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Over the Khyber Pass

The Khyber Pass is located between Peshawar and the border with Afghanistan. Since ancient times, it has been an important pass on the trade route between the Central Asian and Indian cultural regions. The mountain where the pass is located is called Spin Ghar (in the Pashto language) and was crossed by Alexander the Great’s army in the 4th century B.C., as well as by Xuanzang in the 7th century. During the Mughal period, it developed as part of the Grand Trunk Road, the main road from Agra, India to Kabul, Afghanistan. In modern times, it was a battlefield in the Afghan War during the British colonial period. After independence, it became an autonomous region of the Pashto tribe called the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), but that system was abolished in 2018. Foreigners visiting the area must have prior permission and be accompanied by security. When tourists talk about going to the Khyber Pass, it generally means visiting the area from the Khyber gate to the Michini check post.

Bab-e-Khyber and Jamrud Fort

This monumental gate was built in 1963 and is located 18 km from the center of Peshawar city. There is a small park next to the gate where the history of the Khyber Pass is inscribed on a stone tablet. Khyber Gate also appears on the Pakistani 10-rupee bill.

Just past the Khyber Gate, on the right, is Jamrud Fort. It was built by the Sikhs in 1823 on top of an old fort. General Hari Singh Nalwa, a hero of the Sikhs, was killed and buried at Jamrud Fort while fighting Afghans. The fort is manned by the Pakistani army and entry is not allowed.

A camel milk vendor from Punjab walking through Khyber Gate
Until 2007, there was a large Afghan refugee camp (Kacha Garhi refugee camp) near the Khyber gate; many refugees came and went through this gate from the Soviet invasion in 1979 until the end of the Afghanistan war.

 

Khyber Pass Viewpoint

The photo of the Khyber Pass shown in the guidebook features a view looking back toward Peshawar from the road on the way to the border. The road is now newly widened and is lined with transport trucks coming and going from the border, but it must have once provided a dramatic sight of the Gandhara Plain spread out in front of the caravans coming from Afghanistan.

View toward Peshawar from Khyber Pass Viewpoint

 

Shagai Fort

The fortress was built by the British in the 1920s to monitor the Khyber Pass route. It is currently manned and monitored by the Pakistani Army. On the other side of the fort there is a new monument and a lookout tower.

Distant view of Shagai Fort
Entrance to Shagai Fort

Ali Masjid

This is the narrowest part of the Khyber Pass road, flanked by mountains on both sides. It was originally so narrow that two loaded camels could just barely pass each other. Because of its strategic importance, it was the site of fierce battles in past wars. The road has been gradually widened, but even today, the lanes are separated, with the lane heading toward Peshawar being built on a cliff.

The small Ali Masjid (a mosque), as well as a madrasa can be found along the road. The Ali Masjid Fort, where the Pakistani army is stationed, is located on top of the hill.

The Ali Masjid mosque along the road. A larger mosque is currently under construction.
Ali Masjid Fort overlooking the narrow road

Palatial Residence (Fort) of Ayub Afridi

Ayub Afridi is a well-known drug lord and tribal politician, known for the many interesting stories about his contacts with the United States, among other topics. Along the road is a wall of mansions with more than 100 rooms.

Sphola Stupa

The stupa dates back to the 2nd-3rd century Kushan period and is built on a three-tiered platform. Excavations in the early 20th century unearthed a Buddha statue, and as of 2024, the base of the temple is being restored. It is the only Gandhara Buddhist site in the Khyber Pass area.

Sphora Stupa and Khyber Railway tracks

Emblem of the Military Corps

The troops of various time periods who passed through the area carved their military emblems into the rock face as a commemoration of their passage.

Emblem of the Military Corps

Khyber Railway

There was a time when a steam locomotive operated once a month for tourists between Peshawar and Landi Kotal. The Khyber railway has a long history, having opened in 1926 during British rule era for the purpose of transporting military supplies. The railway runs from Peshawar to Landi Kotal, a distance of 40 km with a height difference of 600 m, crossing 34 tunnels and 92 railway bridges.

The area was devastated by heavy rains and flooding in 2006, and there is absolutely no hope of restoration. Currently, only the remains of damaged tracks, tunnels, steel bridges, and stations can be seen.

Railway tracks destroyed by flooding
The tunnel
The railway bridge
A preserved steam locomotive in Peshawar

Landi Kotal

The last town on the Pakistani side is Landi Kotal. Stores are spread out over an even lower level of the town’s main street. It was once known for its smuggled goods bazaar which dealt in arms and drugs. Today, there is still a vibrant market.

Landi Kotal’s Kabab Shop
Popular chappal kabab in town
Landi Kotal people cheerfully talking to tourists
Children on their way home from school

Michini Check Post

The last point on the Pakistan side that can be visited without an Afghanistan visa is the Michini Check Post, which overlooks the border town of Torkham. The border town of Torkham is 5 km downhill from here. The rocky mountains across the border are numbered from 1 to 3, and the border line between the two countries is the point where these lines are connected.

