10 places to find snow in North India

Himalayan states of India - Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh adn Uttrakhand have seen heavy snowfall in the month of January (2014). Places like Srinagar, Pehalgam, Gulmarg Shimla, Manali, Dalhousie, Dhanachuli & Ranikhet got snow multiple times during the month. This Photo Journey shares some photographs from Ranikhet with a blanket of snow.Ranikhet is a hill station and cantonment town in Almora district in Uttrakhand state of Indian, which is situated around Himalayan ranges. Ranikhet has Military Hospital, Kumaon Regiment (KRC) and Naga Regiment, which are maintained by the Indian Army. This beautiful town is placed at an altitude of 1800+ meters above sea level and one can see snow covered peaks of the Himalayas throughout the year. And during the winters, this town gets decent snowfall to make the environment more cheerful.Ranikhet town and areas around it becomes very cold in the winters and remains moderate in summers and is best enjoyed from March to October. Ranikhet gets snowfall in the winter season, mainly in the months of December, January and February. And in rest of the months the weather of Ranikhet remains pleasant. Visiting Ranikhet during summers is a must and at the same time an experience during winters is also recommneded.Ranikhet has a very special feel of hill station with adjoining cantonment area. Whole town is very well maintained and as you climb up, there is huge cantonment area with an army museum. Lush green hills of Ranikhet with some lovely views over the distant Himalaya make it more special. While you are walking on main road of Ranikhet, white Himalayas are always on one side. One of the focus in Ranikhet town is a busy market.Ranikhet hills are surrounded by high trees of pine, oak and deodar. Wildlife around ranikhet includes leopard, leopard cat, mountain goat, barking deer, sambar, pine marten, Indian hare, red-faced monkey, jackal, langur & fox etc. Some of the colorful birds can also be found as you move to the peaceful places around Ranikhet.If you are in Ranikhet during Apple season, you may also want to visit some of the apple orchards around the place, which is very unique experience.When I think about Ranikhet, the peaceful walks come to my mind apart from a military museum and beautiful views of snow covered Himalayan peaks. Although there are few more attractions have been discovered and marketed in last few years. And that's the good part that you have nothing much to do in the town and you get lot of time at peace. You can find some heritage properties around Ranikhet at reasonable rates and negotiation is quite easy in other hotels as well. Ensure that you plan it better.

It’s winter time and many of the folks are searching for appropriate places to find snow. Making travel plans to snow covered places is quite a popular affair and it’s not only limited to winters. Folks coming to India from different parts of the world, try to find places which retain snow in other moths as well. In this Photo Journey we will be sharing about the places in North India which get good snowfall during winters and there are high chances to find snow. We shall try to share some surrounding places which can offer more fun and guaranteed snow during winters.


Himalayan states of India - Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh adn Uttrakhand have seen heavy snowfall in the month of January (2014). Places like Srinagar, Pehalgam, Gulmarg Shimla, Manali, Dalhousie, Dhanachuli & Ranikhet got snow multiple times during the month. This Photo Journey shares some photographs from Ranikhet with a blanket of snow.Ranikhet is a hill station and cantonment town in Almora district in Uttrakhand state of Indian, which is situated around Himalayan ranges. Ranikhet has Military Hospital, Kumaon Regiment (KRC) and Naga Regiment, which are maintained by the Indian Army. This beautiful town is placed at an altitude of 1800+ meters above sea level and one can see snow covered peaks of the Himalayas throughout the year. And during the winters, this town gets decent snowfall to make the environment more cheerful.Ranikhet town and areas around it becomes very cold in the winters and remains moderate in summers and is best enjoyed from March to October. Ranikhet gets snowfall in the winter season, mainly in the months of December, January and February. And in rest of the months the weather of Ranikhet remains pleasant. Visiting Ranikhet during summers is a must and at the same time an experience during winters is also recommneded.Ranikhet has a very special feel of hill station with adjoining cantonment area. Whole town is very well maintained and as you climb up, there is huge cantonment area with an army museum. Lush green hills of Ranikhet with some lovely views over the distant Himalaya make it more special. While you are walking on main road of Ranikhet, white Himalayas are always on one side. One of the focus in Ranikhet town is a busy market.Ranikhet hills are surrounded by high trees of pine, oak and deodar. Wildlife around ranikhet includes leopard, leopard cat, mountain goat, barking deer, sambar, pine marten, Indian hare, red-faced monkey, jackal, langur & fox etc. Some of the colorful birds can also be found as you move to the peaceful places around Ranikhet.If you are in Ranikhet during Apple season, you may also want to visit some of the apple orchards around the place, which is very unique experience.When I think about Ranikhet, the peaceful walks come to my mind apart from a military museum and beautiful views of snow covered Himalayan peaks. Although there are few more attractions have been discovered and marketed in last few years. And that's the good part that you have nothing much to do in the town and you get lot of time at peace. You can find some heritage properties around Ranikhet at reasonable rates and negotiation is quite easy in other hotels as well. Ensure that you plan it better.

