Town or village
Darkot
Ghizer district · 2,800 m
The last village on the road north of Yasin, and the base for treks over the Darkot Pass into Chapursan.
Darkot lies about 40 km north of Yasin proper and is the base for treks over the Darkot Pass into the Chapursan valley of Hunza. It is a lovely place to be at the end of the road, with the high mountains ahead of you.
Kind Town or villageDistrict GhizerElevation 2,800 mPosition about 36.583° N, 73.200° E
About Darkot
The English explorer George Hayward, a widely travelled man, came here in the days of the Great Game, planning to find the source of the Oxus by crossing the Darkot Pass. The pass remains the great draw for walkers today.
From Darkot, trails lead on to Broghil, from where you can go down to Chitral or up over the Qurumbar Pass, at 4,343 m, to Ishkoman. Another route goes west and then south down the Das river through summer settlements to the Thui valley, a moderate trek of three days at the highest shepherd camps.
Elsewhere in Ghizer
Swipe along the district, from the valley floor to the summits.
- 1,800 m
Town or village
Gahkuch
The district headquarters of Ghizer, on the Gilgit river, and the turn for the Ishkoman valley.
- 2,400 m
Town or village
Ishkoman
A valley where nine languages are spoken in Immit village alone, and the base for treks to Yasin, Naltar and Chapursan.
- 4,272 m
Lake or water
Qurumbar Lake
At 4,272 m, a perennial lake at the head of Ishkoman, inside Pakistan's first wetlands national park.
- 2,200 m
Town or village
Gupis
Where the Yasin river joins the Gilgit, and where the road divides for Yasin and Shandur.
- 2,250 m
Lake or water
Khalti Lake
Trout water below Gupis, frozen hard enough to walk on by January.
- 2,300 m
Town or village
Yasin
A Burushaski speaking valley, once a powerful independent kingdom and the gateway between the Oxus and the Indus.
Lake or water · 2,900 m
Phunder
The river braids into blue pools below the village: trout, poplars and a polo ground, on the road to Shandur.
- 3,700 m
Pass
Shandur Pass
At 3,700 m, the pass between Ghizer and Chitral, with the highest polo ground in the world on top.