Batura Glacier Trek From Passu

The Batura glacier trek starts at Passu in upper Hunza and follows the 57 km Batura glacier west to the summer pastures at Yashpirt and Guchesham, then returns the same way. Most guided groups take four to six days; strong walkers carrying their own gear have done the round trip of about 75 km in three or four. It is a camping trek with no high pass, one proper crossing of the glacier, and a wall of 7,000 metre peaks on the far side for most of the way.

The Batura glacier

At 57 km the Batura is one of the longest glaciers outside the polar regions. Only four are usually listed ahead of it, among them the Siachen, Biafo and Baltoro. It flows from west to east through Gojal and ends just above the Karakoram Highway north of Passu; a 1984 survey put the snout about half a kilometre from the road, and it has pulled back since.

Do not expect white ice. About two thirds of the middle and lower glacier is buried under rock and gravel, a grey, heaving surface with a strip of clean ice down the middle. The beauty of the trek is on either side of that: the south side is the Batura wall, a ridge about 11 km long that stays above 7,000 metres and rises to Batura Sar at 7,795 metres, with Passu Sar and Shispare further east. The north side, where the trail runs, is a string of grassy hollows with juniper, wild roses and the stone huts of Passu's herders.

Our Batura Sar guide covers the mountain itself, first climbed in 1976.

The route, stage by stage

The trek uses the paths that Passu families walk each summer to take sheep, goats, cows and yaks to pasture. Place names are Wakhi and are spelt several ways, and operators divide the stages differently. This is the usual pattern.

1. Passu to Yunz or Yunzben. The path climbs from the village onto the stony ground beside the south edge of the glacier. Operators quote anything from three to seven hours for this stage depending on which camp they use. There is a herders' hut at Yunzben.
2. Across the glacier to Yashpirt. From Yunzben the route crosses the Batura to its north bank, coming off the ice near the hut at Uzhokpirt, and then follows the trough beside the glacier to Yashpirt. Allow three to four hours for the crossing and five to seven for the day. Yashpirt is a seasonal settlement with reliable water and room to camp, and walkers who have done the route rate it the best camp on the trek.
3. Yashpirt to Guchesham. Five to six hours along the north side, past the pasture of Fatimahil. Guchesham, at about 3,400 metres, is the highest of the summer settlements and the main yak pasture.
4. Optional: Guchesham to Lupdor. A further stage up the valley for a closer look at the upper glacier, done by groups with a spare day.
5. Return to Passu. Two days back by the same path, crossing the glacier again.

Published altitudes for the camps disagree by a few hundred metres. What they agree on is that Passu is at about 2,400 metres and Guchesham at about 3,400, so the usual trek gains only about 1,000 metres. Operators give the highest point as around 4,000 metres if you carry on beyond the usual turnaround.

How hard is it?

By Karakoram standards this is one of the gentler multi-day treks. There is no pass, the altitude is modest, and nobody needs to rope up. An experienced hiker who walked it without a guide in 2008 described the glacier crossings as relatively simple and suggested it as a first Karakoram trek.

That does not make it a stroll. Three things catch people out:

• The crossing. The Batura here is a wide field of loose boulders lying on ice, with no fixed path. It moves from year to year. In clear weather with someone who knows the line it is tiring and slow; in cloud, alone, it is easy to lose half a day.
• Water. There is no dependable water between Passu and a point a few kilometres beyond the Uzhokpirt hut. Start with full bottles, at least two litres each, and fill up wherever your guide says to.
• Long days on rough ground. Moraine walking is hard on ankles and knees, and there is no way to shorten a stage once you have set out.

Compared with its neighbours, it is easier than the Patundas trek, which crosses the cleaner and more crevassed Passu glacier and climbs to a ridge at over 4,000 metres, and far shorter than the Shimshal Pass trek. Our trekking in Hunza guide sets them side by side.

Guides, porters and what to bring

There are herders' huts along the way, but they belong to Passu families and are in use in summer. Bring a tent, stove, fuel and all your food from Gilgit or Karimabad, where the shops are far better stocked than in Passu.

Hire your guide and porters in Passu. The pastures belong to the village, and local men know where the crossing currently goes. Ask at your hotel the day you arrive. We found no published day rate for 2026, so agree the fee, the number of days and who feeds the porters before you leave. Our guide to hiring guides and porters explains how the system works.

The Batura valley lies outside the restricted zones that need a trekking permit, as far as we can establish, but rules change. Check with your guide or read our trekking permit guide before you go.

Useful kit for this particular trek: boots with firm ankle support, walking poles for the moraine, a sun hat and sunscreen for the shadeless glacier, a warm layer for camp, and a water purifier.

When to go

June to September. July and August are the warmest months and the usual choice, and the herders are at the high pastures in summer. The Batura valley is dry, with only about 10 cm of rain and snow in a year at valley level, though the mountains above take far more. Nights in camp are cold in any month. Our trekking season guide covers the wider picture.

Getting to Passu

Passu is on the Karakoram Highway, about 52 km beyond Karimabad and about 147 km from Gilgit. Any vehicle bound for Sost passes through it. Ask your hotel to store spare luggage while you trek. Our hotels in Passu guide lists where to stay the night before, and things to do in Passu covers the suspension bridges and Borith Lake if you want an easy day first.

If you are driving up from Islamabad, note that the UK government advises against all travel on the Karakoram Highway between Mansehra and Chilas. In summer the Babusar Pass route avoids that stretch. Foreign passport holders should check their own government's advice, since it can void travel insurance.

Is it worth it?

Yes, for walkers in Hunza with four to six days and no wish to rope up or go above 4,000 metres. You spend days opposite one of the longest unbroken mountain walls in the Karakoram, camp in working pastures, and see a major glacier from its own surface.

It will not suit you if you want lodges, if you dislike boulder-hopping, or if you only have two days. In that case the day walk from Passu into the Yunz valley, between the Passu and Batura glaciers, gives a taste without the camping; see also our Passu glacier guide.

Frequently asked questions