Denjong - Sikkim

Draft 0.1

Get out of airport. Your will find cheaper cabs with Sikkim registration number.
Started from bagdogra at 12pm.
Beautiful but bumpy ride. Reached Gangtok at 5:30pm.
Mg marg is the main market place. We got tasty snacks rolls from there.
Cab fare paid 1700
Pre booked tashi tagey. A very homely place with simple people. It has a beautiful terrace with a breathtaking view. 

We has veg roll and paneer roll at mg marg for hundred. The people are very fashion aware and wear leather jackets and boots. We came back to our hotel for some tasty noodle soup. A Buddhist outlook of the owners makes the hotel a place with a beautiful relics. The noodle soup with vegetables was delectable. The to terrace garden with bonsai is the result of a very long term effort.
Plan for day 2
Trip starts from here. With baggage we leave for lachen, lachung and gurudongmar on a three day trip. Gurudongmar is highest place we would have ever going to till now. At over 17000 feet, the semi frozen lake will be a sight to behold.
Will leave at nine thirty in the morning

We woke up at six and it was already daylight. We requested for some tea and had it at the very picturesque terrace of tashi tagey filled with bonsai plants and a beautiful garden with a view of the hills around.

Through the winding roads, after a scrumptious early morning meal called Tibetan breakfast which had baked honey breads, tomato and cottage cheese curry, along with an omelette, we bade goodbye to our hosts and set off to vajra bus stand for one sixty rupees in an individual cab, distance around five km.

First day lachen: travel time 7 hours. Started at 10:30, will reach around 5:30pm. Next travel plan: take off from lachen to gurudongmar at 3 am, will reach around 8 am back to lachen for lunch and evening to lachung for night. Zero point next day and off to yumthang and ...

Khaaana ramro chau food is good
Timi koshta cho? How are you?
Tikhai chau I am fine
Mou I
Khaanchu will eat
Mou su chu I will sleep

Reached lachen going parallel to teestha river and then lachen river through partially made roads with lush green vegetation, hills covered in vast green, yellow and brown with the company of another couple from Mumbai , Srini and dipika. Had lunch on the way at mangan at a small shop, potato curry some gourd and wife with Dahl. We reached around five pm and it was dusk in half hour. We stayed close to a waterfall add we could hear water flowing all night long. Had dinner at a cafe with cult rock icons etched on walls.
Met two seasoned biking trekkers on the way Vasu and Sharad, coming from lachung. They were planning to go to gurudongmar and then their next plan was Bhutan.  Sharad suggested visiting Mansuri maybe in uttarakhand. Srini recommend chopta and ouli.

It was lovely chatting up worth the recently retired veterans who had visited almost all of India. We went back to our rooms, beautiful night view and we realized we were surrounded by snow capped peaks. Early morning four and we are off to the highest point in our journey.
Apart from the customary Maggi tea break, the journey took more than four hours crossing two military camps. An officer Addy the second camp requested us to have coffee at their cafe. Tika's all in one shop helped us with food, tea and warm accessories. The winding roads traveling up and down all the hills on the way were a picture astounding diversity. When we started from lachen, the hills were completely covered with vegetation except for the far away show capped peaks. Slowly, the trees have way to shrubs and then, eventually nothing. Just brown, barren , smooth hills with no resemblance to the jagged peaks behind. The existing road was a bit of a troubler for the average traveler with most of the road not yet laid
But the moment we laid our sight on the brought blue still waters of the mystic lake at 17000+ feet, we immediately discarded the four hour effort to reach. The white snow capped peaks were no longer far, just beyond the lake. There are two stories believed about the lake, one of a Buddhist leader and one of a Sikh guru, who, on the request of troubled citizens as the lake was frozen, touched the lake, ensuring that it won't freeze even in the harshest of winters even when water when four thousand feet below along the river was partially frozen.

