Located nearly three and half thousand meters above sea level, there is a flat grassy land near the base camp of Nanga Parbat, world’s ninth highest mountain. It is situated at the western end of the Himalayan region. The ground is green and grassy. It is surrounded by trees around its edges. Beyond those trees is a glacier and base camp of the majestic eight thousand meter mountain, the Nanga Parbat. This beautiful and unique piece of land is known as the fairy meadows.
While there are no fairies here, the place is full of legendary stories associated with it. The famous league of shadows and Ra’s al Ghul in Batman is supposed to have the training ground at Nanda Parbat in the Himalayas. Here the name of Nanga Parbat is only slightly tilted in the comic book. Otherwise, everything about that fictional village has a resemblance to this place.
Unfortunately, the west or Hollywood only thinks of Himalayas as the product of Nepal and not a mountainous region spread over various countries in South Asia. So, they chose Nepal to shoot the movie and ignored the only village near the eight-thousander mountain which still seeks its worth among the tourists. To give an idea, Nanga Parbat is the most accessible eight-thousander in the world. Still, somehow, the audience could not see Bruce Wayne picking up one of those blue flowers grown near the Nanga Parbat glacier and the Fairy Meadows.
For those who would like to re discover this lost land, Fairy Meadows is very much accessible via Gilgit Baltistan region of Pakistan. It offers six months of tourist season from April to September. After arriving at Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan, the road goes to Murree, Abbotabad, Naran, Babusar pass, and finally Chilas. Just before Chilas, there is an off road link which goes towards the Fairy Meadows. From there on, one has to leave the main Karakoram Highway to reach the destination.
Karakoram Highway is the modern highway which will be experienced most of the times during the journey except when turning to the off road link mentioned earlier. It is as good as any road found in the developed regions except that it’s an extremely majestic, beautiful, and somewhat dangerous road. Because of its high altitude roller coaster nature, it is often dubbed as the eighth wonder of the world. It is the modern form of ancient silk route constructed through the mountains nearly two thousand years ago.
Before Chilas in the Karakoram highway, there comes a bridge known as the Rakhiot Bridge. From that point, the off road link takes us to the village called Tattoo Village. The appearance of this off road link is such that it takes us vertically towards the top of a plateau. It’s like a long but thin snake climbing slowly the long and rocky wall in a zigzag manner. Hardly a four wheel jeep can move there with a speed of over 20-30 Kph, but the locals often manage to use it for the two way traffic. They constantly talk to each other during overtake or giving a way to other jeep to make sure what’s coming from the other side of the curvy, rough, and high altitude road. Once we reach the Tattoo village, then there is further small hiking which takes us to the Fairy Meadows and opens up the Nanga Parbat view site.
There is about 12 km rough jeep ride after we detach from the main Karakoram highway deep into the mountains. The 12 km journey from the bridge to the Tattoo village would take about 4 hours because acceleration is simply not possible. Up there, it’s an extremely dangerous road. Once we are in that road, we cannot turn back. It’s simply that small in width. The people have cut one side of the mountains and paved way for a road which starts from the ground and slowly goes towards the top. From left side of driver’s seat, it all appears as if there is no ground below. There are only deep ditches, so deep that nothing is visible. Sometimes, we find a brown glacial stream flowing but mostly only Rocky Mountains and deep ditches are on the way. If we survive that horrible and intense jeep ride, then we reach the Tattoo village.
All jeeps would stop at a certain point around Tattoo Village beyond which there is no further road. One has to come out of the jeep and walk towards the Village which is on the other side of the crystal clear fresh water stream. There is no bridge at this point but the locals have put wooden pieces to cross the smaller but rapid stream. They have the home like restaurant which offers some local food. It serves as a launching site from where people hike towards the fairy meadows. They have porters who help carry bags and stuff if paid. They also offer horses for those who are unable to walk. It is a better option to hire a guide at that point who'll also assist at fairy meadows and either himself or arrange someone to guide through the Nanga Parbat base camp. Further, locals would recognize that local guide and it would make things easier in the village. We had a wonderful guide named Ahmed. He had some reputation. He was also planning to assist the foreigners to K2 expedition.
After Tattoo Village, starts the hiking route towards the Fairy Meadows. It is about 4-5 km journey but the tough terrain makes it about 3-4 hours to reach the destination. The way I was going, someone told me, "You wouldn't even reach in five hours." As slow as possible, I eventually reached the Fairy Meadows before sunset, though after some horse riding nearly the last 30 percent of the journey. Mostly during the journey, one side has mountain with small path on its surface for walking while the other side is wide open and has deep ditches. Another mountainous chain moves side by side separated by ditches or forming a congested valley.
