60 Pattan – Batagram - 96 km The stretch between Pattan and Batagram was, at least to me, the
most beautiful part of the KKH, with ample greenery and forested
mountainsides. Sadly, the road was so poor that my front luggage
rack broke. The rack was held together for months afterwards with
duct tape and cable ties. Still, it wasn’t half as bad as the Polish
cyclist we met who was nursing his bicycle along using a single gear.
At Thakot, our route crossed the Indus River (the official start and
end of the KKH) and climbed out of the Indus valley; a hot, sweaty
affair. Our hotel in Batagram had seen better days and the lack of
tourism was painfully visible.
Batagram – Abbottabad - 98 km
From Batagram, we churned our way up to Chatter Plain, followed by
a great descent into Mansehra. By then, villages were close together
with busy bazaars. The road congestion made it a slow and
frustrating process, even on a bicycle. The route was jam-packed
with colourful trucks, cars, Jeeps and donkey carts.
From Mansehra to Abottobad was undulating. At least, by then, the
children appeared scared of us and ran for their lives spotting us.
People were genuinely surprised and stared open-mouthed. Even
though the KKH was considered a popular cycling route, not enough
came past to make seeing cyclists a daily occurrence.