Canyoning in India:Canyoneering

                                                          Water is the driving force of all nature.
                                                                That rush and your will power!,
                                                                     Image Source: VerticalBug

It's interesting to know the growth of Adventure Sports in India.While some of the sports are relatively new,read my article on Huffington Post "Top 10 Adventure Sports in India you missed last time" and you'd be surprised on the various options we have now including Skydiving and Heli Skiing.With the rise of adventure sports enthusiasts,a rise in new ways and new techniques are highlighted.One such exciting new Sport is Canyoning.You can't call Canyoning all new,because of its similarity to Waterfall Rappelling. However,there are differences,and there are regions which caters to beginners and professionals alike.

Canyoning/Canyoneering is an exciting sport,a cross between abseiling or rappelling & caving into waterfalls. Canyoning is a combination of fun activities including sliding in water, jumping into the pool of water, passing through narrow passages. Let's check what wikipedia says with regards to abseiling and rappelling and Canyoning:

Abseiling (from German abseilen, meaning "to rope down"), also called rappelling, is the controlled descent down a rock face using a rope.Canyoning (known as canyoneering in the U.S. and Australia) is traveling in canyons using a variety of techniques that may include other outdoor activities such as walking, scrambling, climbing, jumping, abseiling (rapelling), and/or swimming.

In simple words,While canyoning is similar to waterfall rappelling, there is a slight difference wherein it involves scaling down an entire mountain from the top while waterfall rappelling is done mainly from a height of 100 feet. While in waterfall rappelling, you descend the rock attached to a harness, there are times in canyoning when you can slide down the rope.

Canyoning is mostly done is remote and rugged regions and of course India has lot of scope for Canyoning in established regions along with regions which has recently come up.

Who can do it? Canyoning Fitness Levels

There are Canyons with different grades suitable from beginners to advanced skill level. For beginners level canyons there are No specific skill requirement.  You will be given training on abseiling or rappelling before you will be asked to enter the canyon.For more moderate to difficult grade canyon  swimming is required.

Canyoning in Manali,India

Manali valley is abundant in rivers & waterfalls. The canyon is situated in Vashist on the Kroni river. For the medium canyon (grade III / IV) a 40 min walk will take you to your starting point high above the village, with a descent of aprox 3 hrs. The second canyon grade( IV/V) takes 2 hrs to go up & aprox 5 hrs to come back down. It starts with an 80m drop !!!Canyons are located around Manali and both Himalayan Extreme Center and Top Rock Adventures (TRA) organize Canyoning in Manali.

Canyoning in Uttarakhand,India

Canyoning is organised near the Neer Gaddu waterfalls at Rishikesh.RiverRain Adventures authorized by Uttarakhand Tourism Board organizers Canyoning in Rishikesh.Resorts in Rishikesh also offer canyoning facilities around their site; one of them is Elephant Brook Resort.Canyoning in Rishikesh would roughly cost you around Rs 2000 - 2500.

Canyoning in Maharashtra,India

Canyoning can be attempted at the Sandan Valley in the Bhandardara region and Ulhas Valley in the Karjat region of Maharashtra while Waterfall rappelling can be tried at Bekare in Karjat, Vihigaon and Naghotne as well as in Kolad and Bhivpuri in Maharashtra. Jungle Lore organizes waterfall rapelling in Maharashtra whereas Nature Knights organizes Canyoning in Maharashtra.

Canyoning in Goa,India

Goa Jungle Adventure operate fully guided jungle Canyoning trips from Palolem, Goa, for both beginners and experts. Call them or visit Casa Fiesta in the evening for further information or to try Canyoning in Goa.They have plenty of Canyoning sites depending on your grade of Canyoning.Sonnare is one such site.Poshvine also has Canyoning tours in Goa.

Canyoning in Karnataka

Canyoning can also be done in Dandeli at Sathkonda Canyon.his activity is carried out inside the Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary. Requires reasonable fitness and a head for heights.

While I haven't tried Canyoning yet,I think it is my bucket list for the next year.Have you tried Canyoning before?If yes,how was your experience like and if no,then why not?Wish you all a very happy x-mas,may Santa flood you all with wonderful gifts of your choice.