Babusar Top road reopens after three-day snow closure; KKH open with care in Nagar

Update, Saturday 17 October 2026: the Babusar Top road has reopened to all traffic after three days. Police said traffic has been restored from both the Gilgit side and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Naran) side after the snowfall closure, ProPakistani reported on Saturday evening. Three oil tankers that had been stuck at Babusar Top for three days were recovered by police and sent on their way.

Before you drive over Babusar this week

1. Expect snow and ice at the top. The pass is above 4,000 metres and this was an early closure; more snow can shut it again at short notice.
2. Cross in daylight and do not plan to stop at the top after dark.
3. Call the police helpline 15 before setting off from Naran or Chilas to confirm the road is still open.
4. Keep the KKH as your fallback through Besham and Chilas if the weather turns.

Earlier, Friday 16 October 2026:

The Babusar Pass road has been closed to all traffic after heavy snowfall at Babusar Top, and two young men from Gulmat in Nagar district were killed on Thursday when a rock hit their vehicle near the Pissan section of the Karakoram Highway (KKH), Dawn reported on Friday 16 October 2026. They were taken to a government hospital, where doctors pronounced them dead.

Upper Gilgit-Baltistan has had intermittent snow and the lower valleys rain since Wednesday, and heavy rain was still falling in Nagar when the report was filed.

Road status

Many tourists were stranded near Babusar Top on Wednesday night; Diamer police brought them to safety, Dawn reported.

If you are travelling north this weekend

1. Do not plan on Babusar. Use the KKH through Besham and Chilas instead, and expect delays.
2. Call the police helpline 15 to check the KKH's status before you set off, as the GB police advise.
3. Travel in daylight through the Nagar and Hunza stretches, where rockfall is most likely after rain.
4. Carry fuel, warm clothes and food for a night in the car if a slide closes the road behind you.

Why mid-October

Babusar usually closes for the winter in November, so an October closure is early, but early snow at the top is not unusual. The PMD's monsoon review this week called this year's monsoon the warmest in 66 years; autumn western weather systems bring the first snow to the passes around now.

Planning the drive? Our fuel cost calculator prices the Islamabad to Gilgit round trip at today's petrol price.

We will update this page if the Babusar road closes again.