SNOW on Babusar Top Changed EVERYTHING EP.04 | North Pakistan Motorcycle Tour
That's our first water crossing of the day. The fact that these guys are riding while wearing their sandals is remarkable. There are waterfalls coming down to the roads from all directions.
Amazing look at how beautiful that water stream is. I pray that when you guys visit this place... Assalam Alekum. Good morning. Namaste. Sat Sri Akal to everyone from Batakundi. It is about half an hour drive from Naran, on the way to Babusar Top. We stayed here last night quite comfortably.
It has been raining here since last night. On top of that, it's really cold here. It would be best for our plans if this rain stops. Otherwise, we'll have to get into full riding gear with jacket and everything and leave. We aim to cross Babusar Top. It has been snowing as we speak. I'm not sure if it's a wise decision to cross Babusar Top in these conditions.
But it will definitely be a great adventure. Our main destination is either Astore or Tarishing. But I feel that we'll just be able to reach Astore in this weather.
And it's gonna be a 7 to 8 hour ride for sure. But let's do our breakfast first. We are staying at Roomy Resort.
It's located at an amazing location. You can take a look at yourself. We can't fly our drone in rain though. But I still have some video clips to share with you. It's one of the best locations that you can get here.
Look at the road down there; and glaciers and waterfalls. It's not just the location but you also get great facilities here. Our breakfast has been served.
We have mainly been eating parathas in breakfast for the last few days. Today we have also ordered bread other than parathas. Then we have potato curry and fried eggs. Omelette. Not to forget this halwa.
A glass of mango shake. And this is black coffee. I'm gonna add some milk to it shortly. It's gonna be a tough ask to try this without milk. We are gonna do our breakfast now. Meanwhile, we also pray for the weather to improve so that we can leave. The tea is here as well.
The rain has finally stopped. It's really cold here. It's almost 12 o'clock.
We have decided to leave now. I have a little headache though. I'll get a pain killer and then start our ride towards Babusar Top. How wonderful this area is... I have captured some drone shots that I'm sure you guys are gonna love.
I have setup some of my luggage on the motorcycle. Gonna get the rest of it ready now. This is our touchwood. To protect both Rangeeli (motorcycle) and me from evil eye. Bismillah... In the name of Allah... *Prayer for the journey* We pray for a problem free day ahead.
Almost half of our day is already gone. But it rained heavily and continuously for a long time. And Babusar was also closed due to snowfall.
Even now, we are not sure if it's open or not. Anyways, let's see. We'll know once we get there. We'll keep riding if it's open. Otherwise, we'll just turn around and come back. What it will be, will be.
But... snowfall on mountains... and greenery... Along with the river down there... What an awesome contrast this is... I took some drone shots.
Some of the most beautiful drone shots that I ever took. This weather has played an important role in those drone shots, for sure. But it's really cold. Lets see how our ride turns out to be. We'll keep on passing by many small glaciers like these, now. Wonderful Nothing less than wonderful Just look at these mesmerizing mountains in front of us.
It's true that rain is not a good news for travelers; especially motorcyclists. It must be around 5 degrees here. Riding here without proper gear gets even more difficult.
But we have got our winter gloves on. Throughout my Middle East and India tour, never got to use these gloves. The last time I used them was in Pakistan.
And this time again, I'm using them in Pakistan. Well... Lets see from where do we get the way to cross. Since there's no one coming from the opposite side, we can also go from here. I can see some motorcyclists standing there, taking pictures. That's our first water crossing of the day.
Even my pajamas are waterproof. So we can ride without any fear. Check it out, guys...
Heaven Ma Sha Allah... This is really amazing... There's not much traffic on the roads because people are probably staying in their hotels. Because Babusar is closed today.
Or due to snowfall and cold there. That's also the reason behind these roads being empty. The road is really beautiful. Also, Abrar and Rangeeli (motorcycle) are racing towards Babusar. Such moments and views in your ride are worth all the money and effort. The fact that these guys are riding while wearing their sandals is remarkable.
