Skardu!
The name “Skardu” is believed to be derived from the Balti word meaning “a low land between two high places. The two high places are Shigar City at one end while Satpara Lake at the other end. Skardu city is situated in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. Skardu, being Baltistan’s region capital is a beautiful landmark of heaven, peace, comfort, and nature. So, if you are up for Skardu to spend your vacation with family, then you are at the rightest place to be.
Routes to Skardu
If you are already in Pakistan then, weekly flights depart from Lahore, Sialkot, or Karachi whereas daily flights are scheduled from Islamabad. However, for foreigners, the place can be reached via daily direct flights from the capital city of Pakistan, Islamabad. So you can come a day or two prior or have a connecting one via Islamabad city.The citizens, who are fed up with the scorching sun and heat of May-June in Pakistan, can have a leisure vacation at Skardu via both air and land routes.
For land routes, there are two options:
-Via the Baltistan Highway route ( which is nowadays under construction that may be a disturbance for visitors planning to visit Skardu these days)
– And the second is a beautiful route to Deosai via the Astore road and then to Skardu.
PLACES TO VISIT IN SKARDU
Since Skardu is the capital of the Baltistan region. The place has many significant, interesting, and amazing wonders on earth. People make their base-camps in Skardu and visit the nearly located awesome lands, as the top ones are:
Shigar Fort
Deosai National Park
Skardu Fort
Sheosar Lake
Katpana Desert
Satpara Lake
Manthal Buddha Rock
Hussainabad Waterfall
Must-know things!
But it’s always good to check before leaving, so don’t forget to call and confirm your flight from the airport.
Since Deosai is a high-altitude area, and people with prolonged medical cardiac history or breathing issues must get a go-through from their doctors beforehand.
Clothes to pack
- Warm pants or jeans.
- Socks
- Light gloves or mittens.
- Raincoat.
- Fleeces.
- Jacket or coat.
- Waterproof footwear.
- Waterproof luggage.
- – a handful of polybags, to keep the area clean from waste and disposed cans.
- And also camps, in case you thrive for camping at the waterfall sights!
What Cuisine/Food does the place offer?
The dilemma of food is so enriching that even a roadside tumbler fascinates in the dull sunset behind the hills. The food variety is exceptional as to please everybody visiting Skardu. Continental, Thai, desi, Meat-or-veg is whatever you ask for, will be served piping hot!
Interestingly, the place offers a variety of organic fruits and vegetables directly from nearby farms.
‘Yak’ is a domestic animal of Skardu, often seen in mountains. Hunted and cooked freshly. Its meat is expensive and made on order, often sauté in fresh sauces and vegetables, a whole wok or served as grilled in burgers. The meat has a high protein value, great energy substitute for hiking and trekking there.
Activities in Skardu
Skardu offers wide, zealous, and lots of fun-filled outdoor as well as indoor activities to its visitors.
- Trekking
- Camping
- Deserts and Lakes
- Bonefire
- Polo Matches on lush green polo grounds
- The indoor board games
- Fishing the freshest trouts in Lakes.
- Boating and lots more.
People of Skardu and their cultural values
The people of Skardu are humble-natured, friendly, and regard their visitors with a great dilemma. The hospitality is admirable as they would treat you like a boss! The cultural and norms of
Skardu is very dear to its people and they look proud in swaying and flaunting the colors of their traditional music, cultural dance, and the heritage they have preserved for ages.
The ancient mosques, historic forts, Buddha rocks are the auspicious landmarks and recognition of Skardu.
Transport
You will find good and reasonable transport and travel safely in the local as well as private rent-a-car offices are operational in the area.
For your help, a tourists guide is everywhere in the place, in offices, centers, and on roads.
1422 is Tourist Police Helpline Number!
1422 is an informative guide, doing an amazing job, introduced by the government of Gilgit-Baltistan. The number is operational for tourist assistance and tells them about the nearby available cheap hotels, transport, medical centers in cases of emergency and convenient road routes. 1-4-2-2 is what you need to remember.
Apart from all this, you must know that you are not only the visitor to the place but also an asset to the country government. And for this, police protocols and emergency numbers are displayed on every road and turn.
What Does Skardu want from us?
- A man spends his age sowing a seed, looking it after, and water the plants through thick and thin, but how would he feel if one day, the fruit along with the branches is plucked and thrown to be rotten on roads? The sight is really disturbing, therefore; we must not do it, avoid it and be nice to the trees.
- Being responsible citizens, we have to watch out for litter and dispose of our waste carefully. Nature has lots for us, but keeping nature, its natural hue is what we must be cautioned about! Keep Skardu Clean!