Alone and Sick on One of the World's 'Most Dangerous' Roads | Full Film

Alone and Sick on One of the World's 'Most Dangerous' Roads | Full Film

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After an unforgettable journey through the majestic Hunza Valley, it's time to venture deeper into another legendary region, Skardu. Here, we'll come face to face with the awe-inspiring K2, the world's second highest peak, explore vast cold desert villages. And in this video, embrace the spirit of adventure as I navigate one of the most dangerous roads on the planet.

Stick around and we'll see if it truly lives up to its reputation. But this isn't just about stunning landscapes. Skardu is where the Pakistan Army holds the line of control, with the Indian Army on the other side.

The atmosphere here is different, so expect a heavier military presence compared to the tranquillity of Hunza. If you've ever been to Leh, well, I'm across the LOC in a culturally very similar region. Today, we'll ride from Gilgit, the capital city, to this region's largest city, Skardu.

But unfortunately, I've been battling a stomach infection. And as the journey unfolds, you'll see just how much that begins to take its toll on me as things start to go wrong. Let's hit the road.

And see, if I press this, both cameras are recording. Yeah, this is my remote. Okay, I'm ready to go.

Bye. So, that was the local cop. The Prime Minister is in town. So there's a lot of security. And they just keep an eye on what everybody's doing.

He's just bored. He's just bored and wanted to see my cameras basically. People are very friendly here. I know. You can kind of work it out when it's an intelligence guy or when it's a normal police guy by the questions they ask you, he's just a normal police dude.

Just trying to pass time. Okay. This is Gilgit city and we have... I think it's only like 100 and something kilometres but apparently, it's gonna take 4 to 5 hours. And it'll take longer than that because I'm sure there'll be things to see and do along the way, so... let's get into it boys and girls. I'm not sure how the roads are gonna be today.

I've heard they're extremely dangerous. But I've also heard they're great. So, I'm not sure.

There seems to be a rivalry between people from Hunza and people from Skardu. I guess they're both vying for tourism. Let's see if Skardu can blow me away.

If it's similar to Leh, the Leh side, then... I've seen it before, so... Let's see. Hunza totally was mind blowing. Totally mind blowing. Let's see if Skardu can do the same thing. What is going on here? Just slow down.

Pakistan... it’s a hospital. It's a hospital. And GB Scouts. It's Gilgit-Baltistan Scouts, I guess. Some more army installations.

This is an army town. So... yeah. Most of the army are here. And Skardu has some issues at the moment. The internet has been off across the entire province for the last two weeks. Because there's some religious tensions in Skardu.

Exactly where I'm going. I will be staying away from those. But if I see it, I will film it. I'll show you what's going on. I'm waiting for them to turn back on the 4G because I just haven't had any data the whole time I've been here. Only landline Wi-Fi. Anyway, there's not much power in this state.

The power is usually off. As far as I can tell. And people operate off generators or solar.

You can see solar panels there on the lights. And because this area we're going to is a little remote. So... I don't know. I don't know. I doubt I'll have bloody internet again.

Which makes it hard to run my YouTube channel while I'm here. Very hard. Okay, we're making good time. We've got 24 kilometres until we hit S-1.

That's the road which is gonna take us right to Skardu. And if we keep following that, we're gonna end up at K2. The second highest mountain in the world. And that's exactly what we're gonna do. Straight for Islamabad. Left for Skardu.

169 kilometres from here. Okay, cool. The road looks brand spanking new. Ah, here we go. Here's the point. Okay, see ya.

Be in Islamabad later. Not right now. Right now, let's go to Skardu. Oh, man. The views here. Incredible. That's police on the right. Not going too fast.

There's the bridge we have to cross down there. I can see a checkpost, so might have to stop, give my passport. Let's find out.

We're on the S-1 Strategic Highway Better known as the Gilgit-Skardu Road. Once infamous as one of the world's most dangerous roads, I think it's now time to retire that title as you'll see in this video. The road has been upgraded and widened, making the journey much safer and faster now. But danger still lurks.

