Pakistan Karakoram, Hindu Kush, and Pamir mountain ranges (see mountains of Pakistan), which contain some of the world's highest peaks, including five of the fourteen eight-thousanders (mountain peaks over ), which attract adventurers and mountaineers from all over the world, notably K2 () and Nanga Parbat (). The Balochistan Plateau lies in the west and the Thar Desert in the east. The Indus River and its tributaries flow through the country from the Kashmir region to the Arabian Sea. There is an expanse of alluvial plains along it in the Punjab and Sindh. The climate varies from tropical to temperate, with
Mountains of Central Asia Mountains of Central Asia South of the northern low lands is a great belt of mountains and plateaus. The Pamir plateau in central Asia forms mountainous chains running out in different directions. The mountain chains of the Himalayas, Karakoram and Kunlun run towards the east. The plateau of Tibet, enclosed by the Himalayas and Kunlun, is the largest and highest plateau of the world. Mount Everest in the Himalayas is the highest peak in the world. The vast cool desert of Gobi is in this region. The Mountains of Central Asia are a biodiversity hot spot designated by Conservation International