Adventure Tourism in Himachal Pradesh
Lahaul
and Spiti is a desolate region in comparison to the lush Beas valley of Kullu,
also a popular mountain area of the state. Spiti, which overlooks Tibet across
the Sutlej river, is Tibetan in landscape and in the character of its few inhabitants.
Kullu and Lahaul are good areas for mountaineers practising both alpine style
ascents and ski-mountaineering. The jagged ice peaks of Kullu offer good routes
for the 'tiger' as well as the less ambitious mountaineer. A popular peak in
this area is Deo Tibba (6,001 m) which is visible from Shimla, the capital of
Himachal Pradesh, and Indrasan (6,221 m), a challenging peak of steep red granite
which can be climbed from four different routes.
The Menthosa snowpeak in Chamba at 6,445 m has never been totally conquered,
nor has Dharmasura (6,446 m) in the Bara Shigri glacier region, though they
provide opportunity for some excellent mountaineering.
A close cluster of the M&KR series in the Milang river basin has more than
a dozen peaks over 6,000 m high worthy of the hardiest ridge runners. Himachal
may well hold the track record for peaks that have defied a first time ascent.
For example, the Chandra Bhaga watershed and the Parvati valley have several
over 6,000 m peaks, most still unclimbed.
Winter Sports:
Narkanda
lies forty miles north of Shimla on Kipling's famous Hindustan-Tibet road at
a height of nearly 9000 ft. The nearby peak, Hathu, dominates the great watershed
of India, for from here you can see both the Sultej and the Giri which flow
into the Indus and Ganges systems respectively.
The skiing season in Narkanda starts in January and lasts into the first week
of April. While you may have six to ten feet of snow, the motor road to Shimla
usually remains open and this makes Narkanda a very convenient destination from
the cities of north India.
The slopes will appeal to the cross country skier for Narkanda is set amidst
fine conifer forests. A short distance to the west of a PWD bungalow are the
beginners' slopes in a clearing and a tow bar (or T-bar) has also been installed.
The Hathu slopes on the east delight those who want to get away from it all,
and it is possible to ski down towards the famous Stokes (the apple kings of
India) country at Kotgarh. The government-run classes provide their own equipment.
The beauty of Narkanda is that being only an over-night's journey from Delhi
one can fit in a skiing weekend at rates easily the lowest in the world and
against a backdrop of the finest forest and mountain scenery. While Narkanda
is quite developed, skiing at Kufri is still taking off, and has the advantage
of proximity to the plains. The Manali region offers scope for both winter as
well as summer skiing.
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