High Peaks Adventure

Landscapes & Cultures of the Highest Mountains

Tour Highlights

Visit three highest mountain ranges of the world
Visit ancient castles
Experience layers of history in Taxila
Experience a local festival
Trek to Fairy Meadows

16 DAYS/16 NIGHTS

Physical Rating: 2

Best Time to Visit: May - September

Our fixed dates coincide with festivals in Kalash and Chitral Valleys

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The morning is free to recover from your journey. In the
afternoon and we offer an optional walk to the Margalla hills
surrounding the capital.
Later in the afternoon, the trek leaders will give a full trip briefing.
We will conclude our evening with a group dinner, this will be an
opportunity for everyone to get to know each other, ask
questions and enjoy a restful evening before our journey begins

We will take an early morning flight to Skardu. The flight is about an hour and on the way you will see the foot hills of the Himalayas, leading to Nanga Parbat and as we get closer to landing K2 and Baltoro Glacier. In the afternoon we will visit the historic Kharpocho fort. At the top, we have views of the surrounding area. We will also visit the 14th century Amburiq
Mosque in Shigar Village, a UNESCO award-winning site. We will return to our hotel where you have an option to further explore the area or relax and enjoy the location.

Katchura Lakes are two beautiful alpine lakes near Skardu. We
start our trip with a visit to the lower Kachura lake which is
located at a resort. We will have an optional hike to upper
Kachura lake, for those interested it is possible to go boating and
fish for Trout in these lakes. We will have lunch here and later will
explore Skardu town for shopping before returning to the hotel.
In the evening we will visit private hot springs and relax before
dinner.
DAY 4 D

This is a long day, we will start after breakfast and head to Deosai
Plains, stopping at the beautiful turquoise blue Satpara Lake on
the way.
Deosai National Park is a high-altitude alpine plateau, the average
elevation is 4114m(13497ft) making it the second highest plateau
in the world. We will have lunch at the beautiful Shausar lake and
you will have an opportunity to walk in the area, after spending
3-4 hours in the area we will drive another 3 hours to reach
Astore, where we will spend the night.

We start our day with a leisurely morning at Rama Lake, later we
will drive to Raikot bridge for our journey to Fairy Meadows with
views of Nanga Parbet.
We will take Jeeps over a 17km steep and narrow dirt road to
Tattu village, where the hiking trail to Fairy Meadows begins. This
is a well established trail and we walk through the forest on a
gentle climb for about 2-3 hours. We spend the night in Fairy
Meadows with beautiful views of Nanga Parbat.

We will trace our steps back to Raikot Bridge and head to Hunza,
stopping in Gilgit for lunch. Here we will have a chance to visit the
famous Kargah Buddha, a 7th century carving of a large standing
Buddha.
On our way to Hunza we will stop for views of the great mass of
Rakaposhi, the 27th highest mountain in the world 7,788m
(25,551ft).

In the morning you will have an option to hike behind Baltit fort
along an irrigation channel with views of Hunza Valley, the
surrounding peaks and terraced fields with views of daily life. The
trek ends at the high point (Eagles nest) where you can view the
entire Hunza Valley.
In the afternoon we will visit the 1100 years old Altit fort, the
original seat of the Hunza state and the oldest monument in GilgitBaltistan. For those interested there will an option to take a cooking
class in Pakistani cuisine.

Today we head to towards Khunjerab Pass, the land route to
Chinese border and at 4,934m(16,187ft) the highest border crossing
in the world. The scenery is beautiful with high peaks all around. Due
to the dramatic change in altitude, we will only take a brief stop at
the top before heading back.
Our last stop for the night is Attabad Lake, formed in 2010 after a
landslide that blocked the flow of the river. We will take a boat ride
to our hotel where we spend the night.

After a leisurely morning on the banks of Attabad lake we drive
towards Ghizer valley the launching pad for Shandur Pass. Shandur is
also known as the rooftop of the world and is the birth place of
Polo which still played amongst villages during the Polo festival.
The 6 hour drive brings us to Phandar, where our hotel is located
on the banks of Phandar lake. The deep blue lake We will have
chance to walk around the lake and relax.

