West Sikkim -Temi Tea garden, Kaluk, Kanchanjungha

June 23, 2014July 5, 2014 by Kaushik

08-May-2011 and 09-May-2011

We started back for Gangtok around 8.00am and with lots of stop and very bad roads (roads were considerably worse than we got it while coming due to the rains in between) along with Rahul’s driving speed and a lunch break, we were able to reach Gangtok by 4.00pm in the afternoon. Nothing much to do there as I never like the ambience of this touristy hill stations like Shimla, Manali, Nainital or Gangtok. I quickly called up Subrata Sarkar of Kaluk hotel to check the availability and found the hotel would be completely empty after a big group leaving on 9th. I made up my mind on the fly, cancelled my 9th ticket, extended my work from home for another couple of days and enquire in Pelling Taxi stand for an exclusive cab for Kaluk from Gangtok. The rate is normally 2500/- if you take Melli- Jorethang- Rishi – Kaluk route which is faster but goes through much lesser heights and the route is not a scenic one. I was aware of the roads and asked the jeep to take me through Singtham, Tarku, Temi Tea Gardens, Damthang, Rabangla, Legship, Rishi to Kaluk. He charged me Rs.1000/- extra and it completely worth it, we started journey at 7.30am and reached Kaluk around 4.30pm with many photo stops and lunch and tea breaks. The driver Ajay is an excellent person, we really had a nice time with him and the guy knows in and out of the route and stopping the car in right bend for us to get a few nice snaps.

Temi Tea garden:

Little Wanderer:

Enroute Kaluk:

10-May-2011 and 11-May-2011

The Kaluk is a place to take rest and unwind yourself. Excellent location with just 1100 people leaving between Kaluk and Rinchenpong. You can see the Gazing lights like a necklace on other part of the hill at night and most importantly mighty Kanchanjhungha range is looming all over Kaluk with Kumbhakarna, North and South Kabur, Pandim, Sinoulchu all can be seen a clear day. The location is awesome and you would surely be short of words to express. You can go for some short hikes to Rinchenpong (just 3 km) and then to Poison lake or the monastery but you can just spend couple of days staring at Himalayas sitting at your room too. My Data Card was working in CDMA instead of HSIA and I took couple of important business calls from US and did some net meeting sitting there, awesome feeling too while talking about business keeping Kanchanjungha in front of your eyes. It certainly has a calming effect. Fortunately meeting didn’t last long and I was back in my world with Kanchanjungha. 10th Evening a depression on Bangladesh made some magic and pulled clouds there and gave some breath-taking moments of sunsets on the backdrop of mighty Kanchanjungha. Next day morning again sunrise was more than my expectation set for May. Didn’t know how 2 hours passed by setting tripods, changing lenses and looking at the ranges until it vanishes in the haze around 8.00am. I came back to reality as I didn’t have any more backup tickets to cancel the return of 11th ticket too. Got a Bolero for dropping me at NJP at 2500/- (may be bargained to 2200 which I didn’t as I was too overwhelmed with my Kanchanjungha experience). The driver Suraj is an excellent driver, probably best in my whole trip, I would surely plan with him for my next trip there at the first opportunity. Started feeling the heat the moment I reached Rishi, Jorethang is awfully hot and same as Melly, fortunately when hitting Sevak, rains have come as a bliss to cool down the weather, reached NJP around 5.00 in the evening. Hada long wait for Padatik Express around 9.00pm but then you can wait for ever what Sikkim offered me in a quick one week trip, silence of Silary, Gems of Old Silk Route, Awesome Gurudongmer, Mind-blowing Rhododendrons, Soothing green of Tea Gardens, Countless Water Falls and mighty Kanchanjungha, a very few hill station can give you this much variety what a small state like Sikkim can give you.

Lights of Pelling from Kaluk:

First Light :

Kanchanjungha:

