Gwadar

 

Gwadar is a port city of Pakistan; it has natural deep-water terrain along its border to build the port. the region of Gwadar which is 170 sqkm was owned by kingdom of mascot and Oman. In 1954 American geological survey find its hidden potential, so in 1958 Pakistan bought this piece of land adjacent to their border from Oman, but due to political instability they could not develop this port.in 2013 Pakistan made an agreement with Chinese government to develop this port and road from China to Gwadar as a part op their one road one belt initiative, and name this project as CPEC. From that on Gwadar city development is going on a very fast pace. This is a very crucial and strategic location for Pakistan, because of which, the Baloch separatist groups have attacked it multiple times to hinder its development. The security of this mega project is handled by Pak Army.

Places for visit: -

Gwadar has very beautiful places to visit, Marine drive, it is a road on the bank of the Arabian sea in Gwadar city people often go there to enjoy the walk-in sea breeze. Pakistan army has recently constructed a cricket stadium in Gwadar in the leap of Mount Batil, it views is majestic. This stadium was given the most beautiful cricket stadium in the world because of its natural beauty features. Another view point is on the top of Mount Batil, where the Pakistani flag waves all year around, this point is known as Flag Post, to go there you have to go through the military check point, and to pass that you do need a recommendation from the authorities, it a hassle but its worth the effort because the view you get from the top Mount Batil is extraordinary. You can pretty much see the whole of Gwadar city and the sea.

Boat building: -

Another attraction for tourist is the boat building site, where you will find locals building small to large wooden boats, it very mesmerizing to see getting every thing done with hand. Some of the larger boat take a year to build completely.

Omani Fort: -

Another imported place at Gwadar which is worth visiting are the Omani Forts, which are hundreds of years old, but they are not preserved by the authorities and look like an abandoned place, still it gives an aura of longevity, you can even find the old abandoned canons in the fort. one bigger fort has a proper entering but other one doesn’t have one, you will have to climb through the window which is 9 feet above the ground.

Beaches: -

Another tourist attraction is the hammerhead beach and the turtle beach, it is called turtle beach because in breeding season turtles came here to lay eggs, their number has decreased due to global warming and increased footfall but they still come. People go there to watch the sun set; it is called the best place to watch sun set in Gwadar.

Tips: -

Gwadar is quiet far from any other big city, and there is not a lot of infrastructure along the way, so when you are leaving for Gwadar make sure your transport vehicle is in good condition, you have the spare tires and your fuel tank is full. Also buy or bring some food to eat along the way. Gwadar is 650Km away from Karachi so it is not very economical to go on your own transport, it is better to go through the tour agency, for that I would recommend tour.pk, where you can easily find the most reasonable and affordable package. this place is worth the effort to visit.

National Parks in Baluchistan

 

 Hangol National Park: -

Hangol National Park is the largest national park of Pakistan located near Makran coastal line. Its area is 6100 square kilometers. Its unique feature is that it is consist of six different ecosystems in this small area, it has desert, forest, river, streams and cost line. It is home to some extremely endangered wildlife that is not found anywhere on earth, for example you can find blind dolphin in its coastal region which is unique to this region. Green and olive turtles came to the beach everyday in the month of august to lay their eggs but recently due to climate change and pollution their numbers are decreasing. Its ponds and water bodies became a stop for migratory birds in migration season. Its swamps are also home to some 60 crocodiles. It is home to 257 plant species and 289 animal species. Some of the animals living here includes Persian leopard, Indian wolf, golden jackal, stripped hyena, Sindh ibex, urial, vultures, eagles etc.

This National Park is also famous for its unique rock formations, among which the most famous are the princess of hope, which look like a woman standing and looking at the distant sea, its name was given by Angelina Julie when she came to Pakistan to on UN humanitarian mission, and second is the Balochi sphinx which look like a lion sitting exactly like the one built in Egypt. Nani Mandir is one of the most famous destinations for Hindu’s pilgrimage, 250,000 Hindus came every spring to visit and pray in this temple.20 to 30 thousand people are reported to attend the annual event each year.  This temple is reported to be thousands of years old.

