Photo by chinadaily.com.cn
There is a far-reaching highway that connects Pakistan and China. Its name is The Karakoram Highway. It was built by the government of both countries in 1966-1979 and open to the public since 1986. The highway got its name from the mountain range it’s passing through, the Karakoram mountain range. This highway has 1,300 km in length with 887 km in Pakistan and 413 in China. Its high elevation also made it one of the highest roads in the world.
Unfortunately, the construction takes a lot of victims among the workers due to the extreme site. About one thousand workers with 810 Pakistanis and 200 Chinese died in work accidents. Muhammad Mumtaz Khalid, the Chief Engineer of the Pakistani Army wrote two volumes of the book titled History of Karakoram Highway as documentation behind the construction.
Its uniqueness and history make it become one of the local and international tourist attractions to have a cross-country road trip experience while enjoying the view of the Karakoram mountain range. Hence, The Karakoram Highway is considered one of the third-best destinations in the country.
Along the road, you will see many beautiful things in nature. Certainly, you will get to see mountains and glaciers such as Nanga Parbat, Rakaposhi, and Diran mountain. There are also rivers and lakes that are accessible such as the Indus river, Hunza river, Karakul lake, and Attabad lake. If you want to try going on a trip on this road, there are several travel companies that offer buses that cross towns to the border area. Don’t forget to mind the season cause heavy snow and landslides are dangerous. Traffic may be blocked for hours or more whenever the condition is too extreme.
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