Hunza Episode 1

THIS LAND OF OURS IS A BEAUTIFUL LAND

REMINISCENCES OF TRAVEL TO HUNZA ON KKH 

"When we get closer to nature, be it untouched wilderness or a backyard tree – we do our overstressed brains a favour” - National Geographic Magazine (January 2016).

This is the second episode of our reminisces of travel to Hunza. Our actual stay there was for just three days. On the first day of our stay there, we visited the famous Altit Fort. Altit is one of the oldest settlements of Hunza valley and is said to be the birth place of the Hunza kingdom. The Altit fort is the first fort of the region. It stands right on the edge of a sheer rock cliff that drops 1000 feet straight down to the Hunza River. 

The Altit Fort as it Stands on a Rock Cliff 1000 ft Above River Hunza (Pictured borrowed from public domain)

On our way out from Altit Fort we saw the actual life as it went on in Hunza itself. It was late autumn and the winter season was just about commencing. The mountain peaks were already snow capped. We could imagine how difficult and harsh it would soon be when the entire landscape would get covered with snow all over. Women could be seen lugging wood for heating their homes during the long and dreary cold days just ahead of them. We could see the blank and lost faces of shopkeepers of small little shops along the road as the tourist season had almost ended and there was no hope of any customers for the next five to six months - a distressing and frightening outlook. It has been like that for centuries and the upcoming China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) may have very little to offer in the way of modifying its character. 

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We arrived in Karimabad late in the evening on the second day and were put up at the comfortable Embassy Hotel, situated right at its entrance. Karimabad is the capital of Hunza Valley in Gilgit-Baltistan. Its old name is Baltit. It is named after Prince Karim Aga Khan the spiritual head of Shia Ismaili Nizari community. The town is located on the west bank of Hunza river and is 8200 ft elevation. The Karimabad town is made up of stone walled steep sloping large terraces. It once used to be a caravan halting place for people who travelled through the Hindu Kush mountains to the valley of Kashmir. As one walks along the inclined road, its a bazar like atmosphere with small shops selling dry fruits, arts and crafts of the region besides smallish hotels and cafes in a picturesque setting amidst snow clad mountain peaks of Rakaposhi and glaciers like the Ulter Nala as well as deep gorges. Larger hotels like Serena and Embassy are a little away from the main thoroughfare of bazar. As per last census the population of Hunza town is 16,000. Literacy in the valley (population 65,000) is as high as 70% as against a national average of 58 percent. In view of innumerable schools that have been established in the last ten years the literate population has substantially increased.

The region has a rich variety of rare fauna and flora. The flora consists of trees such as apple, apricot, walnut, mulberry, willow, fir, and poplar trees. The fauna recorded in the village consist of Ibex, Duck, Red Striped Fox, Snow Leopard, Markhor (wild goat), Marc Polo Sheep and Yak. The avian fauna too consist a variety of birds, one of them being Magpie, which is not seen at lower altitudes in our part of the world. We will talk about Magpies besides the Apricot trees later while visiting Altit Fort on the grounds of which we saw a plenty of both the Magpies and Apricot trees with a spectrum of fall colours.

The Embassy Hotel where we were staying became our base station for three days that we remained in Hunza and Nagar. The Hotel provided spectacular views of some of the most beautiful and magnificent mountains of the world which include Rakaposhi 7,788 meters (25,551 ft), Ultar Sar 7,388 meters (24,239 ft), Bojahagur Duanasir II 7,329 meters (24,045 ft), Ghenta Sar 7,090 meters (23,261 ft), Hunza Peak 6,270 meters (20,571 ft), Darmyani Peak 6,090 meters (19,980 ft), and Bublimating (Ladyfinger Peak) 6,000 meters (19,685 ft). Hunza Valley is also host to Altit and Baltit Forts. Baltit Fort stands on top of Karimabad whereas Altit Fort lies at the bottom of the valley. At the hotel we were privileged to have been provided a selection of choicest rooms across a sprawling terrace facing these peaks. 

DAY 3 (Sunday, November 6, 2016):

THE ALTIT FORT

On the following day of arrival, the third day of our travel, we proceeded first to see the nearby Altit Fort. We were met at the fort by the curator and guide Muhammad Javeed Hunzai whom we found very courteous and knowledgeable about the history not only of the fort but also of Hunza in general. We were struck by his eloquence both in English and Urdu. He informed us about the people and clans besides the languages they spoke in Hunza. The people who live here not only in Hunza but also in Nagar, Chitral and valleys of Gilgit-Baltistan in general are known as Burusho who speak Burusshaski language. In addition other languages e.g., Shina, and Wakhi are also spoken by people belonging respectively to the Shinaki, and Wakhi ethnicities.They are predominantly Shia Muslims of the Nizari Ismaili tradition. 

The people of the ancient city of Altit are said to be the descendants of Huns, which was a race of largely nomadic people and who were part of the Hunnic tribes of Central Asia. Their rule began in 500 BC, but they lingered on in the region for a substantial amount of time after their kingdom fell. It is believed that the first name of the city was Hunukushal, meaning the village of Huns. That reminded me that the Huns were the very people who burned and devastated Taxila (a hub of Budhism and a centre of learning, an urban metropolis and a meeting point of various cultures, namely the Achaemenids, Greeks, Mauryans, Scthians, Parthians and Kushans), exactly the place where our farmhouse is situated and here we currently lived.

Altit Fort Saddled on a Rock as it is Seen From Distant Far.

