Views From Northern Pakistan

Sharp peaks spike up on the other side of the river from Passu. Passu is an excellent place from which to trek and hike.

As if the numerous 20,000+ foot peaks in the foreground weren't enough, in the upper left you can see a bit of Masherbrum (25,660 ft / 7,821 m) dwarfing them all. I know I'm coming back to Pakistan, and this bad boy's on my list.

Ultar glacier squeezes between two rock walls, as seen here above a sheppard's hut and fields. I camped here for the night, which was awesome. Every few hours you awaken to what seems like loud thunder, but is actually the shifting and cracking of the glacier ice.

...but this one's also worth 28,251 feet. That ain't a cloud in the middle of the picture, it's snow blowing off K2, the second highest peak on the planet.

The Karakoram Highway, part of the famous Silk Road, passes through the Hunza Valley on its way to China. The Hunza Valley, in addition to its spectacular views, is famous for its fruit. I snacked myself sick on sun-dried apricots.

One of the countless glaciers that slowly flows through the Karakoram. Northern Pakistan is second only to the subpolar regions in glacial expanse.