Some mountains you climb; the Passu Cones you simply stare at. Properly named Tupopdan — 'sun-swallowing mountain' in Wakhi — this saw-blade of rock spires rises to about 6,106 m directly above Passu village, and it has become the single most recognisable skyline in northern Pakistan. Drivers on the Karakoram Highway brake for it; photographers plan whole trips around it.
The Cones are pure Karakoram drama: near-vertical strata tilted on end, fluted with snow in their gullies, glowing orange at first and last light. Because they stand right beside the road, no trek is needed — the classic shots are from the KKH itself between Gulmit and Passu, from the Passu suspension footbridge over the river, and from the village's poplar-lined lanes with the spires stacked behind. For the spires under snow, see our off-season story, A Winter Drive to the China Border.
Passu village makes a wonderfully laid-back stop. The famous Glacier Breeze café serves apricot cake with a Cones panorama, guesthouses are simple and friendly, and two big glaciers bracket the village: the white Passu Glacier, reached by a short walk to a viewpoint above Borith Lake, and the longer Batura Glacier — one of the longest glaciers outside the polar regions — whose snout almost touches the highway just north of town.
Hikers can go further: the day trail to the Passu Glacier viewpoint, the crossing of the Hussaini Suspension Bridge just south, or the two-to-three-day Patundas trek above the ice for one of the great panoramas of the Karakoram. Even if you only have an hour between Attabad Lake and Sost, stop — Tupopdan at golden hour is worth rearranging a day for.
