Mountaineering reemerges as sport in Bajaur district
This file photo taken on April 20, 2015 shows Mount Everest in the Kumbh region of northeastern Nepal. An Indian mountaineer has died on Mount Everest and two of his teammates are missing, expedition organisers said May 23, 2016, taking the death toll from the Himalayan climbing season to five. PHOTO: AFP
In the mountainous Bajaur tribal district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), a group of college professors and friends have formed a mountaineering group, exploring different peaks every week.
Professor Khalid Habib is a resident of Bajaur who, along with other teachers of his college and friends, has formed a hiking group. Each week they go on a hiking trip to different mountainous areas of the district to relax their minds and enjoy nature in its pristine form in these isolated craggy mountains. His group is not the only one in the tribal district as the people of Bajaur naturally love their mountain ranges and going out to mountains is a centuries-old tradition and hobby.
“Bajaur is well known for its green fertile valleys and snow-capped mountains and a brief pause in terrorism in 2014 onwards provided the local youth with a golden opportunity to materialize their passion for mountaineering,” said Khalid Habib while talking to The Express Tribune. Kohimor, also known as Kymore Mountain locally, is located in the Baran tehsil of Bajaur and is the highest peak in the district.
“You can take your vehicle to the nearby village in the foot of the hills known as Seri Sar which is located around 12 km from the main bazar of Khar,” he said, adding that after reaching the village you have to follow the trail to the top on foot. Kohimor has three peaks, which can be seen from all parts of the districts, and when visibility is good, it can even be seen from Peshawar and Nowshera.
According to a local elder, Malik Gul Zada, some thirty years ago, the whole mountain was covered in trees, but as the population increased in the area and need for the timber went up, people started cutting trees which led to complete deforestation.
“When I was a child it was a lush green forest rich in all kinds of local fauna and flora. The soil is really fertile even today making it possible to plant trees once again,” he added.
Mountaineering parties from across the district regularly come here and if trees are planted its climate would also improve further, he maintained.
Another local Mosali Khan noted that due to deforestation the biodiversity of the region has been badly damaged and can only be restored through government intervention.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 27th, 2023.