Snow Covered Auli
Journey in brief :
Day 1 : Delhi - Rishikesh
Day 2 : Rishikesh - Dev Prayag - Rurdrapryag - Nandaprayag - Joshimath
Day 3 : Joshimath-Auli-Joshimath Temple
Day 4 : Joshimath-Rishikesh-Rafting-Haridwar
Day 5 : Haridwar-Ganges-Temples-Dehradun
Day 5 : Dehradun-Mussoorie-Delhi
It was the month of perpetual spree, I had just returned from an insightful and thought-provoking trip to Varanasi and was again getting ready for an adventurous one to high Himalayas. It was Christmas-2008 and Delhi was welcoming pleasant winters with freezing cold breeze. I am a fanatic lover of Delhi’s winters and wanted to add some spice by visiting Auli, considered as the only Skiing Resort of India, although I have also heard that Gulmarg is also catching up as another prime destination for Skiing.
Cedar Deodar Forest near auli
We got ourselves quickly booked on a train to Rishikesh but unfortunately it was a sleeper coach that too in that freezing cold weather. Anyway it was a group of 5 guys so we somehow survived the night sipping tea on the deserted platforms. We reached Rishikesh early in the morning and finished all the necessary morning rituals. We were not having luxury of time as most of the transport from Rishikesh to Joshimath leaves early. We finished our roadside breakfast/tea and hopped into a shared taxi to Joshimath.
Road to Joshimath
The Taxi started heading towards higher mountains. Initially we were driving on the bank of river Ganges till we reached Devprayag. Devprayag is one of the holiest places in Hindu religion as it’s the very site where two sacred rivers Bhagirathi and Alakananda meets and forms the world famous Ganges. Before Devprayag till the origin Gaumukh, Ganges is addressed as Bhagirathi. We stopped at Devprayag to take some photographs of the holy Sangam. After Devprayag we drove further uphill but on the bank of river Alakananda. Roads were really bumpy and we could see land-sliding almost after every few kilometers. The landscape was changing after each hour as we were gaining more and more altitude. It was also becoming colder as well. By the time we took our lunch we were significantly tired yet we were not even half way through. After witnessing many other prayags (Rudraprayag, Karnaprayag, Nandaprayag) and Chamoli district, we touched down in Joshimath at around 9’ o clock in the evening after some 12 hours of rigorous journey (everyone was annoyed with the journey). Fortunately we were having a place booked in advance with room heater in each room. Temperature was sub-zero the time we arrived at Joshimath. Without unpacking any stuff, we went to sleep to regain some energy for the days ahead.
Reflection of rising sun from Joshimath
Next morning, everyone became amazingly refreshed once we witnessed the golden affect of rising sun on snow peaked Himalayas. For some of the guys, it was the first time in high Himalayas so they were mesmerized with the view. All of us got quickly ready for Auli, which is some 18 km away from Joshimath by road. The best way to reach Auli from Joshimath is Cable car which does not operate all the time but roughly it runs through-out the day. The Cable car platform comprises of a ticket counter and a museum which I found really informative. This small museum has detailed information about all the peaks which you can see from Auli and nearby sighting spots.
Snow Covered landscape for Skiing in Auli
We were among the very first tourists going uphill to Auli for that morning. After getting down at Auli, We first sipped a cup of tea and then started trekking uphill. Initially it was thick forest and then all of a sudden we saw a slope covered with mild snow. It was offering one of the finest views of Nanda Devi Range. However snow was not thick enough to do skiing. We headed further up till we found a better place to try our hands on skiing. All of us tried skiing consecutively and failed consecutively. We could hardly cover couple of meters. Skiing is a complicated affair and relatively dangerous as well. That time of the year snow was not that much as we expected which also made skiing less exciting. The terrain was a mostly flat covered with snow. As we trekked further up the thin air affect started influencing our systems. We kept heading upwards till a steep patch which offers a panoramic view to entire Nanda Devi range. After couple of hours in the snow land, we receded back to the Cable car station and then to Joshimath. Joshimath is a small town which generally serves as a base station to Badrinath, Kedarnath, Auli, Nanda Devi National Park, Hemkund Sahib, Valley of flowers and other remote destinations. In the winter, routes of all of these places are closed except Auli. One can also reach Mana Village that lies on the same road and considered to be the last village in the Indian side of Tibet Border and one of highest village as well. In the evening, we visited the Joshimath temple which is one of four Math. The Sanctity of the place was intensified due to absolute tranquility and spiritual vibrations were quite evident. We roamed in the vicinity of the entire campus and it was truly cut-loose experience in the ancient India completely desolated from bustling life. Next morning, we had to leave Joshimath due to some urgency and we missed tons of amazing places by a whisker. On the way back to Rishikesh, We stopped before the city to try our hands on river rafting in Ganges which turned out as a mind blowing experience. River Rafting at Rishikesh is not just popular but excessively crowded. One needs to have everything booked in advance to paddle in the river; we were a bit fortunate at that front.
River Rafting at Rishikesh
After rafting we headed to Haridwar from where two of us had to leave to Delhi. Haridwar is one the holiest city on the bank of river Ganges which lures millions of pilgrims every year. It’s famous for innumerous temples, Ghats and also as a gateway to Himalayas. For centuries, Haridwar had been a favorite place for many spiritual Gurus. We stayed there for a night and next morning took the holy bathe in the Ganges, been to couple of temples including the world famous Mansa devi temple which lies on the hill top.
Mansa Devi Temple Haridwar
Later in the evening we took a bus to Dehradun from Rishikesh. Dehradun is a nice city in the valley and gateway to Himalayas. It’s also a city of country’s best school and beautiful girls. We stayed near Indian Military Academy, a well maintained and organized locality. We roamed around in some of the markets in the evening.
Ganges' Ghats at Haridwar
Posted by: Vipul Koul
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