World Class - Venue
As people gaze wonder-eyed out of hotel windows at snowflakes floating down on the buzzing Himachal Pradesh Town of Manali,up in the higher slopes the crew and clients of Himachal Helicopter Skiing(HHS) reach with equal delight,but for different reasons. For them a snowstorm signifies two things. The upside is a recharge dose of fresh ,soft,dry snow,also known as a powder,the cherished stuff that surfaces a skier’s ideal playing field,emphatically sworn to be addictive. The downside is bad weather and loss of skiing time.
Immaterial to most except the skiing huddle, the mountains around this little Himachal Pradesh town are reputed to bear one of the deepest snowpacks in the entire Himalayas. Come winter,Manali is showered by lots of powder. So when the weather clears and the people step joyfully out onto the pure white blanket,the throb wafting to their ears from the firmament is to the echo of their singing hearts. More likely,it is a powerful Lama helicopters,whisking a bunch of high-profile clients here from half way across the world,to test their skills on one of the most stupendous skiing locales on the planet.
A world-class venue
Heliskiing is among the most exciting snowports in the world. As far as organized adventures goes,it is definitely on of India’s genuine world-class options. And within the county,it is also one of the least-known.
Not so to the rest of the world. Ever since Roddy McKenzie, Indophile Australian mountaineer,discovered the excellent potential for the sport around this little Himachal Pradesh town 20 years ago,hundreds of European,American,Australian and East Asian buffs have been coming to check it out. Invariably,they are ecstatic about what they find. “The skiing and scenery are amongst the very best anywhere.”nods Gaetan,a Belgian real estate developer on his first tour.
Rebecca, a British writer with a passion for snowboarding,declares her maiden outing on the virgin snows as a matchless day of activity. Agrees her boyfriend Jason, “This is probably the best place in the world to come snowboarding.”(The latter is a variation of skiing where one big board substitutes for a pair of skis).