Landslides remain a real threat. And you'll witness their impact as we continue. Just like you saw in the last video at Attabad Lake. How that lake was formed from an earthquake and a landslide. Oh, my butt's already sore though. My ass is sore on this Honda-125cc that I'm riding.

And uh... This might surprise you, but I don't really ride for fun. You know, I'm not here carving up the corners. I don't know. That's kind of fun, but... I kind of find it dangerous on these roads, travelling fast and carving corners, because ...

you'll often find someone on your side of the road. So I'm more focused on going slow and uh... peeking around the corners to see who's comin'. Comin' at me.

Riding for me is more like a tool to travel. It gives me absolute freedom to go basically wherever I want, including off-road. That's what it is for me. It allows me to get close to nature. You know what I mean? Like I'm not in a square box. I'm feeling the wind. I'm feeling the temperature.

I'm feeling the cold. I'm getting hit by bugs. Yep, just like that. Hit by bugs, hit by rocks. I don't know. I'm in the elements and I'm... I feel like kinda connected... with the land.

So motorcycle travel is just the best way to travel. Whether or not you enjoy carving up corners or not, you know? If you just want to take it slow, you can. You don't have to ride a big fancy motorcycle, guys. You can just take a CB-125 or a CB-150 like I have here.

A slow bike and uh... you're only gonna be going slow on the roads anyway. It's uh... dead here. There's a hotel in 20 kilometres. So I might stop there and get some breakfast 'cause I haven't had any food. I have a bloody stomach infection, man.

I'm on my last day of antibiotics but the stomach still feels very queasy. And these roads are okay so far. Little dusty. Little bit of rockfall. But not too bad. So here we have the Northern Most Point of the Indus. The mighty Indus is the third longest river in Asia.

And so... the most northern point there's-- a power, kind of power station. And look at that water. Wow.

Glacial water. Lovely man. Beautiful. And behind us, that's the mighty Indus River. In just 20 kilometres, it will merge with the Gilgit River.

And from there, it travels an incredible 3,600 kilometres to the Arabian Sea. Truly awe inspiring, isn't it? I want to get some food. Let's turn around. Just go back to one of these shops. My...

St-- Woah, look at that mountain. Stunning. Right here. Looks like there's eggs and paratha on display. This is some kind of customs point here.

There's the army. I'll ask. I'll ask these guys. Oh, look at that. Fresh apples. It looks like a place to go.

Let's stop in here. Whoa. See that waterfall out the back there? Jeez. Stunning, man. Wow. There's a lot of people here. Thank you. Let's just have a look through this place.

Whoa. Look at these sunflowers growing here. The army's busy buying apples and fruit over there. We won't hang around there. Looks like they're building a massive hotel here.

And because just around there you can see the spray from the waterfall. I wish we could get a view. Let's see if we can get a view of the waterfall. I think we can if we go up these rickety steps. Try not to die.

I wanna to eat breakfast. Oh yes, we can. But not from there. Hang on. What a spot man. What a frickin’ spot. There’s multiple waterfalls. There's like three or four different twists and turns in that waterfall.

Sheee. Far out, man. Wow. What a location.

I don't know how I get lucky like this. I did not know to stop. To stop at the restaurant with a waterfall. But actually, I'm glad I did.

The other good sign is that there's tons of people in there eating as well. That's another great sign. And so let me show you breakfast. We've got chickpeas, eggs, and we've got paratha as well.

That's exactly what I need. I got a stomach infection actually. And I'm feeling really queasy, but I'm on my last day of antibiotics so yeah. Should be okay. Should be okay. I really need this fuel to keep going. Still got another 140 kilometres to go.

Some of the bloggers I was reading said this road is... like, death-defying, like, really bad. But the majority of the road is, I mean, so far it's incredible except for that landslide little part. Far out, this whole place is... Yeah, you do find a lot of landslides in these mountainous regions. It's just a part and parcel with it.

