PakistanTravelGuide

Neelum Valley is situated in the North & North-East of Muzaffarabad, on the elevation of 4,000 metres above sea level. Marvellous scenic beauty, panoramic view, sky-high hills located on both sides of the noisy River Neelum, lush green thick forests, enchanting streams and attractive surroundings make the Valley a dream place to visit and spend a time in leisure.

Shounter valley spreads in Upper Neelum Valley and it can be accessed through a jeep track from Kel which remains open for a few months of the year. From Shounter Valley, one can come across the Shounter Pass which opens into Astore Valley at Rattoo. A small sized Shounter Lake is a beautiful Lake, situated in the Shounter Valley and from this is base camp of Sarvali Peak, Chitta Katha Lake and crossing point of the Shounter Pass into Astore Valley.

Shounter Pass is elevated on 4,420 metres (14,501 feet) above sea level, in Neelum Valley, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan.

Shounter Lake is a famous lake in Shounter Valley, which is a sub-valley of Neelum Valley in Azad Kashmir and located at an elevation of 10,200 feet (3,100 metres). The water resource of the lake is the inflow of the glacial water of the surrounding mountains. The lake is encircled by snow-capped mountains, greenery and specimens of Iris hookeriana, which are dispersed around the lake. The lake is accessible through Kel, Neelum Valley, by a jeep track.

The best time to Shounter Valley is from May to August, because it mostly remains snow-stricken. It is accessed by a jeep track in the open month in the summer otherwise trekking is the only option left to get there. The valley is famous for its beautiful lakes, not only in Pakistan but all over the world. The landscape and scenery is so enchanting and breathtaking.

For the alpine trekkers, Neelum valley offers a lot of trekking opportunities. Tourists can be reached Naran through Noori Nar Top from Sharda. Ratti Gali Lake is another beautiful lake that can be accessed from Dowarian and the trek reaches further to Naran. Tourists can be reached to Chitta Katha Lake from the Domail village in Kel. There is an exciting opportunity to cross the Shounter Pass from Shounter village and to reach Astore Valley in 2 to 3 days. This area has been very rarely explored by the trekkers and it is very promising to explore it. Its beauty is well narrated in the Travelogues and the peak time for trekking in the valleys is, in the months of July and August. There is another trekking passage from Jagran as well as a trek to Baboon valley can be explored. From the Lower Neelum Valley, tourists can reach to Makra and from there down-ward to Shogran from Bhairi in 2 days. Another alternate trek reaches to the Neela Pahar and Ganja Pahar from Bhairi area of Neelum Valley, where Machiara National Park lies, for the protection of the vanishing wild-life species.
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