Field guides / Azad Jammu and Kashmir / Taobat
Field guide · Nature
Taobat
Taobat is the last village of the Neelum Valley, a scatter of wooden houses and meadows at 7,500 feet where the Kishenganga River crosses into Pakistan and becomes the Neelum. Reached only by jeep track from Kel, it has the genuine feel of a frontier village, an ancient wooden mosque, a small fish farm, and not much else beyond mountains in every direction.
Taobat is the last village of the Neelum Valley, a scatter of wooden houses and meadows at 7,500 feet where the Kishenganga River crosses into Pakistan and becomes the Neelum. Reached only by jeep track from Kel, it has the genuine feel of a frontier village, an ancient wooden mosque, a small fish farm, and not much else beyond mountains in every direction. Taobat Bala, a short hike above the village, extends the view further still.
Why go
- ✦The last village in the Neelum Valley
- ✦Where the Kishenganga River becomes the Neelum
- ✦Ancient wooden mosque
- ✦Short hike up to Taobat Bala for panoramic views
Pakistan's Last Village
Taobat's remoteness, reachable only by jeep track and closed off entirely in winter, has kept it largely unchanged: wooden houses, meadow farming, and a fish farm rather than any tourist infrastructure. It's as much an endpoint as a destination, the place the Neelum Valley road simply runs out.
Plan It with GreenPak
The natural final stop on a Neelum Valley itinerary, best reached with a 4x4 and local driver arranged from Kel, use Plan a trip to build in the jeep-track timing.
Planning tip
When to go, June to September; the jeep track from Kel is impassable outside these months.
Getting there, About 39 km beyond Kel on a 4x4 jeep track only, roughly 2 hours in good conditions.
Allow, An overnight stay is the norm given the jeep-track approach; allow another hour or two for the hike up to Taobat Bala.
