Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 1

Off the beaten track, a trip to Panjpir Rockies

(Shaikh Muhammad Ali)

(33 40 19 33° N - 73 28 49 88° E)

“Traveling is a way to reverse time, to a

small extent, and make a day last a year -

- or at least 45 hours -- and traveling is

an easy way of surrounding ourselves, as

in childhood, with what we cannot

understand” ……….George Santayana

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 2

Overview:

Since the day that we have browsed upon the details of the Panjpir Rockies on

www.pakwheels.com, a famous URL in Pakistan where like-minded people share

information on travels and tours, and Omair Hassan’s ‘Dashtnavard Blog’ on

Panjpir, Hassan Nasir Zaidi (my hiking buddy) and myself have been itching to

hike this particular trek. About a week back in late June 2011, we finally decided

to pack our bags for this particular trip and convinced our families as well to tag

along.

(On the way to Lehtrar village)

We took our two cars i.e. my Santro Club while Hassan rode his Jeep Cherokee

with his better half and right after work hours we found ourselves on the Park

road beyond Chak Shahzad, heading for the Lehtrar village. Incidentally, my car

broke down while the engine got over heated due to some blockage in the

thermostat pipes. After stopping thrice while cooling down the engine, we

ended up reaching Lehtrar village and finally decided to park my car there at a

Gas station where we requested the owner to take care of the car while we

pursued our journey further while stuffing up in Hassan’s jeep to the Danoi rest

house which was another 6 kms up on the mountain.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 3

(http://dashtnavard.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/danoiresthouse.jpg)

“Just a handful of people in Islamabad know about this exciting hiking

opportunity very near to them. Panjpeer is the highest point of the Danoi Ridge

in Kotli Sattian/Kahuta. It is called Panjpeer because of a shrine it has at the top.

Locals believe this was a place where five saints came and got settled. It is at an

altitude of approximately 1800 meters. In winters the top gets a few ft. of snow

each year”1.

“Danoi hike starts from the Lehtrar rest house on the Lehtrar Road. This road links

Islamabad to Bagh via Kotli Sattian. Total distance between Islamabad and

Lehtrar town is around 40 Kilometers. Rest house is behind the petrol pump just a

little ahead of the main bazaar. The hike starts behind this rest house and is

actually an abandoned jeep road. In a couple of hours, this path reaches Danoi

rest house while passing through a beautiful pine forest. Danoi rest house is at an

approximate altitude of 1300 meters”2.

“If you have lesser time, another option is to skip the first part and start the hike

right from Danoi rest house itself where a metalled road joins from Lehtrar. To

reach rest house on a vehicle, follow the Lehtrar road for a further few kilometers

towards Kotli Sattian till a place called as Thun Mor from where a road turns right

towards Baba Saeen Matka Sharif shrine in Kamra. There is also a sign board

indicating this shrine. Total traveling distance from Islamabad to Danoi rest

house is around 60 kilometers. If you are coming on your own vehicle, you can

park it here. Tell the rest house guards to take care of it, and they will do it well.

The rest house was built in 1928 and is right in the middle of the beautiful pine

forest. You can also spend the night here through an advanced booking from

1 http://dashtnavard.wordpress.com/?s=Danoi+rest+house

2 Ibid.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 4

the forest department office near Sawan station, Rawalpindi but they are

generally reluctant to entertain people without reference”3.

Back to the main story:

We had already booked Danoi rest house through the Punjab Forest

Department via their Sawan camp office in Rawalpindi the previous day. We

finally reached the rest house around 8:30 p.m. while it was pitch dark there

since electricity has still not reached the place. Our families were a little

apprehensive initially due to the darkness but slowly and gradually they became

acclimatized to the situation and the place. After unpacking, we feasted on the

mouthwatering biryani (Pakistani style rice with chicken and chilies) which my

wife had made and carried along. It was a modern version of a candle light

dinner replaced by emergency lights and a kerosene lamp.

(The plaque at the Danoi rest house)

The rest house is in a typical remote forest setting with cries of jackals every now

and then in the night which added an eerie feeling to the environment. Luckily,

the care taker had a dog named ‘Moti’ who barked and kept the jackals away.

After dinner, we enjoyed a hot cup of green tea which was later to be followed

by mangoes made cold in a tumbler full of water and the meal ended with a

strawberry and mint ‘Shisha’ smoking while the children played around.

