Memoirs from Kashmir part 2

Our adventure in Gulmarg has come to an end. This has been one of the best trips I have ever done and there was no lack of excitement and interesting visuals at every turn. Stormy weather gave us a few heli drops in the exotic “paper” trees and some of the best tree skiing I have ever seen. Similar to Japan with bigger vertical and much steeper. Low freezing levels allowed us to ski down to Durang and Tangmar villages for some cultural experiences and great hospitality from the locals. Even getting weathered out from our heli pick up and ski touring back in one of the biggest blizzards I can remember took us to a military camp where we were able to thumb a ride back in an army truck to Gulmarg. Unfortunately the patrol had run out of explosives to run any Avalanche control and the upper phase of the gondola remained closed. We decided to head down to Lake Dal in Srinigar and follow in the footsteps of the Beatles and Led Zepplin on a house boating trip. We got up early to see the floating market on the lake and it turned out to be visually stunning. See the video below shot with my Nikon D3S camera. Once again, if you are a skier and a traveler this destination should be on your list. Thanks to Anthony, Chris, Tristan, everybody at Gulmarg Heli Ski, Gulmarg Resort, and Salomon sports for helping us out and showing us a great adventure. Stay tuned for to see this trip in the upcoming Salomon Freeski TV episode.