I ski in Gulmarg, Kashmir, and Manali, Himachal Pradesh. I've trekked all over Himachal, Sikkim and Darjeeling. I spend about four months a year in Northern India because the bounty of adventure sports available there--skiing, trekking, rock-climbing, mountain biking, white water rafting, paragliding--all take place among the highest mountains in the world. The third highest mountain peak on the planet, Kanchenjunga, dominates the horizon from frenetic Darjeeling, to peaceful Kalimpong, to Gangtok and Pelling. If you're very lucky you can climb Tonglu near Darjeeling and catch a glimpse of Everest. As a woman traveling alone much of the time, Northern India is safe and welcoming. One of my best friends runs Yogi Bhajan's ashram in Anandpur Sahib, in the Punjab. My life in San Francisco is so blessed it's difficult to imagine wanting to live anywhere else. Northern India, so far, is the only other place I'd consider.