Hindu Kush Sports Festival keeps attracting tourists on second day

The Hindu Kush Snow Sports Festival continued to attract more lovers of adventure tourism and foreign tourists on the second day of the winter gala in the scenic Madaklasht valley in Chitral district on Sunday.

A large number of adventurists, lovers of snow games and foreign tourists thronged the valley and participated in various snow games. The district administration and locals warmly welcomed the foreigners to the scenic valley. They are extending all-out support to the tourists and players of snow games to make the event a success.

Men, women, youth and children took part in various competitions of snow games, including ice hockey, snow trekking and making snow statues and cartoons. The participation of foreign tourists in large number added colours to the ongoing festival.

Jointly organised by the Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (TCKP) and the Chitral district administration, the Hindu Kush Snow Sports Festival showcases a number of snow games including skiing, snow-tubing, trekking, snow-boarding, ice skating, ice hockey, making snow statues, cartoons, snow curling and others.

Traditional foods, barbeque, night music and workshops on the topics of climate change and eco-tourism are also part of the winter gala to raise awareness about the ever-rising environmental pollution.

For the first time, the event is being organized on official level to promote tourism and snow sports in the valley. The local and foreign tourists are enjoying the mega festival.

The Hindu Kush is an 800 kilometer-long mountain range that stretches through Afghanistan, from its centre to northern Pakistan and into Tajikistan. It forms the western section of the Hindukush Himalayan Region and is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram and the Himalayas.