Stanislaw Warwas

Poland - 01-Jun-23 -

Visited April 2022

I can tell you that I was there… So, if one day Deosai NP – one of the highest plateau and the habitat of the endangered Himalayan brown bear – is inscribed, I will have it ticked already! But I can tell you I have not appreciated landscape, animals, plains… And seen nothing but snow all around. Why? Because at the end of April it still snowed and the layers of snow covered the only road going through the park linking Skardu with Astore Valley Road. The owner of the guesthouse in Skardu where I stayed for four nights was trying to convince me that it did not make any sense to even try to get to the plains. But I was stubborn. So… off we went in a Toyota Prada. That was exactly last week of April – in Skardu it was green everywhere, white and pink blossoms in the valleys, sunny days, although windy (there were moments with so much sand in the air!); hard to believe that there were still so much snow up there. Skardu is situated in a vally at an elevation of around 2500 metres – Deosai plains are situated much higher, I’ve read that the average elevation of the park is of 4100 m! More than 1500 metres up – it makes a difference!

There’s only one road up in this direction, called Doesai Plain Road. First we stopped at the Buddha rock, still in the city of Skardu. We continued up to Sadpara Power plant and the beautiful lake Sadpara – endless photo opportunities here and a little farther where there are some orchards, gardens, terrace fields and houses down the river. There are even some guesthouses and bistros but closed at this time of the year. No traffic at all, only few lorries going down from the quarry to the east. The road – going up and up – is still in pretty good condition, snow can only be seen in the upper parts of the mountains… Few kilometres farther we reached the official entry point to the park. Of course no one there… But the some useful info on the boards, like: entry fee is $20 for foreigners, camping only in designated areas, guides are compulsory if you want to see and approach to the bears’ area, registration is necessary for any visit of the park, it is possible to prearrange the visit with the park headquarters in Skardu, do not forget your sun protection, hat, good shoes etc, etc. And officially the park opens on May 15th if the road inside the park is passable, end closes in mid-September.

We followed the road for another few kilometres, suddenly lots of snow on the road – but the plains seen in front of us and the first panel with the park map and info about it. And that’s it… As I had some snacks and water with me, I decided to walk back to Skardu – some 30 km all the way down… It took me almost 8 hours.