Shimla comes to my mind as first place. It’s not only because of snow but also due to the fact that it has lot to offer to seasonal tourists as well as travelers. For last few years, Shimla is getting good amount od snowfall in the month of December and probability of finding snow during jan/feb increases multi-fold. Apart from main town Kufri, Fagu, Chail, Narkanda, Mashobara also gets good amount of snow during winters. Kufri and Narkanda are one of the main places around Shimla which retain good amount of snow for a long time after snowfall.
Manali is another interesting place in Himachal Pradesh state of India to find snow. The town is located in the valley and looks beautiful with white hills all around and snow covered shops/houses in the town. Even if you plan to visit Manali town during other months, you always have an option to drive to Rohtang Pass for snow sports. Rohtang Pass is 1.5 hours away from Manali town, although time varies accordingly to the traffic you get on the way.

Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh is one of the most beautiful places and a great place to explore natural beauty with amazing culture. Jitendra is sharing a Photo Journey from Kinnaur this time. Check out this awesome series of Photographs from different parts of Kinnaur region in Himalayan State of India.Whenever we visualize Kinnaur, the very first thing comes into mind is route beyond Shimla which takes us to Kinnaur region. Kinnaur is connected through roads at very high altitude with deep valleys on one side and rocky mountains on other side. One of the most adventurous road trips in India are planned to Kaza throug various parts of Kinnaur like Kalpa, Rekong Peo, Sangla, Chango, Chitkul, Kothi, leo, lippa, Murang, Naco, Pooh, Rakcham, Ribba etc. Most of the Kinnaru region has beautifuk architecture, where we see amazing wooden houses which lasts for hundreds of year and a very good option for these folks who have to spend most of the year in snow or chilly weather. Kinnaur is one of the districts among 12 districts in Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Kinnaur district is split into 3 body areas – Pooh, Kalpa, and Nichar. The executive headquarter of Kinnaur district is at ReckongPeo. Kinnaur, enclosed by the Tibet to the east, is within the northeast corner of Himachal Pradesh, regarding 235 kilometer from the capital, Shimla. Sangla Valley is full of orchards of apricots, peaches, chilgozas and apples.Most of the folks in Kinnaur are dependent on the fruit exports. very fine quality of Apple is produced in Kinnaur region of the country.Most of Kinnaur enjoys cold weather due to its high elevation, with long winters from October to May and short summers from June to September. The lower parts of the Sutlej Valley and the Baspa Valley receive monsoon rains. The upper areas of the valleys fall mainly in the rain-shadow area. These areas are considered to be arid regions, similar to the climate of Tibet. Jitendra has spend good time in villages of Kinnaur to understand real culture of the region and how these people live their life. And in states like Himachal, villages are best way to know about a particular geography. This holds good for India as well. India remain unexplored unless you visit villages in different regions like Himachal, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, kerala, North East etc.Zanskar which is a range of mountains and Dhauldhar is another one which enclose valleys of Sutlej, Spiti, Baspa and their tributaries. Kinnaur has beautiful landscape with apple orchards, forests, high hills with snow covered peaks and colorful houses. Spiritual Shivling lies at the height of Kinnar-Kailash Mountain. Hindustan-Tibet Road passes through the Kinnaur region on the bank of stream Sutlej and eventually enters Tibet at Shipki La passThese colorful landscapes with beautiful valleys and high mountains make Kinnaur a best place to spend summers. Climate is quite welcoming in summer, although seeing this place under white sheet of now during winters is altogether a different experience. Connectivity becomes of the issue during winters but it's worth planning fo it.Best way to explore Kinnaur is through own vehicle or hired vehicle, which gives you freedom of stopping anywhere anytime. but in that case, one needs to have control on stoppages as there are many beautiful landscapes on the way which my compell you to stop again n again and you may get late for better landscapes beyond the connectiing road. Road from Shimla to Kinnaur is quite adventurous. Usually tourists come to Shimla via Volvo or Train and then hire a local cab for further explorations.The present day Kinnauras do not constitute a homogeneous group and display significant territorial and ethnic diversity. For a better understanding of ethnic and cultural distribution, Kinnaur district may be classified into three territorial units. Lower Kinnaur comprise area between Chora at the boundary of the Kinnaur district with Rampur Bushahr and Kalpa including Nichar and Sangla valleys. The people of Lower Kinnaur are primarily of the Mediterranean physical type. It is difficult to distinguish them from the people residing in the adjoining Shimla district with whom they have some affinity. The people of lower Kinnaur are mostly Hindus though the ethno-historical factors have resulted in some Buddhist influence.The middle Kinnaur is the area between Kalpa and Kanam including Moorang tehsil. The people of middle Kinnaur are of mixed racial strain. Some have marked Mongoloid and others marked Mediterranean features. Many people have faith in both the religions.The upper Kinnaur comprises remaining north-eastern part of the district i.e. the area between Poo and Hangrang valley extending up to international border with Tibet. The predominant physical type of upper Kinnaur in the Mongoloid though a few persons with Mediterranean features are also seen in the area around Poo. However the people of Hangrang valley are almost universally Mongoloids. They mostly follow Mahayana Buddhist religionKinnaur has some very important rivers - the Satluj, which divides Kinnaur almost in two equal parts. The Spiti is the second major river of the district. Ropa divides the district Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti and merges with Satluj near Shiasu. The Baspa river rises on the North-Eastern declivity of the Dhauladhar range. The Yolong also joins the Spiti river.

