Enthralling Kanchenjunga from Silk Route

Dzuluk or Zuluk, though an offbeat place in the lower Himalayas in East Sikkim, is nowadays getting importance among tourists because of its historical significance and the marvels of Mt. Kanchenjunga that it ferries with it.

It is a part of the once famous, the historic Silk Route between Kalimpong and Tibet. This route was popularly designated as the Silk Route as it was the crucial transit route for trade between India and Tibet. The route starts from India and extends to Europe crossing Tibet, Persia and advances to Middle East and Egypt.  In India, the route used to start from Kalimpong (Icchey Gaon – The Wishing Village) and extend through Pedong, Aritrar, Dzuluk, Nathang Valley (often referred to as the Ladakh of Eastern India), Jelepla Pass to Chambi Valley in Tibet. Though the Silk Route banner is not having much significance now, but the majestic view of Mt. Kanchenjunga, the coiled road in Zuluk, the historic stone paved trade road that is acting as a cenotaph of its own significance; are some of the main items that  appeals the tourists. Sillery Gaon and Reshikhola are other add-ons to your catalog.

Though this place is now being hit by a considerable number of tourists, but still it carries its virginity due to less human interference.

Season to hit:

• January to April: Mostly covered with Snow.
• May to July: Rainy Season, better to avoid.
• August-September-Painted with colours of different wild mountain flowers.
• October-December: Good Weather. But in December, you might sometime see little snowfall.

Places to hit:

Sillery Gaon (6000ft), Reshikhola (2000+ft), Aritrar(4600ft), Zuluk(10000ft), Thambi View Point(11300ft) and Lunthung, Nathang Valley(13000+ft),Jelepla Pass(14000ft), Old Baba Mandir(14000+ft), Kupup Lake (13000ft).

Note: Tsomgo (Changu) Lake can also be included in your itinerary if you have time.

Accommodation:

You will get a few choices to opt for your accommodation in Silk Route. But the best one I felt is Spring Vale. Unlike travel agents, Spring Vale is an organization who has their properties in entire Silk Route. You can check with Spring Vale, they will get all the accommodation arrangements at right price. Average Cost is Rs. 900-Rs. 1000 per head per day which includes fooding and lodging. Mostly egg will be served in Lunch and chicken in Dinner.

Itinerary: - And let’s start our Trip! We are at NJP now.

Day 1: If you are travelling by train, try to reach NJP early within 7-8am. So I will recommend you to opt for Uttarbanga Express, so that you can leave NJP by 7.30am. Today our destination will be Sillery Gaon, the entrance of the historic Silk Route.  NJP to Sillery Gaon is a stretch of 95km which takes around 3.5-4hrs excluding breaks.

A 9km drive from Pedong, Sillery Gaon is waiting to welcome you. Leaving the Kalimpong-Algarah-Pedong road and a stretch of 3.5-4km through the rocky, stone paved, off beat road through the forest trail will take you to a tranquil village, which locals refer to as New-Darjeeling.  It is a small village in the Kalimpong District of North Bengal at an altitude of 6000ft. The village holds a maximum of 20-25 families, who are mainly dependent on agriculture and home stays. The beauty of the village lies in the pristine green sloppy mountains, the pine forests which advances you to the silent valley, and the dignified beauty of Mt. Kanchenjunga.

Try to reach Sillery within 12-1pm and post lunch take some rest and leave for the day’s travel. A gentle walk through the meadows, amidst the woods and feeling the silence of the silent valley is worthy. You can have a visit to Icchey Gaon, the Wishing Village. Quite similar to Sillery Gaon, but the stretch of Icchey Gaon is little wider than Sillery. It also houses few home stays.  You can opt for your stay in either of Sillery or Icchey. 

Post dinner, sit in the balcony of your home stay, and observe the lifestyle of the locals, the villagers signing off for the day, the light Nepali Songs from the Cafe, the sounds of various insects; altogether an ambience far away from the hassle of your daily life. Good night folks. Have your first sleep in the historic land of Silk Route.

Day 2: Try to rise early and have a walk through the forest trails of Sillery, to get a view of the Sleeping Buddha drenched in orange during sunrise. Post

breakfast, we will leave for our next destination Zuluk via Aritrar.