Below is the Rakhiot stream coming from Rakhiot or Nanga Parbat glacier. It goes on to finally merge with the Indus River somewhere near the Karakoram Highway. Unlike small fresh water streams in the area, this large river like brown stream doesn't look drinkable or even accessible. It’s just something we see flowing below, not a good idea to look down if you are thirsty. They always suggest filling some water bottles before hiking, because there is no water available for about seventy percent of the journey. Then, finally arise some fresh water streams before reaching the Fairy Meadows.
The mid way between the hiking route has few restaurants, they call “Dhaba.” They are one or two huts made of wood where locals can make tea or offer some light snacks. Then in winters, these huts are abandoned. There is no certainty that they would be open or have water or food available. It depends if the villager is sitting there when we reach it and has brought something from the nearby Chilas or Astore cities. Because of the remote location, the food is slightly more expensive. They have to travel all the way to bring it. Also, because some foreigners especially mountain enthusiasts visit the region, locals think everyone has plenty of money. Bargaining would always reduce the price of commodities or horse riding to nearly half, so it’s a good idea to do that.
After about seventy percent of the journey, we enter into a forest type zone in the mountains where there are some fresh water streams and waterfalls. These are crystal clear water streams, so pure, almost heavenly. Then there is slightly further hiking and we reach the top, the flat grassy ground known as Fairy Meadows.
Surrounding view during hiking covers variety of flora and fauna. While the jeep journey has only barren Rocky Mountains and deep ditches to witness, the hiking provides less horrible view of the mountains. Nearby Nanga Parbat and Fairy Meadows has a thick alpine or coniferous forest. There are several unique wild flower species grown only in this region. The snowy mountains probably Rakaposhi and some other giants are visible though on reverse route while returning to the Tattoo Village. There used come Himalayan brown Bears, the famous vegetarian beasts, from nearby Deosai plains, but now they are seldom seen. Their population has significantly declined. Musk Deer, another endangered animal, can be seen sometimes during the hiking.
The entire area is so mysterious, it doesn’t give even the slightest hint of what’s about to follow. There are no signs of world’s highest surfaces anywhere in the journey. But then suddenly it all changes once we reach the top. Just when we don’t understand how this complex terrain and congested place can host world’s ninth highest mountain, we reach the place called fairy meadows. The place is a source of paradigm shift. It gives a strange feeling of some sort of enlightenment or Nirvana because of the dramatic change of events. Whatever we went through the entire journey, this place does not resemble any of it. It’s a view of its own kind. It’s a view which defies logic. Here, the giant eight-thousander mountain with over hundred meters of death zone overshadows even the sky. The feeling which arises when we suddenly encounter the Nanga Parbat, the lonely and last of the great eight-thousanders of Himalayas, can’t be described in words. It is something to be experienced.
Mr. E.R Eddison, the colonial era British civil servant and writer, visited this place in the 1930s. Mr. J.R.R Tolkein of the novel Hobbit has many good things to say about his man. He wrote in his book “Mistress of the Mistresses,” the sort of effect and feeling of reaching this site:
“I remember… the effect of sudden view you get of Nanga Parbat from one of those Kashmir valleys; you have been riding for hours among quiet richly wooded scenery, winding up along the side of some kind of gorge, with nothing very big to look at, just lush, leafy, easy-going country of steep hillsides and waterfalls; then suddenly you come around a corner where the view opens up the valley, and you are almost struck senseless by the blinding splendor of that vast face of ice-hung precipices and soaring ridges, sixteen thousand feet from top to toe, (the toe being 11000 ft above sea level) filling a whole quarter of the heavens at a distance of, I suppose, only a dozen miles. And now, whenever I call to mind… I think of Nanga Parbat.” (Mistress of Mistresses, 1935)
Once we reach the Fairy Meadows, everything from there on appears to be magical. The grassy land on top of the plateau from where one of the world's highest mountains is visible, that’s a unique view. There won’t be any other base camp of eight thousand meter mountain closer to a human population where children would be seen playing in the lush field a few thousand feet from the glacier and the great mountain face. To give an idea, the K2 is world's second highest mountain also found in the same Gilgit Baltistan region. To reach that mountain, requires a hiking of about a week and it makes two weeks return journey barefoot for the skilled mountaineers to be able to see K2. In between the journey, there is no village or any sign of life in the snowy land. Imagine, that too is for the mountaineers, otherwise it is very difficult for people of the plains to go there. Compared to that, Nanga Parbat can be accessed fairly easily.
