In all our travels we’ve never received a text message at 10:30pm the night before a flight to tell us that the plane would now be departing 2 hours early. If we’d of gone to bed slightly earlier we’d of missed the message and the flight too. Luckily we were able to make it to Islamabad’s airport and check into our 7:40am flight to Skardu. After passing through security we spotted a kids toy shop called ‘Kaboom’ which we thought was a rather interesting choice of names for an airport shop. It looked like everyone managed to get the early departure notice because the gate was packed out. We wanted to get a window seat but they charged 1400 rupees extra so we reluctantly took an aisle and middle seat. Once we boarded we decided to risk taking the window in our row and just wait and see what happened and low and behold, on an almost full flight no one claimed the seat so not only did we get a window but we had a whole row to ourselves.

It was only an hour flight to Skardu, apparently the ones to Gilgit, another mountain town are often cancelled as they use a small plane which sounded horrible so I felt a little safer in this bigger one. We left the city smog behind and began flying over rocky mountains with jagged ridge-lines peaking out from a layer of cloud. Then all of the action began on the right side of the plane, we could just about get a glimpse of the snowy peaks through the window but luckily the mountains began appearing on our side too. Suddenly we were flying alongside, not above, big snow capped mountains. It was absolutely incredible.

I couldn’t believe how low the plane was flying, we were eye-height with the peaks. The snowy section of high mountains didn’t last long and afterwards we had dramatic rocky cliffs and crazy valleys. As we approached Skardu the captain went past the airport so he could turn around and loose more altitude. I don’t think I’ve ever been on a plane that’s turned so dramatically. All I could see out my window was the big muddy river below us but eventually the plane began levelling off and soon enough we landed. It was probably one of the prettiest airports in the world, encircled by jagged, rocky peaks. The sun was shining and we were so happy to be in the mountains – but also very surprised at how hot it still was even up at 2500m elevation.

Taxi drivers were trying to ask for a crazy amount but we stuck to our guns and eventually a taxi with someone already inside gave us a ride for a fair price. Turns out the other passenger was the ambassador of Islamabad, it’s like the equivalent of hopping in a taxi with the mayor of London. We checked into our room and our host spoke fluent English so he was able to help us plan our time in the town. In the end we decided while the weather was good we should hike up Marsur Rock, an unusual rock feature atop a mountain. Our host arranged a car to take us to the trail but something happened to it so the back-up option was a tiny 2wd that struggled to get up the switchbacks. It was a bit of a crazy mountain dirt road but even still with his pedal to the floor the car was barely creeping up. At one point we had to get out so the car wasn’t so heavy.

We arrived at a little wooden stand where a man charged an entrance fee and said we needed a guide. We didn’t need one, it’s not a rule and we had a map so we said we’d be fine and off we went. It ended up clouding over quite a bit for our hike and there were even some storm clouds brewing but on the plus side it meant I could hike at a good pace as I always struggle in hot weather. We were hiking up the side of a valley and the entire trail was made of literal dust. Every step we took would erupt the dust around our feet and ankles and we looked a bloomin’ state. Most other tourists that we passed did seem to have a guide with them but a few didn’t. It was funny because two grown men had obviously been told it was a necessity and they had two guides. When they saw us they pointed to Craig and said “is he your guide” to which I jokingly said “no I’m the guide”. But it was only after I said it that I realised how sexist his comment was, assuming the guy was the guide and not me.

It was a pretty tough hike to be honest, climbing 800m elevation in just 2.5km. Towards the end we could hear loud rumbles of thunder but the worst of it seemed to be in another valley. It took us just over 2 hours to reach the rock which was similar to one we’ve visited in Norway, kind of like a flat rock hanging over the edge of the valley. I assumed the photos I’d seen were an optical illusion and the rock was much safer and wider than it looked but it was in fact terrifying. To be fair it was wide, but it slanted left and went uphill so if you tripped or slipped then gravity would send you 1000m down to the valley below. As soon as I started walking up I made the mistake of looking down and that was it, I couldn’t make it any further, my legs turned to jelly and I was riddled with vertigo. I quickly opted for a crouched position so I had four points of contact and got Craig to help me off.

Craig was braver than me and made it up a lot higher, he said each time he tried it became easier. I just can’t phantom how people have the balls to sit or stand right on the tip. The whole rock narrows to that point so it wouldn’t be much wider than your bum to sit on and makes me feel sick just thinking about it. It was still a cool place to end the hike and look down at the vast, desert valley below us.

We only paid for a ride up so we had to figure out how to find a car to take us down such a quiet road. Our plan was to hitchhike or agree a price with a driver but until that happened we decided to start walking down the road in the right direction. We spotted a car parked up and there were four elderly men having a picnic nearby. They excitedly waved us over and invited us to join them for chai and bread. One man shook our hands with a huge grin on his face and when he saw I was wearing the traditional shalwar kameez his smile grew even bigger and he stood up to give me a little side-hug of appreciation. We were invited to sit on the rug alongside them and tea was poured for us, but it wasn’t normal chai, it was savoury. It kind of looked like a cup-a-soup and was a little oily on the surface. It wasn’t my favourite tea and I struggled a little to drink it but they were also eagerly giving us homemade bread which always goes well with soup so that helped. One of the men spoke English so we communicated through him. He told us him and his friends have picnics in the mountains every other day. How cute! They asked us how we were getting down the mountain without a car and we shrugged and did the hitchhiking motion. At that moment a car began rumbling down the road and they started waving their arms for him to stop. It wasn’t a free ride but it got us back to Skardu before sunset and we were absolutely wiped out after our 4:30am wake up for the plane. What a crazy first day in the mountains of Pakistan!