Lake Saiful Mulook
Abbottabad, Pakistan
About
Lake Saiful Muluk is a lake located at the northern end of the Kaghan Valley near Naran. It is in the north east of Mansehra District in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan. At an altitude of 3,224 m (10,578 feet) above sea level it is amongst one of the highest lakes in Pakistan. The lake is accessible by a 14 km road from Naran (which is accessible by a road from Mansehra via Balakot and Kaghan) during the summer months. On foot, the trek from Naran to the lake takes about 4-6 hours. The water is clear with a slight green tone. The clarity of the water comes from the multiple glaciers all around the high basin which feed the lake. The weather here is moderate during day time while the temperature drops to minus degrees at night. A fairy tale called Saiful Muluk, written by the famous sufi poet Mian Muhammad Bakhsh, is associated with the lake.[1] It is the story of prince of Persia who fell in love with a fairy princess at the lake.[2] The impact of the lake beauty is of such extent that people believe that fairies come down to lake in full moon. A poet and writer from Balakot, Ahmad Hussain Mujahid, has written the story of Saif ul Malook. The first edition of the book Saif ul Malook was published in 1999. Almost every travels & tours company can arrange a tour for you. The access is easy and safe. I would suggest reading the story before visiting the lake, if you really want to be lost in the aroma of characters, which after centuries of folk lore people think is based on truth.