They must have covered the water crossings in these sandals and must be really soaked. Simply superb I don't know why but I am super excited to see all these views today. I have already been here a number of times before.
But I haven't seen such weather and scenery here before. It could also be due to the fact that I haven't done any rides in mountains in the last one and half year. This is Budwai.
This place also has many hotels and restaurants. Many are still under construction. This is the same water stream that we just passed by. This is indeed a good road.
It makes up for everything that is wrong with the Naran road. I mean this is turning out to be an amazing ride. I don't know why I'm all praise for this area. I haven't felt this way before. But I'm really having a good time here. I haven't experienced this about this area before.
There are waterfalls coming down to the roads from all directions. Amazing Go Rangely Lets surpass this Turbo. I would like to stop here and share this with you. This adventure is the true beauty of Pakistan. You can't know how far you can go in one day.
It's been a few days since we started this trip; 4 days I guess. We experience new things everyday. Sometimes, the rains are delaying us.
While at some other times, it's the traffic on the roads. So, we can't really move according to our plans. And this has a charm of its own. I mean, you do your planning but it doesn't always get through. Anywhere else in the world, you'll plan something and get there by the evening. Look at that beautiful water stream.
We have reached an altitude of almost 10 thousand feet. We have reached Jalkhad. We can see many restaurants here.
We took a small break here because our GoPro was having some trouble. Isn't this beautiful... We are slowly ascending. The peak that you can see in front is called Tiger Peak.
When you are going to Naran from this side, you'll keep seeing the peak all the way. Since this is the beginning of the season, we are seeing a lot of water coming down the mountains. If you visit in late summer, you won't see this much water. Look at that... That's the desi way to cool your drinks. This is Lulusar; a really beautiful lake.
You can also see reflections in the water. I have also captured some drone shots. We are not stopping here and going straight to Babusar. It's a great spot to stop and enjoy the beauty of nature. You can also get food items from here.
So you can sit and relax. It's amazing that you see such beautiful scenes all around you. Lush green mountains covered with fresh snow. And this contrast is simply awesome. The streams are full of water. That's why we have to carefully make our way.
In no time, we'll be ascending the slopes of Babusar. These small houses belong to the locals. Summer homes. Because this whole area is closed in winters. That's why the locals come here with their cattle during summer.
This area is really beautiful. These are all meadows. This area is called Gittidas. I didn't know this name before; just saw it off a signboard. I have never experienced this scenery here, before. I pray that all of you get to see these scenes when you visit.
Just try to plan your trip for the beginning of July. Won't hurt if there are light rains as well. This weather also plays a role in creating dramatic scenes for you. One can't anticipate seeing such beautiful scenery. And the grass is so green.
We can now see Babusar Top from here. We'll reach the top soon. I think we are gonna see snow up there as the whole area appears white. Keep pushing bro. Looks like his 150 is at its limit now. Even my motorcycle finds such rides difficult, let alone 150.
We have almost reached Babusar Top. But we stopped about 50 meters before the top to take some drone shots. Here are some fellows from Sargodha. Some are from Islamabad. We met along the way. I think we talked to you.
So we met these nice guys as we took this break. We'll resume shortly. Let me tell you that this whole green area... There are some lakes here, on off road tracks.
One of them goes by the name of Dharamsar Lake is rather famous. I even captured a view of Nanga Parbat in the backdrop, in my drone shots. The scenery that we are seeing here, is probably never seen before. I mean here at Babusar. Other than that, there is a small lake on the other side as well.
If you are visiting Babusar, a short hike will take you down to this lake. I took some of its shots as well that you will see in this vlog. Anyways, these drone shots are truly amazing. Let's resume now and have a cup of tea at the top. We'll make a short stop there.
We have now reached an altitude of almost 14 thousand feet. When I came here for the first time, almost 10 to 12 years back... There was hardly anything to be seen. The current situation is in front of your eyes, now.
