In the beginning of January 2010 a huge mountain fall blocked the Hunza River which flooded several villages and the Karakorum Highway and formed a 30km long lake. The new lake Attabad could only be crossed by a boat which was very risky for the cars. But fortunately we could use the new tunnel which the Chinese built within 3 years of construction time. The view on the lake with the blue color was stunning!
It kept on raining the last days in Pakistan. We missed some great landscapes at the end of the Hunza canyon, but it is another reason to come back. We received the message that the pass to China was supposed to be open. The risk of avalanches was still high and the road could be blocked any moment. So we had to hurry because the next bad weather front was coming. We went through the immigration and customs in Sost – the last village on the Karakorum Highway. Then we hurried to manage the last 80km without getting stuck in an avalanche. We were one of the first traveling this part of the road in the season and the winter must have been hard. Many stones were on the street and the last part was still covered in snow. But we made it! Even the motorcycle which four men had to push through the snow managed to reach to border. We left this beautiful country with sad feelings behind us and were curious which barriers the China transit would bring. I wasn’t that optimistic after my last China experience…
After this long detailed report I would like to make this time a conclusion of the country I just wrote about. I know, I just visited a small part of the country. Many Pakistan travelers I met also visited the south of the country and agreed with me that Pakistan is a save travel country. The police and the security really are trying their best that nothing bad happens to foreign tourist. The people of Pakistan welcomed us all the time with a very honest hospitality which I never experienced before. It is up to everyone to check the security state and decide if this country should be on the personal travel route. I think nowadays problems can occur everywhere. And sometimes you’re just at the wrong time at the wrong place. I only can recommend that everyone goes out and visit this beautiful country. It was for me one of the best experiences on my trip and like after Georgia I know: I will come back…
To the statistic of the journey
Lieber Mathias,
Dank für Deinen Mut, diese Länder zu bereisen!
In Indien bin ich Motorrad gefahren. Nachdem ich mich an das Chaos gewöhnt hatte, fand ich´s lustig. Aber ohne Mantra geht natürlich nichts…
Ich suche noch Reisepartner, will mit meinem VW Polo Kombi Richtung Indien.
Darf ich hier Irene einladen?
Hey Irene, wahrscheinlich brauchen wir noch einen Mann, um in Pakistan klarzukommen!
Mitte Oktober bin ich mit meinen Terminen hier durch…
Türkei, Iran und Pakistan werdn neu für mich sein, ich bin dankbar für jede hilfreiche Info:
gayatri@gmx.de
Hallo,
steht die Reiseplanung denn nun schon? 😮 Mein Partner und ich planen auch über den Landweg nach Südostasien (vorerst wahrscheinlich aber Indien) zu reisen.
Liebste Grüße Lu ♥
Was für ein unglaublich schöner und eindrucksvoller Trip und fantastische Bilder & Videos. Lässt mein Herz höher schlagen und mein Wunsch, nach Pakistan zu reisen, wird immer dringender. Hab das schon lange im Hinterkopf, aber da Mitreisende zu finden, die sich trauen, war bisher unmöglich.
Danke dir für deinen wunderschönen Bericht!
Oh man, Pakistan! Tolles Land, schreckliches Image.
Deine Bilder sind großartig. Wenn wir das nächste Mal in Pakistan sind, dann vielleicht auch mit dem eigenen Auto und nicht nur mit den Autos der anderen 😀
Die lästige Polizeieskorte hat sich bis dahin hoffentlich erledigt.
Bezüglich der Madrasas lohnt es sich auch den Zusammenhang zwischen der Radikalisierung pakistanischer Schüler und der „Hilfsorganisation“ USAID zu hinterfragen. Spannend ist das allemal und mit dem Kopf schütteln kann man auch.