Oh, jeez. These mountains just envelop you. They just suck you in.

They're so much bigger than I am. It's just... it's monstrous. That's what it is. It's just monstrous. Yeah, most of the road is like this. Definitely not dangerous at all.

I mean, you're pretty high up sometimes but... Let's see if the road gets worse or not. These guys look like they're having to repair the landslide. Let's see what else this road brings us. We still have 130 kilometres to go. Far out, that mountain's huge.

It doesn't even fit in my line of sight how big these mountains are. I have to look up to see them. Phew-hoo, man! Just the barren rockiness of it. Oh, my God.

And I'm such... I'm so alone here. Very... I don't know. It feels nice. I like being alone. I like travelling alone. It's just very peaceful out here.

It's not scary. Like, there's people every few miles. So, if you get in any trouble, someone's gonna help you. That you don't need to worry about. People are very good here. I like that. There's a real sense of community here. People are always willing to help others and that's something I've really learned from them.

To stop and to help. To stop and to chat with people. Take life easy and just to get to know one another. Simply just greeting people when you walk into a restaurant. Simply just greeting people if they look at you.

That's it. Simple things that I've learned here. I never used to be so... I'm not extroverted actually. Definitely not extroverted. I can't sit around and tell stories and yak with people for hours.

I can't do it. I like... my own peace and I like to spend time with myself and my wife. I like to work on my own projects. I don't like to sit around and be super social. But when I'm travelling that kind of changes.

And I become more social. Because I'm travelling. It's just part of travelling. But I still can't sit around and tell stories. I'm hopeless at telling stories.

I don't know how people do it. Some people just got the gift of the gab. Plus, I forget most of my stories. My memory is shocking. So... I'm thankful that I make these videos because I can remember where I've been because honestly my memory is horrible.

I look at some of my videos, I watch them back and I'm like I can't remember doing that. And then I'm like, "Wow, that's so cool." Yeah, I did do that. And it unlocks that memory. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing. That's how it is. Look at this.

Ugh. Why am I here? And why am I doing this? It's a good question. Basically, I travel to every state in India. And nearly every province in Pakistan. And... now all the disputed areas I'm travelling.

I wanna see it all. And this region in particular I want you to see it. I want my Indian subscribers to see it. Because it's so, so difficult for however many billion Indians there are. One point something billion Indians to just come here.

They can't even get to Pakistan easily. There's no tourist visa agreement between the countries. And to be able to show it and let my Indian subscribers, my Indian wife, my Indian family let them see a part of the world that they can't travel to. That's why I'm doing this. That's why I'm here.

That's the motivation behind travelling here. It's good to have a motivation and a goal like that when you're travelling. It keeps me filming. It keeps me saying, Karl, even though you're tired, even though you've got a stomach infection, just film.

Keep filming. Show everybody where you're going and where you've been because I'm very privileged and I'm very lucky to be able to come here. When billions, literally, of people can't. Canteen.

You know what this is? It's kind of a little village. So that's why I do what I do, and why I'm here. My videos are always to help people in some way. Always.

I can't just entertain. I have to have a purpose. I have to be helping somebody and that's what I've always done in my life. I've always tried just to help people and I've always enjoyed helping people.

It started in school when I became the computer monitor. I was the naughtiest kid in school, okay? The naughtiest. But I knew a thing or two about computers because that's my other passion, computers. And so I became the computer, kind of monitor and I-- it was my responsibility to set up computers in classrooms. Move the computers around because we have very few computers. And I felt so fulfilled setting up computers and helping people.

So... that's where it started and it just continued. I still fix people's computers to this day. It's just part of me. I was working back in New Zealand and working in some pretty incredible jobs.

Like I always had jobs that I wanted to do. You could call them dream jobs but I don't think they're such a thing because even if you have a dream job it's still work. It's still a job. You still don't really wanna wake up in the morning and go and do that job, do you? In your heart of hearts, when you look in the mirror you'd rather be at home. You'd rather be with your family. You'd rather be working on your own passions.