We will take the Shandur Pass to Mastuj, stopping for tea at the
top 3,800m(12,467ft). For those interested, there will be a
chance to walk in the beautiful meadows before getting picked
by the jeep.
If we are here at the time of Shandur Festival we will spend the
night in the festival grounds. Traditionally a polo tournament, the
festival is a celebration of local culture, music and cuisine. In the
morning we will watch a polo match played in the free style
polo and then continue to Mastuj.
Mastuj was the seat of the principality that governed Northern
Chitral and Yasin valleys. We will spend our night in a hotel
located within the historic Mastuj fort

This is a beautiful and scenic drive, as we start from Mastuj Valley
towards Yarkund Valley and wind down towards Chitral. Driving
close to the Wakhan Corridor, which borders Afghanistan and
Tajikistan we will see impressive views of Trich Mir 7,708 m
(25,289 ft) the highest mountain in the Hindukush range.
This is one of the most beautiful and dramatic drives you are
ever likely to take as we wind our way up the Mastuj Valley,
passing Tirich Mir and Boni Zong, before finally entering the
Yarkund Valley at the top of which lies Afghanistan’s Wakhan
Corridor

Birbir, Bumborete and Rumbur valleys are locally known as
Kafiristan (the land of the infidels). These valleys are home to the
3,000 year old civilization of Kalash people who are spread in
about 20 villages. The Kalash practice their own religion and their
cultural practices are unique from all other ethnicities. We will
visit Kalash villages, meet with locals who are keen to share their
culture and lifestyle with visitors. Later we will move to our hotel
in the Kalash Valley where we spend the night
If we are here in time for a Kalash festival. The celebration is a
huge party, with lots of dancing, wine and feasting. We will
witness the celebrations and you have an opportunity to wear
traditional Kalash attire and participate in the festivities.

We will travel by road to Swat Valley, stopping at the Chakdara
Museum with its collection of first to seventh century Gandhara
Art. The drive will take us through villages and small towns and
we will reach our destination in the evening.

In the morning will visit the Swat Museum with its collection of
Gandharan statuettes and treasure from the valley of Swat.
The area of Swat was a major buddhist center and buddhist and
Ghandhara sites are littered all over the valley. We will visit the
remains of 2nd century Butkara stupa, believed to contain the
ashes of Buddha. We continue to Udegram village where you
will have the option to hike to Raja Gira’s castle, site with a
history stretching from 1,000 BC to 14th century.

We will visit the UNESCO world heritage sites of Takht-bhai and
Taxila. Takht-Bhai is a 7th century Buddhist monastery. The
origins of Taxila as a city go back to 1500 BC and it was an
important Buddhist Centre from 5th century BC to 6th Century
AD. Taxila Museum is famous for its magnificent collection of
Gandhara Art.
After Taxila we will head over to our hotel in Islamabad. The
evening is free to relax or join an organized shopping trip.

After a relaxed morning, you will have a chance to visit some of
sights in Islamabad, including Faisal Mosque and the national
institute of folk heritage. You will have an opportunity to buy
local handicrafts and we will arrange a tour of carpet shopping.
After relaxing at the hotel, we will head to the Margalla hills for a
celebration dinner to end an amazing experience.

Our private transport will take you to the airport.

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Is this Trip for you?

All our tours feature a physical rating to help select the right vacation. Every one of tours require the ability to walk around sights unaided, while more active tours include longer walks or multi-day treks.

Level 1: A reasonable level of fitness is required but its more about spending time on your feet than covering large distances. You will be getting on and off vehicles, walking around sites and climbing steps.

Level 2: The typical day is busier and involves more steps or multiple sites visits every day. The trip might involve day hikes of 2-3 hours.

Level 3: You should enjoy hiking and feel comfortable hiking 3–6 miles with elevation with elevation gains/losses of up to 300m(1000 ft) per day. We suggest beginning a regular exercise regimen at least 2–3 months prior to departure.

Level 4: You should be comfortable with hiking 5-8 hours each day, up to 18km (11 miles) with as much as 3,000’elevation gain and loss or high altitude.

Level 5: Challenging for fit hikers with experience in multi-day treks in high altitude. These tours are not appropriate for novice hikers or even for experienced but unfit hikers.

If you have any questions, please reach us at info@thewander.travel