Kinnaur and Spiti are two places in Himachal Pradesh, where you find snow in most of the months of an year. It's just that you need to be aware of the regions you may want to go. In general Kinnaur region exposes you to some of the beautiful mountains covered with snow including Kinner Kailash. 
Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttrakhand are three main states in North India which can offer some beautiful places with white sheet during winters. 

Pahalgam is one of the most popular destinations when it comes to snow covered landscapes and snow sports. 


Gulmarg is another lovely places in J&K where you can enjoy the best snowfall during season. But at the same time, ensure that you are well equipped to enjoy it. Whenever you go to a place with lot of snow, ensure that you have enough time and be ready to surprises. There are some lovely properties to stay in Gulmarg and many of them offer great views of valley & deodars covered with white snow.

After a Great PHOTO JOURNEY from Barsana Holi, now Jitendra is taking us to Leh through his phenomenal Photographs. All these photographs were shot at Leh in the month of Feb last year (Feb, 2012). Let's check out this Photo Journey and enjoy wonderful landscapes, people and culture of Leh.Leh was the capital of the Himalayan kingdom of Ladakh, now the Leh District in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India. Leh is the second largest district in the country (after Kutch, Gujarat) in terms of area.Over the time, Leh has become one of the hot destination for Tourists and Photographers. We always see wonderful photographs from Leh and all these motivate almost everyone to visit Leh, click these wonderful landscapes and come back with great memories to cherish for. At Photo Journey, we planned many Leh trips and there are some great plans in 2013 as well. Some of the passionate Photographers have come together to plan a great trip to Leh through Spiti Valley and some of the passionate Bloggers & Travellers are also joining. Above photograph shows a wonderful frame from a market - vehicles moving around and people walking on the footpath. For most of the folks, it's hard to imagine a vacation at Leh during winters. But trends are changing and now people love exploring Leh during winters as well. Above photograph shows one of the views from Leh - snow covered courtyard. Ladakh is a region of India in the state of Jammu and Kashmir which lies between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and the main Great Himalayas to the south , inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent. It is one of the most sparsely populated regions in Jammu and Kashmir.Leh also presents great opportunities to explore different cultures, colors and various unique things all around.It includes the Baltistan (Baltiyul) valleys, the Indus Valley, the remote Zangskar, Lahaul and Spiti to the south, Aksai Chin and Ngari, including the Rudok region and Guge, in the east, and the Nubra valleys to the north.Since Ladakh is a part of strategically important Jammu and Kashmir, the Indian military maintains a strong presence in the region. The largest town in Ladakh is Leh. It is one of the few remaining abodes of Buddhism in South Asia, including the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bhutan and Sri Lanka... a majority of Ladakhis are Tibetan Buddhists and the rest are mostly Shia Muslims. Some Ladakhi activists have in recent times called for Ladakh to be constituted as a union territory because of its religious and cultural differences with predominantly Muslim KashmirThe economy of Ladakh rests on three pillars: the Indian Army, tourism, and civilian government in the form of jobs and extensive subsidies. Agriculture, the mainstay only one generation ago, is no longer a major portion of the economy, although most families still own and work their land. In past, Ladakh enjoyed a stable and self-reliant agricultural economy based on growing barley, wheat and peas and keeping livestock, especially yaks, cows, dzos sheep and goats. Animals are scarce and water is in short supply. The Ladakhis developed a small-scale farming system adapted to this unique environment. The land is irrigated by a system of channels which funnel water from the ice and snow of the mountains. The principal crops are barley and wheat. Rice was previously a luxury in the Ladakhi diet, but, subsidised by the government, has now become a cheap staple.In the past, Ladakh gained importance from its strategic location at the crossroads of important trade routes, but since the Chinese authorities closed the borders with Tibet and Central Asia in the 1960s, international trade has dwindled except for tourism.



