WEL COME TO GOJAL VAILY

The region know locally as Gojal (‘go-JAHL’ or “gu-JAHL) extends south from sost for about 60km to where the Hunza River tums west. This is the only river that costs across the high spine of the karakoram, and it does so in southern Gojal. As a result the High karakoram is more accessible here than anywhere else on the KKH. At passu and Gulmit several major glaciers reach nearly to the highway.

The scenery is stern and impressive, but too gloomy a d harsh to be really sublime, wrote the British explorer Reginald Schaumburg in 1935. Mountains with razor-edge summits and bare walls drop sheer to the river, and the wind drives up the valley even on brilliant days. Nevertheless, if you are fit, this is the place to climb up and get a feeling for the highlands. The clearest and most storm-free weather is in early autumn.

The river picks its way among great fans of alluvium brought down by to smaller streams; most villages are built on these fertile deposits. The larger tributaries also carry down soil and roks, but often suddenly and destructively, huge floods have periodically destroyed river- fort fields and orchards. In 1974 a mudslide from Shiskat Nala backed up the Hunza River for 20km. Despite Pakistan Air force attempts to bomb it loose. The resulting lake lasted for over three years, during which time the once deep valley literally filled u with sand and gravel, leaving much of it grimmer than when schomberg saw it.

Gojal is usually described as upper Hunza. Like the people of Hunza. Proper, Gojalis are Ismaili Muslims and were loyal subjects of the Mir of Hunza. But their Persian- influenced language is unrelated to Hunza speech, and the people are Wakhi (Tadjik) descendants of nomadic herdsmen from what is now eastern Afghanistan, China’s Tarim Basin and the Soviet Tadjik repubic. They’re probably the most warm-hearted people of the KKH, with easy greetings and hospitality for both men and women.

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