I was planning a trip to Auli (a popular ski and winter sports destination in Chamoli, Uttrakhand) since quite some time, but was never able to finalize my travel plans. Every time one or the other reason played showstopper but finally everything got materialized last weekend. So, I booked my train tickets, packed my bags and left Delhi on 21st January. Next day I reached Haridwar and from there I took a private cab which further took me till Joshimath. From Joshimath, the only way is using a ropeway! I took the ropeway for Auli. The ticket costed Rs. 500 per person (return journey included). The cable car runs only at fixed times during the day, and the last one runs at 4:30 PM. The car can take 25 passengers in one go, but will not start until it had a minimum of 10 persons on board. I took the car at 10:30 AM, and the moment the car started its upward journey, a strange sense of excitement engulfed me. While going up, the moment the car crossed tower number 3, the kids in my car started shouting "snow-snow" as we passed through some small patches of snow on trees and roads below. The terrain slowly started turning white from dark green as we continued our journey upwards. Tall fir and pine trees, most of them covered in snow, offered a great visual treat. Then suddenly, everything turned white below us as we passed tower number 7. And I could see great peaks like Nanda Devi (second highest peak in India after K2) on our left side, and just behind my back were the three famous peaks: The Lotus (Kamal peak), the Horse's Saddle peak, and the Elephant peak. They simply looked so majestic! I got down from tower no.
I was planning a trip to Auli (a popular ski and winter sports destination in Chamoli, Uttrakhand) since quite some time, but was never able to finalize my travel plans. Every time one or the other reason played showstopper but finally everything got materialized last weekend. So, I booked my train tickets, packed my bags and left Delhi on 21st January. Next day I reached Haridwar and from there I took a private cab which further took me till Joshimath.
