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Auli - The Destination
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At 9000 feet above sea level,
Auli is the perfect setting for a family holiday
as much as for the adventure lover. The meadows
slope downwards in shades of fresh green, with
the occasional wild flower adding colour. In
the winter, the terrain transforms itself into
perfect skiing slopes.
Auli is 16 km from Josimath and easily accessible
by a good motorable road. The season for skiing
extends from January to March during which
time skiing festivals and the national
championships are held.
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Adding to the excitement is a 180 degrees view
of Himalayan peaks which include Nanda Devi,
Kamet, Mana Paravat and Dunagiri.
The conditions for skiing are
perfect. Skiers can enjoy almost 20 km of virgin
slopes which provide excellent opportunities
for cross-country, slalom and down hill skiing
events. Both sides of the slope are covered
with oak and coniferous trees which break the
speed of the wind and this makes it ideal for
skiing.
Auli is one of the less explored
hill stations in India. Today it is growing
like other hill station in India. The bitter
cold winds, the vast snow-covered landscape,
the sylvan mountains, all add up to make Auli
a skier's paradise. Revealing man's constant
efforts to triumph over nature, Auli proves
to be an ideal locale for the daring.
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Auli - Facts
at a Glance
| State : |
Uttaranchal |
| Area
: |
5 sq.
kms |
| Temperature
: |
13 C – 9 C
(Summer)
-8 C – 7 C (Winter) |
| Altitude : |
2915 – 3049
mts |
| Language
: |
Garhwali,
Hindi, English |
| Best
Season : |
December
– March |
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In
the 8th century AD, the great Guru Adi Shankaracharya
is said to have walked on these fields. The
temple built by him at Joshimath still exists.
For hundreds of years, the colorful semi-nomadic
tribes of the Bhotiyas, of the Mongolian stock,
traveled on the trails at Auli, locally called
Thatauli. Their longhaired yaks, laden with
an assortment of goods, assisted them in conducting
a flourishing trade with the nearby situated
Tibet.
Before Auli was developed as a ski resort, its
slopes were the training ground for men of valor
and courage-the ski-equipped men of the Indo-Tibetan
Border Police Force. Among the awesome, legendary
peaks ranged round Auli the 23,490-feet-high
Trishul (literally meaning, the strident of
Lord Shiva) was the sight of a unique expedition
in 1958. The mountaineers took four days to
climb the peak and only 90 minutes to ski down
to the base camp.
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Skiers are provided with clean
stretches of 10-20 km of snow-covered mountain
slopes. Besides, there is a descent of 500 m
from the ridge over a stretch of 3 km. The forests
along the slopes help the skiers by reducing
the wind velocity. In the months of February
and March, Auli often hosts the National Winter
Games.
By eight in the morning, one can see the first
of the skiers and other adventure seekers. Until
about four o'clock in the evening, when it gets
chilly, cold and dark, the skiers make most
of the slopes. For the
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best part of the winter season, Auli is blessed
by an unusually large number of sunny days,
but there are times when it snows heavily. In
the evenings, the activity shifts from the slopes
to the bukhari-warmed huts and resorts
(bukhari: a quaint, wooden stove).
People then generally pass their time listening
to folklore and relishing the local music of
Garhwal in the lamp-lit rooms or beside the
bonfires. |
Getting
There & Away
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If you want fly down,
the nearest airport is Dehradun, about 298 km
away. |
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Rishikesh,
about 235 km away, is the nearest railhead.
Joshimath is 13 kms away from Auli and can be
easily reached from Delhi (500 kms), Rishikesh
(250 kms), Haridwar (275 kms) and Dehradun (295
kms). |
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Taxis, buses and jeeps frequently
run from Joshimath for Auli. |
The cable car service seems
to be the most popular way to reach Auli. This
offers some spectacular views of the peaks and
the forests below. |
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