Kashgar is predominantly an Uigur town/city, with people of ‘true’ Chinese heritage making up only a small portion of the population. It’s sometimes hard to believe that you’re actually in China. This is especially true when walking through Kashgar’s old quarter. It’s the place we liked most when we visited 3 years ago and it’s still the most interesting part of the city. Numerous food stalls line the small streets (bread is made practically on the side walk), carpenters, blacksmiths and cobblers work by hand out of small shop fronts, old men hurry to the mosque for daily prayers and kids scurry through a maze of alley ways.

The animal bazaar is also one of Kashgar’s big attractions. You can buy anything from a goat to a camel…

Uigur’s are of muslim faith. Like all muslims around the world they are currently celebrating Ramadam. A period of 40 days during which they are only allowed to eat after sunset and before sunrise. They are also required to share their food/belongings with the needy. We witnessed this, when around 100 people were fed ‘en mass’ by local food vendors.

We spent three nights in Kashgar ‘recharging our batteries’. We also bought another new battery for the bike, as the last one (made in China) started to fall apart.
From Kashgar we headed south past Karakul lake, through the border town of Tashkurgan and up to the actual China/Pakistan border at Khunjerab Pass. The weather was not kind to us and it even started to snow as we got to the top of the pass. At just under 5,000m a.s.l, to say it was cold would be an understatement…

We quickly made our way down the Pakistan side of the pass towards its border town of Sost. The change in scenery once over Khunjerab Pass, is dramatic! The Khujerab river cuts deep into the surrounding mountains, which seem to close in on top of you the further you descend. Jagged peaks tower ominously overhead and if any place could resemble Mordor (from the movie ‘Lord of the Rings’) this would be it.

At Sost we quickly made our way through immigration/customs, changed some money and got our first taste of Pakistan’s version of chapati, dal and milk tea. We’ve eaten this everyday since and at US$2 (for the whole meal) we just can’t get enough of it…

Our first overnight stop was at Passu, where accommodation was super cheap at just US$4!! It’s not the Hilton, but its not bad for a double room with an attached bathroom and this view just outside the window…

The next day we rode onto Karimabad in the heart of the Hunza Valley. The scenery continued to amaze. The sheer size of the surrounding peaks is overwhelming and we feel like every mountain range we’ve seen to date, pales in comparison. It’s not everyday that you’re surrounded by 7,000m+ peaks such as Ultar or the legendary Rakaposhi.

From Karimabad we made a side trip to Hoper, to check out one of the many surrounding glaciers. In this part of the world, they seem to flow out from around every corner. While checking out one glacier we heard gunshots and an explosion. One of he locals joked that it was the Taliban, but when he saw that we weren’t laughing he quickly explained that it was only some guys hunting ducks. On the way back we saw kids with kalashnikovs and they didn’t look like hunters…

It was then onto Gilgit, one of the larger towns along the Karakoram. Gilgit has a lively atmoshpere (especially at the bazaar) and the people are very friendly. However, the constant presence of military police in barricaded check posts, remind you that you’re in a dangerous part of the world. The bombing of the Marriot hotel occured a day before we entered Pakistan. It was too late to change our route but we continue to monitor the security situation closely in order to ensure we don’t put ourselves at risk. Iza has even started wearing a headscarve to attract less attention.

One of our objectives while in northern Pakistan, is to get a closer look at some of the worlds highest peaks (Pakistan has five out of the fourteen which exceed 8,000m), so we turned off the Karakoram Highway (KKH) just after Gilgit and headed east towards Skardu. This is where mountaineers from all over the world coverge, in order to tackle these giants. On the way to Skardu we got a glimpse of Nanga Parbat (8,125m), the most western mountain on the Himalayan range. We also plan to approach it from the south and get a closer look at its ‘Rupal Face’, which is a sheer 4,500m wall. Too steep for snow to stick!

From Skardu we rode further east (along a very rough road) to the Hushe Valley. It leads up to the base camp of Masherbrum (7,820m). On the way we stopped in many small villages where kids were only too happy to pose for photos…

On the motorbike we could not go further than the village of Hushe. We found a hotel for just US$2.50 which included room service…

We asked the owner whether he had any beer, but he said it was impossible to get. He did offer us hashish though!

From Hushe, it is possible to make a two day trek to see the distant K2 (at 8,611m second only to Everest). Unfortunately, we did not have enough time for this and will have to do it next time…

We are currently in Skardu and plan to leave tomorrow, tracking over the Deosai Plains to Tarashing (at the base of Nanga Parbat).

So far we are absolutely in awe of Pakistan and cannot wait to see what’s around the corner…