Sillery to Aritrar is a 40km stretch which will take around 2 hours. Aritrar is a place which attracts tourists with its glorifying beauty. Surrounded by mountains, forests and rivers, this attracts all tourists crossing this Silk Route stretch. Aritrar Lake or Lampokhari Lake is the main point of attraction. Imagine a huge lake with bluish green water, surrounded by mountains which are covered with lush green. You are walking on a cemented track which surrounds the lake on one side and dense forest on the other. Temperature is soothing. This is how we can elaborate Aritrar Lake.

You can participate in boating in Aritrar Lake. Feed the gigantic sized fished in Aritrar Lake. There are many nearby attractions, but this tops list. A cup of caffeine can be the best add on with Aritrar Lake in front of you.

Aritrar to Zuluk is a 46km stretch, which will take more than 2 hours. Intimate your home stay in Zuluk about your visit. You will have your lunch at Zuluk. Road to Zuluk is under BRO, well maintained but with high slant.

Zuluk, at an altitude of 10,000ft, is a small village with a total population close to 700; this place offers good view of the lush green mountain top at far distance. Zuluk’s significance is the view of distant mountains painted in variants of green. Zuluk is surrounded by wild forest, green meadows which are mostly virgin. There are possibilities of spotting red panda, wild dogs, deer as well as variety of bird species. Have your lens ready!

You can spend the chilling night with bonfire and local tribal music. Enjoy the silence of the dark night. The view of the moonlit drenched mountains, the brightness of the dark, the silence of the winds blowing across your bones and causing you to shiver.  Chill!

Day 3: A morning from the peak peeping through you window pane will take you to a world of ecstasy.  The morning light refracts over the window pane soaked with vapour. A hazy view of a green mountain with smoky white cloud acting like an umbrella above it. A clear blue sky paints the rest of your frame. This is what you are going to experience from your bed. A cup of tea under the blanket will be the best combination with this view. This is how your day starts.

Wish every morning starts with this same tone!

Zuluk to Nathang via Lungthung/Thambi View Point is today’s plan. Have your breakfast and leave for Thambi View Point. Zuluk to Thambi is 14km stretch which takes 30-45 minutes.

After crossing the 14km steep stretch of zig zag road, your car suddenly stops in front of a U-turn. You will see the full Sleeping Buddha range soaked in sunlight in front of you.  The best time to have your lens pointed to get the best frames is during sunrise and sunset.

               

Mostly covered with clouds, you might have to be patient to get the majestic view of Mt. Kanchenjunga. The magnificent view of the famous zig zag road from Zuluk is also prominent from this place. If the smoky clouds played a major role to play with your patience, then don’t lose hope. Enjoy that unique beauty. I was lucky enough to cover all those-Mt. Kanchenjunga, zigzag road, the racing of clouds.

There is one temporary tea stall at Thambi. What can better than this! On a cold day, you have Mt. Kanchenjunga in front of you and white smoky clouds of various shapes racing in your vicinity and you are having a hot cup to tea!! Awesome!

There are some home stays near Thambi View Point. You can try the same, to devote more time to this place. It can be a nice alternative for Zuluk too. But if you have any aged member in your group, I will recommend, not halting here. Thambi is exposed from all sides, which allows cold wind to pass this place, creating a severe weather that might sometimes be able to create health issues to aged person.

Thambi to Nathang Valley is a 10km stretch and will take around 15-20 minutes. The place is best for snow sport during winter season.

Nathang Valley with its beautiful picturesque landscape can be described as a military base. Before my trip, I saw some blog, pointing Nathang Valley as Ladakh of Eastern India. I will not fully disagree with the fact. Some of the places around the valley will definitely let you feel the same.

Post Lunch, cover the local sightseeing. Walk around the village and fell the landscape. Some of the places to be covered are the War Memorial, an old Monastery, one temple, and of course the valley itself. The best part of Nathang is the walk through the valley. Since this village is at a high altitude and there is not much trees, so it is better to avoid huge excitements which might lead to high altitude sickness or breathing problem. Spend the evening with your group. You have one more day left in your trip.

At times, a clear dark sky, with twinkling stars, accompanied by a mild cold temperature, makes you feel the uniqueness of nature. In today’s world, we hardly get time to see the dark starry sky with a free mind. But if we get such opportunity we should not miss the same. Good Night!