I worked in... Then I moved to the music industry and I loved that. I loved working for a record label.

But I never really wanted to be doing it. I'd still rather be doing something else, right? I loved it in as far as I could have had a much worse job. That I didn't enjoy so much. Where was I going with this story? So, uh... I don't know where I was going with this.

Here stood late... Let's see what this says. Oh, sand and rocks. Here stood late...

Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, the Prime Minister of Pakistan and addressed to the officers and soldiers of 7th Engineer Battalion. He eulogised their sacrifices for development of the country. 13th of May 1976. What that means exactly I'm not sure. There's an Afghan flag and a Pakistan flag. Not exactly sure what that means.

7th Engineer Battalion in memory of those gallant officers and men who laid down their lives while building this road. May their souls rest in peace. So...

Seems like a lot of people died. There was some kind of catastrophe here. Hmm... Okay. I couldn't find the full story online either. So if you do know what happened, do let me know in the comments. Have a look.

Yeah, so that story, where I was going with that story is... Yeah, I had great jobs but I never really wanted to do them. Never really wanted to be there.

I had those dream jobs but they were still work. But thank God I got out of that. Thank God I started a YouTube channel. Thank God, I'm here being able to help people.

That's the best feeling. Being able to help people and... travel at the same time.

I'm so happy where I am and that I came to India that I met my wife Manisha Malik and that I married into her family who are extremely loving and protective of me. They treat me like a son. So what more could I ask for? Life is good and I hope this for all of you watching this as well. And you can do the same.

Achieve the same as what I have. I am not exemplary. I am not the smartest person in the world. That's for sure.

There's so many things wrong with me. But... I don't know. You just got to trust that it's gonna work out for you. That's what I did. I trusted that it would work out for me. And I took some risks like coming to India.

Starting a YouTube channel. These types of things. You got to take risks. And that's what-- I'm glad I did. And anyone can do this. That's my point.

Anyone can do this. All right. Let's keep moving. We must be half way to Skardu right now. And... Just a lot of rocks. Let's see if I can pass them.

It's a long way down now. Jesus. I don't like heights.

Oh, looks like they are gonna check out this waterfall. Wow! Yep. He's gonna drink from it. He's got a cup in his hand.

Oh, man. Magical. Look at that. It's falling off the cliff. He went and soaked himself in it because it's hot out here. Oh, man.

Beautiful. There's people living on this other side of the valley. How they get there I don't know. But there's power. I can see power lines. So that's amazing. We're getting up a little high here.

I just got to show you. Look at these guys living on the side of the cliff there. Look at that. Look at those houses. Made of stones and wood. Phew! Man.

Just incredible. They've got their little bridge down there to cross. Ahan, so that's how they get there. There's a bridge down there and they'll just come across.

It is very, very hot out here today. Phew, it's hot. I'm all covered up. I'm all wearing motorcycle gear which doesn't help.

But got to stay safe, guys. He's taking down number plates. Passport, I got it. What is your name? Good name. Rice, Karl. Passport number.

Okay. AGV-1362. A-G-V-13... 1362.

1362. 1362. You amazed us.

Thank you, bro. Thank you. Thank you. Hey, bro. - How are you? Good, man. Good.

I saw you somewhere. I don't know where. That was just a checkpoint. They just logging motorcycle numbers, entries, and exits. They invited me to come in and see the cells. I said, “Yeah, nah, I must stay away from the police cells, man.” New Zealand.

Gilgit. Karl. K-A-R-L. Oh, man. AGV-1362.

There's a lot more security on this side than there is in Hunza Valley probably because we are closer to the border. Thank you, sir. New Zealand. Thank you. Bye. - Bye-bye. Which way? ****I don't know.