View of the border Torkham from Michini check post

The Michini Check Post has a viewpoint where tourists can enter. From the viewpoint, there is an old building called the Taimoor Fort or Tamerlane Fort, which according to legend was used as a prison during Timur’s invasion of India.

Taimoor Fort
A lookout with a view of the Torkham border

Torkham Border

Approaching the border there is a dry port and an immigration control building. As of 2024, the Torkham border is the only open border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Porters carrying luggage and money changers waiting at the border
Corridor between Pakistan and Afghanistan

The border with Afghanistan is connected by a long corridor, and from there it is 230 km to Kabul, which takes about 6 hours by car.

 

Photo & Text : Mariko SAWADA

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Category : - Peshawar / Khyber Pass > ◆Khyber Pakhtunkhwa > Uncategorized
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The Khyber Pass 2019

One of the places where it is very difficult to get an entry permit is the Khyber Pass. It is right on the border with Afghanistan, located in the former tribal area on the road leading to Torkham. In 2018, it was transferred to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, but it is still one of the more difficult places to visit.

The historic Khyber Pass has been an important trade route connecting the eastern and western cultures. The Sulaiman mountains on the border are where Alexander the Great’s army, and the Chinese Buddhist Scholar, Xuanzang (In Japanese known as Genjō) crossed here. During the Mughal Dynasty, it was developed as the Grand Trunk Road running from India to Kabul in Afghanistan. It also became a significant battlefield from the First British War to the independence of Pakistan in modern times. After Pakistan’s independence it became a tribal area.

For travelers, it is an exciting part of history and romance as a pass that connects the “Central Asian world” and the “Indian world”.

 

The first monument from Peshawar to Khyber Pass is this Khyber Gate ‘Bab-e- Khyber’. Peshawar was already quite a busy town, but the tram in the middle of the main road made the road even narrower and the traffic was horrible.

 

The giant Shagai Fort was built by the British Army in 1920 and is now used by the Pakistani Army.

 

Students who we passed along the road. These students commuting to school was really refreshing in the old tribal area.

 

This was the narrowest place of the Khyber Pass road, mountains on both sides, and for that it became a strategically important position. It a fierce battlefield during many wars. This is the Ali Masjid Mosque and on the hill is the Pakistani military fortress Ali Masjid Fort.

 

One of the most shocking things we learned was that the fortress was built beside buddhist stupa of Kushan Empire, which amazingly dates back to the 2nd and 5th centuries.
This is Sphola Stupa sits on a three-story platform. It housed some Gandhara sculptures, Buddha statues that were excavated in the early 20th century.

 

The other shocking thing is the miserable state of this “Khyber Railway” track. It is such a pity because I expected that the “Khyber Railway” steam locomotive would be revived to invigorate the domestic tourism.

The railroad was originally opened in 1926, while under British rule for the purpose of transporting military supplies. The trip from Peshawar to Landi Kotal, which is 34 kilometers long and rises in elevation by 600 meters, crosses 34 tunnels and 92 iron bridges, and the steam locomotive trip here was one of the highlights of tourism.

 

It is said that the military from various times and various countries that passed through this area have carved their coat of arms on the rock surface as a memorial.

 

Then we passed through the Landi Kotal market. This was once a famous place for the smuggling trade.

 

This is the Michini Checkpost where “The Guardians of Khyber Pass” overlook the Pakistani border with Afghanistan. The observatory serves as a lookout post over at Afghanistan.

 

A view of Afghanistan from the Michini Checkpost. In the valley, there are immigration and customs offices of both countries, and passing through here, will take you to Torkham.

Click here for more information on Khyber Pass (It was written based on photos from around 2008. Please compare it with the old photo and see how it has changed.)

 

Photo & text : Mariko SAWADA
※These photos were taken in October 2019 during the visit.

Category : - Peshawar / Khyber Pass > ◆Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
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Bazaar of Landi Kotal

Landi Kotal is a small town, found on the way from Peshawar to the Afghanistan border town of Torkham.  Located in the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), it was once known as the “Smuggling Market,” known for trading goods like appliances and car parts into smuggled items like weapons and narcotics. When I first visited around 1992, I was surprised to see chocolate-shaped narcotics lined up in stores.
Now the status of the “Smuggling Bazaar” has disappeared and it is a normal market for rural Pashtun tribes.

 

The shop owners call out ‘Hello! Hello!’ to try to earn some business.

 

When a foreigner pass them by, everyone pays attention! It really reminded me of old Pakistan.

 

The Pashtun officer who accompanies us, took us to a local butcher shop and request some popular Landi Kotal Domba Sheep. These unique sheep have a big butt which is a delicacy for the locals.

 

We purchased a cut of meat and it was grilled over charcoal.

 

This is a typical Domba sheep lunch. We ate it along with a the local green tea called Kahwa Tea!
By the day, I did not see any women, the whole day.

 

Photo & Text : Mariko SAWADA

Visit : Oct 2019, Landi Kotal, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa

Category : - Peshawar / Khyber Pass > ◆Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
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