Skardu Pakistan

   Skardu Pakistan.

  

 Skardu is the main town of Baltistan along the wide bank of the river Indus. Skardu is the largest district of the Northern Areas. Baltistan is home to some of the highest peaks in the world, the Karakoram Range, Skardu is very popular with Mountaineering Expeditions. It is equally popular with high altitude trekkers, who treks to Baltoro Glacier, K2 Base Camp and Concordia.  Skardu by road, lies approximately 5 hours away from Gilgit and 10 hours drive from Besham.  A daily flight to and from Islamabad is also in operation. The flight is always subject to weather.

Skardu has a character of its own and has a very interesting scenery. The Indus becomes wide and still here. The town is surrounded by dry rugged mountains and sand dunes.
Skardu Valley is Located in the Northern Area of Pakistan. Skardu Valley is part of the Baltistan. Baltistan is spread over an area of 26,000 square kilometres – just right below the jagged and glaciated ramparts of the Karakoram. Once part of Laddakh, it was known as Tibet-i-Khurd – Little Tibet. Archaeological exploration has proven that it was encompassed by the Silk Trade Route.
 The Skardu region has the four of the world's fourteen Eight-thousander peaks (8,000 m and above) this makes it a heaven for trekkers expeditions enthusiasts and mountain climbers. The main tourist season is from April to October


Shangrila Lake, Skardu, Pakistan.
Shangrila Lake is also known as Lower Kachura Lake. It is a part of the Shangrila resort. Shangrilla Lake is located at a drive of about 20 minutes from Skardu. It is a popular tourist destination, and has a unique restaurant that is built on the fuselage of an aircraft that had crashed nearby.
 Shangrila was established in 1983 with the opening of the first Resort Hotel in Skardu, Baltistan. It was named “heaven on earth”  because of its spectacular beauty,and breathtaking view and peaceful atmosphere. Shangrila Resort Hotel was founded by the late Brig.(Retd) Muhammad Aslam Khan, the first commander of the Northern Scouts of the Pakistan Army

 Shangrila was named after a book titled “Lost Horizon” by James Hilton. In the novel, the author narrates a tale in which an aeroplane crash landed near a riverbed, in the early 1920's. The surviving passengers came across some Buddhist monks from a nearby temple and sought their help. They were taken to a beautiful lamasery filled with a variety of fruits and flowers. The monks looked quite young, although they claimed to be hundreds of years old. The idyllic place was called Shangri-la, a Tibetan word meaning “Heaven on earth”.