Being off season travelers (Anil, Manja, and Manohara) we planned to start 2016 with a bang!! Travelling all the way from Silicon city of India visiting Taj Mahal, Qutub Minar, Golden Temple, Wagah border, Srinagar we reached our destination Gulmarg on 6th day of our trip. Reaching there was a dream come true for all of us as we were witnessing snow for the first time in our lives.
One should present himself in a check post and register his name before going to a ticket counter. After taking gum boots on rent for 100 bucks we headed towards counter only to be irritated by the porters who owns wooden sledges to pull a person on the snow. Denying to take a ride we reached the counter after a quarrel of one hour with them. There are two phases of cable car ride one being the first phase charging Rs.700/- till kongdori and the second phase costing Rs.1600/-to the top of the peak. As it was preplanned we bought the tickets to second phase and boarded the "World's Highest Cable Car" 14000 feet above sea level which took us through the mesmerizing views of snow covered huts and pine trees giving a break for a minute in the middle to get a serene view of the Apharwat peak and skiers skiing. After an approximate 20 minutes ride we reached the top and it was only 3 of us in the whole area with Line of Control between India and Pakistan just a miles away, literally felt on top of the world. It was unbelievable to witness such a huge mountains dressed in white snow, with the sun glistening all around giving a new dimension of colors, the world seemed to be perfect there with the mountains. We just stood standstill with the eternal time of our life watching the white blanket of snow changing the color from white to pink to light yellow for every ray of the sun. A feel of tranquility and peace crossed our minds where the mountains spoke as there was nobody between us and sky except an awesome wallpaper picturesque view. To get a view off the peak we decided to climb on snow for the first time. With all the energy we were able to ascend hardly 100 meters falling, slipping, submerged in ice and had already spent 2.5 hours on the snow. We had to return immediately as after 5p.m the Gondola car would stop and we should pass the whole night in a bone chilling cold. Now clicking pictures and selfies we planned to slide down. It was really a effortless slide as it took only 5 minutes to slide and reached the cable car to get down to Gulmarg. As soon as we came down gulped two cups of Kashmiri kahwah, a traditional green tea preparation and took a last glance at the peak where we spent the best time of life.