Motorcycle Touring

A motorcycle tour in Pakistan is built around the Karakoram Highway (KKH), one of the highest paved roads on Earth, stretching roughly 1,300 km from Islamabad to the Khunjerab Pass at 4,693 m on the Chinese border. To ride the KKH is to cross the junction of three great mountain ranges, the Karakoram, the Himalaya and the Hindu Kush, climbing from around 500 m in the Punjab plains to the thin air of the Karakoram at Khunjerab. Along the way riders pass thundering gorges, glacier-fed rivers and terraced apricot orchards clinging to near-vertical valley walls. The best season for a Karakoram Highway motorcycle trip runs from May through October, once snow has cleared from the high passes but before autumn storms close the road.

Adventure and dual-sport motorbikes in the 400-800 cc range, with strong low-end torque, handle the mix of smooth asphalt, chip-seal and occasional gravel best on a motorbike tour in Pakistan. Fuel stations are spaced every 80 to 120 km in the main valleys, so carrying a small reserve is prudent beyond Gilgit. Road conditions vary: sections rebuilt after the 2010 Attabad landslide are excellent, while some stretches near Chilas and Raikot remain rougher. A support vehicle carrying luggage and spare parts turns a tough expedition into a comfortable journey, letting riders focus on the scenery rather than mechanical worries.