The Karakoram Highway known by its initials KKH, also known as N-35 or National Highway 35 or the China-Pakistan Friendship Highway) is a 1,300 km (810 mi) national highway which extends from Hasan Abdal in the Punjab province of Pakistan to the Khunjerab Pass in Gilgit-Baltistan, where it crosses into China and becomes China National Highway 314 (from Kashgar, to Abbottabad, Pakistan. An extension of the highway southwest of Abbottabad, in the form of the N-35 highway, meets the Grand Trunk Road, N-5, at Hasan Abdal, Pakistan.
The highway connects the Pakistani provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa plus Gilgit-Baltistan with China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The highway is a popular tourist attraction and is one of the highest paved roads in the world, passing through the Karakoram mountain range at a maximum elevation of 4,714 m (15,466 ft) near Khunjerab Pass. Due to its high elevation and the difficult conditions under which it was constructed, it is often referred to as the Eighth Wonder of the World.
Climate. The KKH is best travelled in the spring or early autumn. Heavy snow during harsh winters can shut the highway down for extended periods. Heavy monsoon rains around July and August cause occasional landslides that can block the road for hours or more. The border crossing between China and Pakistan at Khunjerab Pass is open only between 1 May and 31 December.
Tourism. The road has given mountaineers and cyclists easier access to the many high mountains, glaciers, and lakes in the area. The highway provides access to Gilgit and Skardu from Islamabad by road. These are the two major hubs for mountaineering expeditions in the Gilgit–Baltistan region of Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Karakoram Highway has been described as one of the most beautiful destinations in the world. KKH provides a cross-country road trip from Hasan Abdal, Pakistan to Kashghar.
Naltar Valley is one of the most scenic valleys accessed via the Karakoram Highway. The valley offers snow-clad mountains, sky-high peaks, alpine ski slopes, high-altitude lakes, glaciers and mountain passes. Bishgiri Lake is one of the highest lakes in Pakistan. While Pakora Pass is famous for its glaciers and meadows.
Travel. Several transport companies in Pakistan offer bus service between major towns on the highway and from Rawalpindi and Lahore. The largest company is Northern Areas Transport Corporation (NATCO). Other companies are Masherbrum Travel, Silk Route Travel, K-2 Movers, Anchan Travel, and Saeed Travel.
Bus service between Gilgit and Kashghar. On 1 June 2006, daily bus service began between Gilgit, Gilgit–Baltistan, and Kashgar, Xinjiang, through the Sust and Tashkorgan border area.
Rock Art. There are more than 50,000 pieces of rock art and petroglyphs all along the highway that are concentrated at ten major sites between Hunza and Shatial. The carvings were left by invaders, traders, and pilgrims who passed along the trade route, as well as by locals. The earliest date back to between 5000 and 1000 BC, showing single animals, triangular men, and hunting scenes in which the animals are larger than the hunters. These carvings were pecked into the rock with stone tools and are covered with a thick patina that yields their age.
History. It was started in 1962 and was completed and opened to the public in 1978. About 810 Pakistanis and about 200 Chinese workers died, mostly in landslides and falls, while building the highway. Over 140 Chinese workers who died during the construction are buried in the Chinese cemetery in Gilgit. The route of the KKH traces one of the many paths of the ancient Silk Road.
On the Pakistani side, the road was constructed by FWO (Frontier Works Organisation), employing the Pakistan Army Corps of Engineers.
The highway cuts through the collision zone between the Eurasian and Indian plates, where China, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan come within 250 km (160 mi) of each other. Owing largely to the extremely sensitive state of the Kashmir conflict between India and Pakistan, the Karakoram Highway has strategic and military importance to these nations, particularly Pakistan and China.
In 2006, it was decided to rebuild and upgrade the Karakoram Highway – the width will be expanded from 10 to 30 m (33 to 98 ft), and its transport capacity will be increased three times its current capacity. In addition, the upgraded road will be designed to particularly accommodate heavy-laden vehicles and extreme weather conditions.
In July 2012, Pakistan began constructing a revised route around the lake at a higher elevation with five new tunnels, with a total length of 7.12 km and two new bridges.