The great Altit Fort was built in 11^th century by the Mirs (ruling family) of Hunza as a display of power to the Mirs of Nagar. The above picture of Altit Fort was taken from a distant far and has only been included to show its rugged mountain surroundings and deep gorge by its side. It survived many attacks from aggressors but also withstood several earthquakes since it was built. It was constructed as can be appreciated from the above picture on top of a hill cliff and is over 1,000 feet above the Hunza River. Its tower, which is the  only barely identifiable structure in the above picture (seen clearly in the following photo) is known as the Shikari Tower. It was built strategically to monitor the land around, especially during wartime. 

Shikari Tower (Hunter's Tower) of Altit Fort

During conversation with Mr Javeed, we found out that  the tower was not only used to keep an eye out for threats, but was also used to throw off prisoners who were serving their death sentences. In late 1540’s a dispute between two royal brothers of Hunza’s royal family, Prince Shah Abbas and Prince Ali Khan, saw the rise of another fort called the 'Baltit Fort' which soon became the new capital of Hunza. Prince Ali, the younger brother made Altit Fort his strong hold and launched offensives against his elder brother. Legend has it that Ali was buried alive against a pillar inside the watchtower by Shah Abbas.

The Fort is quite impressive as it had intricate wood carvings and adequately preserved rooms. Within the fort there was a room where the ruler used to reside. There were vessels and utensils used by the royal family on display. From the roof one can look down a 300 meters (1,000 feet) drop to the Hunza River, turning the other way, there is a view over the rooftops of Altit village and on up to the Ultar /glacier. 

The fort as shown on the following map (in the public domain) is slightly off on the left hand side as one drives from Karimabad towards Khunjrab Pass on KKH.In 1891, British forces overtook Altit, in an attempt to eliminate any potential Russian involvement in the region. As per British norms of occupation, Hunza remained in the hands of the trusted half brother of the ex Mir who fled to China. Altit Fort was gifted to the Aga Khan Foundation in 1990. Their cultural service department has done a commendable job in restoring the fort, which has been operating as a tourist museum since 2007.

Relative Positions of Altit and Baltit Forts (Serena Hotel Hunza map, available in public domain)

From top of the Altit Fort we could see the life as it went on inside the houses down below. As the apricots were there no more and it was the season of apples, those were being dried on top of the houses. As we came out of the fort, we bought some apples and found them fresh, crisp and juicy. Extremely delicious those were. 

A View of Altit Village Down Below from the Balcony of Altit Fort

A View of Shear Rock Fall and Hunza River From Altit Fort 

To visit Altit Fort one needs to pass through a very neat and clean Altit Village. The path leads to an Apricot tree garden  where from a little climb over the rocks allows one to enter the fort. The Apricot Trees presented an avalanche of colours of gold and crimson red besides a spectrum of hues in between. This was our first great view of autumn in Hunza.     

A Magnificient View of the Fall Colours on Apricot Trees on the Grounds of Altit Fort

Apart from the scenes comprising of immense autumnized beauty of fall apricot trees, we also found the people with very attractive features. Their houses were neat and clean and the overall village scene gave an unforgettable serene look. Among the things we witnessed and noted were beautifully carved wooden doors and niches in the wall. The doors were exceedingly low and required incoming or outgoing person to bend on entrance or exit. This as explained by the guide was to thwart the cold and keep the room warm. Later we saw the same practice continuing elsewhere even today. 

The life as it went on in and around the Altit village was apparently no different from the one seen from the Altit Fort above but had an inexplicable magic about it. Boys were playing football, an elderly woman with a huge load of grass on her back was passing by and two elderly men idly sitting infront of a house smiling at us as we passed them but most spectacular was the bemused look of a little girl standing on the verandah of an under construction house.

 

Faces of Altit Village

It was also here that we noticed a lot of Black Billed Magpies. They were black and white, with long metallic green/purple tail. As those were a novelty for us we took some interest in them and took their pictures. They uttered loud chattering calls, shak-shak-shak and were quite similar to Rufous Treepie, which has slate grey hood and rufous-brown mantle, pale grey wing panel, with harsh alarm cries, ka-kak-kaakh-kaakh warning other birds of potential threats. Rufous Treepie is a common sight in and around  fruit orchards of Taxila/Khanpur area where we lived. The black billed magpie is locally called by the name Ghiship. We saw them at several places foraging on the ground, usually walking, sometimes hopping, and sometimes scratching with their feet to turn over ground litter.

 

              Black Billed Magpie                                          Rufous Tripe 

Magpies are birds of the crow family. They are considered one of the most intelligent animals in the world, and the only non-mammal species able to recognize themselves in a mirror test.

 A couple of Magpies Foraging and Playing with a Rabbit of similar colour combination

as themselves on the grounds of Altit Fort 

We had a very enjoyable and informative tour of the Altit Fort and for that we were grateful to  the conductor of the tour Mr Javeed Hunzai with whom we got ourselves photographed before leaving for the remaining programme of the day, which included a visits to the Attabad Lake, Passu Glacier, Gulmit Carpet Weaving Factory and interaction with a Wakhi Family at Ghulkin.  

A Group Photo with Mr Javeed Hunzai the Guide and Curator of Altit Fort

We had a very enjoyable and informative tour of the Altit Fort and for that we were grateful to  the conductor of the tour Mr Javeed Hunzai with whom we got ourselves photographed before leaving for the remaining programme of the day, which included a visits to the Attabad Lake, Passu Glacier, Gulmit Carpet Weaving Factory and interaction with a Wakhi Family at Ghulkin (upper Hunza).