Being mountain child, I have always found an internal connection with hills. I was born in the hills of Himachal Pradesh after my parents decided to stay back in India and make India their permanent residence. My interests vary from book reading, writing, to trekking and skiing. I have tasted the fun of this winter sport in every part of the India.

Skiing in India is one such sport that has caught the imagination of the tourists worldwide. Plethora of skiing options are available in India. The best ski locales are in Jammu and Kashmir, the hills of Kumaon, Himachal Pradesh, and the North Eastern states of India. The skiing season roughly runs between December and March. There are institutes that impart rudimentary training for beginners. The duration of these courses varies between seven to fifteen days.

Auli, 16 km from Joshinath is the best-equipped centre for skiing in India. It is connected to Joshimath by a 3.5 km long cable car. Clean 10-20 km slopes provide excellent opportunities for cross-country and downhill skiing. In fact, one of my friend, Paul, has written his experience about Skiing in Auli. He has narrated his thoughts and what he felt while on his trip to Uttaranchal.

Despite so many skiing options available in India, I am just crazy about skiing in one place and that is Gulmarg. The word skiing brings to my mind’s eye the visions of meadows of Gulmarg covered with white carpet and snow clad mountains in the backdrop. Another travel writer, Wilson, have expressed his views about the sport in skiing in Gulmarg .

In winter, Gulmarg acquires a new persona - that of the country's premier skiing resorts. Though it seems that the game requires high level of training and skills but all that is not true. In Gulmarg, you will see people with no previous experience are easily negotiating the cures and deriving thrill. Gulmarg is the ultimate beginner's skiing resort. The equipment like sticks, skis, goggles are available in the Ski shops. Since I was on my leisure vacation, I thought of trying all the major adventure sports endorsed by India. So, the next venture that I tried in the row was river rafting.