Previous : North Sikkim – Gurudongmer, Yumthang

North Sikkim – Gurudongmer, Yumthang

June 23, 2014July 5, 2014 by Kaushik

05-May-2011 and 06-May-2011

I found couple of dry days forecast and didn’t want to waste time in Gangtok, called Sikkim Travels from Zuluk itself and finalized my trip. I liked them because of their professionalism and quite helpful gesture. They quoted reasonably, 12K for 2N/3D and 18K 3N/4D with an exclusive vehicle. The hotels they kept us was Lachen View Point an excellent hotel with good views of Lachen and very comfortable rooms (Room rent was 2250 per night) and in Seasons’ View in Lachung, another great hotel at highest point of Lachung with great views and excellent ambience. I mentioned I was not sure about the travel dates due to official commitments and they never pressed for advance. They arranged for me the reservations of 5th to 7th only on 4th and without any extra charge. Only issue I had with the driver Rahul, who supposed to be their best driver, no doubt he is a very safe driver but extremely slow and sometimes little stubborn to adjust with you. As I was keen on photography, I requested him to start little early, so his slow driving can be compensated and also being first car you would get less dust specially in a drive like Gurudongmer. But he always showed some excuses not to start early though I observed him boozing till 11.00 almost every night. Even if he see a car some 100 mtrs behind, he would slow down and give side which I don’t mind but then keeps tailgating the car and you would only see dust all around which was quite irritating. So even if you choose Sikkim Tours whom I recommend whole heartedly, make sure you are not driven by Rahul in his Sumo Victa. In my 15 years of Himalayan experience first time I engaged in a verbal duel with a driver in my life, it was so irritating over the 4 days period. No word can be sufficient to describe the beauty of the roads from Lachen to Gurudongmer specially after Thangu and Chopta Valley. Gurudongmer lake is awesome, I have seen many high altitude lakes in Himalaya but this is indeed a special one. You would see the roads to Chola Mu diverts just before Gurudongmer and can see a board clearly showing “Restricted Area, No entry beyond this point”, hardly another 30min drive, if you can manage permit from Ministry of Home in Sikkim and get it endorsed by Army, to reach the highest lake in Himalaya and can get a view of Tibetan plane from there. Wonderful journey back to lachen for lunch and then proceed towards lachung, Till Chungthang, Lachen Chu would be with you and it’s an amazing journey for sure. We reached lachung late in afternoon around 5.30pm but again saw the clouds engulfing the region from all around.

Good Morning sunshine:

Cafe @ 15000 FT:

Road to Gurudongmer:

Gurudongmer Lake:

Roads to Chola Mu:

Rhododendrons:

07-May-2011

We got up early again in the sound of relentless rain and found the whole Lachung Valley is invisible, it was not going to be a sunny day. We again had a spat with Rahul, who doesn’t want to leave early even though he used to do it; had it been a 2N-3D trip. These packages of North Sikkim are surely a spoilsports as they dictate the terms in many places. Until Govt makes sure the permits can be easily managed like we get in Ladakh, these practices would continue. Police, tour agencies, hotel owners, check post people, administrations, drivers all are in the nexus and force you to take the package in North Sikkim and make you go in their terms. It’s undoubtedly one of the best part of Sikkim but would be much better if this nexus can be broken and people can arrange their own trips there. The Road to Zero Point via Yumthang was much better than what we took last day from Lachen to Gurudongmer and both sides still blooming with different colors of Rhododendrons. This side of Valley is much greener and from Zero Point, one with RAP can trek through Donkinala Pass to reach Chola Mu, other side of the fork from Chungthang. Visibility turns poorer as we crossed Shivamandir (a place came to news for wrong reasons when an Army helicopter last month lost here in sky and all 4 on board were died). The flowers and greeneries of the valley would touch your soul. At zero point its all snow but very touristy and I don’t like so many people jumping, playing, eating, drinking and completely making a mess of such a nice place. It seems like a picnic and more like Rohtang, may be the place should be avoided in a peak tourist season, I am sure with lesser people and less noise it would have been a pure bliss.

Rhododendrons:

Road thru clouds :

Micro Wonder:

Our Stay:

Previous : East Sikkim – Silary Gaon, Zuluk

Next : West Sikkim – Temi Tea Gardens, Kaluk

East Sikkim – Sillary Gaon, Zuluk

June 22, 2014July 5, 2014 by Kaushik

01-May-2011

I had booked a backup in Kanchanjungha Express and took a tiring day journey but in Siliguri greeted by welcome rain and had a good night sleep and get ready for next day journey to Sikkim in a fresh mind and body.

