Saturday

River Rafting

The 2700 km long Himalayas ranges from Ladhak to Sikkim from where the holy Ganga, Yamuna, the Indus and its tributaries – the Chenab and Sutlej, the Zanskar and the Teesta originate all providing ideal sites for river rafting. These rivers provide lots of opportunities to adventure tourism. The upper Himalayas are supposed to be among the best regions in the world for river rafting. The Zanskar River offers a professional and exciting six days on the river starting from Padam. The Ganga, the most sacred river of the Hindus, is ideal for both paddle rooting and car – rafting. A 10 km run towards Rishikesh is a fascinating experience. A new run has been mapped out on the Sutlej from Rampur to Tattoxpani and on to Salapur bridge – a 92 km stretch. Professionals are trained abroad to manage these river rafting expeditions. They have bagged even awards overseas. To oversee the operations, to provide safety measures, to supply proper equipments like helmets, lifejackets, first aid kits etc and to provide medical aid, the government acts through its tourist offices and through IAPRO ( Indian Association of Professional Rafting and Fitters ) and IRRA ( The Indian River Runner Association ). Rafting Routes River----------Base Camp----------Road Point----------Time Ganga------------Besai---------------Rishikesh---------Oct – April Yamuna-----------Kalsi---------------Dehradun---------Oct – April Indus---------------Karu-------------------Leh--------------July – Sept Chenab---------Kishtwar---------Kishtwar (J&K)-----Nov – March Satluj-------------Rampur---------Rampur(Shimla)----Oct – April Zanskar---------Padam---------------Kargil-------------Aug – Sept Sharda---------Tanakpur-----------Tanakpur-----------Oct – April Teesta-----------Dikchu--------------Gangtok-----------Oct – April

History of Tourism

The earliest forms of leisure tourism can be traced as far back as the Babylonian and Egyptian empires. A museum of “historic antiquities” ...