Swat is a long green valley of orchards, rivers and Buddhist ruins, with the market towns of Madyan and Bahrain and the high meadows around Kalam.
Swat was a Buddhist centre for about a thousand years before the arrival of Islam, and monasteries and stupas are scattered through the valley. At Jahanabad a large Buddha is carved into a rock face. The Swat Museum in Saidu Sharif holds some of the best sculpture from the region, and the Butkara stupa near Mingora is one of the oldest sites in the valley.
Up the valley
North of Mingora the valley gets narrower and greener. Madyan and Bahrain are bazaar towns with riverside restaurants and carved-wood shops. Past Kalam the road continues into the Ushu forest and the Usho valley, where jeep tracks lead to Mahodand Lake. Spring blossom comes in March and April, and autumn is bright in late October.
Highlights
- The Buddhist remains at Butkara and Jahanabad
- The Swat Museum in Saidu Sharif
- Trout and woodwork in Madyan and Bahrain
- Kalam, Ushu forest and Mahodand Lake
