Panja Gali is a beautiful hill station and emerging tourist destination on Torghar mountain at an elevation of 2240 meters in the northwest of Mansehra in the district Torghar. It is located 31 km from Oghi town at a drive of one and a half hours. Torghar is a big mountain range of the outer Himalayas and the district Torghar is also eponymous with Torghar mountain.
Torghar (Pashto) is also called Balck Mountain or Kala Dhaka کوہ کالا ڈھاکہ in Urdu.
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| Panja Gali is a beautiful hill station in the district of Torghar Khyber Pakhtunkhwa View of is Indus river from Panja Gali |
The road to Panja Gali is wholly asphalted. However, when you travel from Oghi to Panja Gali via Bajna, Bandi Shungli and the journey is a little tougher due to mountain climbing, after Shungli Bandi when you travel from the Tanawal valley side. It is a very attractive tourist destination for its elevation, thick blue pines and deodar forest, snowfall, natural spring water, cold weather, and picturesque terrain. The beautiful Indus river is flowing along the foot of Torghar mountain on the west face from north to south. you can view the zig-zag basin and unique curves of the Indus river from Panja Gali. Panja Gali and adjacent mountains are very famous since 1891 when the British army fought a war against tribes of the black mountain (Torghar) during the British era. The expedition was named the Black Mountain Expedition 1891. You can view some traces on the peaks in the dilapidated shape of a fort and some graves as well.
Derajat Mountain Battery during Black Mountain Expedition 1891.
(Courtesy www.britishbattles.com)
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| Beautiful view of the Tanawal valley from Panja Gali |
Punja Gali was a less explored and less visited tourist spot in Mansehra. It is now very famous all over the Hazara division and across the country, after its social media exposure. Tourists and casual visitors are now visiting especially on Eid occasions and other gathering days.
There is no accommodation or quality hotel. However, some small hotels (Pakistan hotel, Panja Gali Hotel) and tea stalls are available and you can buy milk tea, green tea, coffee, and snacks like samosas, pakora, Chapli kabab, fruit chart, mixed vegetable chart, cold drinks, and traditional meals.
The Panja Gali site is feasible for hiking, camping, BB Que, and cooking. The average temperature of Panja Gali remains at -2 to 25 degrees Celsius around the year, coldest in January and hottest in July. Panja Gali is a feasible tourist spot from October to March when Gilgit-Baltistan is not easy due to tough weather conditions and rout obstacles like landslides, rains, and snowfalls.
It is worth mentioning that there is no petrol pump in Tanawal valley, so fill the vehicle tank from Oghi and review your travel checklist once again before leaving Oghi town. Remember to take away the famous Chapli kabab of Oghi.
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| Snow-capped Torghar eastern view |
When you travel from Mansehra city to Panja Gali it will take almost 2:30 hours of journey to cover 67 kilometers of the total distance. visit some other famous villages, en route spots, and attractions for tourists along the way to Panja Gali when you are traveling from Mansehra.
- Mansehra Post Graduate College Doraha
- Hazara Motorway M15 Oghi Interchange
- Zaitoon Masjid Bherkund and riverside view
- Khaki Siran River view and Tawa fry fish
- Naray natural spring water and Spicy Chapli Kabab
- Famous and tough Susal turns
- Susal Gali
- Panj Perhiaan's five adjacent gigantic tower rocks and Walyan top (30 min off the road)
- Arbora Village
- Bandi Sadiq Village
- Dharra village
- Maloga Village
- Oghi Town and its famous Chapli Kabab (no parallel)
- FC fort Oghi
- FC Cricket ground
- Historical fortalice at a small hill northwest of Oboundaryghi 30 minutes hike
- Manchora dam site at 15 minutes drive north of Oghi Town
- Bazargai and Oghi old village
- Dogai flex point of two local rivers
- Butti More the of Agror and Tanawal valleys
- Kharhi Shareef
- Bai Bala
- Bajna Naar river view
- Ram Kot Gali
- Bandi Shungli river and rice field view
- Phaghora