MANSEHRA: Spat Valley in Kohistan region, which is home to unique flora and fauna, serene lakes, high mountains, springs and green meadows, is largely an unexplored tourist destination.

The valley shares boundaries with Kaghan Valley in Mansehra district.

Its Paradot area is known for its unmatched beauty. The local community stays here all through the summer season and explores “natural treasures” by traditional means and tools.

The government claims it is striving to open the province to tourists, but residents complain about its plans for eco-friendly tourism infrastructure.

Only a few nature lovers come to this picturesque valley on four-wheelers via bumpy paths from the Soach area in Kaghan Valley in the middle of July and at the start of June from Dasu, the district headquarters of Upper Kohistan.

Visitors say the locals living in mud houses at scattered places are hospitable, are fond of holding horse races on festive occasions like Eid and on the eve of August 14, and earn livelihoods by cattle and sheep farming.

The first winter snowfall occurs mostly in early November and December.

“A four-wheeler takes three to four hours to reach the Spat Valley from Soach, and visitors enjoy high mountains,springs, lakes and widely stretched greenish meadows to this heavenly piece on the earth,” Zeeshan Adil, who visited the valley along with friends, told Dawn.

He said that the beautiful valley was still a far-off sight for tourists and even the government as no roads and other tourism infrastructure existed there.

Abdul Sattar, who developed a passage to the valley from Kaghan as a Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz MPA from Kohistan, said the government approved Rs13 billion in 2017 to promote ecotourism in the areabut things didn’tmove further.

“The government, with the World Bank’s financial assistance of Rs13 billion, wanted to develop the Spat Valley as an eco-friendly tourism spot under its KP Integrated Tourism Project in 2017 but this initiative is still in shambles due to the former’s lack of interest,” he said.

Mr Sattar said the project had envisioned the valley as one of the country’s ideal attractions for adventurous tourism and skiing.

“The valley’s alpine was designed for the world’s best quality potatoes and other vegetables farming and to showcase them in the country’s large markets,” he said.

Mr Sattar said the region’s low-lying part was specified for putting up ecotourism infrastructures, hotels and petrol pumps.

“The world’s best Moheen and Shamis lakes - locally known as Earth’s Eyes - feature Spat Valley. If the government goes ahead with its sanctioned project, the area can attract a large number of visitors from within the country and abroad,” he said.

Published in Dawn, April 13th, 2024