Stretching
North from the Arabian Sea, the plains of Pakistan culminate in the lush
valleys of Dir, Swat, and Kaghan. Beyond lie the great Northern valleys
of Chitral, Gilgit, Hunza, and Baltistan. Separating the two river systems,
which drain from these valleys is a mountain range, a chain of mountains,
which
forms one of
the sharpest cultural boundaries in the world; the cultural line between
Central Asian countries and Pakistan. Still further North, the Karakoram
and Hindukush ranges shape the western extensions of the Himalayas Though
sparsely populated, Pakistan's Northern valleys exhibit the diversity one
would expect of a boundary area. In the east, Baltistan shows an affinity
with Tibet. In fact, its language is a dialect of archaic Tibetan and many
remnants of Tibetan culture can still be observed here. In the Gilgit region,
Shina is the dominant language. Gilgit's most prominent contribution to
the area seems to be the Gilgit cap worn throughout
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most of
Northern Pakistan. To the North, legendary Hunza confirms its reputation
as one of the world's great mountain communities. It's language - Burushaski
- seems unrelated to any other and its origins remain a mystery. Like Chitral
to the West, Hunza manifests it's age-old contact with Central Asia, the
consequence of lying abreast of the caravanroutes that spread southwards
from the mountain passes. Within the borders of Chitral are the Kafir valleys
of Birir, Rambur and Bamburet. In a nation that is almost entirely Muslim,
the kafirs are unique; they are pagans with their own very original beliefs,
customs and art forms.
The land in these Northern valleys is best described as a mountainous desert.
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During
winter, heavy snow separate the valleys from the rest of the world for six
months. In the summer, temperatures over 100 degrees are common. In Skardu,
one is immediately struck by the juxta - position of sand dunes and snow-capped
peaks.All these beautiful valleys mentioned above
make Pakistan really a trekker's paradise.One of the
most popular trek is the Baltoro trek, which ends up at Concordia. Concordia
is the point where all the Glaciers coming from K2, Broad peak, and Gasherbrum
IV meet and flowdown towards
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Paiju
peak, like a highway. Nowhere in the world one can witness four 8000 meter
peaks in such small radius. They are K2, Broad peak, Gasherbrum I, and Gasherbrum
II. On this trek, besides these 8000 meter giants one can enjoy the scenarios
of Masherbrum, Muztagh towers, Chogolisa, Baltoro Cathedrals and numerous
other peaks.
Amongst the other popular treks there are Biafo Hisper trek, Nanga Parbat
trek, Rakaposhi trek, Trichmir trek, and countless other trekking routes.Pakistan
has five above 8000 meter peaks out of the fourteen including the second
highest
peak
in the world, K2. we have biggest glaciers out of the popular region, like
Batura, Baltoro, Biafo, and Hisper glaciers. There
are still certain areas in Pakistan yet to be explored and this virgin land
is waiting to be explored.
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