The bright blue in the midst of the desert like place with a dash of white hills, the freezing cold with the powerful winds, a tinge of warmth from the glowing sun, the experiences of two army men at the highest check post of the world, the unbroken silence except for occasional banter, the immediate dizzy feeling caused by lack of oxygen at that height, the bright blue lake is a sight to behold and cherish for a lifetime.

The banter with army personnel living in inhospitable conditions, their experiences, their belief in baba harbhajan, their amazing humor despite the melancholy and lonely place, the moisture in their eyes when asked about their family, far away, the happiness when they will finally see their family and see the coming world cup, it's a privilege to experience a small part in their tough lives.

 

Came back to lachen , our base stay at one thirty pm. A little discomfort caused by the terrain and steep change in altitude caused discomfort. A filling lunch later, we took off at two thirty pm for lachung and reached around 5:30pm.
Two dogs, some tea and the dark calm later, we all went for resting the day. Spent some time with Mr.Narayan, who had recently moved from Jim Corbett and was working asst the grand lachung where we were staying. We took the day a little easy and ended with the scrumptious dinner by the cook. Six am the next day was our start time to zero point. A mid level ride level later, we reached zero point, a place with abundance of snow, a place with snow filled peaks, a place where the origin of teestha is close from.

Got back to Gangtok at eight pm.  And checked in maple wood, which had good views but required more maintenance. A short sleep later and it's morning and we are off to nathula now

Reached Gangtok from lachung at eight thirty pm dropping Srini and deepika on the way. After searching for a while finally reached maple wood hotel to a not so clean room. Changed to a better room and immediately sat down for breakfast after the mandatory dog petting. A good dinner later, we were at for another day long adventure starting from eight fifteen. Two couple, an elderly couple with the husband in suit and the wife using clutches, both in their seventies. Anther couple was a Bengali couple. We reached nathula crossing tons of dust and then went back to changu lake crossing baba harbhajan temple on the way.
The company was not very enjoyable. An elderly couple
With the wife attempting to motivate us to visit char dham at namchi south Sikkim was sad. The border visit was uneventful. Back at mg marg, we bought souvenirs and waited for our old friends for dinner when we discovered the bank strike and regretted not being able to shop. A good dinner later and some thanks to lahiri ji, we went back inquiring for hidden ATM's which our bank manager told of. Withdrawing some cash, we finally headed back to sleep after lahiriji confirmed a cheap forward trip to pelling at 7 the next day.

13 November quick shower and last view of Gangtok and a packed breakfast courtesy maple wood later, we went off to the pelling bus stand. A short stop on the route for some hot momos and tea and then we reached a green paradise. Dumping our bags at rabdentse residency, we headed out for a quick snack. We found an interesting trek organizer and chatted for a while after which he left and we forgot to take his contact. A long trek to the enchanting pemyangtse monastery where we heard the Buddhist monks chant their hymns in chorus asking with the rhythmic drum beats and long horns. The rinpoche occasionally would wind colored flags around a stick and unwind them. The dark, elegantly painted prayer chamber with the bright statutes of lord Buddha, the earth fragrance from the incense sticks and the mild wind on the hill top are bound to keep one mesmerized.  A short walk later we reached a deserted gate and could see the rabdentse ruins from there. Walking in and asking the local kids who were fishing, we found a short trek to the top of the remains of ancient palace.

We walked back in dim light stopping at kabur, the local hangout for most foreigners. Quick sleep was required as we had an appointment with mt. Kanchendzonga early next day at day break.

14 November

Five thirty and off we went slowly to the helipad for a panoramic view of the incredible giant.

And the view was worth the visit. We spent an hour gazing at the peaks. Snow clad, imposing and filling our minds with memories that cannot be lost.

A quick traditional breakfast at garuda, another popular hangout for the internationals was good. We followed it up with a visit to father travels and arranged a trip to sing shore bridge, the second highest in Asia and followed up with khechiperi lake, a wish lake. Back to kabur, a decent dinner and of sleep calls us. We wake up early morning and we hit the road, this time on a government bus at 7 am, off to the last point of our journey , Siliguri.