My pilgrimage to Musa Ka Masalla peak , Mansehra

Oh my God! Where do I start about Musa Ka Masalla (Rug of Moses) peak?

Musa Ka Masalla peak at an altitude of 4080 meters is by far the most peaceful, relatively accessible meditation site for hermits like me, North of Islamabad. This peak referred to as MKM in the trekking circles, is at the end of Siren valley in Shinkyari, Mansehra District. Going over the peak we would end up at Balakot. Musa Ka Musalla pics, photos, and videos are amazing.

Although Musa Ka Masalla peak is at the foothills of the Himalayan range, it still is imposing enough to be seen from several hundreds of kilometers away. Its top is covered with ice all year round. The weather gets cold near Musa Ka Masalla top, even in peak summer months, so take a fleece jacket with you.

Driving through Siren Valley in Shinkyari, we end up at Manda Gucha town (1800 m) where the road ends. It is a 5 hours’ drive from Rawalpindi. This is the Google maps route to  Musa Ka Masala mountain.

You’d see Musa Ka Masalla peak the whole time during the intense trek towards the summit in the next 48 hours. Therefore you don’t need Musa ka musalla trek map.

From Manda Gucha, jeeps drive you towards the trekking stop a few kilometers away. This jeep ride would conserve your energy for the difficult climb the next day.

From Manda Gucha is a four hours trek to Dhor meadow and its iconic wooden bridge.

Two treks lead to Khori from Dhor. Take the one over the wooden bridge as it has a comfortable ascent towards Khori base campsite.

A further four hours and you’d end up in Khori campsite (2800 m), just beyond Jabbar pastures, close to sunset.

Do not take the bait of the porters and climb straight up the mountain towards Khori, as it would sprain your muscles that you vitally need for the summit the next day.

Conserve your energy the most you can.

On reaching Khori, grab a spot inside Shepard’s cottage made up of splinter rock — this tip is a lifesaver.  It hails every night and you’d not want to be inside a flimsy tent out in the open when that happens.

I was the only one rested the next day for the summit trek as my buddies kept draining their tents the whole night.

Then these high-altitude meadows are a perfect spot for Mother Nature to target practice lightning bolts. There was plenty of evidence of burnt-down pine trees all around.

Then the thick forests under the government’s control have predators like mountain cats and brown bears looking around for food and have developed a taste for intruding humans.

If that wasn’t enough, there are quite a few outlaws roaming these band lands. I heard quite a few locals checking out their guns through aerial firing.

No need to panic, if you stick with the local porter guide, these people don’t mess with you.

The next day we climbed at a steep angle towards the peak with two resting places in between.

 

These pastures seemed like a scene from medieval Scotland and its meadows, complete with Shepard huts, pristine grass, and high mountains.

There is plenty of clear water all along the route so there is no need to worry about that account as long as you take lots of ORS & Tang with you.

The final attack on the summit is a steep 45 degrees at least. These 200 meters seem like an eternity in the rarefied atmosphere.

After a grueling 4 hours climb, we reached the grave of Musa the Shepard at 4080 meters and were greeted by gusty winds, extreme cold, cloud cover, and slippery slopes. There is no great Musa Ka Masalla history, but the shepherd was thought to be a pious man. I wish I could go over the history in Urdu since everyone is so keen, but really there is not much to it. This is no musa ka waqia (Moses’s story) kind of history.

After a brief hoorahs and self-congratulatory battle cries, we climbed down 50 meters below the cloud deck, and then the reality of this beautiful site sunk in.

All the peaks surrounding Musa Ka Masalla peak were below us and we could see Siran Valley all the way to Munda Gucha.

The only peak that is higher than Musa Ka Masalla peak is Churko peak that 4200 m

I saw an unusually high altitude bird that stayed suspended in the air at the same spot, scoping for targets on the ground.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t see any of the wildlife as the locals prefer not to venture in their turf.

 

We spent the next night at Khori base camp and trekked back to Dhor using the forest route. This route winds through thick jungle and waterways.

I ended up falling into one of these gushing streams as my legs gave way mid-lunge.

The return journey is a blur as I was exhausted.

Physically fit women can do this Musa Ka Masalla summit and the environment is very healthy around the camps