Straight. I'm lost, so I've got off the bike to try and find these glamping tents. This sand is just too hard to ride in right now. It's extremely slippery. I'm worried I won't get back. I must have taken the wrong road to get here.

I'm following Google Maps. All right, so it's not that way. Oh, man. I'm gonna go back to the main road.

There has to be a proper road going to this hotel. There has to be. Okay, I'm super lost right now. I took a left turn off the main road and I've ended up in, yeah, a desert.

I mean, that's where I'm meant to be glamping today. But I think it was the wrong turn. So let's go back. Ain't no way I'm riding any further. It's just a desert out there and this bike is struggling in the sand. They call it a cold desert but it sure as hell ain't cold today.

Anyway, let's try and turn around safely in the sand. If I find the key! Wearing gloves sucks, man. Wearing gloves, ya can't feel anything. Key's not in that pocket anyway. ******* key.

Key's not there either. Okay, where have I... where have I put the key? Oh, man. Okay, there's the key. It dropped out from somewhere. Hiii, back on your bike.

I'm getting a bit hot and out of air. Because the altitude here and the heat is just heaping down on me. And I've got to deal with this sand.

And it's quite a big incline. I have to go up quite a... God, man, it's frickin' difficult in this sand.

Oh. Okay, I don't know if I'm gonna get up this incline. Let's try.

Whoa! It's extremely... deep sand. It's gonna get deep again now. I'm gonna have to just go real slow. My feet are kind of on the ground.

All right, this is where I don't wanna fall down. This is definitely the wrong road. Okay. I'm gonna have to power it up here, man. Okay, I'm okay. Probably could go that way.

But... Just gonna go back to the main road and try and find their sign. I must have missed it. Oh, that was... Some would say that was fun. Some would say that sucked. More fun with a friend, that's for sure.

Much more fun with a friend that. Okay, I'm back on the sand again. I'm trying my best.

You can't feel how much I'm sweating right now. But it's... It's a lot. Okay, back on the main road. Now... Let's go back and look for their sign.

I'm covered in sweat from the heat and this riding jacket. But I think I know what to do. I think the GPS is just wrong and... I'm gonna have to go through Skardu and to the other side which is called Katpana, so...

Let me try do that now. All right, looks like I found the road. Katpana. Now I have to keep going till we find their sign and their lake. And what I will do is I will fix that Google Maps location as soon as I get internet.

The location should be placed on the nearest road. Well, ain't this off the beaten track? It means the hotel is gonna be in a nice location though. These fields. It's beautiful out here. It's very cute. Very cute. Very difficult to see. So, let's slow it down.

Wow. What a place. Oh, we're at the desert. I think we are coming to the right place, my friends. What these guys-- it's a bhatti. They are making bricks. And now... Oh, my back.

My bag's killing me. Here we go. Katpana Oasis Resort. We must be up there. That's all I can think.

Yep. I think we are up there. How do we get up there? Looks like there is a road. All right. Quite a spot. Wow. There is fish in there as well. As-salam-alaikum, ji.

Glamping Pakistan? Up here? Okay, so how do we get to the hotel? Glamping Pakistan. Yes, this blue gate. Oh, is there a road? Okay, but it's a road? That's okay. Thank you. - Okay. Very nice people. They helped me find this damn place which doesn't have a...

I will tell the owner straight away. “What the hell are you doing?” You're making this so freakin' difficult. Oh, there was a road there.

Okay, so there was a little road there. Oh, no, no. Not my favourite. Already sliding around here. Shesus. I mean, it looks like I'm gonna make it.

Oasis Resort, Katpana. It looks like I'm going to be okay as long as-- Oh my, that was a ball breaker. Okay, we're slidin'. I'm wondering how to get down from here. Like I said earlier, the motorcycle is just a tool for me. But it gets pretty hard sometimes.

Oh, ho, ho. Now I need a rock to put the bike on. It gets worse. This ain't the place. The place where I need to be is where that signal tower is.

