Postcard from the Karakoram Highway ‘life is a journey not a destination’

Karakoram HighwayGilgit-BaltistanPakistantravelphotographydangerous roads

Jun 29

We are driving along the Karakoram Highway from Hunza, through Skardu to Shigar in Gilgit-Baltistan. It seemed like a good idea to drive, to see more of Pakistan, to experience what has been described as the eighth wonder of the wonder. I also wanted to continue our journey along the Old Silk Road.

This section of the Highway is 325 kilometres and according to Google maps will take 7 hours to drive. Our guide mentioned it was more likely to take 8 to 9 hours depending on road conditions and road works.

The Karakoram Highway, also known as the China-Pakistan Friendship Highway is 1,300 kilometres in length and starts in Hasan Abdal in the Punjab Province and ends at the Khunjerab Pass in Gilgit-Baltistan (the subject of a previous blog). Started in 1959 and finished in 1979 it is one of the highest paved roads in the world. From the Highway you can see three mountain ranges, The Hindukush, the Himalayas and the Karakoram. As part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor the Highway is being upgraded. In the building of the Highway 810 Pakistanis and over 200 Chinese workers have lost their lives due to extremely difficult working conditions.

I had been told that the journey along the Highway is spectacular but also that the road conditions can be very difficult. Work to upgrade this stretch of the Highway is underway, with impossibly large equipment scattered along side the road. The Highway moves from a single paved road to a double paved road (it still looked like a single road to me), to gravel, and back to being paved again. Landslides are a common occurrence. A large portion is still gravel, with no guard rail and a steep drop to the valley below.

Being forewarned didn’t prepare me for how difficult parts of the road were to drive along. The single laned parts of the Highway made me grip the handle of the passenger car door and breath in when cars and trucks tried to pass. The gravel threw up lots of dust and at times it was difficult to see the road ahead. When a truck broke down on a tight, single lane, hairpin turn I thought we were in for a long wait. I was more horrified when our driver decided to edge slowly around the truck. Local workers were extremely helpful helping us navigate around the truck, but I was then also concerned for their safety.

When the road widened and was smooth, I could sit and enjoy the passing scenery. We would turn a corner and in front of us would be the most beautiful green valley with neat terraces climbing high up the mountainside. We would turn another corner and see mountains rising high above us. Another turn brought back my fears as I saw the remains of a large landslide flowing down the mountain. One of the most spectacular sights was Nanga Parbat, at 8,126 metres. Nanga Parbat stands at the western end of the Himalayas, it is the ninth highest peak in the world. There are fourteen mountains in the world that are 8,000 metres or higher, five are located in Pakistan.

There is a quote, attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson, that ‘life is a journey not a destination’. The Karakoram Highway is a spectacular, if somewhat terrifying, journey.