Uttarakhand is one of the beautiful north Indian states replete with exotic species of flora and fauna, snow-capped peaks, serene rivers and abundant areas of snow.
Uttarakhand is famous for many water sports and adventure sports activities like skiing. Many adventure tourists come here seeking some thrill and excitement. During winters, the slopes of Uttarakhand are capped with abundant snowfall, which makes it the ideal place for skiing. These areas offer great fun and excitement to tourists who come here in large numbers, especially during the winter months. There is lots of scope for skiing here as there is an ample number of glaciers in around this area.

Some of the glaciers here are so beautiful that they overtake the beauty of the Alps of Switzerland. Tourists who are interested in adventure skiing can participate in cross country runs that stretch around 10 to 20 km. The slopes and peaks around Uttarakhand are huge, wide-spread and worthy of giving extreme thrill to the tourists who come here with great expectations from their skiing experience.

Types of Skiing

• Alpine Downhill – This kind of skiing is purely done for recreational purposes only and not for racing. The ski resorts in which this takes place have pre-decided ski runs.
• Alpine Freestyle – This kind of skiing makes uses of high aerial acrobatics skills and high degree of balance.
• Nordic – This is probably the most traditional forms of skiing. This is practiced for competitive purposes but not on any predetermined sky runs. Nordic skiing is also known as cross country skiing. This is done only professionals and they go sliding down the ramp in this form of Nordic jumping, before they land on a flat surface.
• Military – As the name suggests, this is practiced by military professionals, mostly as a form of transportation.
• Kite – The person practicing skiing here is balanced by a kite or a hang glider in this form of skiing.
• Para – When skiing involves jumping from a great height like a mountain or plane, it is known as para skiing.

Important Skiing Slopes

Auli

The peaks in Auli are in the range between 2519 m and 3049 m above sea level. The area stretches to around 3km. A cable car that is around 3.9 km in length connects Auli to Joshimath that is located at a height of 1980m above sea level and to Garson, which is located at a height of 3016m.

Mundali

From Chakrata, one has to get here through a jeep ride of 36km.The other way is to drive from Tiuni to Dharagharh for about 49km and from there reach Mundali, which is 2.5km away. Located at a distance of about 129 from Chakrata, Mundali, located in the Dehradun district, is known for its excellent snow-covered peaks. There are dense green forests all over Mundali. It can be reached by crossing through Kandabad, Kathiyan and Dharagarh, all of which are replete with excellent scenery and beauty.

Dayara Buygal

This is one of the many places in Uttarakhand that is blessed with abundant natural beauty. This can be reached through a 10km motor ride from Bhatwari to Raithal, 6km trek from Raithal to DayaraB uygal, 13 km trek from Bhatwarito Barsuand 6 km trek from Barsu to Dayara Buygal.

Located at an amazing altitude of about 3048m above sea level, the grazing lands here are sprawling and extremely beautiful. It is known as the land of high-altitude grazing lands. Tourists get an impressive 28km stretch of skiing here during winters. Skiing in this area is sure to produce some magical moments, tourists get to enjoy the panoramic view of the Himalayas from here. The Dodo forests that are nearby are dense and have an amazing collection of flora and fauna.  Located at a height of 3007m above sea level, these forests can easily be reached by a trek from here.

Munsiyari

Two extremely beautiful spots, Khalia Top and Betulidhar are located at a distance of 7km and 5km respectively from Munsiyari. Some of the other important areas of skiing in the state of Uttarakhand are:

• Uttar Kashi district’s Kush Kalyani and Kedar Kantha
• Tehri Garhwal district’s Panwali and Natya
• Chamoli district’s Bedni Buygal
• Pithoragarh district’s Chiplakot

Tips

You must ensure that you wear all proper accessories and clothing like mufflers, sweaters, pull over jackets, sturdy gloves, appropriate snow boots and the like, before you set off to go skiing in the snowcapped areas of Uttarakhand.