Leh Ladakh is a destination which is probably easy to choose and extremely popular. It's not only because of snow, but it's varied landscapes. Leh exposes travellers and tourists to varied things and that makes it special. Would recommend you to check out the other post on Leh to know more about it. 

After a Great PHOTO JOURNEY from Barsana Holi, now Jitendra is taking us to Leh through his phenomenal Photographs. All these photographs were shot at Leh in the month of Feb last year (Feb, 2012). Let's check out this Photo Journey and enjoy wonderful landscapes, people and culture of Leh.Leh was the capital of the Himalayan kingdom of Ladakh, now the Leh District in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India. Leh is the second largest district in the country (after Kutch, Gujarat) in terms of area.Over the time, Leh has become one of the hot destination for Tourists and Photographers. We always see wonderful photographs from Leh and all these motivate almost everyone to visit Leh, click these wonderful landscapes and come back with great memories to cherish for. At Photo Journey, we planned many Leh trips and there are some great plans in 2013 as well. Some of the passionate Photographers have come together to plan a great trip to Leh through Spiti Valley and some of the passionate Bloggers & Travellers are also joining. Above photograph shows a wonderful frame from a market - vehicles moving around and people walking on the footpath. For most of the folks, it's hard to imagine a vacation at Leh during winters. But trends are changing and now people love exploring Leh during winters as well. Above photograph shows one of the views from Leh - snow covered courtyard. Ladakh is a region of India in the state of Jammu and Kashmir which lies between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and the main Great Himalayas to the south , inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent. It is one of the most sparsely populated regions in Jammu and Kashmir.Leh also presents great opportunities to explore different cultures, colors and various unique things all around.It includes the Baltistan (Baltiyul) valleys, the Indus Valley, the remote Zangskar, Lahaul and Spiti to the south, Aksai Chin and Ngari, including the Rudok region and Guge, in the east, and the Nubra valleys to the north.Since Ladakh is a part of strategically important Jammu and Kashmir, the Indian military maintains a strong presence in the region. The largest town in Ladakh is Leh. It is one of the few remaining abodes of Buddhism in South Asia, including the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bhutan and Sri Lanka... a majority of Ladakhis are Tibetan Buddhists and the rest are mostly Shia Muslims. Some Ladakhi activists have in recent times called for Ladakh to be constituted as a union territory because of its religious and cultural differences with predominantly Muslim KashmirThe economy of Ladakh rests on three pillars: the Indian Army, tourism, and civilian government in the form of jobs and extensive subsidies. Agriculture, the mainstay only one generation ago, is no longer a major portion of the economy, although most families still own and work their land. In past, Ladakh enjoyed a stable and self-reliant agricultural economy based on growing barley, wheat and peas and keeping livestock, especially yaks, cows, dzos sheep and goats. Animals are scarce and water is in short supply. The Ladakhis developed a small-scale farming system adapted to this unique environment. The land is irrigated by a system of channels which funnel water from the ice and snow of the mountains. The principal crops are barley and wheat. Rice was previously a luxury in the Ladakhi diet, but, subsidised by the government, has now become a cheap staple.In the past, Ladakh gained importance from its strategic location at the crossroads of important trade routes, but since the Chinese authorities closed the borders with Tibet and Central Asia in the 1960s, international trade has dwindled except for tourism.

Auli in Uttrakhand is one of the popular destination amongst travellers and explorers. This is one of the best places for skiing. I have tried skiing at Narkanda in Himachal Pradesh and most of the trainers praise Auli as a great place for skiing. 

Ranikhet is another place in Uttrakhand which gets good snowfall during winters and during other months you get to see snow covered peaks. It's one of the my favorites places to spend peaceful vacations. A peaceful town with natural beauty.


Dhanaulti is another lovely place near Mussorrie which gets good amount of snowfall in winters. Even in summers, Dhanaulti is a great place to explore. Temprature is brilliant in summers which makes it a perfect destination in different weathers. 
Because Himachal is my favorite destination, so last recommendation is Dalhousie. It's a beautiful and peaceful destination and snow sheet makes it exceptional. 

These are just few of the options you have, but there are plenty of smaller and beautiful destinations in these three Himalayan states. Please drop a comment, if you are looking for some specific details.

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