Beautiful gompas, deep blue sky, towering peaks of the Dhauladhar range all around, what isn't here! Bir, a small hill village in Himachal. The sacred chanting from the gompa floats through every nook and corner of the mountains. Groups of lamas clad in red robes are heading towards the Nagiur Paliiul Chokhorling Gompa. A vast undulating valley. A pitch road cuts through the middle. Box houses on the hillsides enhance the beauty of the place. Mountain ranges in the distance. Just look up at the distant sky and you'll spot paragliders. They come floating down from distant mountains, landing on the velvety grasslands of the valley, painted like a magnificent picture.

A festival of red, blue, and green

Tourists from all over the world rush to this village valley in Himachal to float in the sky. Everyone floats in the blue sky, supported by huge umbrella-like canopies in red, blue, yellow, green, and turquoise colours. This Bir is one of India's most popular paragliding hubs.

From Bir to Billing

Winding mountain paths. Wrapped in a blanket of cool breeze. From Bir, the path winds up the mountain trail to Billing. A 13-kilometre journey. Both sides of the winding mountain path are dominated by coniferous trees. Moving forward while watching the play of light through the gaps in leaves. You'll also spot quite a few rhododendron trees along the way. Through gaps in the forest, distant Dhauladhar peaks beckon. The higher you climb, the more beautiful the Bir valley below appears. The natural beauty here is simply exquisite. You'll see adventure-loving paragliders circling and floating around like huge umbrellas of various colours against the blue sky.

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Let your body float in the void

If you wish, you can also join this unique experience. There's a large flat area like a bugyal at the top of the mountain. For safety, a rubber-padded sheet is laid out, which is also called a launching pad. This is where paragliding takes place.

For those who want to jump purely out of curiosity, there's a wonderful arrangement. A guide cum trainer will be your companion. Do some freehand exercises first. Then sit alone for a while, close your eyes, concentrate and breathe. Helmet on head. Special guards on feet and knees. With a huge rucksack-like parachute on your back, a huge umbrella-like parachute opens above your head. Then you have to run a bit in the direction of the wind. After that, your entire body floats in the void, flying around like a bird. You'll see something in the eyes of all the birds around.

It feels like the vast waves of mountains ahead are gradually approaching. The whistling cool breeze touches your body. The entire journey is captured on camera. After floating in the void for fifteen minutes, finally crossed the mountains and forests and landed at Bir's landing point. As you approach the ground, the trainer will nicely explain exactly when to put your feet down and run a bit. Finally, achieve victory and gather an extraordinary experience of flying around like a bird in the open sky.

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Actually, we all love to fly like birds. Paragliding is such an adventure game that fulfills that dream of humans. People of any age, from 16 to 70, can enjoy this. All you need is a little courage and some physical capability. The trainers here teach you the rest.

How to get there and where to stay?

From Kolkata by train to Chandigarh, then by car to Bir takes about 7 hours. You can also come by bus. You can come here anytime except during the monsoon. You'll find multiple hostels, hotels and homestays in Bir and Billing.