Pakistani section
At 806 km (501 mi) in length, officially starts from Hasan Abdal. The highway meets the Indus River at Thakot and continues along the river until Jaglot, where the Gilgit River joins the Indus River. This is where three great mountain ranges meet: the Hindukush, the Himalayas, and the Karakoram. The western end of the Himalayas, marked by the ninth-highest peak in the world, Nanga Parbat, can be seen from the highway. The highway passes through the capital of Gilgit–Baltistan, Gilgit, and continues through the valleys of Nagar and Hunza, along the Hunza River. Some of the highest mountains and famous glaciers in Karakoram can be seen in this section. The highway meets the Pakistani-Chinese border at Khunjerab Pass and Abbottabad, Pakistan.
The longest tunnel is 3,360 m (11,020 ft), followed by 2,736 m (8,976 ft), 435 m (1,427 ft), 410 m (1,350 ft) and 195 m (640 ft), while the Shishkat Great Bridge on Hunza River is 1,480 m (4,860 ft) long. The realignment restored the road link between Pakistan and China.
Karakorum Highway, Chinese section
The Chinese section of the Karakoram Highway follows the north-south Sarykol (“Yellow Lake”) valley just west of the Tarim Basin. The road from Kashgar goes southwest about 80 km (50 mi) and then turns west to enter the Gez (Ghez) River canyon between Chakragil mountain on the north and Kongur Tagh mountain on the south. From the Gez Canyon, the population becomes Kirgiz. Having climbed up to the valley, the road turns south past Kongur, Karakul Lake, and Muztagh Ata on the east. Below Muztagh Ata, a new road goes west over the Kulma Pass to join the Pamir Highway in Gorno-Badakhshan, Tajikistan. The main road continues over a low pass (where the population becomes Tajik) and descends to Tashkurgan. Further south, a valley and jeep track leads west toward the Wakhjir Pass to the Wakhan Corridor. Next the road turns west to a checkpost and small settlement at Pirali, and then the Khunjerab Pass, beyond which is Pakistan, the Khunjerab River and Hunza.
Major towns near Karakoram Highway
Hassan Abdal
Haripur
Abbottabad
Mansehra
Battagram
Besham
Pattan
Kohistan
Dasu
Chilas
Juglot
Gilgit
Naltar Valley
Nagar
Aliabad
Gulmit
Sust
Tashkurgan (China)
Upal (China)
Kashgar, Chinese railhead, 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) gauge
Mountains and glaciers. Karakoram Highway provides the pathway to expeditions for almost all peaks in Gilgit–Baltistan, Kashmir and several peaks in Xinjiang China. The region includes some of the world’s largest glaciers like the Baltoro and Siachen Glaciers. Two of the Eight-thousanders (mountains taller than 8,000 m (26,000 ft)) of the world that are in Pakistan are accessible by the highway. The notable mountains that can be directly seen while travelling on the highway are:
Nanga Parbat, Gilgit–Baltistan, 9th highest of the world at 8,126 m (26,660 ft)
Rakaposhi, Gilgit–Baltistan, 27th highest in the world at 7,788 m (25,551 ft)
Diran, Gilgit–Baltistan, most dangerous mountain in Pakistan
Shishpar, Gilgit–Baltistan
Ultar Peak, Gilgit–Baltistan
Tupopdan, Gilgit–Baltistan, also known as Cathedral Peaks near Passu
Many glaciers can be seen while travelling on the highway:
Minapin Glacier
Passu Glacier
Ghulkin Glacier
Khunjerab Glacier
Rivers and lakes
Several rivers and lakes are made accessible by the highway. These include:
Indus River
Hunza River
Attabad Lake
Gilgit River
Khunjerab River
Karakul Lake in Xinjiang (China)
Rock art and petroglyphs
On the Karakoram Highway near Chilas, there are more than 50,000 pieces of rock art and petroglyphs all along the highway that are concentrated at ten major sites between Hunza and Shatial. The carvings were left by invaders, traders, and pilgrims who passed along the trade route, as well as by locals. The earliest date back to between 5000 and 1000 BC, showing single animals, triangular men, and hunting scenes in which the animals are larger than the hunters. These carvings were pecked into the rock with stone tools and are covered with a thick patina that yields their age.
Alternate road (Xinjiang-GB-Azad Kashmir road). The proposed Xinjiang-GB-Azad Kashmir road would be linked to Yarkant County in Xinjiang, and enter Gilgit-Baltistan through Mustagh Pass, 126 km west of Ladakh, crossing the major supply artery from the Karakoram Highway near Skardu city. From there, it would run south through the high-altitude Deosai Plateau to the Astore Valley. A road tunnel is proposed to be constructed through the mountains to connect Astore to the Neelum Valley in the Azad Kashmir region.