02-May-2011

My driver Bhawani was late; he arrived almost around 9.00am when he was supposed to reach at 7.00am, the reason being last evening rain that triggered number of slides and blockage. Bhawani was a nice young man, drives a Sumo owned by Gopal Pradhan,. Our journey started for Sillary Gaon and Silary is in WB and the road goes through normal NH31 till Sevok, takes NH31A towards Gangtok and take right fork towards kalimpong and from Kalimpong towards the road to Reshi, you would get a completely unpaved road, even difficult to recognize unless someone tells you at your left, gone through dense forest to Silary. Its 5km unpaved road, that forest department doesn’t allow to be paved. This is simply out of the world place without electricity and dense forest all around. I saw a few snaps taken from there 2 weeks back and believe me, I never have seen such a long mountain range starting from peaks in Eastern Bhutan till Nepal in almost a 180 degree view. Even if I could see 50% of what the snap showed me, it would have been my experience of viewing longest Himalayan range ever. Unfortunately it was one of the wettest days in my travel, not even distance of a foot was visible but still the ambience was awesome, you feel connected so much to nature. Dilip Tamang, the person owns the resort is an excellent person, we received a very warm welcome and the guest house, so remotely located is very nicely maintained, foods are delicious and most importantly it’s just being located opposite ridge of Gangtok, you would get full signal of all the cell phones, datacards, excellent place to work from home, only if I could manage a solar charger for my Laptop. Anyway I would be back there and next time would stay just 3/4 days in that place only. Reshi is ok, Aritar is good, Zuluk is better but Silary is out of the world, I don’t want to compare but can’t help, go and feel the place before it’s too crowded.

Zig-Zag road:

Entry of Silary Gaon:

Delo:

03-May-2011

Woke up very early but its all rain everywhere with very dark outside. Heard we can’t start for Zuluk early as its heavily raining there and visibility is lesser than theminimum required for driving. We enjoyed the breakfast with ‘luchi-Alurdom’ and started around 10 in morning when visibility improves slightly. Gone to Renok and then Rangoli where the permit needs to be done for entering the old silk route to Zuluk. You just need one copy of photo and one photo Id like Passport/Voter I Card to get itfrom SDO Office at Rangpo. Bhawani did that for us, we took a cup of tea and ready for real ascent. Roads till Rangoli would be around 5K ft but it starts winding up justafter that and our next destination Zuluk was 9200ft. The roads through Lingtham (permit was checked for first time here), Padamchen to Zuluk is very less traveled andquite good in Sikkim’s standard. You would enjoy the nature at its best all through. We reached Gopal Pradhan’s Dilmaya Retreat around 4.00 in afternoon with lots of photo stops. All wooden guest house was nice, with no geysers but surprisingly with one room heater in it, we loved it in that temperature. Food was good, welcome has enough warmth but still I missed the simplicity of Silary here, may be the place is being commercialized and I could see the reservation book of Gopal Pradhan, almost till June 2nd week the Guest house is completely booked. There is no fixed charge for room/ food and car, it’s completely as you can manage kind of. So remember bargain is the key here. I paid Rs.2500/- per day for a big car where as I was asked Rs. 3500/- per day and I saw in register even people booked same route with Rs. 4000/- per day. If you go for a sunrise trip (which you must go in a clear weather) you have to pay Rs.900/- extra. But again if anybody is keen on Himalayan Sunrise, remember your time would be in Oct Mid to Dec Mid when Monsoon receded, atmosphere has least dust particles, December Fog/Haze hasn’t yet reached Indian subcontinent and Sun is other side of Equator and rises from Southern side as Sunrise never be same when you see the reflection in Southern wall of Himalayas and sun rises from Northern side of Equator. All the best sunrise shots in Himalayas are taken in those two months.

04-May-2011

As usual it was just spending Rs.900/- for us but doesn’t worth it and visibility was poor and there were huge clouds surrounding Kanchanjungha. If you want to see Kanchanjungha closely may be Pelling/Kaluk in West Sikkim or Singhik in North Sikkim is the place to see but if you want the whole range, you must have to come Eastern Sikkims like Silary or Zuluk, amazing and unhindered view from 10k ft with the whole range visible in front of you. I could clearly understand what a large massif can be visible from the region in a cloudless day. Also note the Thambi view point would give you a much better view than the so called Sunrise Point where visibility angle is much lower. We came back, got some delicious breakfast and then start for Old Silk route covering that amazing winding roads, Nathang Valley, Tukla Valley, Kupup, Old Baba Mandir, Young Husband Track, where you would find the famous sign board showing Lhasa as 520km and the same route Atish Dipankar took while going to Lhasa through the famous pass Jelep La. It’s out of bound for civilians unless you can manage the permission through some army contacts. In Sherathang (where the road to Nathula forks) the India-China Border Trade has started and you would find lots of Chinese vehicles with their goods in this side of the border. From Kupup to Sherathang to Changu it’s almost going through the snow bound roads and we faced frequent snow falls too on the road. From Changu to Gangtok, due to road widening work, roads are pathetic, slides in every 200 to 500 mtrs and dozers are in action every where. Very tricky and delicate sections in between where you find BRO is watching the shooting stones and quickly ask you to cross the region, quite scary to me. Gopal Pradhan decided not to entertain any more Gangtok drop till monsoon is over after our journey and decided to call those who already booked; to change the itinerary.