Gilgit to Hundur Yasin Valley

Yasin Valley, culturally and ecologically, an alluring place lies in the north of Pakistan. Administratively it constitutes a Tehsil of Ghizar District, one of the five Districts of Greater Gilgit Baltistan Area (GGBA). Because of its geo-strategic importance, Yasin has long been of a vigorous profile to international powers such as Chinese, Indians, Russians and British. The watch-dog of British India always feared the Czarist Russians invasions through Yasin. A Chinese General Kao Hsien-chih ran his expedition through Yasin to deal with the Tibetan invaders at Oxus in A.D. 747. Yasin has long claimed pride to be the shortest means of communication between Oxus and Indus.
Modern Yasin is a virgin eco-tourist destination encompassed by snow-blanked peaks, snaked curved aqua-marine rivers, and crystal clean natural springs. The diversified communities in Yasin have a wonderful culture where diversity and mutual respect is highly regarded. The citizenry has maintained an example of harmonious co-existence over years..
Yasin is located in the Northern areas of Pakistan .Apart from the main valley, Yasin valley includes several side-valleys like,Thause, Nazbar, Hoyelti, Thui, Qorkulti, Sandhi, Asumbar,Barkulti, Hundur, Darkut etc.
Yasin Valley, culturally and ecologically, an alluring place lies in the north of Pakistan. Administratively it constitutes a Tehsil of Ghizar District, one of the five Districts of Greater Gilgit Baltistan Area (GGBA). Because of its geo-strategic importance, Yasin has long been of a vigorous profile to international powers such as Chinese, Indians, Russians and British. The watch-dog of British India always feared the Czarist Russians invasions through Yasin. A Chinese General Kao Hsien-chih ran his expedition through Yasin to deal with the Tibetan invaders at Oxus in A.D. 747. Yasin has long claimed pride to be the shortest means of communication between Oxus and Indus.
Modern Yasin is a virgin eco-tourist destination encompassed by snow-blanked peaks, snaked curved aqua-marine rivers, and crystal clean natural springs. The diversified communities in Yasin have a wonderful culture where diversity and mutual respect is highly regarded. The citizenry has maintained an example of harmonious co-existence over years.
The Yasin Valley, and in particular the character it produced, has played a leading role in the history of the region. Continually fought over by the rulers of both Chitral and Gilgit, the history of Yasin reads like a catalogue of patricide, fratricide and aunculicide. Yasin Valley came to the attention of Victorian Britain following the murder of the British explorer George W. Hayward in the upper reaches of the Valley.
“It is interesting to note how concern the local people are about their image to outsiders, some 130 years after the event; you may still be asked about it and villagers are at pains to point out that those who were involved were not from Darkot.” Dave Winter writes about the incident and the commiseration of the local people.
People and Languages
Biddulph classifies the original inhabitants of the valley as Yashkuns, also they refer to themselves as Boorusho. The majority of the valley are Ismaili Muslims, speaking Boorushaski, although it is more archaic dialect than the Boorushaski spoken in Hunza and Nagar. Shina, Wakhi, Turkish and persian languages have also been witnessed spoken some old age people. Today most of the people are bilingual, speaking both Boorushaski and Khowar. Unfortunately all the languages spoken in the region are enlisted among the 27 endangered languages of Pakistan declared by UNESCO in February, 2009.
Topography
The entrance to Yasin is relatively dry and stony, un till you reach the first ‘green’ settlement at Damalgan and Gindai. Central Yasin is a long sprawling series of settlements collectively known as Yasin. There are still remains of the fort built by Gohar Aman, one of the valley’s most celebrated rulers.
The bottom of the valley rises from 2160m in the south up to over 2700m near the village Darkut. Especially North of Darkut where a lofty range separates the catchments area of Yasin from that of Yarkhun River, the surrounding peaks reach altitudes of more than 6000m.