Wild west
Fort Munro, the only hill station in Southern Punjab, is a retreat for both locals and tribal chiefs
By Omar Mukhtar Khan
About 60 kilometres to the west of Dera Ghazi Khan there's a single hill resort of Southern Punjab, Fort Munro at a height of 6470 feet. Passing by the ancestral abode of Legharis, Choti Zarin, one enters the tribal area where laws of the country don't apply. On the way one also passes by the tomb of the famous sufi saint Sheikh Sakhi Sarwar.

The picture of a flock of sheep grazing in a lush green grass field with a backdrop of a thick forest of tall pine trees and majestic mountain peaks culminating in ice crest has fascinated me since childhood. I always dreamt to be at this serene and stunning place. This year, I finally got the chance to spend a night at my dreamland -- Fairy Meadows, green plateau situated at a height of more than 3,000 meters at the foot of Nanga Parbat. It is situated in the Diamer district of Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan.

This is perhaps the most mesmerising place I have come across. According to a local legend, "The demons blow their horns and fairies cook their food here". The locals strongly believe the plateau is home of fairies and demons. The name is also part of the local myth that this is the paradise of fairies.

It took us seven hours from Skardu to reach the Raikot bridge, one of the most strategic bridges on the Karakoram Highway between Chilas and Gilgit. Luckily, we had Abbas Ali Khan as our travel guide. He is in this business for the last 25 years and also runs a company named Touristik Travel Service. He visits Fairy Meadows at least thrice a year and knows the area and people very well. We were tired and wanted to take a two-hour break before starting our journey towards Fairy Meadows, but there were no basic facilities, not even a washroom, clean drinking water or electricity on the Raikot bridge. There is no greenery at this point; it is hot and humid, and is therefore not easy to imagine that a place like Fairy Meadows is just some 20 kilometres further up from this point.

Accommodation for tourists here is scarce. The only hope for tourist though is medium-sized Shangrila Hotel, which is under-construction and will be ready by January 2010. "The government departments instead of facilitating us have been creating problems. So far, the government has not provided us electricity or clean water. They have been asking us to work with it on self-help basis. This clearly shows the government's 'commitment' for promotion of tourism in this area," says Arif Aslam Khan Chairman Shangrila Resorts. According to him, his father (late) Brigadier Muhammad Aslam was the person who made it possible for travellers to reach Fairy Meadows.

Brigadier Aslam purchased land from the locals at Raikot Bridge and Fairy Meadows and constructed a 24 kilometre private road up to the plateau of Fairy Meadows in 1992. He had also finalised a deal with some of his Austrian friends to set up a chairlift from Raikot to Fairy Meadows which could not materialise because of his death and hitches from different departments. The road has deteriorated ever since. Only about 15 km of a newly-built stretch of the road up to Jhel village is accessible by jeep and the rest has to be travelled either on foot or on horseback.

The 15 km stretch of road from Raikot Bridge to Jhel village is steep and narrow, having dozens of sharp turns. Our driver, Muhammad Ismail, believes that the old road was better. He needs to reverse the jeep twice or thrice on every road turn. "The old road was also very steep but driving on it was relatively easy. Two weeks back, a jeep fell down the road into a pit while taking a turn killing three travellers," he says. "If Fairy Meadows sounds like heaven, the way to reach there is not less than a road to hell. But Sir you need not worry because you have Ismail driver!" he says laughing out loud.

From Raikot Bridge to Jhel village, the view gets better and the road gets dizzier. From Jhel one can either rent a horse or track on foot to reach the Fairy Meadows. We reached the village around 2pm and opted for the latter. It was not the obvious choice for us -- going on a mountain track for the first time -- but our guide Abbas Ali Khan motivated us to the extent that we started believing that we could easily hike up to the peak of Nanga Parbat. It was not a bad decision but tiresome.

The four-hour track up the pine forests is one of the most revealing experiences of my life. The most memorable moment of the journey was when we saw the peak of Nanga Parbat. There it was standing right in front of us. The clouds covered it during the first three hours of the journey and Abbas Ali Khan had predicted that it could be near impossible for us to see the peak in such weather. "It might be covered with clouds for the next 24 hours," he announced in a gloomy tone. Almost at the same time, however, wind started blowing and in seconds the weather cleared, to reveal the peak.

According to our guide Abbas, Nanga Parbat is the ninth highest mountain in the world but "it is the hardest to climb -- as more than 50 climbers have lost their lives trying to conquer it during different expeditions, which is perhaps the maximum number in the mountaineering world. According to local myth, fairies and demons frequently curse the unwanted 'intruders' in shape of roaring avalanches. The locals also warn mountaineers to keep stay off this adobe of fairies and demons," he told TNS.

We reached Fairy Meadows by the evening to the most spectacular views. We stayed at the traditional wooden cottages that overlooked the mountain. I couldn't sleep that night. The first thing I saw in the morning was the Nanga Parbat. But I wanted more. I wanted to capture a picture of a flock of sheep grazing in the lush green grass field in the backdrop of Nanga Parbat. For the next 10, I looked around for the picture-perfect scene. But could find no flock of sheep. I asked a local about sheep, he did not reply but smiled. After 15 minutes I saw the same person coming towards me with his flock of sheep. He smiled again and I found the picture of my dreams.

