Karakoram Highway
The Karakoram Highway (KKH) is the highest international road in the world. It connects China to Pakistan across the Karakoram mountain ranges, through the Khunjerab Pass at a recently confirmed altitude of 4,693 metres (15,397 feet).
The highway runs about 1,200 km from Kashgar, China to Havelian in the Abbottabad District of Pakistan. An extension of the highway meets the Grand Trunk Road at Hasan Abdal, west of Islamabad, Pakistan. Large part of highway runs through Azad Kashmir.
Tourism
In recent years, the KKH has become something of a destination for adventure travel. The road has also given mountaineers easier access to the many high mountains in the area.
High mountain ranges and glaciers are visible from the road, which also passes through green valleys of great natural beauty. Rock art and petroglyphs are found all along the road. Karimabad is a popular destination.
Weather
Heavy snow during harsh winters can shut the highway down for extended periods. Heavy monsoon rains, around July and August, cause occasional mudslides that can block the road for hours or more. The KKH is best travelled in the spring or early autumn.
History
The KKH was built by the governments of Pakistan and China, and was completed in 1978, after about twenty years of work. Several hundred Pakistanis and Chinese workers lost their lives, mostly in landslides and falls, while working on the highway. The route of the KKH traces one of the many paths of the ancient Silk Road.
On Pakistani side, the road was constructed by FWO (Frontier Works Organization) employing Pakistan Army Corps of Engineers. Presently Engineer-in-Chief's Branch Pakistan Army is working on a project of documenting the History of Karakoram Highway. Brigadier (Retired) Muhammad Mumtaz Khalid, an old vetern who has worked on the road during its construction, is writing the History of Karakoram Highway. ([email protected])
Owing to the extremely sensitive state of the Kashmir conflict between India and Pakistan, the Karakoram highway has strategic and military importance.
See also
- Karakoram
- Karakorum
- Khardungla Pass - Highest motorable road in the world.