The crystal lake

This is where I've been for the past twenty-four hours:



From Kashgar I took a shared taxi with three other travellers to Karakul Lake, which is about four hours' drive south, on the Tajikistan border. The journey was (possibly) more spectacular than any I took on the Tibetan plateau. We travelled along the first part of the Karakorum Highway (the legendary route into Northern Pakistan) and I've never been more blown away by mountain scenery. It galvanised my resolve to take this rugged route into Pakistan sometime in the not-so-near future.

The local people living in Karakul are mainly Krgyz, living in traditional yurts (the round tent-like houses, similar to the Mongolian ger). We stayed overnight in one of these, which was quite an experience. It reminded me of the sleepovers I used to have in my early teens, with everyone bedding down next to each other on top of rugs and pillows, snuggling into sleeping bags and chatting in the dark. Last night's sky was similar to that of Tiger Leaping Gorge and Kiau in Borneo - the sheer number of stars made my head spin. I didn't know where to look. It made me think of one of those heavily-sequined evening dresses.

This morning I decided to jump on a horse and ride around the lake by myself. It was definitely a highlight of the trip so far; just cantering and cantering and cantering through what must be some of the world's most beautiful landscape. At one point we ventured up the hill towards the glacier. It was the most free I've ever felt.

I could write much, much more but my time is running out and I think the pictures provide a much better description than my clumsy words could ever evoke. Check flickr for camel shots!