Hingol National Park

Hingol covers a vast stretch of the Makran coast and the dry hills behind it, and it is one of the strangest landscapes in South Asia: wind and rain have carved the soft rock into forms that have acquired names, the Princess of Hope, a slender pinnacle beside the highway, and the Sphinx, a long ridge that reads unmistakably as a reclining figure. Inland, the Chandragup mud volcano rises as a grey cone with a bubbling crater, sacred to Hindu pilgrims who climb it before continuing to Hinglaj Mata, a temple in a canyon deep in the park that is among the most important Hindu shrines in the region and the focus of a large annual pilgrimage. Wildlife includes Sindh ibex, urial and, on the coast, nesting turtles. The Hingol river cuts through it all to the sea.

What you actually see

• Princess of Hope and the Sphinx - eroded rock forms beside the highway.
• Chandragup mud volcano - a cone with a bubbling crater, climbed by pilgrims.
• Hinglaj Mata temple - the canyon shrine and its annual pilgrimage.
• The Hingol river gorge - the river cutting through the badlands to the sea.

When to go

November to February; the coast is hot and humid the rest of the year. The Hinglaj pilgrimage falls in spring and transforms the canyon with thousands of visitors. Day trips from Karachi are long but possible; camping is better.

Honest expectations

There is essentially no infrastructure: no lodges, no fuel inside the park, no reliable water, and the interior tracks need a four-wheel drive and someone who knows them. Mobile coverage is patchy. Sites are far apart along the highway. A local guide or organised trip makes the difference between seeing the park and driving past it.

Nearby

Kund Malir beach lies within the park; Karachi is east along the coastal highway.