India's geographical diversity provides the perfect setting for a host of adventure opportunities. Mercury Himalayan Explorations (MHE), our associate company, is the country's leading adventure company and offers the widest range of outdoor activities in India, Nepal and Bhutan.
MHE commenced operations in 1982 and is the winner of the National Tourism Award for 2004 and 2005. We service over 10,000 customers annually and use highly experienced instructors with the latest equipment to ensure an impeccable safety record in adventure sports.
White water rafting, luxury camping, trekking, ski touring, climbing expeditions, self drive jeep tours and mountain biking are some of our specialties. We also undertake camel and cycle safaris, wild life tours, leadership programs for youth and angling trips. Our adventure programmes are customised to suit every budget, taste, age group, level of expertise and preference.
The Himalayas offer some of the toughest and most exciting river runs in the world. White water rafting and kayaking in the rapids can really get your adrenaline pumping. Blessed with snow-clad peaks, crystal glaciers, ski slopes, meandering and roaring rivers, gushing waterfalls, blue mountains and beautiful valleys, golden deserts and rocky tracks - India has something for everyone looking for adventure.
MHE pioneered white water rafting and kayaking in India and today we are largest company in this field. We run trips on more than 20 rivers across India and have led first descents on numerous rivers including the Indus in Ladakh, the Teesta in Sikkim and the mighty Brahmaputra (Tsang Po in Tibet).
While rafting on the crystal clear waters of the Ganga (Ganges), you will experience some of the most exciting white water sections in India. Camping on exotic sandy beaches and floating down the holiest river on earth is indeed a brilliant combination.
MHE's rafting operations down the river Kundalika are located in the virgin forests below the Mulshi and Bhira dams - just a 2 ½ hours drive from Mumbai and Pune. This river is ideally located for single day rafting trips or even short overnight trips. A one and a half hour run down a 14 Kms river stretch of exciting class III rapids, promises to give a safe, fun, wet & wild ride.
Besides Ganga and Kundalika, we also run rafting trips and expeditions down the Alaknanda, Tons, Beas, Indus, Zanskar, Bhagirathi and Brahamaputra.
We at MHE believe that a skillful guide can turn a run-of-the-rapid rafting trip into a rip roaring good time. MHE guides posses the uncanny combination of a teacher, lifeguard, story teller and comedian. All our guides are certified in first aid and CPR and come with years of white water experience behind them.
The best River Guides, combined with the finest world class equipment makes an MHE rafting adventure an unforgettable memory
As part of our regular activities, we operate 10 seasonal camping locations across India. These camps offer comfortable accommodation in deluxe swiss tents and portable homes which are supplemented by sumptuous outdoor cuisine and a variety of adventure activities like river rafting, hot air ballooning, trekking, bird watching, rock climbing and kayaking. Our unique camps act as ideal locations for conducting outdoor corporate training programmers, incentives and conferences.
Some of the places that we have camps are - Shivpuri (near Rishikesh), Chamba, Tons, Auli, Kundalika, and Damdamma (near Delhi).
India offers a varied and exciting topography for treks ranging from the high altitude deserts of Ladakh, the alpine meadows of Garhwal, Sikkim and Kashmir to the dense rain forests of Kerala. MHE offers a wide variety of over 200 treks covering India, Nepal and Bhutan.
Professional leadership, the highest safety standards in the industry and a strong commitment to the environment, all contribute to making our treks as good as they sound. Over the years we have gained a reputation of organising treks in the remotest of locations in the Indian Himalayas. We were the first to trek into the Rupshu Valley and the first to organise a commercial expedition to the Siachen Glacier.
Be it the Siachen Glacier, The Nanda Devi Inner Sanctuary or the Siang Valley in Arunachal, MHE has done it all.
With more than 60% of the Himalayas lying within the borders of India, it is but natural that we also have the best snow conditions in the world. India's more famous ski areas include Auli in Garhwal, Gulmarg in Kashmir and Solang Valley near Manali. All these locations offer great snow conditions between January and March. In addition the ski areas of Gulmarg have a great access by air world class ski lifts and cable cars. MHE offers guides ski touring trips that range from a few hours to a week long trip. Our mountain guides have years of experience having guided in most European and Canadian ski resorts. MHE will organise everything from internal flights to hotels, equipment rentals and professional guides to make your ski experience memorable.
Get behind the wheel of a 4x4 jeep or jump on to a Royal Enfield bike and explore the Himalayas or the Rajputana deserts with our experienced guides and state of the art equipment. MHE is the only adventure company in India that offers self drive safaris.
These guided tours involve a minimum of four self driven 4x4 vehicles with accompanying guides, cooks, mechanics and four wheel drive experts. Tours in Ladakh and Rajasthan include accommodation in mobile tented camps and heritage palace properties. We use fully insured Mitsubishi Pajeros and Ford Endeavors for our self drive tours.
MHE organized the first Jeep Safari from Manali to Leh, the first Jeep Safari in the
Spiti Valley and the first All Women Self drive expedition in India.
Besides self drive safaris we also organize cycle safaris and camel safaris in the deserts of Rajasthan.
India's varied topography offers an ideal opportunity for mountain biking. Bikers from all over the world flock to India to peddle through some of the most breathtaking landscapes anywhere. MHE organises biking trips through out India over carefully selected back country roads which are safe, scenic and un-crowded. Some of our classic mountain biking trails include Manali - Leh over some of the highest motorable passes in the world, the Rajputana Trail in Rajasthan and the Rain Forest Trail in South India. |