About 60 kilometres to the west of Dera Ghazi Khan there's a single hill resort of Southern Punjab, Fort Munro at a height of 6470 feet. Passing by the ancestral abode of Legharis, Choti Zarin, one enters the tribal area where laws of the country don't apply. On the way one also passes by the tomb of the famous sufi saint Sheikh Sakhi Sarwar.

After a few hours of travel the road ascends and travellers enter the Rakhi gorge. This is the only travel-worthy mountain pass in Southern Punjab which joins Punjab and Balochistan. Although passenger traffic is comparatively thin, trucks and pick-ups carrying commercial goods like fruits and vegetables make driving difficult. But overall the road is in good condition. As the altitude increases and temperature decreases, the road becomes trickier with mountain rocks over-hanging the road.

Travellers cross several small hamlets on the way until they arrive at Khar, the last known town before they enter Balochistan. The road leads to the top of the hill originally named 'Loilaresir', renamed by the British as Fort Munro. The top of the hill is actually a wide platform where the colonial residence of political assistant (PA), Sandeman Lodge, is situated. Besides Sandeman Lodge there are other buildings including the Commissioner House and DCO House.

The history of Fort Munro goes back to the late 19th century when Sir Robert Sandeman was sent to the area. Sandeman established himself at the strategic hilltop of Loilaresir and named it after Colonel Munro, the Commissioner of Derajat Division. According to one account, the British wanted to establish themselves somewhere in Gurchani's area but Sardar Jamal Khan Leghari, the grandfather of the former President Sardar Farooq Leghari, requested the British to give him the pride of the Raj. Sardar Jamal marked an area for the British called 'Bara Pathar'. It was the sole domain of British and a no-go area for the locals, who could only enter with the permission of PA. The British spent summers at Fort Munro while winters at DG Khan.

The folklore says that the local people were quite afraid of the white race, and to remove this fear, British used to leave stuff like onions and gur behind when leaving for DG Khan to assure the people of their friendliness. With passing time, people started respecting the institution of PA. It is said that PA was carried from Fort Munro to DG Khan on a man-made palki.

It was in Fort Munro that Rev Father T.J.L. Meyer published the first English-Balochi Dictionary in 1909.

Fort Munro is the summer headquarters of this tribal territory. It is headed by a PA who also heads the Baloch Military Police that is responsible for maintenance of law and order. The system works on the principle of 'collective responsibility', somewhat similar to the tribal traditions in NWFP. The PA also commands the Baloch Levis. However, after the implementation of the devolution plan the PA doesn't have much fiscal independence and the results can be seen in worsening civil facilities like health, infrastructure and water supply.

There are a few places to look around while at Fort Munro. There are numerous pine trees all around with hillocks limited only by horizon. The landscape here is not very green rather it is somewhat semi-arid with shrub vegetations. The nights at Fort Munro can be made worthwhile by enjoying a bonfire in sprawling lawns of Sandeman Lodge or one has an option to play billiards in the reasonably-maintained colonial-era billiards room.

Just outside the PA House, at the edge of the hill overlooking the valley, is a 1950 monument commemorating the union of Baloch tribes with Pakistan. The names of all prominent Baloch sardars including the Mazaris, Gurchanis and Legharis are inscribed on this stone plaque. At this place there is a tall pole for hoisting the national flag. According to the tradition, whenever the PA is in Fort Munro, the flag is hoisted. The tribals from remote areas then know that the PA is around and they can visit him.

All that remains of the fort at Fort Munro is a tall burj that is in ruins. An interesting walk can be to the British cemetery situated just around the DCO House. In total there are about five graves -- two of infants Walter, son of Mr and Mrs W.C. Oram, and James Fedreick, son of Captain J.W.C Hutchinson. It is the oldest grave at the cemetery. Then there is the grave of Fellow of Royal College of Surgeons Horace Alleby Smith, a medical officer, and one N.H. Smith, who drowned in the Dames Lake at Fort Munro.

An intriguing story surrounds the fifth and the last grave of Maud Evelyn, the wife of Captain M.L. Ferrar of Indian Punjab Commission and the only daughter of an ICS Officer. She died on Oct 13, 1906 at the age of 30 while giving birth to a baby boy at Khar. Some reports suggest that around 20 years ago, a letter was received by the tribal area's political administration from a British official who claimed that his mother had died during his birth at Khar. He requested the administration to take special care of the grave of his mother Maud Evelyn.

Now the captivating part is that as per media reports on Sept 15, 2006, around eight foreigners entered Fort Munro which is out of bounds for any foreigners. These suspicious people stayed in Fort Munro for three days and allegedly stole the coffin and remains of Maud Evelyn and drove back in full police escort. The issue was investigated by the government but we do not have record of the outcome of this investigation. So apparently we could not secure the grave of the maim sahib despite the iron cage around the grave.

Fort Munro is the only hill station of the area and all local tribal chiefs including Legharis and Khosas have their summer retreats here. Another beautiful place to visit is Dames Lake. This is a small lake surrounded by orchards with boating facilities. The lake keeps on transforming from lake-to-pond-to-lake depending on the annual rainfalls. With a TDCP hotel and restaurant at the banks of the lake, it is the best place for having a dinner and especially the traditional Balochi Sajji at Fort Munro.

Having several government guest houses as well as some private hotels at Fort Munro, the Government of Punjab plans to develop some orchards, rest houses as well as chairlifts, actions that would definitely boost the tourist potential of the area.