My love of adventure comes natural to me.The degree of love varies from person to person.My adventuresome spirit prompted me, and a friend of mine suggested to visit Naran in the Kaghan valley.One july morning we left for A bbotabad by bus and reached there in the after-noon.The journey was tiring and we slept soundly for the night.Next morning we left for Balakot.On the way,we passed by Jangal Mngal and Jabba,over 20 kilometers from Mansehra.Around Jabba there was a thick forest and the beauty of the landscape was simply breathtaking.There were very sharp,hairpin turns on the road near Batrasi.
We saw the conjunction point where the river Kunhar meets two other streams near Garhi Habibullah.The hills around looked beautiful with clouds clung round their tops.There was a rope bridge over the Kunhar near Shohan.
It was a strange experience to hear the noise of the rushing river water at Balakot.The noise was all around.Everwhere,inside shops,houses,mosques and out on the roads,open spaces and slopes,the noise dominated.At night when i woke up,i could hear this noise in the hotel room also.In the evening we visited Shah Ismail Shaheed's grave in the outskirts of Balakot.Balakot was devastated by the severe earthquake on Oct.8,2005.The site-plan will give a new look to Balakot.
The road to Kaghan was in a bad shape.It was high in upper half of the high mountain slope and the river Kunhar looked like a ribbon far below.There were many dangerous turns.Our jeep crossed about eight glaciers from Kaghan to Naran.
Naran is 7890 feet above the sea-level.It was very still in the woods around Naran.There were logs in the river.There was a fast flowing ice-cold stream from Saif-ul-Maluk lake to the Kunhar at Naran.The sight was really breath-taking.
All around there were summits and slopes and the noise of the rushing stream.The saif-ul-maluk Lake is 10537 feet above sea-level and over 12 Km from Naran.There was a huge glacier on the way up from Naran.
It was an extremely enjoyable and unforgettable.We were thoroughly refreshed when we came back from Naran.