Hazarganji-chiltal National Park

 

Hazarganji Chiltan National Park is a national park in the Mastung District. This National Park was established in 1980 to provide a safe habitat to the chiltan ibex found in the area to save them from the hunters and poachers. It is spread over 327000 acres of land, and it is only 20 Km away from the provincial capital of Baluchistan, Quetta. This park is located in Suleiman Mountain range, it has two types of eco systems, which are desert and Forest. Wild life in this National Park consists of 30 species of mammals and 30 species of reptiles, which consist of shikra, golden eagle, ibex, vultures, wolf, jackals etc. in the protection of these sanctuaries endangered species are flourishing and growing well. Management should make sure to protect the ecosystem from any kind of foreign invasive species.

Some of its area is open for short safari ride, people who visit Quetta, definitely go to Hanna lake and Hazargangi national park. They have a restaurant their to serve the visitors.

Ziarat juniper forest: -

Ziarat is home to biggest forest of juniper in Pakistan. Its mountains are covered in juniper forest because the juniper tree grow in the altitude of 2000 to 3000 meters from the sea level, where the temperature is cold and the climate is arid. This forest is spread across 113,000 hectors of land. The locals of ziarat have been using this forest as the source of fire wood and timber for centuries but now with the increase of population the forest can’t keep up with the demand and it is being consumed faster than it is replenishing itself. The government of Pakistan has declared it as a national heritage to protect it from being destroyed because some of the trees here are 6000 to 7000 years old because of this they are also known as living fossils. It is also home to some the rare sub species of juniper such as Pashtun juniper.      

Most famous tourist destinations in Baluchistan

 

Baluchistan is the biggest province of Pakistan consisting up of 44% of its total area, but it is scarcely populated because of which it severely lacks in infrastructure. It is rich in natural beauty, wildlife, mountains and many other resources but due to lack of roads very few of its beautiful locations can be accessed by people. Recently Pakistan government has started to give focus to the tourism industry so we can hope that they will do their part to make these locations accessible to people.

Hanna lake: -

Hanna lake is one of the most famous lake in Baluchistan. It is located 16 kilometers from city of Quetta. Due to easy accessibility many people got there to visit. There is an also a restaurant on the bank ok lake where to can eat under the shadow of huge pine trees. This lake was built by the British in 1890 as a fresh water reservoir. From 2000 -2010 the lake became dry effecting the local wildlife and migratory birds and later in 2011 it was refilled.

Astola island: -

It is small island of 6.7 square kilometer located 39 kilometers from the port of Pasni. It is an inhabited island, its terrain is very tough, its bank is like a steep wall in the sea. Its significance is that it is the only island of Pakistan.

Ziarat

Ziarat city is located in ziarat district,126km away from provincial capital Baluchistan. It has a mountainous region covered in sanober forest. Its climate is cool in summer and is covered in a layer of white snow in winter. It is famous for the Quaid-e-Azam residency where Muhammad Ali Jinnah spend his last two and half month of his life. This place has been turned into a museum; People come here to visit the house to see how Quaid-e-Azam used to live. It also contains the art gallery filled with Jinnah’s and his family rare pictures. Ziarat is also famous for its apple groves and the hospitality that the locals offer.

Gwadar

Gwadar is a coastal city of Baluchistan, Located at the bank of Arabian sea, 650 km away from Karachi. This city is famous for its sea view. It was a neglected region, just in past decade the development started to take pace due to agreement with China for the city development and its port. It has a beautiful coast line. Most famous beaches of Gwadar are hammerhead beach and Turtle beach, whose name came from the turtles that there every year to lay their eggs. Main occupation of locals is fishing, so it is also famous for its local sea food. Pakistan army constructed a cricket stadium in the basin highest peak Mount batil, which was declared as the most beautiful stadium in the world. It is also famous for the Omani forts and boat building facilities.

Hingol National Park: -

It is the Pakistan biggest National Park with the area of 6100 square kilometer. It is home some very rare wildlife and plants unique to hingol. Most unique thing about this national Park is that has six completely different ecosystems, which contains sea, desert, forest mountains, river, streams and vast plains. Apart from that Hingol is famous for it unique rock formations, you can find there a stone looking like a lady standing an looking in the distant named the princess of hope. You can see a naturally formed sphinx from the rock which exactly look like the sphinx in Egypt built by pharos. It is also famous for its kali Mata Mandir which is estimated to be thousands of year old, every year 20000 to 30000 Hindus gather in the center of hangul park to par