Scintillating Sikkim — Gurudongmar Lake
From what was expected to be a 10am start from Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim, we delayed ourselves to almost 11:30. We were informed by our driver that we should minimize our baggage as much as we could and travel only with the bare essentials. Thus, from one suitcase + backpack each (for six of us), we had to re-arrange our stuff so that eventually we just had one suitcase and six small backpacks. This 1.5 hour delay actually was worth it — because of tricky road conditions and uncertainty of rain, it is best to avoid carrying any luggage in the carrier section of your vehicle.
We were on our way from Gangtok around ~ 11:40 in what appeared & felt like a brand new Mahindra Xylo. Surprising as it may sound, all six of us found Xylo to be more spacious and comfortable from within as compared to both Innova & Scorpio (we traveled in Innova & Scorpio in other segments of our journey apart from North Sikkim). Personally, at least for North Sikkim, I’d strongly suggest paying the extra bucks to upgrade from a Sumo / Bolero to a Xylo, solely because a major chunk of the trip time to North Sikkim is spent in the car. And with long journeys on bumpy mountainous roads, comfort while traveling minimizes the chances of getting sick. Of course, traveling in shared cabs on a tight budget has it own benefits. However, in case the budget permits, for families and especially for those prone to travel sickness, a Xylo is highly recommended. Last word of advice related to the car — having a good music system which supports USB / aux cable (to connect with your device) is a big bonus! For long road journeys through scenic mountains & valleys, having you favorite music playing in the background is always a delight.
The journey on day 1 from Gangtok — Lachen took us about 7–8 hours, including a lunch break and small breaks every couple of hours. The road is not in the best condition, but also not in the worst. It doesn't really feel bumpy for most parts of the journey and the speed with which you travel gives you ample time to absorb in the beauty outside. You will encounter a lot of waterfalls on the way too — we initially halted at a few of these to explore around and click pictures.
Around 1.5 hours before Lachen is the town of Chunthang, which is the last point till which you would be able to get signal for all private mobile networks like Airtel, Idea, Vodaphone. Beyond that, only Cellone / Bsnl works, which is a rare connection to have these days. Chunthang is also the point where the road diverges into two — one towards Lachen and Gurudongmar and the other, towards Lachung and Yumthang. We had our evening tea at Chunthang and made our customary ‘We’re okay, Ma!’ calls home, before heading towards Lachen. We reached Lachen around 7:45–8ish and checked in to our hotel. The owners of the hotel we stayed in were courteous and cheerful, and had us all comfortably settled in within no time. Dinner was served by 9pm — the food was excellent. The food didnt have the fancy restaurant touch to it and felt homely — dal, sabji, roti and rice. We decided to take a walk around post dinner to explore Lachen. Lachen (9000ft) is basically a small town which has these small hotels and lodges that have come up along the main highway, primarily for tourists heading to Gurudongmar to take a night halt. There wasn’t much to explore — just more hotels and a few ration shops along the main road till half a kilometer and nothing beyond that. What was interesting to see was that the all ration shops sold liquor as well (different types of rum), which we assumed was popular due to the cold climate. Once back at the hotel, we were informed that we’d be served bed tea at 3am and that we had to leave by 4am for Gurudongmar.
We left as per schedule at 4am in pitch dark from Lachen for a 6 hour uphill ascent to Gurudongmar (17,100ft). The journey is one of its kind and definitely shouldn’t be slept through.
As you begin gaining height, the greenery around the valley slowly ceases to give way to snow clad peaks and brown barren land. We stopped for breakfast at around 7 am at a roadside cafe that served hot tea, coffee and maggi. It are times like these when you sincerely bless the inventor of instant noodles from the center of your heart . Maybe its just me, but Maggi just tastes exceptionally brilliant at high altitudes.
The small cafe was brilliant and snug — the kitchen a part of the dining area, making it warm and cosy. A word of caution though: since you are gaining altitude while driving on that stretch, your body is slowly getting acclimatized. It is suggested to not over exert yourself by running around, since the body is still adjusting to the lowering levels of oxygen. The best way to deal with this is to walk slowly, take deep breaths and let your eyes feast on what nature has to offer to you.
After a quick 20 minute breakfast break, we started off for the final ascent towards Gurudongmar Lake. The hairpin bends started increasing, and it was easy to realize that we were quickly gaining height. We stopped sighting the occasional shepherds and shacks, and the frequency of army check points and posts increased.
There is a major army check-post very close to the final venue, where all our ID cards and permits were checked. This check-post had an army run cafe and medical facilities available too, for the general public. To see the Indian Army serve the country at such extreme conditions far away from their respective homes — somehow that sense of pride and the hidden patriotism inside comes out of you at such an occasion.
Gurudongmar Lake was around 20 minutes from the Army check post — it just suddenly appears out of nowhere. Once there, it took us a while to absorb the scene — for me, it probably has to be the most picturesque and serene place I have ever been to. A half frozen lake, snow clad mountains in the background, colorful tibetan flags fluttering in the strong wind, and a small army built temple.
The long 16 hour journey from Gangtok divided into two segments seemed absolutely worth it. Again, a word of caution — its highly recommended to walk slowly, breathe deeply — preferably sit for a while as soon as you get down from your vehicle. The conditions are not easy — oxygen levels are slightly low at 17000 ft with strong chilly winds. Gurudongmar Lake has a lot of stories tied around it. As the name of the lake suggests, Guru denotes ‘Guru Padmasambhava’ and ‘Dongmar’ implies ‘red face’ which means that the lake displays the red-faced form of the Guru, the angry side which scares away all evil. It is also believed that the Guru touched and blessed the lake and that portion of the lake never freezes even during peak winter.
Because of the extreme climate conditions at the venue, we couldn’t stay for more than 30 minutes. We started our journey back for Lachen, eventually reaching there around 1pm for lunch. (To be continued…)
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Location: Gurudongmar Lake, North Sikkim, India
Elevation: 17,800ft
Camera: Nikon D5000
Color graded with Pixlr Express
Travel dates: May, 2014
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PS: I’m writing this post after almost two years now, yet, it feels like yesterday.
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