The Dudipatsar Trail is an approximately

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

trail in the Lulusar-Dudipatsar National Park of

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a province of Pakistan. Located in the northwestern region of the country, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the fourth largest province of Paki ...

, in northern

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. The trail goes along a tributary of the

Kunhar River The Kunhar River () or River Kunhar, is a long river, located primarily in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, northern Pakistan. It is in the Indus River watershed basin. Origin and route Kunhar is the main river in the Naran Valley. It orig ...

called Poorbi Narr in the northern

Kaghan Valley The Kaghan Valley (Hindko, ) is an Alpine climate, alpine valley in Mansehra District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The valley stretches across the northern Pakistan, rising from its lowest elevation of to its highest point at the Babusar P ...

. The headwater for the particular tributary is the Dudipat Lake and the trail has a cumulative

elevation gain In cycling, hiking, mountaineering and running, the term cumulative elevation gain (or cumulative gain) is the total of every gain in elevation made throughout a journey. Elevation losses (i.e. periods when the person is descending) are not count ...

of . It takes between 5 and 8 hours on average to complete the trail.

Overview

The trail is entirely within the national park and passes through multiple

life zone The life zone concept was developed by C. Hart Merriam in 1889 as a means of describing areas with similar plant and animal communities. Merriam observed that the changes in these communities with an increase in latitude at a constant elevation a ...

s of the park, from lowland

forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...

s to

alpine meadow Alpine tundra is a type of natural region or biome that does not contain trees because it is at high elevation, with an associated harsh climate. As the latitude of a location approaches the poles, the threshold elevation for alpine tundra gets ...

s of

wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, rather than being intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is any different from the native plant, eve ...

s. As the trail climbs up to the plateau, hikers see different wildlife in the region including

marmots Marmots are large ground squirrels in the genus ''Marmota'', with 15 species living in Asia, Europe, and North America. These herbivores are active during the summer, when they can often be found in groups, but are not seen during the winter, w ...

and different species of birds. The trail is of medium difficulty. The overall elevation gain is not great but climbing at high altitude makes the trail more demanding. During the course of the trail, one encounters boulders, meadows, plateaus, snow (in early summer) and streams. The trail and the surrounding mountains are frequently used by cattle herders who set up summer homes in the area. The main hiking season is mid-summer, which is often dry and sunny. Hikers early in the season can see snow in the ravine that runs down from the plateau. The plateau is marshy in places (waterproof boots advised). There are a number of river crossings on the trail including one buggy bridge. The same river tributary is crossed on log bridges in a couple of locations. The trail starts at

Besal The Besal, properly named "Gun, Light, Machine, Faulkner, .303-inch", was a light machine gun of British origin. The weapon was intended as an alternative to the Bren gun as it was lighter, simpler, cheaper and easier to manufacture and therefor ...

, where there is a driver hotel and a police check post. Lodging is available as well as space for setting up camp. Parking of vehicles is done at one's own risk but someone can be hired to look after vehicles for a day or two. There are three ways to hike the trail: * One-day trek (advised for moderate to experienced hikers) will not require a night stay. Going up to the lake can be done in about 3–5 hours while coming down it will take 3–4 hours. * Two-day trek (for novice to moderate hikers) will require a night stay either in Mulla ki Basti ( short of Dudipatsar) or at Dudipat Lake itself. Going up to the lake can take anywhere from 6 to 10 hours. Coming back is generally quicker, around 5–6 hours. Mules can be rented at Besal to carry luggage for the trek. * A three-day trek will require two night stays in Mulla ki Basti or at Dudipatsar. Hikers can reach the planned destination and after an overnight stay have a full day to tour the lake. Again after a night stay they can get back easily. Guides are available at Besal for a hike to Dudipatsar. Experienced hikers can wing it and go off on their own – remember to follow the water tributary as Dudipatsar is at the head. Mid-September, most of the herding flocks and inhabitants of Mullah ki Basti come down in preparation of winter. So if one plans to head towards Dudipat Lake at that time, it is necessary to take ample amount of food and preferably tents as no lodging is available for from the starting point. The makeshift hotels are also shut down so no food is available. If one reaches Mullah ki Basti, abandoned stone houses are available to camp and rest for the night.

Camping

For the two-day trek option, a night stay can be done either in Mulla ki Basti (2 km short of Dudipatsar) or at Dudipat Lake. You have the option of either carrying along your camping gear or alternatively using the facilities at the makeshift hotel at Mulla ki Basti. Price for food generally runs at twice of that at Besal. (someone add lodging cost here for the makeshift hotel)

Chronology of images

{{Gallery , title=Images of Dudipatsar Trail , width=260 , height=200 , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 1.jpg, 1. Starting Location: Driver Hotel at Besal , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 2.jpg, 2. Crossing Kunhar River on Cable Bridge , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 3.jpg, 3. Fertile mountain tops along the initial climb , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 4.jpg, 4. River crossing (late June) , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 5.jpg, 5. Climbing up to the plateau , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 7.jpg, 6. View of the camp (a.k.a. hotel) near Mulla ki Basti , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 6.jpg, 7. Some people hire horses from Mulla ki Basti , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 8.jpg, 8. Grazing on the plateau , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 9.jpg, 9. Dudipath Lake , File:Dudipatsar Trail - 10.jpg, 10. A view of the trek back from the lake , File:Poorbi narr.JPG, 11. A view of Dudipat lake and Poorbi Narr

Overview

Camping

Chronology of images

See also