The Fairy Meadows is about two acres grassy land which is overshadowed by Nanga Parbat in the western Himalayan range. It’s a unique grass covered land found so near the eight thousand meter mountain. It is partially developed though. Only recently, the Government of Pakistan has declared the area as national park. Tourism is one of the few means of income for the local population after they have decided not to cut timber and instead work for the preservation of environment. They have prepared many huts and have found ways for generation of electricity and warm water storage. There is a cafeteria or rather a small wooden mess hall where one can order food and enjoy tea or coffee. The whole place has pictures of the great mountaineers who visited the Fairy Meadows sometime in past or who died while climbing the mountain.
I chose to spend the two nights at Fairy Meadows in a small tent rather a large wooden hut. I had the option of choosing the later but I wanted to experience the outdoor camping to its full potential. And I didn't regret. Wrapping myself in a 360 degree round blanket with a zip in it was so much fun. Whenever I slightly opened the tent, there was this white Mountain standing tall under the silver moon light. I was fortunate to visit that place when it was full moon. That just multiplied the pleasure of being near the eight-thousander Mountain which I knew I might not be able to see again in my lifetime.
It is a common practice at Fairy Meadows to have bonfire gathering every night because the fire keeps people warm in cold weather and also becomes the place for social gathering. They have wooden benches around on which they organize the gathering. The discussions at those benches become memorable. Somehow, time stops right there in those moments. The nature causes the sharpening of senses and the environment is too beautiful to be ignored. Sometimes, the locals would sing traditional folk songs and dance. Their dance was pretty wild and unorganized unlike the bonfire dance I saw at Hunza and wrote about it separately.
In day time, tourists usually chose to go beyond Fairy Meadows and towards the Nanga Parbat Base camp. There were two main camps at the Rakhiot face of Nanga Parbat. Those who wanted to go to the base camp gathered at the cafeteria at around 6:00 am and left early with one of the local guides. Whereas those who wanted to go to the camp named Bayal camp, a supposedly perfect Nanga Parbat view point, left at about 9:00 am. They all returned later at about 2 to 5 pm.
Only two from our group went to the base camp, both in their 17 and 18 years age. They borrowed the shoes and equipment needed to walk on snow and left early with a local guide. I found the morning too cold to go for a hiking but they had extra bit of energy to do so. One of them also named Faizan narrated his visit to the Nanga Parbat Base camp:
“Brother, you missed it! I had an amazing time this morning. The path from here (Fairy Meadows) to on words was very slippery but full of adventure. We wanted to cross the glacier but our guide stopped us. The terrain was too risky, the ice underneath could break apart and swallow us entirely. The guide said summer is not a time to walk over it. Instead, he took us to other route. There were wild flowers all around the journey. I have never seen such flowers in my life. May be, they are unique to this area. But the most disturbing feature was sudden loud explosions we heard near Nanga Parbat. I asked the guide, he said they were sounds of ice cracking or storm circling the mountain. It’s a common phenomenon there. Just like the Lions roar, Nanga Parbat too was roaring that time. It seemed angry, it seemed alive. So, we didn't prolong our stay. Fearing avalanche or something, we hurriedly returned to the Fairy Meadows."
In the meantime, those who chose to stay at Fairy Meadows explored the nearby land. Some went to nearby fresh water streams, while others enjoyed the horse riding. We played cricket at that grassy land. I suppose, the British people during colonial India played Polo or Cricket here, but I felt special holding the bat and ball in my hands and play the game. It was as if I was making history or registering my name in the Guinness book of world record. Not often we find people playing at probably the world's highest ground near the eight thousand meter mountain. So, it felt special.
During my stay at Fairy Meadows, my eyes kept moving towards the Nanga Parbat. I couldn't quench my thirst in a mere few gazes. I’d see the mountain from my tent, from the windows of cafeteria, from the banks of fresh water streams, from the grassy fields spread across, from behind the horses and goats moving freely around the area, from the cricket field while catching the ball and miserably dropping it, I kept looking and looking and looking. And when a structure that magnificent lies ahead of us, surely something like that mesmerizes entirely. It captures the very soul of a person. All that time, three days and two nights, I was under the strong influence of the grand magnificence and splendid appearance of the mighty Nanga Parbat from the magical land of Fairy Meadows.
