Friday 20 May 2016

TREK OVER ISHKOMAN /PUNJI PASS TO DARKOT YASIN

 Four days easy trek of open zone,( the best time is June to October).
It is an interesting and easy trek with superb views of snow towered Hind Kush peaks gives unbelievable joy to holidays.
We drive four hours from Gilgit to Ghotulti the village of the valley. It is an interesting drive along the Ghizar River crossing through beautiful villages of Punial and Ishkoman of the Ghizar district. There is public van service from Gilgit and you can hire private transport. There is beautiful camping site in garden under the apricot trees you can enjoy if you are there by the months of July and August with the falling apricots.
 Day-1 Ghotulti to Dazjabuk: This is a five to six hours easy day walk on a smooth path. The first one hour is little steep and then smoothly along the summer villages your treks goes amazing enjoying the real natural scenery of landscape, following the Baru River there are paths on both sides we can choose any one and if you have porters with donkeys will help you to find the easy one as the current situation. You cross a huge rock fall and reach to the first village Handis with fields of barley and wheat. From the village the view north Mathintir Valley showed jagged peaks (leads to another five days trek to Darkot over Attar Pass). Crossing the bridge at the end of the village there is spring need to full water bottles because there is no water for next few hours. We go across other summer villages with the views of lush green meadows and jagged peaks along the birch and juniper trees you will reach to summer village which is your campsite at 3300 meters with clear spring water with nice camping place.
Day-2 Dazjabuk to Holojut: This is walk of three to four hours walk. The first hour is an easy walk along the Babuser River and there is last summer settlement at 3400 meters, comprising about ten shepherds’ huts by a small lake. The people here are friendly will invite you to their huts and offer milk tea and yoghurt which is the traditional hospitality of the mountain communities.
 Along the there are more possible campsite under the shadows of the trees and good places for tents, but it is better to climb there is steep of an hour to make it easier for the next day to reach the pass in the morning time to avoid sinking in the snow on the pass, a place is called Holojut there are no shepherd huts but is beautiful vast grassy field with some stone shelters for your porters if you have some with you, camp at about 3,900 meters
Day-3 Holojut across Ishkoman Pass to Anisarbar: The climb northeast to the pass is very steep it takes three to four hours to cover almost 700 vertical meters to the top. It is better to start early in order to reach at the top before 10 a.m to avoid sinking on the snow at top. In late August the top is without snow, the pass is 4587 meters. From the pass to Yasin side there is a wide gentle snow field and small glacier need to be careful here. In an hour you can get down to the first clump of willow bushes beside a tiny spring a nice place for lunch and enjoy the views of jagged mountains of the Hindu Kush. After an hour down you will be in the last summer settlement with about 8 shepherds’ huts Anisarbar camp at 3800 meters.
Day-4 Anisarbar to Darkot: Four to five hours walking down through sparse pastures, and then barren gorge covered in loose shale, dropping about 300 meters the first summer settlement is Hapay by the Darkot people surrounded by barley fields and occupied for three months in the summer. At last the view opens you can see all the Darkot from here takes two hours to reach. The view all the down is magnificent you can see many snowcapped peaks ahead in for and close distance, the historical Darkot pass could be seen from here (we can combine this trek with that if you have more time to explore and see Broghi Valley).
Darkot is large village with about 400 houses situated at 2900 meters in wide fertile bowl but ( unfortunately 2010 heavy rains destroyed half of the part) most of the people became homeless and moved to down villages from here.
There is another two days trek from here to Thui Valley over Ghamubar Pass 4200 meters visible from the village with side Ghamubar Glacier falling down from the Ghamubar peak 6200 meters, worth for climbers to come here and can reach to the base camp in only three hours smooth walk from Darkot Village. There are several peaks around this beautiful village for less experience and low altitude climbers.

  I hope you will enjoy reading this article and pay visit to enjoy your holidays or enjoy the adventure life in the mountains of Hindu Kush and explore more.

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