Princess of Hope, Balochistan: How to See It

The Princess of Hope is a tall, eroded pinnacle of clay shaped like a standing woman, on the hills just inland of the Makran Coastal Highway in Hingol National Park, Balochistan. It is about 25 km west of Kund Malir and roughly 265 km, or four and a half hours, by road from central Karachi, and you can see it clearly from the highway. Half an hour covers the view and photographs from the roadside; allow an hour if you want to scramble up the slope for a closer look. The best light is early in the morning or late in the afternoon.

This guide explains exactly where to stop, what the viewpoints and the climb are like, when the light works, and how to fit the Princess into a day at Kund Malir without driving home in the dark.

Where exactly is the Princess of Hope?

Coming from Karachi, you pass the turning for Kund Malir and carry on west along the Makran Coastal Highway towards Ormara. The road leaves the beach behind and runs into the clay hills that rise towards Buzi Pass. Here the ground has been worn into ridges, fins and towers, and the formations begin to look like things: first the Sphinx, then, a little further on, the Princess.

She stands on the ridge on the inland side of the road, a few hundred metres from the highway. From the road she reads as a slim figure in a long skirt with something like a crown, looking out towards the horizon. About 5 km further on, the road reaches the viewpoint at Buzi Pass.

A few practical points for finding it:

• Watch your distance from the Kund Malir turning. After about 20 km, slow down and start looking up to your right.
• Download an offline map with the spot saved before you leave Karachi. Mobile signal is patchy here, and online maps won't load when you need them.
• Don't count on a signboard or a car park. You will probably be stopping on the shoulder of the highway.

For the drive itself, fuel and timings from Karachi, see our guide to Karachi to Kund Malir by road.

Where does the name come from?

The Princess is a hoodoo, sometimes called a fairy chimney: a pinnacle left standing when the softer material around it wore away. The hills around Buzi Pass are made of clay and silt, soft enough for wind and rare rain to carve, and the Princess is the most famous of the shapes they have been worn into.

The name is usually credited to Angelina Jolie, who is said to have given it during a visit to Pakistan as a UN goodwill ambassador in the early 2000s. Accounts disagree on the year and the details, but the name stuck.

It is worth knowing that the figure is a trick of the eye. Seen from the right angle, she is unmistakable; move far enough along the road and she turns back into an ordinary pillar of clay. That is part of the fun, and it is why where you stand matters so much.

Viewing and photo spots

From the roadside

The roadside view is the one most people come for, and it is enough on its own. Pull fully off the carriageway, switch on your hazard lights, and keep everyone, especially children, off the road itself. Traffic on the coastal highway moves fast, including coaches and fuel trucks, and drivers don't expect people standing on it.

Walk a short way along the shoulder in each direction. The figure's outline sharpens and softens as you move, and you will find the angle where the silhouette is clearest against the sky. A zoom lens or a phone's telephoto setting helps here, because from the road she is small against the ridge.

On the slope below

Climbing partway up the slope gives a completely different picture. You see the scale of the pinnacle, the layers of clay it is made of, and the badlands spreading in every direction. A person standing well below the formation, not on it, makes the best sense of its size in a photograph.

The Sphinx and Buzi Pass

The Sphinx, a formation shaped like a crouching lion with a human head, is a little way back towards Kund Malir, and it is easy to stop at both. The viewpoint at Buzi Pass, about 5 km further west, looks out over the clay hills and the coast. If you have time for only one extra stop, the Sphinx is the natural companion to the Princess.

The short climb: what to expect

There is no made path, no steps and no railing. The slope below the Princess is steep, bare clay and silt, often covered with loose grit that rolls under your feet. On loose ground like this, coming down is harder than going up, and it is where people slip.

How far you go is up to you, but there is no sensible route onto the pinnacle itself. The upper slopes are steep and crumbling, and the formation is fragile.

• Wear shoes with grip, not sandals or slippers.
• Go up before the heat. There is no shade anywhere on the slope, and the clay reflects the sun.
• Carry water, even for a short climb.
• Come down slowly, sideways if it is steep, and keep your weight over your feet rather than leaning back.
• Don't climb above other people. Loose stones roll a long way and can reach the road.
• Stay off the formation. Don't climb it, lean on it or carve into it. Every foothold breaks away and doesn't grow back.
• Keep children close and within arm's reach on the steeper parts.
• Watch where you put your hands on the rocks and in crevices.

Older parents and anyone with bad knees lose very little by staying at the road. The view from there is the famous one.

When is the light best?

Because the Princess stands on the inland side of the road, you look at her from the south. In the winter months, when the sun stays in the southern sky, it is behind you or off to one side for most of the day.

• Early morning light comes low from the east and picks out the texture of the clay.
• Late afternoon light from the west does the same from the other side and warms the colours.
• Midday light is flat and harsh, and the heat on the slope is at its worst.

The winter months help twice over. From November to February the sun stays lower in the sky all day, so even late-morning light has some shape to it, and the air is cool enough to enjoy the climb. From May to September it is hot enough by mid-morning to make the slope a poor idea.

On a day trip from Karachi there is no way to reach the Princess in the early light. The best compromise is to drive straight past the Kund Malir turning and see the Princess first, arriving around 10 while it is still relatively cool, then go back to the beach. If the light matters to you, stay the night at Kund Malir and come back for the evening or the first hour after sunrise. Our Kund Malir beach guide covers the huts and rooms there.

How much time do you need?

• Roadside look and photographs: 15 to 30 minutes.
• With the Sphinx and a scramble up the slope: about an hour.
• Getting there from Kund Malir: 25 to 30 minutes each way.

A day trip from Karachi that includes the Princess might run like this:

1. Leave Karachi at 5:30 am. Stop at Zero Point for fuel and breakfast around 7:30.
2. Drive past the Kund Malir turning and reach the Princess of Hope at around 10.
3. Spend 45 minutes at the Princess and the Sphinx.
4. Back to Kund Malir by about 11:15 for a hut, lunch and the beach.
5. Leave Kund Malir by 2 pm in winter, 3:30 pm in summer, so you are off the coastal highway before dark.

The extra 50 km there and back, with the stop, adds about an hour and a half to the day. That is manageable with an early start, and it is the first thing to drop if you leave Karachi late.

Is it worth the extra drive?

If you are already at Kund Malir, yes. It is one of the strangest sights on the Pakistani coast, it is close, and the drive through the clay hills to reach it is part of the reward. With the Sphinx and a look at Buzi Pass, it turns a beach day into a proper look at Hingol National Park.

On its own, it is not worth four and a half hours each way. The formation is striking, but the stop itself is short, and it makes sense only as part of a Kund Malir day or a longer drive along the coast.

Skip it if you left Karachi late, if the day is already hot and you have small children in the car, or if the security news for the coastal highway that week gives you any doubt; our guide to safety at Kund Malir explains what to check before you go. If you would like help planning a route along the coast, our trip planning page is the place to start.

Frequently asked questions