Ultimately it’s a Leap of Faith and a Cool Rush

Adrenalin racing? Yes.  Anxious? Yes.  Difficult? At times.  And safe? YES


There's a little-known truth about heli-skiing, kept secret by those that have a vested interest in keeping an age old myth alive.

Anyone can do it. You don't have to be the extreme, off-the-grid style skier or boarder that heli-skiers and boarders want you to think they are. Nor do you have to jump 10 feet out of a hovering chopper with your skis and snowboard strapped on and take off down the mountain a la James Bond (though you'd get kudos if you did).

The adrenaline rush produced by the loud whomp whomp reverberations of the helicopter as it manoeuvres to come into land just metres away is WOW..... Then hooning through the fluffiest, lightest untracked snow - all the way down Whoop and holler as much as possible! This will help you relax. Remember to Have fun. It is challenging and exciting and very addictive.

Yet all of uncertainties are groundless. Even the plunging temperatures are manageable, for up high on the peaks the temperature is far warmer, at minus eight degrees.

Try out our chosen five great locations for Heli-skiing: The Monashees, British Columbia, Chugach, Alaska, The Andes, Chile, The Alps, Europe and Himalayas, India- for closer home.

Wear your love of skiing on your sleeve……..

Heli-Ski Jacket

Heli-ski Jacket… combines performance fabric with extra insulation for extra warmth.  Performance fabric provides maximum protection and breathability and insulation for comfort and outstanding performance during severe conditions and high activity. Also, mechanical Venting for comfortable, dry, warm or cool depending on the conditions and activity.

Heli-Ski Boots

The hardest boots are designed for experienced sportsmen and good skiers. The softer boots are designed for beginners. A hard boot presents the option to bind the skier’s feet with skis and provides a counter weight to the pressures which occur during intensive, aggressive skiing, thereby making it easier to manage your skis.

Archana Sardana's Rendezvous with Adventure

It is rightly said ‘A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step’…

I had my dreams of Blue Skies and Deep Blues Seas and I realised my dreams exactly the way I had imagined. The completion of the 300th skydive flight at Eloy, Arizona, USA was one of them....I was on cloud nine after the dive....I reached my epitome of excitement. It is not easy to reach this landmark…the dive was also special to me since it came after a deadly experience. A few days ago, I had my first ‘cutaway’ when my main parachute failed to open and I had to deploy my reserve parachute at 1500 feet and the canopy opened around 800 feet. A couple of seconds more and I would have been history. However, I emerged a winner as I am now a ‘C’ Licence holder of the USPA (United States Parachute Association).

Faith in your dreams can make things possible, till last year I even did not know swimming in fact I was aqua phobic......but this year I have attained Master certification in Scuba Dive by PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors), USA. Now, I can whirl the ocean currents at a depth of 30 meters with ease. Proudly, I have done it more than 150 times. I do not see any hurdle for newcomers to take up adventure sports.

I strongly believe the end of one challenge is just the beginning of the new challenge. I prolifically realised my dreams by getting professionally trained in mountaineering in Adventure, Basic and Advance courses from the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, Uttarkashi and the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, Darjeeling. For skydiving I trained with Perris Valley Skydiving at Los Angeles, USA. For BASE Jumping I trained with Apex BASE at Salt Lake, Utah, USA and have more than 45 jumps to my credit. To learn scuba diving I trained at Havelock and Neil Islands, Port Blair and at Phuket, Thailand.

You start to train - you gain confidence and learn about endurance. It is an endurance that is an exploration, pushing to find something new, looking for the edge. At 40 plus I have found opportunities with my endurance. Frankly, there is no need to get scared of extreme sports. One can face fears with strength and right training. It’s like a flow chart which keeps you on the move and connects you with your inner self. After being bedridden for 6 months and undergoing surgery for back pain I never thought I will do adventure sports ever again but destiny had something else stored for me. I never looked back, just focused on my aim and started skydiving 4 years back.

Achievements make you strong; this realization came to me after the Kuala Lumpur BASE (Building, Antenna, Span, Earth) Jumping festival in 2010 where I was the only Indian woman among 120 jumpers from 22 countries.

Hope to climb the mountains, scuba dive the oceans, jump off aircrafts and building with fellow Indians soon!

Archana Sardana

Never Shiver

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” – St. Augustine

You do not need to fly to the other side of the planet to undertake an expedition. You do not need to be an elite athlete, expertly trained or rich to have an adventure. Adventure is only a state of mind. I believe that adventure is about stretching yourself: mentally, physically or culturally. It is about doing what you do not normally do, pushing yourself hard and doing it to the best of your ability.

A micro adventure is about getting out there doing something different “that you don’t normally do”, something that is easy to plan and close to home. The idea is to go on a small expedition somewhere in your neighbourhood in times and to places that you normally wouldn't be. Camp overnight in the nearby forest, take the first train to some unknown destination, walk through the city that you live in and engage with the people you meet. Spend the day and night outdoors and see what that will bring. 

Doing something that is out of the ordinary day to day life is where the adventure lies and it’s easy to plan, affordable and close at hand.

Here's to freedom and seeking new adventures

What do you envision when you hear the word “adventure”?

