake ur trip from karimaad to khunzrab may take 2 dayz ok so plan in advance.

[armughans]

Thanks for your response. Is Khunzrab worth the effort? I have heard there is nothing much to see there. Are there other places to visit on the other side of atabad lake?

[asifcae]

yes khunjrab is definit;y worth it. it is the highest road mountain pass of the world man !!!!!1

sost and Khunjrab NP are wrth it on the other side of attabad lake

[HanifBhatti]

@asifcae
A friend wants to go to Hunza next week, Is the road open and whats the road condition?
He has to go via KKH cause Naran~Babusir is close due to snow???

Thanks in advance:)

[asifcae]

@Libra
yes he has to take KKh. Babusar top is closed.
the KKh is under construction but open. he can go till khunjrab. only it will take more than usual time to reach and also Attabad lake has to be crosed on Boat so he can leave his ride at karimabad and continue on jeep.

[HanifBhatti]

@Libra
yes he has to take KKh. Babusar top is closed.
the KKh is under construction but open. he can go till khunjrab. only it will take more than usual time to reach and also Attabad lake has to be crosed on Boat so he can leave his ride at karimabad and continue on jeep.

Thanks for the Info

[desertdevil]

i would agree with asifcae here..... you have a full week. i would suggest you make karimabad your base station and then move around from thr. Hoper is a place not to be missed and you can cross the glacier (not to be done without a guide) to yet another glacier. The place is something out of this world. From Karimabad you can walk upto Doekar (eagles nest) and there are lots of other places as well.

Beyond attabad lake till Khunjrab pass is something you wont forget. Either you take the trip beyond attabad till the top and enjoy peace, nature and wildlife or you camp in Karimabad and do local sightseeing. doing both in 6-7 days i wouldnt recommend.

[HanifBhatti]

i would agree with asifcae here..... you have a full week. i would suggest you make karimabad your base station and then move around from thr. Hoper is a place not to be missed and you can cross the glacier (not to be done without a guide) to yet another glacier. The place is something out of this world. From Karimabad you can walk upto Doekar (eagles nest) and there are lots of other places as well.

Beyond attabad lake till Khunjrab pass is something you wont forget. Either you take the trip beyond attabad till the top and enjoy peace, nature and wildlife or you camp in Karimabad and do local sightseeing. doing both in 6-7 days i wouldnt recommend.

Thanks Asad Bhai:)

I just called my friend and gave him the Info, he is worried about the 1st leg on KKH.. Abbottabad~Manshera~Besham because of the current situation.

One more question he has.. How much time does it take to reach the border from Hunza, crossing the lake, renting a jeep from other side and back to Karimabad?

[travelinghell]

@armghan bhai you can travel from gilgit to further areas by rented jeep or by public transport .. First you have to decide where you want to go ...
by the way from mini pin to Rakaposhi track is excelent option . so first you take in mind that from gilgit if you start travel minipin comes first and then karimabad then gulmit , passu , sust and then finaly khanjrab.
In mini pin there's my friend Israr who can help you out for every thing you want for this track , he also have his place for camping where he cater tourists . so if you really want to go there i will give you his cell number .
Shimshal is also found in your way .. the way starts from Passu , passenger jeeps and rented jeeps are available all around .. but better you let the manager of your hotel know before a day so he gonna arrange one for you ..from shimshal you can trek to pamir ..
From Sust you have a great option of going to Chuperson Valley .. this valley is little know with tourists but travel arrangements and home stays are available there. Belive me it worth a hike .
Dear there are a lot of trek and places ... only six days are not enough ..
but if you have any other query plz let me know .

[asifcae]

@armughans:

i have sent u email.

plz be focusd on one destination. i think u shud stick to hunza alone for now.

first u can do minapin trek which is simple and easy and butiful also.
then u can visit all areas of hunza already dicussed above.
dont go for shimshal pamir trek its strenous and long (uptill shimshal lake) u can go to shimshal village by jeep.
about chipursun valley u can go uptill ziarat baba ghundi by jeep its also worth it provided u have time

[asifcae]

@libra
tell ur friend there is no issue on KKh. only worry is that he shud not cross chilas area at nite coz wahan par raat ko kafla banta hai garioun ka mayb 5-6 vehicles and then its send. this wastes alot of time.

with this lake fomed i think it will be whole dayz activity to reach khunjrzb pass from hunza central.

[ranasherdil]

@Have the Khunjrab pass opened in the Mid May? In which season it got opened usually.

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[armughans]

@travelinghell Thanks for the info, Sorry I couldn't reply earlier. After discussing with Asif bhai earlier, we decided that from Gilgit Airport we will be reaching Minapin directly and than do the Rakaposhi trek. It would be great help if you can give me Israr's number so that I can make arrangements with him.

After that we reach Karimabad (22nd May Evening). From there we had planned to spend one day on ultar meadows trek. Now according to my calculations we can still have 3 full days left. So we can go through Attabad lake early morning and hire jeep for Shimshal Valley. Now about the Pamir trek, can you provide a bit more info? can we camp their for the night? It would be great if you can also provide some contact details of hotel or guide there.

Next day we can visit Sost, KP, chipursun valley uptill ziarat baba ghundi and make our way back to Karimabad.

If i missed any place please remind me...

[armughans]

Also, has anyone visited Shimshal Lake A Lake in Shimshal | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

[shabanazahid]

KKH info. Required
I’m planning a trip to gilgit, hunza and skardu in June 2011 with family on my Corolla and another friend on their Civic. I need information on the route and road conditions.
1. Should I go on KKH via besham, chillas and gilgit. (I heard in kohistan the road condition is very bad)
2. Or should I go naran road via jalkhad, babusar pass. Is that road is open, accessible by car.
3. After the hunza disaster last year, is the KKH open till Khunjrab pass (china border)
4. Any other suggestion and advice from expert Pakwheelers….