Naltar Valley

Naltar is a valley near Gilgit and Hunza in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan. Naltar is 40 km (25 mi) from Gilgit and can be reached by jeeps. Naltar is a forested (pine) village known for its wildlife and magnificent mountain scenery. Now the communication is available by the efforts of Pakistan army signal corps (SCO special communication organization). There are ski lifts under the 'Ski Federation of Pakistan'. Transport is available from Gilgit to Naltar but during a specific time after that own arrangement.

There is a base camp of 'Pakistan Air Force' at Naltar. Ski Competitions are held at Naltar under the supervision of PAF. Naltar Bala and Naltar Pine are two villages of Naltar valley. N.Pine Is at a distance of 34 kilometers (21 mi) and Naltar Bala at 40 kilometers (25 mi) from Gilgit. There is a main village known as Nomal between Naltar valley and Gilgit. A road from Nomal goes to 'The Silk Route' To China. Recently government constructed an 18 MW hydropower project near Naltar Pine to fulfill the power requirement of the area as well as Gilgit. The road from Gilgit to Naltar Pine is metalled and is non-metalled from Naltar Pine to Naltar Bala.

Education rate in this valley is too much poor. A government high school and an NLI public school is there at Naltar Bala and a middle school for girls is under construction.

History

There are two main villages in the valley, Naltar Bala and Naltar Pain, which are further subdivided into small settlements. The villages or settlements of Naltar Bala include Nagar, Gumat, Jagot, Khayot, Chhoti, Dalan, Chimarso, Bishagri and Bidlo while the Naltar Pain settlements comprise the villages of Waldan, now Mominabad, Galin now Jaffarabad, Kot, Harchin, Hodin and Humre. Sheen, Yaskhuns and Gujjars are the main tribes inhabiting in Naltar valley. However, a considerable population of the Gujars lives in Naltar Bala. They speak both Shina and Gujri languages. They subsist on both livestock and agriculture. Potato is the main crop of the valley.

Gujars are not the original settlers of the Naltar valley. They came to settle in the valley over a century ago in search of pastures for their livestock. Some of the families came from Oosho in Kalam, Alai in Thakot, Batagram, while most of them came from Kohistan. One of the notables of Naltar Bala, Mir Baz Khan Gujar, said that his grandfather migrated from his ancestral village Alai in Thakot and settled in Kohistan. Later on, his father moved from Kohistan in search of pastures and eventually settled in Naltar.

Carved wooden coffins of Naltar valley

The Gujars brought the tradition of carved wooden coffins to Naltar from Kohistan and Swat. This tradition was also prevalent among certain other tribes of Gilgit, Astor, Chilas, Tangir, Darel and Hunza. There are still many grave railings in the valleys of Tangir and Darel. Unfortunately, the tradition of erecting wooden coffins is no more in vogue in Gilgit, Astore and Hunza. However, one finds some decorated and undecorated wooden coffins in Sher Qilla village of Punyal tehsil and Shakyot village of Gilgit. In Naltar valley, none of the tribes except the Gujars erect carved wooden coffins over the graves of their ancestors.

There are three villages in Naltar where one finds the graveyards with the wooden coffins. Locally, the wooden coffin is called Jhangla. The oldest graveyard of the Gujars is located in Dalan where there are many carved wooden coffins. These wooden grave railings are decorated with floral and geometric designs, designs that one can find on many wooden coffins located in different villages in the valleys of Kohistan, Darel, Tangir and Chilas. There are 23 wooden coffins in the graveyard of Dalan. All the graves belong to the Gujars. Most of the grave railings are crumbling. Nevertheless, some of the coffins are still in good condition. These coffins are decorated with variety of floral designs, mostly lotus and sunflower.

Apart from these grave railings, there is another graveyard at Gumat with many wooden coffins of the Gujars. This is the largest graveyard where one finds coffins made of several panels on the different faces and four slender or thick turrets (guldastas) consisting of double leg of a cot. The turrets at the four corners of the grave are also decorated with slits. On some of the graves, one finds the moulded designs. There are two types of graves, simple and decorated. The simple wooden coffins belong to ordinary Gujars whereas the decorated grave railings belong to notables and wealthy dignitaries of the tribe. The graves of the notables carry more intricate carvings and ornamentations. Almost every grave in the Gumat graveyard is decorated with jali work (perforated wooden screen with ornamental design).

Besides the graveyards of Dalan and Gumat, there is another at Khayot where such ornate carved wooden coffins can also be seen. This graveyard is close to Jamia mosque of Khayot. According to Mir Baz Khan Gujar, these were built some 30 years ago. Some of the coffins have recently been erected. The tradition of erecting wooden coffins still continues in Naltar valley. One finds a number of such new coffins in the graveyards of Gumat and Khayot.

Trekkers & Ski Lover Paradise

Naltar is an enchanting valley located some 30 kilometers north-east of Gilgit. About 2 hours drive from the capital city of Northern Areas, it is famous for its undulating alpine slopes, majestic snow-clad peaks, verdant meadows and serene lakes.

It is a paradise for trekkers and ski lovers. Naltar was a hill station for the British. Later Pakistan Air Force set up its winter survival school and the oldest skiing resort at a height of 10,000 feet (3084 meters) there. Pakistan Air Force arranges skiing championships there in winter. There is snow at Naltar till end of March and activities are Skiing, Snowball fighting, Snowman and snow castle building.

Trekkers usually go trekking from Naltar to Pakora pass in the Ishkoman valley of Ghizer district. Naltar valley gives access to two possible treks, one leading over the Daintar Pass (4500m) and via Daintar Valley to Chalt in the Chaprot Valley, the second leading over the Naltar (Pakore) Pass (4710m) into to Ishkoman valley.

Naltar Lake

There is a lake in the Naltar valley known as 'Bashkiri Lake' at a distance of 32 kilometers (20 mi) from Naltar Bala. This lake is a wonderful and marvelous look in the summer and as well as winter. The road from village to "Lake" is nonmetallic and narrow alongside a stream throughout this road coming from the mountains. There are a lot of beautiful scenes along this road. In winter it is almost impossible to reach the lake through any vehicle due to the snow (10 to 15 feet high) on the road.

Wildlife Sanctuaries

Naltar Wildlife Sanctuary covers 273 sq km of the Naltar Valley to its juncture with the Hunza River, and is contiguous with the Pakora and Sherqila Game Reserves.

Game Reserves, too, were former hunting grounds, or shikar gah. Most of the game now is scarce and hard to find, but herds of ibex can be encountered when descending a pass. Villagers report snow leopard in almost every one of these reserves. Pakora Game Reserve includes 7500 hectares of the Pakora Valley in Ishkoman and is contiguous with the Naltar Wildlife Sanctuary. A small population of Astor Markhor is found here.