Bari La Deosai – Land of the Dead

Bari La Deosai – Land of the Dead A hasty plan landed us in Deosai on the morning of Saturday. We planned it out on text messages and decided we will be travelling to Bari La in Deosai. ‘La’ is a Balti word for mountain pass and Bari La is a historic pass that connects Skardu to Shingo Shigar. As you enter Deosai and cover the traverse of Ali Malik Top, you travel further ahead covering meandered dirt roads to reach this crossroad marked by a signage, “GB-PWD Bari La” with distances to the different villages of Gultari.…

Kartakhsha in Baltistan

Last week, we travelled extensively in the valley of Kharmang. The visit was full of experiences as we travelled to the remotest parts of the district. The features and landscape change as you travel deep into the valley. We started from the convergence-point of Sheyok and Indus rivers through Sermik, and entered Parkuta (now Mehdiabad from where the boundaries of Kharmang start).  Mehdiabad is one of the largest villages in the district with distinct features – in contrast with the numerous other settlements which are high…