“In the Lap of Himalayas, Luxury Ski Resorts Are a Distant Dream” headlined an August New York Times travel blog post. That depends on how you define luxury.
Skiing the world’s highest mountains may not include five-star hotels and elegant apres-ski, but it does come with payoffs that popular resorts in the Alps, Rockies, and Sierras can’t offer—no crowds, no lines, often no one else even on the slopes, the staggering beauty of skiing amid mountain peaks that soar 20,000 feet through clouds, the knowledge that you are in the Himalayas, skiing.
I’ve been obsessed with the Himalayas since I was 11 years old. I read James Hilton’s Lost Horizon, and I’ll never forget the profound sadness I felt for the novel’s protagonist, Hugh Conway, for finding Shangri-La and then choosing to lose it. Such a powerful metaphor, now, I realize, though at the time I just Conway was stupid.
The fictional name Shangri-La, created by Hilton, is repeatedly co-opted in the Himalayas—usually for hotels that could not be less Utopian. While a National Geographic article about Tibet is said to have been the inspiration for Shangri-La, just about every Himalayan destination I’ve visited claims the distinction, including my favorite place: Gulmarg, Kashmir.
I arrived in Kashmir in January, 2007, amid reports of terrorists causing explosions throughout the end of 2006 in Kashmir’s capital, Srinagar. Since I’m kind of scared of everything, heading to Kashmir, to Gulmarg for skiing, alone, didn’t ratchet up my anxiety. Not until I got there and local guys, including the army squad I’d see swishing around, rifles strapped across their chests, repeatedly told me, “You are very brave.”
My thought was: if you have the chance to go to Kashmir, to ski in Kashmir, how could you not go? That trip, a small segment of my three months of traveling the Indian Himalaya solo, turned out to be one of the richest experiences of my life for so many reasons.
Today, after decades of placing Kashmir near the top of its travel advisory list, the United Kingdom removed Kashmir from that list. Kashmir is now considered safe.
I’d like to get back there soon. Early next year. Before every traveler, skier, and golfer in the world is clued in. Besides boasting one of the highest ski gondolas in the world, Gulmarg also features a high altitude golf course, making the lofty hamlet a year-round destination.
Getting There
Flights from Delhi and other Indian cities leave daily.
If you go:
Ski Rentals & Guides:
