Babusar Pass & Kaghan Valley

Babusar Pass, at 4,173 metres, is the historic divide between the lush Kaghan Valley of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the arid grandeur of Gilgit-Baltistan. Unlike the high-desert atmosphere of Khunjerab, Babusar is a pass of extraordinary greenery — dense pine and silver birch forests cloak the lower slopes, wildflower meadows carpet the mid-altitudes, and at the summit a broad plateau of short grass stretches between snowfields that linger into July. The pass is open from approximately mid-June through mid-October, when the first winter snows seal it until the following spring.

The Kaghan Valley below is one of Pakistan's most visited alpine regions: Naran town (2,409 m) is the base for most visitors, and from there a chain of lakes and meadows stretches northward. Lulusar Lake (3,410 m), just 45 km north of Naran, is the most celebrated — a high-altitude lake of deep turquoise-green set in a natural bowl with snowy peaks reflected in its mirror-calm surface on windless mornings. The surrounding Lulusar National Park protects snow leopard, Himalayan brown bear, musk deer, and large flocks of migratory birds in season.

Our tour travels the full length of the valley, starting at Balakot (990 m) in the subtropical foothills and ascending progressively through Shogran (2,362 m) — famous for its meadow views of Makra Peak — to Naran, Lulusar Lake, and finally over Babusar Pass to connect with the KKH near Chilas (1,260 m) in Gilgit-Baltistan. This single journey compresses a remarkable range of ecosystems and elevations into four to six days.