In Pursuit of Thrills and Chills

Tame the river

If you've never experienced white-water rafting, you're in for a treat! This is one adventure activity, which is as much fun to do as a group as it is solo. Some corporates even organise river-rafting retreats as part of team-building exercises. So, round up your friends and head to Rishikesh or Ladakh, where you can bond over rafting on the mighty Ganga or the feisty Zanskar River. Once you’re geared up with a life jacket, helmet and paddle, your instructor will assign seats and explain the fairly simple techniques. The ride usually starts slow and picks up speed as you approach the rapids. These are sections of the river where the water gushes due to the presence of rocks underneath.

It's a rollercoaster ride when your raft bumps and falls in the dips and swells of the rapids. Everyone squeals and laughs as the cold spray from the river makes their bones wet. Most rafting instructors will allow you to jump into the river and cool off in the calmer parts of the river. By the end of the session, everyone’s drenched but ecstatic. Rapids are divided into grades based on the easiest to the most difficult, and you can choose the one you’d like to explore. Both Rishikesh and Ladakh are incredibly scenic locations, offering fantastic rapids on two beautiful, pristine rivers. Being white-water rafting hubs, both destinations have a host of reputed adventure tour companies to choose from to make your experience a memorable one.

Fly like a bird

Even though paragliding is an adventure sport, it brings you peace. Sure, the run to the edge of the cliff and "fall" before the wind picks you up is exhilarating. Once you’re air bound, a sense of calm washes over you, erasing all thoughts until your mind is blank. One of the best paragliding spots in India is Billing in Himachal Pradesh. Come October, if you look up at the sky in Billing, you might see more paragliders than birds. This tiny hamlet has also played host to the annual World Paragliding Championship every October, which would attract pilots from India and abroad. The drive up to the jump-off site at 8,000 ft above sea level might have you reconsidering your decision, but once your harness is in place and your feet leave the ground, you’re put almost at eye-level with the Dhauladhar range.

It is a feeling like no other. It is only when you land do you realise you've been grinning happily during the entire flight. Another dreamy location for this sport is Solang Valley near Manali. Here, you can soar over the winter wonderland of the valley and admire the majestic Himalayan range from a bird’s eye view. You can also try paragliding in Kamshet, Maharashtra, for excellent views of the Deccan Plateau and the Pawna Lake glittering below.

In recent times, paragliding has gained popularity and many other destinations in India offer this activity. Vagamon in Kerala gives you the chance to fly over lush tea plantations; while in Nainital, you can float above the emerald mountain lake. If you're a novice, pick the tandem flight where you fly with a pilot, who pretty much does everything and all you have to do is sit back and enjoy the views. Some pilots even let you manoeuvre the glider for a few minutes during the flight, giving you a taste of solo flying so that you can return someday to fly away all by yourself.

Brave the elements

While most adventure activities require special equipment and training, this activity requires only one thing – willpower. The legendary Chadar Trek in the Zanskar Valley in Ladakh builds immense character, posing a challenge even to the most avid adventure seeker. ‘Chadar’ means sheet, and in this case, the sheet in question is made up of ice. Every winter, the spirited Zanskar River goes silent as it freezes completely and turns into a vast, crystal-blue sheet of ice. Guides lead you across the valley on this gorgeous natural phenomenon in sub-zero temperatures.

It takes a fair amount of endurance and willpower to keep going when your toes start feeling numb and navigating the slippery landscape becomes tricky. Be warned, there are no luxury hotels with lavish buffet spreads and hot showers. Instead, you camp out in the valley under an inky sky studded with stars or in caves, and simple but tasty food is prepared over a fire to nourish and re-energise you for the next day. On average, you will be walking about eight or nine hours each day in a harsh environment over precarious terrain. Amazingly, the people of Zanskar Valley walk the entire length of the river every winter when the concrete roads, connecting them to Leh, are buried under heavy snowfall. It’s a remarkable testament to the limits of man’s endurance.

Find Nemo (and swim with him)

If you've met anybody who has done scuba diving before, chances are they will keep pestering you to try too. You can't blame them for being diehard advocates of this sport because once you do it, you will never be the same. Such is the pull of the ocean. It’s a whole different world, and scuba diving gives you a chance to not just be an observer, but also immerse yourself (pun intended) in this enchanting world. Floating blissfully in the Bay of Bengal, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are made up of around 572 main islands of which only 38 are inhabited and an even smaller number are open to tourists. This is probably why the waters off the coast of Andaman and Nicobar islands are just as pristine as the land itself. Little wonder then that this archipelago is the best scuba diving location in India.

The islands’ sparkling azure waters are so clear you can see the coral from the shore. If you haven't tried scuba diving before, or even if you're a certified diver, this island has fascinating dive sites waiting to be explored, including a shipwreck and Nemo Reef (home of the adorable clownfish from the movie Finding Nemo). There are several dive outfits that offer half-day introduction scuba diving sessions to open water diver certification courses too. Both offer the chance to swim with turtles, moray eels, parrot fish, octopuses, and yellowfin tuna, and see mesmerising corals.

Ride the waves

If being underwater doesn't float your boat, why not be above it? Try your hand at surfing. The temple town of Mahabalipuram in Chennai is an unlikely city for surfing, but roam the streets and you'll find a good mix of sari-clad women with flowers in their hair and soaking wet surfers with surfboards in hand walking back to their hotels after a long day in the water. Another lovely spot for surfing is Varkala Beach in Kerala whose unspoiled beaches make an excellent backdrop for your first surfing lesson.

If we're talking beautiful beaches and superb waves, how can we leave out Goa? Agonda Beach in south Goa offers surfing lessons off its golden-sand shores. Whether you're a rookie or a pro at riding the waves, Mulki in Karnataka offers amazing spots for every kind of surfer. When you sign up for a surf lesson, you will learn how to handle the bulky surfboard, stand on the board and how you can protect yourself in the water. Your first briefing will take place on the shore, where you'll learn to hop up on the board. Once you've mastered the basics, off you go into the sea where you'll practise your moves on the smaller waves closer to the beach. You will fall into the water several times, but you will certainly emerge with a huge grin and the motivation to try again.

While the common notion is that thrill-seekers only do adventure sports for fun, the truth is that there is a fear factor involved in all these activities. After all, it’s no mean feat to jump off a cliff or dive into the depths of the ocean. But the real adrenaline high comes from overcoming your fears. As Edmund Hillary, the legendary mountaineer, said, "It's not the mountains we conquer, but ourselves."