Over there. How the f... am I gonna get there? Oh, man. ****. I am so pissed off. Should have arrived somewhere and it should be easy to get to. Rather than having to somehow drive through the middle of the desert to get there.

We're gonna be going very, very slowly. **** I don't know if I'm gonna make it. It's full sand. ****. I don't know. I'm gonna walk. I'm gonna walk there. And...

Yeah... Leave my bike here. **** what the am I gonna do, man? I already paid them as well in advance. This ******* sucks. This is stupid, man. I'm gonna go leave my bike down here.

Oh, it's so dangerous on the sand going downhill, man. ******* nightmare, man. I'm gonna try and get onto the rock. Definitely not taking this bike up there. What a *****, man. What a *****... Man, I'm pissed off.

So, these guys here at Local X Katpana have helped me. They do have a very beautiful property. When I drove past, I thought it looked really nice. So, after all that struggle, they've invited me in. They've sat me down and given me water and they've called up the hotel that I'm meant to be going to and that hotel is coming here to get me and to show me the way.

So, thank you so much, bro. Thank you so much. I'm gonna rest this afternoon and yeah, then this day will turn around after I just rest for a bit. I mean, I can't see no... There's no glamping sign here. Baltistan Fort. Anyway, let's take it.

There's no sign, man. No wonder I missed it. The GPS is wrong too. So, they're building a road here.

Man, it's just one of those days because I'm sick. I'm hot and bothered and dehydrated. That's why I'm loosing... Oh, man. Let's keep following that. Looks like we'll be a little... a little off-road. A little bit I can handle.

Okay. Yeah, this much I can handle, man. Like, this much is fine. Anything deeper though... where they haven't tried to make a road. There we go.

This type of sand. I can handle it. But the real thick stuff the cars haven't been riding on it.

Nah, man. Thank you. Thank you, bro. So, they came to... they came to find me. Oi, yeah, yeah, yeah. Ah, no.

I'm going to go into this. Oh, my ass. Whoo! I made it. Okay, yeah. It's gonna be worth it. After all of this, it's worth it. Good surprise, man.

UNICEF Refugee Agency. What are they're doing out here? Maybe they're just borrowing the gear or something. Maybe it's old-school gear. Talk about this place is in the middle of bloody nowhere.

It's very thick sand here. It's very thick. I've got my... Whoo! I can feel my heart flutter when the bike starts to turn. I've got my feet down. Whoa! Here we go again. ****. Not the right bike for thick sand.

Traditional restaurant in there. Cool. I have to go try that. Apparently, Glamping is right next door.

Hey, here's another sign. Your second sign. Pain in my ass, man. Oh, sliding. I'll go there and try some Balti food. Oh, geez louise.

I don't want to slide over there. Yeah. I'm just gonna go slow. Try to keep my balance. I'm on a Honda CB150, guys. Road tires.

This is just doable. See, I can get stuck here 'cause it's very deep. Oh, yay, yay. Okay. I've got sand in my ******* shoe.

All right. **** this. **** this. I'm done, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Okay, but at least it's worth it. Look at that. Look at this.

It's nice out here at least. All right. My mood's back. I had a drink. I made my ORS to rehydrate.

And I'm just in an incredible spot. So, this is glamping. And let me just turn the camera around and show you...

the view from my... literally my bed. Look at that, guys. Man, the only downside to this place is there's no Wi-Fi, so... So, I can't text my wife. It's a bit of a problem. So, I'll go out tonight, fill up some petrol and find a Wi-Fi spot to call my wife.

But, yeah. Probably the best location in Skardu. And I guess, yeah, definitely worth coming to.

You can see some women down here. They're just hanging out together with their cows. Couple of cows over there. Couple of cows down here too. So, yeah. Welcome to Skardu. I'm glad I'm here and I'm glad I'm feeling a lot better now that I found this spot.

And now, because it's so clear, let me end with this. Just see the night sky here tonight. It's glorious.

2024-10-08 11:24

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