Kalam, 29 kilometres (18 miles) from Bahrain and about 2,000 meters (6,800 feet) above sea level, the valley opens out, providing rooms for a small but fertile plateau above the river. In Kalam the Ushu and Utrot rivers join to form the Swat river. Here, the metalled road ends and shingle road leads to the Ushu and Utrot valleys.From Matiltan one gets a breath-taking view of the snow-capped Mount Falaksir 5918 meters (19,415 ft.), and another un-named peak 6096 meters (20,000 ft.) high. PTDC offers motel accommodation in Miandam, Kalam and Besham. for booking please contact: PTDC Motels, Ground Floor, Block 4-B, Markaz F-7, Bhitai Road, Islamabad. Tel: (92) (51) 111 555 999.
GOOGLE MAP OF KALAM
Tourism dominates the village and unfettered development has crept away from the Swat River and onto the slopes. But its not too hard to escape the concrete and head into the wild and beautiful landscape that is Kalam’s real draw. Bear in mind that Swat Kohistan is a traditionally conservative and feudal place, and there are occasional hostilities towards both foreigners and the hordes of Punjabi tourists that come here. The PTDC advises taking a guide if you want to go hiking, and can help organise this.
Outside summer, Kalam shuts down. There’s then only a handful of hotels open (even the PTDC is closed) and food is limited to the cheap restaurants in the bazaar
Favorite thing: in july 2010 i visited kalam a second biggest tourist resort of pakistan and i was detained due to flood in sawat and at last actress anjilina juili visited kalam and i was able to come back to home .kalam is a very beautifull place and here a tourist can enjoy lakes ,fores, water falls and mountaineering in a single tour ,Utrore is the most beautifull village of the kalam area.
The farmers of the Northern Areas of Pakistan produce a variety of fruits: apricots, apples, cherries, mulberries, nuts including almonds, walnuts and pine nuts. The pure highland environment of the Karakorum and Himalayan Mountains, where fruit trees are irrigated by pure glacial meltwater creates wonderful produce. Rightly so, the Hunza apricot is known the world over for its bright and tangy flavour. The kernel of the apricots, hidden deep inside the stone, are also a nutty treasure.
Due to seasonal gluts in production and poor roads much of this output is wasted and rots before it can be consumed or sold. Communities are poor, living in harsh conditions with summer temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celcius and winter temperatures dropping below -10 degrees Celsius. Farming in these extremely arid conditions is made possible only with forced irrigation
.Mountain Fruits is a Pakistani Fairtrade dried fruit and nut company which trains the Northern farmers of Pakistan in solar drying fresh fruits and processing nuts. and also provides markets for the produce. The production methods used create fruits and nuts of international marketable standards. Mountain Fruits also train farmers in improved agricultural and organic techniques that make increased production possible on the scarce land resources available to farmersMountain Fruits apricots, apricot kernels, walnuts and almonds are all Fairtrade certified so that in addition to farmers receiving a guaranteed Fairtrade minimum price, the communities also enjoy a social premium over and above the product price. Farmers have an annual vote on the premium usage. Recent community benefits have been the provision of materials and books to schools, irrigation upgrades, a new playground, water tanks, a generator, sewing machines, and school fees for the poorest students.
Tropical Wholefoods is an important partner for Mountain Fruits buying more than 60 tonnes of apricots a year as well as smaller quantities of apricot kernels, walnuts and apples. We also assist with training on how to organise systems for product handling, quality assurance and export controls.
