IJC Day trip to Saif-ul-Muluk, Sunday, 4th November 2018
Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2018 9:31 pm
Alhamdolillah, team IJC is back safely from visiting snow covered Lake Saif-ul-Muluk. The plan had been brewing among members for last few weeks after news of early snow in Naran and surrounding. Few face book pics and vdos made it impossible to resist. We planned a day tip in view of extreme temperatures.
Initial meet up point was old motorway toll plaza, from where we left in a convoy of 5 rigs and 15 people at 5am. No traffic at the time, so progress was brisk. Breakfast break in Balakot at 8am. Journey re-started at 9am for Naran. Snow on mountains visible straight away and eventually after Kaghan snow along the road also started.
Quick toilet and tea break in Naran, and than we were off towards Lulusir lake. Aim was to try n go as far as possible. Snow on the road immediately out of Naran, so progress was cautious. It was a dull cloudy day with very mild snowing now n again. Couple of KM out of batakundi, we decided to put on snow chains on lead vehicle, as no one had ventured beyond and consequently there were no tracks. Progress was steady, but not for long, we came across a land slide/ avalanche completely blocking the road with 10 meter high snow mound across the road! So that was it. We took pics, played a bit in the snow. The kids made a small snowman.
As we couldn't go further, we decided to return to Naran and go to lake Saif-ul-Muluk. The jheel road was covered with snow from the very beginning. There were tracks made by local jeeps going up to the lake. But there tyres and track are much narrower, so we were making our new tracks. It was not easy, but we persevered and with the help of snow chains we made it to the top. The lake was amazing. The freezing temps and no shops or khokhas open for a hot cuppa at the lake meant we had to make the return journey soon.
The return journey down to Naran was steady as it was very slippery in U turns. Vehicles kept slipping sideways. We made it safely. Late lunch at 4:30pm in Naran. Eventually we left Naran at 5:45pm, with almost non-stop journey, we reached back ISB at 11pm.
An exciting and enjoyable day, thoroughly enjoyed by all. Eternally grateful for Almighty's blessings. Let the pics do the talking..............................
Initial meet up point was old motorway toll plaza, from where we left in a convoy of 5 rigs and 15 people at 5am. No traffic at the time, so progress was brisk. Breakfast break in Balakot at 8am. Journey re-started at 9am for Naran. Snow on mountains visible straight away and eventually after Kaghan snow along the road also started.
Quick toilet and tea break in Naran, and than we were off towards Lulusir lake. Aim was to try n go as far as possible. Snow on the road immediately out of Naran, so progress was cautious. It was a dull cloudy day with very mild snowing now n again. Couple of KM out of batakundi, we decided to put on snow chains on lead vehicle, as no one had ventured beyond and consequently there were no tracks. Progress was steady, but not for long, we came across a land slide/ avalanche completely blocking the road with 10 meter high snow mound across the road! So that was it. We took pics, played a bit in the snow. The kids made a small snowman.
As we couldn't go further, we decided to return to Naran and go to lake Saif-ul-Muluk. The jheel road was covered with snow from the very beginning. There were tracks made by local jeeps going up to the lake. But there tyres and track are much narrower, so we were making our new tracks. It was not easy, but we persevered and with the help of snow chains we made it to the top. The lake was amazing. The freezing temps and no shops or khokhas open for a hot cuppa at the lake meant we had to make the return journey soon.
The return journey down to Naran was steady as it was very slippery in U turns. Vehicles kept slipping sideways. We made it safely. Late lunch at 4:30pm in Naran. Eventually we left Naran at 5:45pm, with almost non-stop journey, we reached back ISB at 11pm.
An exciting and enjoyable day, thoroughly enjoyed by all. Eternally grateful for Almighty's blessings. Let the pics do the talking..............................