No doubt! The Sikkim is among the few destinations which can be called as the ‘heaven on Earth’. A great place to embark on a refreshing and peaceful vacation away from the big crowded cities, my Sikkim tour is the most memorable and highly enriching experience of my life. A journey to a place which is an amalgamation of snow-clad pristine Himalayan Mountains, mesmerizing valleys adorned with vibrant rhododendron flowers, sparkling waterfalls, captivating icy lakes, beautiful quaint villages, ancient Monasteries and many other attractions can only be a life-changing experience. Here I am sharing my itinerary and personal experience of this wonderful trip with you.
1st Day (25th of November)
After driving for 14 hours and covering 630 km of road distance, we arrived at NJP at 3 AM just past midnight. Made a halt at NJP and stayed there for the night.
2nd Day (26th of November)
In the morning, we moved towards Gangtok and reached there by noon. We applied for the permits, but unfortunately, we didn’t get the permits needed for visiting various destinations of Sikkim such as Nathu La, Baba Mandir, Silk Route, Kupup, Zuluk and the Gurundongmar Lake on that day so we had to stay at Gangtok till next day.
However, we used the remaining day for the sightseeing in and around the Gangtok.
3rd Day (27th of November)
The next day we got the permits, but didn’t get the passes from the tourism department of Sikkim due to the heavy rainfall. So, one more day of our trip lost in Gangtok without doing anything.
4th Day (28th of November)
The next day, very early in the morning, we went for the passes for the North Sikkim and somehow manage to get the North Sikkim visiting passes.
We finally started our road trip to North Sikkim through the beautiful and mesmerizing roads enjoying the scenic beauty of Sikkim.
Captured the beautiful moments with my Co-rider Mr. Babu Mondal, who owns a CBZ Xtream 150cc bike.
Via Lachen, we have reached the Thangu Valley at around 5 PM where the Army stopped us for further riding due to the bad light and bad road conditions and we are forced to make a halt there.
At the temperature of nearly minus 5 degrees, we booked a Homestay for the night.
5th Day (29th of November)
Next morning, at the 9 AM, we collected pass for the Gurudongmar Lake from the nearest Army check post we found on the way and headed directly towards our much-desired tourist destination known as the Gurudongmar Lake.
En route, we saw some other bikers on the road who were struggling to ride the bike as you know that part of the ride is a pure off-road. Some heavy bikes fall down severely. As we have some lightweight machines so we passed it with a joyful mind and a wonderful off-road riding experience. We arrived at the Lake.
Here is the one of the most beautiful and marvelous high altitude lakes in the world – the Gurudongmar Lake. We stepped down at the lake and take a walk on the frozen water of the lake. Due to such a low temperature, the water froze and turned into the solid crystal clear ice. The scenery was just breathtaking and captivating. Spent some time, around 1 hour, took a lot of photos of this memorable moment for making a lifelong memory.
The weather was really chilly and the oxygen saturation was very low in the Air. Army personnel requested all the tourists to return back and we respect their request and took the return ride. In our returning journey to Gangtok, the time was running faster than us and the road was getting darker and darker as the time passes. Anyhow, we reached the Gangtok at nearly 9 PM.
6th Day (30th of November)
In the morning at 6 AM, we collected the pass for East Sikkim and then headed directly towards the Nathu La.
Oh! What a place to fly our Tricolour. We also handed over our national flag to a senior Army officer and it was placed in the temple at the Indian army’s Kali Mandir. This is situated in the border base camp.
Then we visited Baba Mandir (both), Kupup, Nathang Valley and down to Zuluk in a freezing temperature. It’s damn tough to ride on the icy path along with the famous zigzag turns. Shared a cup of tea with Jawans at their check post and then returned to NJP at around 10 PM.
We had dinner and then drive to the old Malda bazaar. Took some rest and then headed back to Kolkata.
My dream of Kolkata-Sikkim-Kolkata bike trip with friends was completed.
