Kumrat ( ur, ) is a valley in the Upper Dir District of

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the northwestern region of the country, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ...

province of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. Kumrat Valley is located about 45 minutes away from the town of Thal on the banks of the

Panjkora River The Panjkora River ( ur, ) is a river in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of the northwest of Pakistan. The river runs through the mountainous northern part of the province, and forms the Kumrat Valley. It passes from Dir, Timergara and meet at ...

, and is among the most popular tourist spots in

. Every summer season, around a million tourists from different areas of the country visit Kumrat Valley for its greenery and cool weather. Around

Eid al-Fitr , nickname = Festival of Breaking the Fast, Lesser Eid, Sweet Eid, Sugar Feast , observedby = Muslims , type = Islamic , longtype = Islamic , significance = Commemoration to mark the end of fasting in Ramadan , date ...

holidays, around 2,000 vehicles enter the region on a daily basis. It can only be accessed using 4x4 vehicles, as the road leading to it is

unmetalled A road surface (British English), or pavement (American English), is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain vehicular or foot traffic, such as a road or walkway. In the past, gravel road surfaces, hoggin, cobble ...

Features

Kumrat is covered with green pastures, snow clad mountains, the river

Panjkora The Panjkora River ( ur, ) is a river in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of the northwest of Pakistan. The river runs through the mountainous northern part of the province, and forms the Kumrat Valley. It passes from Dir, Timergara and meet at ...

, foggy mounds and forests are attractions of the region, which serve as habitats for variety of flora and fauna. It is located in the Upper Dir Kohistan region at the back side of which Swat Kohistan area of

Gabral Gabral (also spelled Gabrāl, or Ghabral) is a village and union council in Swat District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan. It is located on the slopes of the western end of the Himalayas, at the lower end of the Gabral Valley, where the ...

is located. Another feature of Kumrat Valley is its towering Deodar forest trees located on level ground adjacent the Panjkora river. At several places, the Panjkora River divides into channels, on the banks of which a few makeshift camping spots offer accommodation to tourists. There are several waterfalls there as well. Kala Chashma (Black Spring) is also located there.

Deforestation

Deodar forest is fast depleting in Dir Kohistan Valley and it continues unhindered as the locals claim that they have no other source of fuel for heating and cooking purposes in the harsh winter season. The people of Kohistan Valley had offered the government in the 2010s that they were ready stop cutting deodar trees if they were provided with a

natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbon d ...

facility. However, the government did not pay any heed to their demand.

References

{{Reflist Upper Dir District Tourism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Tourism in Pakistan Valleys of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Tourist attractions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Features

Deforestation

See also

References