Cost (local)
Accom/Total

1380/1687 Rupees

Blacktop all the way, not too bad, though repairs in some areas. Go down to Sunnybank, turn right until a T-Junction, turn left to Barrian (on way to Nathiagali). Approximatley 15-20 minutes downhill, then uphill constantly for 10-12 kms, quite steep. Then down and up until Nathia Gali (2500 metres). From NG to Abbotabad (1250 metres), 23 km decline (reward for yesterday), then ups and downs to Abbotabad. Good run - much fun. Quite steep at times, but no problem, just keep aware. Got a ride for 12 kms - this changes the average, More like 6-7 km/h for the first uphill section. Also saved at least 2.5 hours travel time. Refreshments everywhere.

Easy downhill ride. Stone throwing kids, grab at your bike, ride in front of you and try to slow you down. All ask for money or "onepen". Lost interest in the ride here. Cycle computer plays up and can't be bothered fixing it, so the 27.5 kms is up to just past Thakot Bridge. Besham seems a friendlier town. Dump the original plan to ride all the way, this is a hostile area, I have no time for the people and hope they all die in poverty. Get a ticket to Gilgit for 280 Rupees and 100 for the bike.

Bus. Get off at Gilgit. Ride straight into town for 6 or 7 kms until see Madina Hotel signs. It's on the right. Very relaxed, meet other people. Switched on to travellers. Cool single room, hot water at certain times, very good place to spend a day (or three) relaxing.

Blacktop, rough in some places, some rock slide areas. Best ride so far, relatively easy. More ups then downs, though most ups were rewarded by good declines. Last 10 kms were a lot more ups. People very friendly, a stark contrast to the Hindu Kosh area. Very little refreshments after approximately 10 to 50 kms from Gilgit. First puncture here, suspect to have got it on the dirt road to the Dirim Guest house. A sign on the left of the main road saying "Minapin", take the dirt road on the right leading up to the village - approximately 4 kms. Dirim GH very friendly, comfortable rooms, good relaxing atmosphere - highly recommended. Do the Rakaposhi Base Camp at a minimum.

Blacktop. Broken in parts. relatively easy going with more inclines than declines, though not that bad. Final 2ks (left road off the KKH) into Karimabad are steep. Garden Lodge hotel, basic but comfortable. Friendly owner. Enough refreshments along the way.

Blacktop, broken in areas. Very short descent out of Karimabad to the local bridge, then a 9k ascent, steep in parts, then ups and downs to Ghulmet. Ghulmet to Passu, hard climb, good descent then ups and downs to Passu. Not too bad overall. Karimabad to Passu not too bad, some steep ascents - this section was 53.5ks, took 4h/3h30, averaged 15.3k/h, max speed 58km/h. Passu to Sost harder, mainly due to the heat, no shade, no refreshements until 8kms south ot Sost - Jamalabad. Hard day today, difficulty due to heat.

Observations from the back of a (crowded) jeep.

Officials will not let you ride over to China. No amount of pleading (or suggestions of cash 'donations') will help. Need to catch transport - 1250 rupees for me and 500 Rupees for the bike.
Sost to Dih: 35 km, easy. Flat, blacktop in fair to poor condition, broken in places, no refreshments anywhere. At Dih, seems to be a GH, but not sure if it's open. May be able to bivvy here. Get water off guards if you have purifier (etc). No food.
Dih to Koksil: 35 km. Gentle inclines, steeper in some parts, though still no major problems. Though is a steady climb. Hot, no shade, no refreshments. May be able to bivvy here, lots of (sort of) flat ground. River nearby and 100 metres past Koksil post, a pipe brings water to the road. Blacktop, fair to poor, broken in places.
Koksil to the Pass: 17 km. Switchbacks all the way to the top. Climbs immediately out of Koksil for 17kms. Low gear(s). Seems to be more fun coming the other way. Hot, but gets cooler, but not cold. Though imagine cold at night. Quite a few places to replenish water with water flows under the road - again, purifiers, etc. No food, no refreshments anywhere.
Pass to Tashkurgan: 125 km. Blacktop, fair to poor at first (due to being very bumpy), then gets better and smoother. Downhill, then ups and downs. Very little refreshments. Maybe at villages. At a few places the river comes near the road, replenish water here.
Tashkurgan: Ice Mountain hotel is still the dump it was last year. Traffic Hotel has improved greatly - they have a small restaurant 'Traffic Cafe', which serves good Chinese food at 'normal' prices, not bumping them up for foreigners. Unlike the rest of the town - which is still a dump.

Blacktop all the way - good to fair. First 20ks flat, good speeds, easy. Up to 72ks (Subash Plateau) very gentle ascent (though can be monotonous). Next 28ks free ride. At top of Subash Plateau (72ks), 6ks of downhill switchbacks. Crosswinds are downright frightening, when I turned a bend and it became a tailwind, it brought me up to 63 km/h in seconds on a very bumpy road - very scary. At the bottom, constant downhill and tailwind makes for an easy (and incredibly fun) ride with good speeds. At one stage sitting on 59 km/h with no input. Coolest day so far. Absolutely fun ride. No refreshements anywhere.

Starts flat, then downhill (mostly gentle) until Bulungkol (spelling) near the lake - 32km. Blacktop, good condition, possible food here, but not sure. Then a brand new, smooth blacktop for the next 30 kms (and still building). This is ultra smooth and much better than last year. Unfortunately this is also where the head winds start, plus about 10ks of uphills into the Ghez Canyon. Headwind is treacherous and constant, forcing you to pedal downhill to keep momentum at times. Once downhill starts, despite headwinds, able to keep a good pace due to the road. Therefore Ghez (70km) comes up in three hours easily. After new blacktop, back to old road, but plenty of areas with smooth road, therefore easy going. After 90kms, flattens out, but a gentle decline, thereby allowing good steady speeds.
Headwind also dies down at this time. At 100 to 110km, roadside areas where you can get basic refreshments. Workers areas, village around a factory (concrete or something). 130km, hit a sandstorm (common in this area), slowed things down entirely. Stinging, no protection, slow going. Then rain, but died down after 50 minutes. 150km, village of Upal, plenty of refreshments. Then an easy ride into Fu Shu (17kms from Kashgar), then into Kashgar.
Headwinds and sandstorms really made the day tedious. But due to lots of new road, higher average speeds are available. Cooler weather also made it easier.