To Askole

The next morning Sada, I and our guide Yaya went to the Skardu Tourism Office for some briefing and more paperwork. Skardu lies on 2500 meter and is the gateway for trekkers and mountaineers who want to climb one of the 4 Eight-thousander peaks, among them the second highest mountain in the world, the K2. For us seeing the K2, Broad Peak and the Gasherbrums was the main reason for doing this particular trekking. When we came back to the Concordia Hotel, Yaya and Ibrahim started loading the jeep with food and the entire luggage, before we head off for another 8 hours drive to Askole. Eddy was feeling a bit better now and the two of us were squeezing in the front seats next to our driver. Yaya, Ibrahim and Sada had to stand on the back of the jeep. It is 170 km from Skardu to Askole and the last 50 km of the road were only finished 10 years ago. We would not call this a road in Europe and as described on one of the trekking websites – “it knocks you off your socks”. The road runs through the Braldu Gorge, passing many tiny villages, crossing several suspension bridges over the Shigar River - the car sometimes as close to the edge as it can get without dropping into the river...

We were quite relieved when we safely arrived in Askole, where a crowd immediately gathered around our jeep. Not much happens here at the end of the world, so for the locals probably it is a welcome change to see some western tourists. It also means work and earning money, as all the porters used by trekking organisations and expeditions are coming from the surrounding villages. We put up our tents and Yaya and Ibrahim were cooking the first dinner on this trip for us.