Chilas to Gilgit and Karimabad

We continued up the KKH through a very barren, rocky landscape.  We had lunch at the Gilgit Serena where we are going to stay on the return journey.  We looked around the bazaar in Gilgit and then visited George Hayward’s grave in the European cemetery.  There were fewer graves there then I had imagined there would be; less than a dozen, and Hayward’s was about the oldest.

The stone had had the original plaque removed and a replacement concreted in on the ground in front of the headstone.  It read:

“To the memory of G. W. Hayward, Gold Medallist of the Royal Geographical Society of London, who was cruelly murdered at Darkot July 18, 1870, on his journey to explore the Pamir Steppe.  This monument is erected to a gallant officer and accomplished traveller of The Royal Geographical Society of London”

We got the key from a small shop opposite the entrance.  It was raining and the cemetery was overgrown.  Some local seemed to be growing vines there. All in all it was a bit of a sorry sight.

The Grave of George Hayward, Explorer

After lunch we continued up the KKH to Hunza.  On the way we passed Nilt.  Out guide said that there was nothing left of the fort.  As we passed the spot, the land was cultivated with a few small buildings, so he may well have been correct.

The was a photo stop just opposite Maiun, which was a good opportunity to compare the landscape with the photos in ‘where three empires meet’.  The scene of the battle to take Nagar was virtually unchanged.  On the Maiun side, a thin promontory was still as it had been over 100 years ago, showing that the rubble-like make-up of the mountains does not erode a quickly as it would seem.  Sadly I did not get a good view of the Nilt nullah where the British and Dogra force was held up for 2 weeks.  Although the road cut across the face of the 1,200 ft cliff which was scaled by Manners and his party.

A view from the KKH

We arrived at Karimabad.  The Hunza View Hotel had fantastic views over the Hunza valley.  We had a room on the corner of the building and so looked North and East.  Hunza is at an altitude of approximately 9,000 feet and high enough to make you puff and pant a bit, especially climbing to the restaurant which was on the 3rd floor.