Please note the water in the pipeline gets frozen during night. So in the morning, you need help from your home stay people to melt the stored water that turned into ice in the night.

Day 4: Today we will cover some points and reach down to ReshiKhola. Early start within 7-8am is recommended.

Post breakfast, we will take a shortcut route from Nathang, we will cross Jelepla Pass at an altitude of 14000ft, and take a sharp right to the Old Baba Harbhajan Singh Mandir. Here you will see the original bunker along with dress, bed etc of Baba Harbhajan Singh.  People coming from Gangtok are not aware of this temple. Since you are travelling with Silk Route Permit, you are lucky to get a glimpse of the Baba Harbhajan Singh’s Bunker.

Please refer wiki to know more about Baba Harbhajan Singh: Click Here

About 10km from Nathang Valley is the Kupup Lake, which is also known as Hatisure. The lake is the shape of an elephant. Kupup is said to have world’s highest golf course that belongs to the Indian Army. You will be enthralled by the view of frozen Kupup with dark blue water.

Another 5km from here is the New Baba Mandir, which most of the tourists visit. Most of the tourists here comes from Gangtok and on their way to Tsomgo Lake. You can opt for Tsomgo Lake, which requires additional permit. So if you are opting for Tsomgo Lake, you need to give another halt in Nathang or nearby.

Memencho Lake is also another attraction here, which is close to new Baba Mandir, but requires special permit for visit as well as stay.

Once all these lakes in our catalog are covered we will turn our head back to Reshi. Memencho to Reshi is an 80km stretch and will take about 3 hours.

Reshikhola, a small place with very few accommodations on the bank of Reshi River (Khola means River in Nepali). This River marks a state border between West Bengal and Sikkim.

After covering all the places, you will reach Reshi in evening. A tiring journey though the dizzy mountains will refresh you in a moment once you reach Reshi. This going to be the last halt in your trip. Your booking hotel will send porter, if you intimate them early. This is chargeable. You need to travel about a kilometre along the bank, crossing behind the forest.

Reshikhola is a place that can understand your lamenting mood. But will never let you lament. You will enjoy every beats of clock in Reshikhola. Imagine a night, sitting on a stone on the river bank, with a consistent melodious tune that the water makes while it hits the rocks on its way, the water sparkling to you on each touch with the rocks, the starry sky above you and the dark forest in front of you on the other side of the bank. It will create a tranquil environment which will soothe your tired mind and body. With very little infrastructure on electricity, if you get some natural light from Moon’s reflection, it will be more relaxing for your optic nerves. Enjoy tired Souls. Enjoy you last night of this tour.  Good Night!

Day 5: After breakfast, take a bathe in the natural bathtub with pebbled flooring and forests all round. I bet, if you miss this, you are going to miss one of the best flavors of this trip.

With heavy heart and all the memories, we have to bid good bye to the Silk Route. Reshi will hold the cenotaph of all these memories.

By this time you must be over satiated, enthralled with your visit in the historic land of Silk Route. It’s time to adieu Silk Route and return to the chaotic daily schedule. Journey starts via Pedong and Kalimpong to NJP.

Contacts:-

Spring Vale:- 9830107879

Vehicle: You can check with the below person or you can opt from Spring Vale (whoever want to cover the most in best price, can be chosen). Average Cost of 8-9 seater vehicle will be around Rs. 3500-Rs. 4000/- per day. Rates can vary from season to season.

Arunesh: 09046063001 / 09434037769

Points to Remember:

• All the above mentioned places have limited accommodation facility available. So prior booking is a mandate.
• This trip can be cover with Sikkim Government Registered Vehicles only. Prior Booking with all necessary classification is required. This trip requires permit. Ask your driver/vehicle owner to make prior arrangements. The permit can be collected from SDPO office at Rongli on the way to Zuluk (Sunday Closed)
• Try to reach NJP as early as possible. Early you leave; you will reach your destination early and take rest.
• Carry Original and Photocopy of ID for all the members along with 2 copy photo.
• Hotel charges per head include breakfast, lunch, snacks, dinner and accommodation on sharing basis.
• Take small oxygen cylinder, if you are travelling with aged person or person having breathing problem. 

For further query, refer to my Email Id below.

Aniket Chakraborty

*acaniketh@gmail.com