Dateline Pauri: An hour from Lansdowne, close to two hours drive from Kotdwar and a four-hours drive from Dehradun takes you to Bilkhet at Satpuli, nestled in between Lansdowne and Pauri. The quaint town is situated at 534 meters on the banks of river Nayar that lends its name to the 1st “Nayar Valley Adventure Festival,” to be held in November this year.
For those who enjoy the adrenalin rush, the thrill and the pace do book your calendar slot. From 19th-22nd of November 2020, a four-day long festival is being organised by Pauri Administration, Uttarakhand Tourism and Team of Adventure Tourism Professionals like Himalayan Aero Sports Association and Himalayan Adventure Festival to lure bikers, camp organisers, pilots, para-gliders, runners and the likes to come together to promote adventure sports and highlight the possibility of Nayar Valley making its way as a destination on the map for Adventure Tourism.
This year, the National Paragliding Accuracy Competition will be held in Bilkhet during the festival itself. Along with sports such as Paragliding, Mountain Biking and Trail running, Kayaking, Ballooning, Camping and Angling, Tandem flights, Powered Gliders are just some of the thrills that those who come to the event will witness. Those who register at the counter set up at the venue, are promised Tandem Flights and Ballooning activities as well.
Keeping in view the pandemic, the participants, a little over a hundred of them, will be tested for Covid-19 on arrival at Kotdwar and then taken to the location to partake in the four-day event.
Vinay Singh, Coordinator, focuses on the idea behind the festival reiterating the fact, “We are trying to promote adventure tourism in our state and create local employment for our youth / locals who live within the vicinity of the place.”
