Auli - Winter Wonderland and Adventure Heaven

As the widely repeated blog name suggests, this post is about my adventures, mostly on shoe string, hand to mouth budgets, to various places in the country (because abroad can't be afforded, neither can a broad *wink wink*) from Dehradun. So the starting place might not be as exciting after the first time, but the destinations are pretty kickass (hence this blog).

Anyway, the first place worth clicking, and I must mention all pictures are clicked using my surprisingly good budget smart phone, Redmi Note 4, was this:

The route is filled with fantastic views and stop worthy places, so its never a dull ride. Here's more proof:

The above is the a shot from Devprayag, where the rivers Alaknanda and Bhagirathi meet, making this river I've heard about before called Ganga.

Auli is about 9-11 hours by Road from Dehradun, depending on how you drive/ride and road conditions at a time you want to visit. The best way to go is to hire a bike from Dehradun and enjoy the scenic views. Though, even an SUV ain't such a bad idea.

Enough about the way, here's about the place now.

I stayed at the central government guest house (perks of being a DRDO scientist's son) which looked like this:

That's why I can't hate the government so much. But still, all of us Leftist converting to Light Right folks do.

However, there is a GMVN Ski Resort which is great idea if booked beforehand.

Once you go up top, the skiing heaven greets you with breathtaking views of the Nanda Devi Peak. There was snow in the upper areas, which you can tread through the meadows or take a ski lift to, but unfortunately there was no snow in the general skiing area due to lack of rains in Uttarakhand (damn you climate change!).

The most fascinating piece of human intervention in Auli was the Artificial Lake, which screamed of 'click me' and every touristy figure had to oblige. Here's a glimpse:

Final verdict:

So should you go to Auli? Absolutely. It is one of those popular places which also boast of a hideaway charm, only regular tourists and adventure enthusiasts. Its an all season (except for monsoons) visit and highly recommended to 'Doon Out' to!