Margalla Trails: miraculous natural landscapes of Islamabad.

ISLAMABAD -- Trekking trails that sneak down the roads of Islamabad from different steep sides of the majestic Margalla Hills are some of the most amazing natural landscapes of the capital city.

Hundreds of people including foreigners visit these trails everyday and enjoy the natural environment and health-recreational-activities.

The Margalla Hills had around thirty well-identified trails that are used by the locals and tourists. However, the administration of the capital city has worked and developed six of them for public hiking.

Margalla is a 40 km long hill range that covers an area of approximately 12,605 hectares. Highest peak of the range is Tilla Charouni with an elevation of 1604 meters.

The Hills stretch from Shahdara Valley in the east to Shah Allah Ditta village in the west covering area between shrines of 'Bari Imam' in the east and 'Golra Sharif' in the west.

Margalla Hills almost stand like a wall between two lakes of 'Khanpur' in the far north and 'Rawal' in near south.

Talking to reporter, an official of Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) said that these trails and Margalla National Park are home for locals, athletes and foreigners who are fond of trekking, hiking and walking in the twisted paths that are finding their way right up to the hills.

He said number of visitors to trails and margalla national park increases in spring and summers. 'Approximately 250-300 trekkers including locals, who live uphill, use these tracks for hiking, jogging and walking daily', he added.

All of these trails offer unique hiking opportunities and can be easily managed as half-day weekend hikes. Trail-1 starts behind Sectors E-8 and E-9. The easiest way to the trail head is by reaching village Kalinger from the junction of Agha Shahi Avenue and National Defence University.

Hiking can be commenced from a small mazar complex in village Kalinger. Initially, the trail moves along a water stream that leads into the mountains. Unlike other officially recognized trails, this is not marked well and it takes considerable effort to explore the path.

Among all the six officially recognized trails, trail-2 leading up to Damn-e-Koh is the shortest. It has two distinct trail heads. First is located at a narrow dirt track astride Marghazar Zoo. Alternately, a well-marked trail head is present at the start of Pir Sohawa Road.

Trail-3 is the most famous and beautiful hiking trail which is well marked and properly maintained. The...