There's a cafe here as well. I don't know where the parking is. Most of the tourists who come to Naran, just visit till this point and then go back. Only the ones going to Hunza or Skardu keep going. So...?? We can go to some other place or we can go down there.
Let's go down there as it's quite crowded here. Sure. Assalam Alekum Where are you headed to? Skardu. Are you from Sindh? Yes.
How do you feel? That's the camera. You are also from Sindh? No. I'm from Punjab. Okay then. Enjoy yourself. Do you have a channel? Yes. I have a YouTube channel. What's it called? You can search me on YouTube by typing Abrar. Are you Abrar? Yes.
Okay. Nice. Enjoy yourselves. Allah Hafiz. We have decided to go down because it's really crowded here. So, it's gonna take a lot of time here. There are many cafes on the way to Chilas. So, we can stop there. This time we have an added advantage that our charging pod is active now.
So we can charge our drone batteries easily. Look at that guy. I think this is the path to the lake that I just talked about. Ali knows exactly where that is.
I mean the locals will definitely know about that too. It's really cold up here. Look at these guys taking snow from glaciers. This can give you a perspective about how much altitude we have lost till now.
We are finally back down from Babusar Top. You can see that there is a huge difference in scenery between here and Naran - Babusar road. It's not just the scenery but also there are more houses of locals here. And not as many tourists. Not to forget the variation in temperature as well.
As we'll reach Chilas, the temperature will be about 15 degrees higher than that in Naran. Chilas is famous for its heat. You start from the cold and pleasant weather of Naran. By the time you reach Chilas, it gets really hot. But this area is also very beautiful.
You can see many small but beautiful water streams here. And I think these houses are also summer homes of locals. We have covered the previous section of descending from Babusar rather swiftly. We have almost reached the Karakoram Highway, KKH. This is Chilas Zero Point.
Lets go and take a round of Chilas. We can ask someone here if the roads are closed or open. Do ask about the road as well. Because someone told us that the roads are closed due to landslides. Chilas is looking really beautiful especially because this road is just too good.
I don't think this road was here when I visited the last time. It was still under construction. This is Chilas city. Here, you can get almost anything. It's a relatively bigger city in this region. This is Shangrila Chilas.
Let's see if we can get something to eat here. A large number of people are waiting here because the road is closed. It's the same point known for road blockage. A place called Tatta Pani. We have decided to stay in Chilas tonight. We could have reached Astore if we wanted to.
Since it rained all night last night and there is land slide on KKH, the roads are blocked. So, this whole area is full of people stuck on the way who wanted to go to Hunza or Skardu. They are either waiting on the road. Then, there are some who are traveling with families... Those of you who know Tatta Pani, know that there are no hotels there.
That's why most of them are coming to Chilas to stay. If I'm not wrong, this Shangrila Hotel is among the oldest in Chilas. It's a pretty decent hotel. This is the 2-bed room that we have got here.
For this, we paid PKR 12 thousand. Overall, this is a really nice and clean room. The architecture of this room, like other Shangrila hotels, is quite cultural. The washroom is also quite nice. I'd recommend this hotel to you if you have to stay in Chilas. Let's now go out to the restaurant of this hotel for our meal.
Our meal has been served. We had to wait a little because of how crowded this place is. We didn't order any karahi today because we wanted to order something different. So, we have chicken shashlik. And the view from here is truly remarkable.
We are gonna finish our meal and go out to capture some views before sunset. We are sitting outside our hotel and enjoying the weather. Because it has been raining for most of the day. Normally, Chilas is known for its hot and harsh weather. But, at the moment, it's really pleasant out here.
There's a river in front of us. It's quite relaxing with no noise. You can enjoy your evening here. The scenery that we witnessed today has been among the best ever. I'm really pleased to have experienced such a day during my travels. Hopefully you must have enjoyed this vlog.
If you do, please go ahead and Like, Subscribe and Share. Remember me in your prayers. Hopefully the road will be cleared before morning.
And we'll be able to continue our ride. Keep praying for me. Allah Hafiz
2023-08-12 10:24