I think of excitement, challenge, the tricky, the unknown, and probably a little adversity. The thing about adventure is that it gets you out of your comfort zone. And makes you vulnerable. Fact is no matter how carefully you plan, you don’t really know what is actually going to happen. That’s part of the fun - the goosebumps of excitement and anticipation!

Consider the word “vulnerable.” It suggests exposure and opening yourself to possibilities. You have to risk some exposure from time to time. Keeping yourself safe just doesn't have enough room to break out, grow or explore.

'If it scares you, Do it.' I read this somewhere and know it to be absolutely wise advice. Face it. Things will  not always work out as you expect. You might get a little banged up along the way. But in the end, you’ll be a stronger, happier, more confident person. That is what really matters.


It’s the adventures that challenge us, the ones that touch our deepest vulnerabilities and fears that engrave the most indelible marks on us. They also teach us the greatest lessons. Every adventure you venture upon is a golden opportunity to bring out newer nuances of your character. What really happens when the going gets rough? How do you cope with difficulties and obstacles? Would you do differently next time?

You never regret the things you try in life, just the things you don’t. Go ahead and put yourself out there. Try something new. Be scared. Experience fear. Fight your arch enemy.

You will learn that you can achieve more than you thought you ever could. Or maybe not. But gain the satisfaction of having tried.

I am willing to try something new, something adventurous, are you?

Diary of Gurpreet Dhindsa : Life changing adventures

Woodland's Adventure Ambassador, Gurpreet Dhindsa, looks back at his first truly adventurous moment  at Kaloi Glacier in Kashmir and falling in love with adventure thereon. Read on:

Gurpreet:
"I had a different childhood. Being from the defence services family, we spent most of my childhood moving every year along the small towns or villages along the border. We grew up in an environment with more outdoor adventures than kids to play with.

While I can’t really point towards a singular event that turned me towards adventure sports, when I look back, one incident in particular stands out.

In 1988, while pursuing my B.Sc (Honours) in Amritsar, I was doing small treks regularly. That's when I decided to go trekking to Kaloi Glacier in Kashmir along with the younger brother of a friend.

Back then there had been massive floods in Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab and our trek turned out to be quite eventful with lots of bad weather. We endured most of the conditions sitting in a small tent at a high altitude. We not only reached the glacier and but also climbed the Kaloi peak!

Later, due to a series of events, I ended up giving my boots to my friend and climbed from glacier to peak in a pair of simple running shoes. While I personally didn't think much of it, a group of Germans climbing at same time made big fuss about it and we were treated like special guests at the base camp that night.

We had an equally interesting return as the road back to Punjab was washed away at few places. We continued to hike our way back home as we thought it was better than waiting in Srinagar to be airlifted. Despite of circumstances, we reached intact and in time to the pleasant surprise of everyone, especially my friend's family!

That experience taught me a lot. While handing over my friend's brother to his family meant quite a relief, it also marked the end of an adventure for me. That is when I realised how much I had enjoyed this tough journey and living on the edge.

The feeling of making life and death decisions, of braving weather and hardships, to feel the power of nature and strength of human body to endure and adapt: I believe it was at this moment when I truly fell in love with adventure."

Deeya’s Adventure Diaries : Challenges & More

Deeya likes challenging herself!


Her expedition across the Greenlandic Icecap in the summer of 2011 time and again demanded that she dip into her physical and mental energy reserves. There were days when the conditions were so tough that she felt like giving up but she kept pushing herself to go that extra mile, literally.

They would ski for 8 hours a day (around 30kms) with small 15 minute minute breaks every hour and a half. 

Deeya says these kind of extreme expeditions require good teamwork and though the rest of the expedition team members were much older than her, she got along very well with them.

In total there were 8 people - Deeya's father, two Belgians, an Australian, an American who was their guide, two Greenland natives, also called Inuits, who took care of the huskies (dogs that were carrying all the group's equipment).

There would be days when the group's energy levels would be low and Deeya would offer to lead the team. The responsibility of guiding the team towards the goal with the use of GPS was immense but satisfying. There was a sense of achievement which is hard to describe  recalls Deeya. 

The Greenlandic icecap is very beautiful - white all around - and there is 24 hours of sunlight, which feels weird sometimes! For food, Deeya says, they would pour boiling water into dried food and melt ice for water!

Deeya is glad that she used the Greenland expedition to collect funds for a girls’ orphanage in Haridwar with the help of her school - The Shri Ram School Moulsari Avenue. Today the project has been launched with 12 girl residents!

Way to go Deeya!

Deeya’s Adventure Diaries : Kayaking Expedition in Greenland

Deeya's first expedition ever was a 14-day sea kayaking expedition in Greenland. She was only 14 at that time and was the youngest member on the expedition!

 She remembers one day weather conditions became really unpleasant. There were high waves, rain strong winds pushing the kayak in the opposite direction and salt water constantly in her eyes. There was a point where she just wanted to stop paddling and give up completely. She just couldn’t take it any more.  But she knew that the situation was bad and she had to keep paddling no matter what. And so she stuck on and kept paddling.

She believes it is the ‘Never give in’ attitude that her parents have instilled in her that really allowed her to truly extend her own limits.

Going to places like Greenland has truly made Deeya realise the impact of global warming - and it is scary. She feels that it's something everyone should be aware about and try to make an effort to stop.