Mountain Biking the Karakoram Highway

The Karakoram Highway, which follows one of the principal Silk Road routes, farms the backbone of this mountain bike holiday. The highway is a most remarkable engineering achievement, the Pakistanis proudly refer to as the “eighth wonder of the world” Built in conjunction with the Chinese, this road was carved out of the Indus Valley right up through the Hunza Valley and over the mighty Karakoram Mountains into China.

Cycling on the KKH will be fairly straightforward, following a well-made dirt track, or on tarmac. Exploring various side valleys away from the Hunza Valley will involve cycling on rougher dirt tracks, with some tough climbs and exciting descents. Daily distances cycled will range from 35 to 80 Kilometers. The chance to go trekking and the friendliness of the local people make this an unforgettable experience.

The Hunza Valley offers a wide variety of mountain scenery and includes such giants as Ultar, Spantick, Diran and the 7788 meter high Rakaposhi. It is a valley of enormous glaciers, which tumble right down to the roadside and of tiny villages and their carefully terraced and irrigated fields, which cling, precariously to the valley sides. The barren upland plateau of the Pamirs, which the Khunjerab Pass straddles eventually, gives way to the fertile fields and apricot orchards that have made the Hunza Valley world famous. This great diversity of landscape is the Key to the appeal of this mountain bike tour, and is the reason why we say that at the upper part of the KKH offers some of the most rewarding mountain biking of anywhere in the Greater Himalayan Range.