3 Ibid.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 5

(Hassan, Adil [my son] and I at the stairs of the rest house)

The next morning, Hassan and I had planned to hike the Panjpir rocks but we

were put off by learning that a team of 50+ people from OGDCL were

expected around 10:00 a.m. at the rest house for a day’s excursion.

(Hassan & I at the entrance of the Danoi rest house)

If we had attempted the hike at 5:00 a.m., we would have probably returned by

11:00 a.m. but leaving our families sleeping while the other party arriving made

us uncomfortable and thus we had to put off our plan for the hike and postpone

it for later. It was indeed a painful decision but we did not seem to have much

choice.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 6

(Our two families with the pine forest in the background)

So the next morning we woke up around 9:00 a.m. and after taking a few

pictures around the rest house, we packed our bags while the other party did

arrive in hordes of 50+ people and the peace, serenity and calm of the place

was converted into a city like situation with menfolk shouting, women chattering

and children monkeying around.

(Adil and Mohisn Shaikh at the entrance to the Danoi rest house)

After enjoying the quite of the place we just could not handle the noise pollution

caused by our fellow homo sapiens and practically ran away from the place

without even having our breakfast there and ended up heading south at a

village called ‘Ratta Kas’ where we enjoyed a brunch of ‘Dal and Parathey’ i.e.

Lentils and bread at a dhaba (Small restaurant) right next to a small pond.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 7

(Enjoying by the pond @ Ratta Kas)

The families enjoyed the meal and took a few pictures by the pond and we

finally descended from the mountains and ended up reaching home around

3:00 p.m. with the hope that we will attempt the Panjpir peak in the near future.

(Parting picture after the brunch)

While driving home I thought to myself that all good trips are, like love, about

being carried out of yourself and deposited in the midst of terror and wonder.

Come Friday 1st July 2011, Hassan and I decided again to hit the Panjpir rockies from

the Kahuta side. This time around we went to the site directly from work and did not

take our families along since we could not get the booking done at the Narr rest house.

We started in the afternoon and stopped at Domino’s Pizza to pick up a sizzling hot

pizza with a 1.5 liter Sprite and headed for Kak Pul towards Kahuta via Islamabad

highway. Shortly we were on the Kahuta road which is also called the Azad Patan road.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 8

(About 12 kms from the Panjaar village)

After reaching Panjaar village, we turn left towards the Narar village. There is a rest

house of the Punjab Forest department here too which was built in 1902. Although the

rooms are nicely furnished but the overall structure is quite shabby and not well

maintained.

(About 12 kms from the Narar village)

The rest house is right at the start of the mountain area and slowly and gradually the

road snakes up and you can get to appreciate the pine trees shortly.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 9

(Hassan with the beautiful pine trees in the backdrop)

About an hour’s drive from here, the scenery changed and the real rockies started. It

was an unusual rock formation and the rockies stretched for miles in a row.

(At the start of the Narr village)

We stopped and took a few pictures here since we had never seen rocks like these

before in any of our escapades and tours.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 10

(Entering Narr village)

After passing through this village, we had risen further and passed through another rock

formation which was another interesting site.

(Another view of the rocks close to the Panjpir top)

After going further for another ½ hour, we parked our jeep here and hiked for

around 30 minutes to reach the Panjpir top. This is where the 5 Pir brothers

(Saints) used to sit and meditate.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 11

(By the banyan tree at the Panjpir top)

The place was at a height of approximately 1,800 meters with beautiful views of

Makra and other mountains of Kaghan area on your north while different peaks

of Kashmir are visible on the east.

(Hassan is all smiles after reaching the top)

Since we did not have a booking to stay at the guest house, we decided to leave early

so that we could descend the mountains in broad daylight before sunset. So around

5:30 – 6:00 p.m. we left the place and following the same route descended. On the

way back, again the scenery and rocks were so tempting that we decided to stop over

for tea.

Off the beaten track – A trip to Panjpir Rockies Page 12

(http://dashtnavard.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/panjpeerrocks.jpg)

We spent another half hour or so at the below spot, made and enjoyed tea and then

headed for home. It took us another two hours or so to reach my house where Hassan

dropped me before heading for his home.

Hassan and I have become good backpack buddies and have been enjoying such

escapades lately and I have come to the conclusion that the best trips, like the best

love affairs, never really end.

(An ideal spot in the mountains where we prepared and enjoyed tea)

Shaikh Muhammed Ali ‘The Wandering Dervish’

E-mail: dushkashaikh@gmail.com Cell: +00-92-321-5072996

Sunday, 3rd July 2011, 03:59 p.m. (PST)