“Beyond Skardu were the wilds and beauty of the Karakoram. This is where the road and telegraph ended,” wrote American reporter and climber Shelby Scates in his autobiography, “War & Politics by Other Means: A Journalist’s Memoir” while recalling the first American party’s ascent to K2 in 1978.

So right was he. Skardu city which lies at the confluence of the River Shigar and River Indus and an arid environs, might not offer much to travelers.

Stepping outside Skardu, there is a wild frontier with lofty peaks, offering plenty of adventure to anyone who is game.

And then there is the heartbreakingly beautiful and untainted landscape that screams ‘wanderlust’ with Shigar topping the list. Shigar valley, often compared with Tibet due to its beautiful landscape, is also home to Askole, the last settlement in Pakistan which leads to an alpine paradise.

Heading to Shigar Valley for a day trip, one drives past apricot orchids that line both sides of the small road. In the dusty, little town of Shigar, signboards lead one to various tourist spots.

“Must see are the 14th century Amburiq Mosque, Khilingrong Mosque and the Astana of Syed Mir Yahya, the burial place of a Sufi from Xinjiang who promoted Nurbakhshisium in Baltistan during the 17th century and the 330 year old Gulabpur Khanqah,” a travel brochure at a small store suggested. Another suggested a horse ride or hike around the area.

If one starts early in the day, the ruins of Shigar’s first fort, the 11th century ‘Kari Dong’ can be visited. Lying atop a small hill, the ruins are perched right above the present day Shigar Fort.

Fong Khor (Palace on the Rocks), popularly known as the Shigar Fort, is a restored heritage guesthouse and gives the visitors an opportunity to experience the lifestyle of a 17th century raja while enjoying the luxuries of the 21st century.

With room rates bordering around ten thousand rupees a night, a night’s stay may not be feasible for budget travelers.

However, the place offers excellent Balti cuisine which is worth trying (burgers and fries on the menu for children and not so adventurous ones) and it’s worth spending time in its spacious gardens.

Not long after registering a group of giggly college girls into the palace, the slightly fazed but smiling front desk officer of Shigar Fort, Zaheer Sheikh, gave our little group a guided tour of the building.

“The once princely state of Shigar was ruled by the Amacha family, with Fong-Khar built by Hassan Khan, the 20th ruler of the Amacha Dynasty, in the early 17th century. The family ruled Shigar for thirty-three generations,” Sheikh diligently informed us.

With some excellent spot lighting, a collection of some decent heirlooms and knick knacks was on display. From the cookware to the clothes worn by the royals and royal communiqués, the museum offers an interesting insight into the socio-political past of this cloistered region.

Originally from Hamacha tribe of Ganesh, Hunza, a few of its members managed to flee to Shigar across the Hispar glacier pass after a bloody massacre that left most of the royals dead. The survivors went on to form the Amacha Dynasty in the 13th century.

With blood and murder at the centre of the rise and fall of the Amacha dynasty, the family continues to play a pivotal role in regional politics.

In a dramatic twist, the descendents continue to remain in power, with Raja Azam Khan holding a seat in the National Assembly as MQM’s representative from Gilgit-Baltistan.

Stepping out of the museum and into the garden, one can stand back and marvel at the intricate woodwork and stone construction which is a seamless mix of Balti and Kashimiri architectural influences.

Right across the fort is the 400 year old Khilingrong Mosque. With its breezy veranda from where one can look at the fast flowing stream and ornamental carvings, particularly the patchwork wood ceiling and lattice grills, the restored mosque is the recipient of the Unesco Asia Pacific Heritage Award 2012.

A few kilometers away is the Khanqah Maullah Shigar. Built in 1614 (1023 Hijri), the site with its wooden lattice ceiling takes you to another time.

It is one of the few buildings that defy the traditional Balti construction of low ceilings and has ample space.

An introductory signboard outside the Khanqah states that the construction of small mosques was common once Islam made inroads in the Gilgit-Baltistan region due to the efforts of Amir Kabbir Syed Ali Hamdani alias Shah Hamadan.

“Khankah-e-mualla is one of the monumental pieces and is a valuable gift for the Shigar Valley. The credit goes to Shah Nasir Tussi who came from Tuus, Iran with his three brothers through Siachen Glacier in 1591 (1012 Hijri). Before this, Mir Syed Shamsuddin Irqai (But Shikan), the ancestor of Sadaats in Baltistan and his only son was martyred in Kashmir by Mirza Ghulam Haider Dolut. Shah Nasir laid the foundation of Khankhah in 1602 (1023 Hijri),” the board reads.

According to locals, Shah Nasir disappeared near the mountains in Braldo Valley on the way to Chhogori (Balti for Big Mountain) or K2, as it is popularly known. After his demise, Mir Yahya and Mir Mukhtar continued his mission of spreading Islam in the region.

The community in Shigar is a mix of Shia and Noor Bakhshi, with both sides lagging behind their peers in Hunza Valley in terms of human development. One reason is their resistance to change and the other is the influence of the clerics.

However, tourism helped change the social structures to an extent. With the conversion of the fort into a hotel in 2005, a number of social initiatives were taken up by various small organisations with impressive results.

There is the Abruzzi School, named after Luigi Amedeo, Duke of Abruzzi who first attempted to climb K2 in 1909.

The school is said to be the first environmentally sustainable school in the area and runs on the generosity of travelers to areas, mostly foreigners, who have been kind enough to donate books and art materials.

Then there is the Parbat Foundation that offers sewing classes to women so that they are able to help pitch in the family income.

Bedar is another scheme that allows locals to market their products including dried apricots, apricot oil, honey woolen shawls and wood handicrafts.

Talking about the importance of tourism in the area and how it affects the daily lives of the people, Manager Shigar Fort Residence Mohammad Karim Khan says it took a while for the community to open up.

“Initially, the clerics here issued a fatwa against the hotel. They even labeled the water filtration plant as haram. However, once the community realised the water was doing well to their children’s health, they mellowed.

“Also, economic opportunities increased since the hotel opened up. We hired local boys to work in the hotel, they were trained and groomed and they take pride in their work,” he said.

“The people here are peaceful and friendly. Just that they are scared of new things but we have learnt that if we respect them and their norms, eventually they respect us in return too,” he said with a smile.

In the wake of the Nanga Parbat massacre in late June this year, tourism has taken a sharp nosedive.

With barely a foreigner in sight, the place looked devoid of any activity. Almost 230 bookings were cancelled at the Shigar hotel, over 90 per cent by foreigners, causing losses worth Rs2,500,000 to date since the incident.

Given this situation, it’s not very difficult to imagine how badly tour operators and people related to the travel and hospitality industry have been hit. Worse still, the small scale initiatives that were dependent on tourists have been affected as well.

As we left Shigar and its blue stream behind, the gentleman driving us back to Skardu summed it up perfectly: “The only way tourism thrives is when there is peace and a sense of security.

“The Gilgit-Baltistan region has great sights and lots of history but after the Nanga Parbat incident, it’s hard for us to convince people, particularly the foreigners, that it’s safe.”