From the plains of the Punjab, the 1,300 kilometre Karakoram Highway threads its way through dramatic mountain scenery to the Chinese border. Driving north to Gilgit, the highway clings to the valley above the rushing Indus as the forested hills give way to a more desolate landscape overlooked by towering peaks. Gilgit played its part in the Great Game, while today passions are displayed on the Shandur Pass during the annual polo festival against neighbouring Chitral. As the valley broadens the Hunza region unfolds, with apricots cultivated below the snowcapped mountains. Continuing north past glaciers and herds of shaggy yaks, the highway reaches the Khunjerab Pass - the highest metalled border crossing in the world - and China.