Hi Joe,

Two of us were in Pakistan for approx 7 weeks from late June to mid-August 2006.

We entered from Zahedan late afternoon and spent the night in the hotel at Taftan, got up early and rode to Quetta in a day.

Beware of the ropes/motorcycle chains strung across the roads at the many police checkpoints, especially in the early morning sun - you can't see them.

We weren't allowed to ride from Quetta to Peshawar and were sent on a detour via Sukkur and Multan. We left the hotel at Sukkur very early because it was incredibly hot during the day (48degC). A policeman was waiting for us and offered to show us the way out of town. We accepted what turned out to be an escort all the way to Multan (400Km ish). This consisted of 21 pick-up trucks in relay stile, each containing 2-5 policemen. All very friendly but a real pain in the arse. I won't bore you with the details but I could write a whole chapter about that day.
When we got to Multan the police wouldn't leave until we had checked into the hotel and handed over our passports. We said we were planning on staying for 2-3 nights but would pay one night at a time. Once the police had left and the security guard changed shift, we turned our bikes round (they were parked inside the hotel) and loaded them up. We got up at 0500 and got out of town before anyone noticed. We never saw the police again or had another escort throughout the rest of our time in the country.
That day we rode to Peshawar. We did not need a permit. Indeed, the mention of it here is the fist I've ever heard of it.

Be prepared for unbelievable air pollution in Peshawar.

From Peshawar we rode over the Loweri Pass and on to Chitral. At the time the road was undergoing improvements and so much of it was dug up. It was a dirt road over a pass - nothing to worry about.
From Chitral we visited the Kalash Valleys and the hot springs at Gorem Chashma (not sure of the spelling) before riding up to the Shandur Pass. We spent four days camped up there during the Polo festival (July 7/8/9 anually). The Shandur Pass is beautiful as is the valley you will ride down to get to Gilgit. In Gilgit you will most likely stay in the Medina Guesthouse.
From Gilgit we rode north on the KKH to Passu. We would have continued up to the Chinese border but the weather was bad and Danny was sick. Instead I visited the Chapusan Valley.
From Passu we rode south on the KKH to Karimabad (a nice place to stay and visit) and then south again, through Gilgit to the turn off for Skardu. Here we turned East and rode to Skardu from where we rode across the Deosai Plains, through Astor and back to the KKH where we turned south to Chilas.
From Chilas we crossed the Babusar Pass in an attempt to ride straight down to Islamabad. Unfortunately the bridge was out and we had to return to Chilas. I would not recommend this route on a fully loaded bike. We rode for 12 hours of a 13 hour day and covered 73km. We lost count of our crashes and gave the bikes a really hard time. We sheared off 3 of the four subframe bolts and Danny lost his sidestand switch, wing mirror, hand guard and a heated grip. It was by far the hardest day of my (so far) two years on the road. The descent from the pass remains the most scared I have ever been on a motorcycle and having spent 12 years road racing in the British Championships I've had some scaru moments to compare it to!
From Chilas we continued south on the KKH to Abbotsabad where we turned off to ride to Islamabad via Murree. This is said (by Pakistani's) to be one of the most beautiful roads in the country. Unfortunately for us low cloud and rain spolit the views but we were given enough glimpses through the cloud from time to time to appreciate it a little.

As for tyres, we fitted Metzeler Enduro 3 Saharas in Pesawar (having carried them from Istanbul) and these were ample. The KKH is ALL tarmac. The Lowari Pass was dirt as was the Shandur, Deosai Plains and Babusar.

The road Dmitry refers to between Islamabad and Lahore is the Motorway. The Motorway is the only road you're not allowed to ride a motorcycle on - we know, we tried, the police blocked the road and threw us off!

Don't rush through Pakistan. It was hard when we were there but it gave us the best memories, most photos and stories of my trip so far.

__________________
ShortWayRound - OTR RTW since 2006

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