Top 5 Trekking Adventures in Hunza Valley: Why It Should Be on Every Hiker’s Bucket List

A region of soaring tooth-edged peaks, glistening glaciers and glacier lakes, extraordinary historic cultural attractions and orchards heavy with fruits and nuts, Pakistan’s Hunza Valley is renowned around the world for its simply epic hiking trails.

• Located in the country’s far north, deep within the Karakorum Mountains, this region of astonishing natural landscapes dramatically cleaved by the Hunza River ensures Hunza Valley trekking is never anything but sublime.

• Having a daypack on your back and a sturdy pole in hand remains the best way of exploring the Hunza Valley, an area traditionally closer to China than the south, and known to almost all who visit as the Jewel of Pakistan.

• A true paradise for anyone who enjoys the challenges of mountain walking and the physical buzz that comes with reaching an awe-inspiring vista only accessible on foot, Hunza hiking adventures are up there with some of the most-admired experiences in the world.

Here then are our top 5 suggestions for the very best treks in Hunza.

The best Hunza Valley trekking

Photo by Found Expeditions

1. Rakaposhi Basecamp trek

Hunza hiking adventures that result in trekkers reaching Rakaposhi and Diran Basecamps are excellent routes for those with a little more high altitude or mountaineering experience.

Usually starting from the town of Minapin, the trek to the base of Rakaposhi Peak leads to the only mountain on the planet which rises for close on 6100m from the Hunza River valley to the summit.

What to Expect from Rakaposhi Basecamp treks

Spanning some 20km from west to east, trekkers will soon realise why Rakaposhi translates as ‘Shining Wall,’ while also being named locally as Dumani or ‘mother of the clouds.’ Taking approximately six hours in one direction, the trek is dominated by views of nearby Diran Peak, as well as the meeting point of three major glaciers.

Photo by Found Expeditions

2. Passu Glacier Hike

A river of ice flowing for almost 20 kilometres and up to 1.5km deep in places, the Passu Glacier is one of several major ice floes which feed the River Hunza with fresh meltwater throughout the year, ultimately making them responsible for the phenomenal beauty of the Hunza Valley.

Setting foot on the glacier itself should only ever be attempted in the presence of expert guides who will know the telltale signs of instability. Sticking to the well-marked out trails, starting at either the village of Passu or that of Hussainabad, it’s still possible to take in the glacier’s incredible size and presence in the landscape.

What to Expect on Passu Glacier

One of the easiest Hunza Valley treks offered on Pakistan hiking tours, it’s a great option for confidence building at the start of a longer trip while providing a fascinating close-up look at a craggy world of ice.

Along the way, hikers won’t fail to spot the incredible cluster of peaks known as the Passu Cones.

Photo by Found Expeditions

3. Ultar Sar Basecamp trek

Also known by some as the Ultar Meadows, the Ultar Sar Basecamp trek is definitely not one trekkers will want to attempt without a guide with experience of adventure travel in northern Pakistan.

It begins close to one of the region’s most important cultural attractions, the 1,200-year-old Baltit Fort in the town of Karimabad. This was the palace home of the mirs (kings) of Hunza until 1945, when they sought more modern conveniences further down the mountainside.

The trek itself takes hikers above the Hunza Valley to the foot of Ultar Sar, the southernmost peak in the Batura range with flanks rising to a height of 7388m above sea level.

What to Expect on Ultar Sar

Tough in places because of the inclines and looseness of the trail surface, the Ultar Sar Basecamp trek makes our list of the best treks in Hunza because of the spectacular panoramic views it offers back across Hunza and towards peaks including Rakaposhi and Diran.

This also makes the Ultar Sar Basecamp trek a great option for those not heading any closer to either Rakaposhi or Diran peaks on foot.

Photo by Found Expeditions

4. Baskochi Meadows trek

Lying above the Karakorum Highway, the modern incarnation of Asia’s ancient Silk Road, anyone undertaking the Baskochi Meadows trek in Ainabad will be rewarded with fine views down to the startling turquoise blue waters of Attabad Lake, created in 2010 by a major landslide and now a popular boating lake with Hunza locals.

What to Expect Hiking Baskochi Meadows

The trek to Baskochi Meadows shouldn’t take any longer than a couple of hours, making it a great option for anyone with a spare afternoon and a desire to explore further, though a significant amount of this time is taken up with admiring the incredible views, which extend beyond Attabad Lake to also include the Passu Cones at certain spots.

If you can, try and coincide your trek to Baskochi Meadows with the later afternoon, to capture the start of the sunset before heading back down to the roadside before dark.

Photo by Found Expeditions

5. Diran Basecamp trek

Offered as an ‘add-on’ to the trek to Rakaposhi Basecamp, the roundtrip hike to Diran Basecamp usually lasts around eight hours, with a total walking distance of 12km and an ascent close to half a kilometre.

An alternative route leads directly from Minapin in two days, but however hikers get there, the wonder of Diran Basecamp trek really lies in the chance to take in views of, and hike into Diran Glacier, an otherworldly spot of ice pinnacles standing up to 20m high that’s sure to humble.

Need to Know - Diran Basecamp trek

Perhaps the most daring trek available  in Pakistan’s Hunza Valley region, it can involve stepping over crevasses in the glacier with depths of up to 30m, meaning it’s not for the faint hearted.

Photo by Found Expeditions

Ready to take on a Hunza Valley trekking adventure of your own? Explore our upcoming Pakistan tours to join us on one of our unforgettable sustainable adventure tours far from the beaten path.