Bamiyan is a mountainous region located in central Afghanistan (about
150 miles from Kabul) and lies on the ancient Silk Road and was an
important crossroads on the famous trade route between China and the
Middle East. It is also the home of the famous Buddhas of Bamiyan
destroyed by the Taliban in 2001.
With towering 10,000-foot mountains of the Hindu Kush and Koh-i-Baba
ranges looming over the surrounding valleys, the region has long been a
tourist destination and is the home to Afghanistan's first national
park. The Swiss-based Aga Khan Foundation has created the Bamiyan
Ecotourism Project to develop infrastructure, train guides and raise
awareness of the region's natural attractions.
One element of this effort is to take advantage of the mountainous
terrain and promote backcountry skiing. That's where Mad River Glen and
their Vermont friends come in. Jonathan Hoffman, a former Mad River Glen
employee, started Direct Aid International, a small nonprofit
organization. Over the years, he has funded and contracted the building
of 14 schools and a library and provided tens of thousands of notebooks
and soccer balls to children.
This summer Huffman approached Mad River Glen as well as his contacts at
the Vermont National Guard about the idea of promoting skiing in
Bamiyan. The Vermont Guard's mountain troops have long used Mad River
Glen as a training site so there was a natural connection to develop a
working relationship.
The goal of the effort is to collect and deliver 25 complete sets of
backcountry ski equipment to the region. Mad River Glen is soliciting
equipment and donations while the Vermont National Guard will help ship
the equipment to Bamiyan. Initially, the equipment will be used to train
local ski guides and for rental to tourists (mostly foreign nationals
at this point) from the capital in Kabul. The need is for varying sizes
of backcountry skis, boots, poles, bindings and climbing skins. Anyone
who has equipment to donate or would like to donate money to help ship
the equipment should contact Eric Friedman at Mad River Glen by email,
As part of this effort, Mad River Glen has created foreign language
versions of the Ski it If You Can stickers. The first round of stickers
are available in Spanish, French, Chinese, Italian and Greek. More
esoteric versions in languages such as Hebrew, Russian, Dari, Finnish
and Farsi among others are also in the works. Proceeds from the sale of
these stickers will be donated to Direct Aid International.
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