The unsuccessful attempt to reach Gurudongmar lake


The light drizzle continued the next day as well. We had finished breakfast, when we got a call from the reception informing us that the vehicle from our tour agent has arrived. We went down with our luggage. The driver said, " We need to start soon so that we can get to Lachen soon". As soon as we loaded our luggage, the driver promptly disappeared !!! He informed us that he was going to the market to buy a spanner. So there we were, all luggage loaded and looking lost !! We came in to sit at the reception. A set of old people were already sitting there and one of them asked me,"Are you off to North Sikkim?". I said yes upon which he told me that there was a landslide and the road was blocked. Oh great. At this time the guide from the travel agency arrived. He said that the road was being cleared and there should be no problem. I hoped so. After some time the driver came and we started, not knowing what roadblock lay ahead.

If you thought the 'guide' meant someone who knew the land intimately and knew about its history and will educate you about the mountains etc, you will be sorely disappointed. He was a tour guide, which means he will tell you where we will stop, where we will eat, what we will eat and when you need to get up tomorrow etc. He was more like an arranger of the trip. Anyway the guy who came with us was a young chap, who was very polite and did arrange things well.

We started in the drizzle and the first stop was not very far from Gangtok. We had to climb a small hillock to have a good view of the region, which we did. Then started the actual journey. I had initially thought that nothing would beat the drive from New Jalpaiguri to Gangtok. This drive was to prove that wrong. We were entering the actual Himalayan ranges now. The mountains became huge. After seeing them, the Brahmagiri ranges look like small hillocks. The Teesta river was running along with us all the way and whenever we stopped we could hear the gushing of the water. The Teesta was running with gay abandon over the rocks and the water was crystal clear. Once in a while the river would drop a few feet to create a mini water fall. Teesta would run along with us at our level sometimes. When we crossed bridges, it would run underneath us and we could feel its force. Most of the time it was way below us but always visible. Added to it was the vegetation all around us and it was a real pleasure driving along this road. I thought this was the best road journey I will ever have. I was to be proved wrong the very next day !!!

At many places we crossed some old bridges and when you cross these bridges you get a lovely view of the river beneath you and the mountains surrounding you. Generally we were climbing mountains, so we could see the valley below and the mountains in the front of us. At one point, we got a great side view. There were mountains on both sides stretching as far as the eye could see and the river running between the mountains as if it was the river which had cleaved these mountains. An outstanding sight. Mention must here be made about the Border Road Organisation, who have done a wonderful job on all these roads. I guess to have such great roads in a remote area like this wouldnt have been possible without their dedicated effort. Three cheers to all of them.

The journey to Lachen was a long one but the scenery kept us captivated. It took us more than 6 hrs to get there. On the way we had first stopped for lunch. I came to know that the driver and guide were having salt tea !!! Yup. That is right. They put some butter and salt in the tea. I had to have it and asked for a cup. After I drank that Gayathri asked me how it was. I told her it tasted like tea with salt in it !!! She knows me well not to react to such statements !! We then stopped in the evening at Chungthang and had tea, this time with sugar. The kids had Maggie noodles. By the time we reached Lachen, it was getting dark.

The facilities at Lachen are very basic and the tour agency had told me this. The place we stayed cannot be called a hotel. It was a multi storied building in reverse !! It started with the ground floor and was about three levels deep. The rooms were plain but they had hot water and electricity. The most fascinating part of the stay here was the disappearing act of the cast and crew there. When we went in, one guy showed us the room and disappeared. When I came out I saw that the driver and the guide have also disappeared. I searched for some soul but couldnt find any. After sometime the guy who showed us the room appeared bearing some tea. Then again he disappeared !! Suddenly the guide would pop up and say something and disappear. Then this guy would appear with some news about dinner and then promptly vanish. I was scared that I too would suddenly vanish without my own knowledge !! I wasnt the only one feeling that way. A family which had come there the previous day told me that they couldnt find anyone when they wanted something !!

Lachen was cold. Gayathri comes from Chennai and is not used to this type of cold. The temperature was getting close to zero degrees. Chennai people's concept of a cold day is when the temperature hits 20 degree centigrade. You can see people in sweater and mufflers in Dec in Chennai when the mercury touches 20 !! So you can imagine what a single digit temperature would have felt like to them. Gayathri was literally shivering and so were the kids. I asked for a room heater. The guy said he will check the availability and vanished. He didnt appear again for some time. Gayathri was fully draped in blanket and a razai but was still feeling cold. The guy finally appeared with a heater. We gave a sigh of relief when the heater gave out some hot air. This relief was short lived when the fuse gave out. I again went in search of someone and by some miracle located the guy who got us the heater. Told him about the problem. He came to the room, checked the heater, confirmed there was a problem, took the heater and you guess it, he vanished. Then the guide appeared. I told him about the heater. He said he will check about it and did the vanishing trick !! Finally the first guy appeared with a heater which worked and kept working. Only after this did Gayathri's agony subside.

Given the cold weather, we werent sure if we wanted to go to the Gurudongmar lake. I wanted to see it but wasnt sure if the kids will be able to take in the cold. We finally decided to go and we started a bit late than what the driver would have liked. Now came a journey which was incredible. After we left Lachen, the mountains seemed to grow even taller. Wherever our eyes turned we saw snow capped mountains. The whole place was deserted and ours was the only car on the road. Along the way there were lot of yaks grazing. Cows were climbing the mountains surefooted. There were waterfalls everywhere you turned. We could clearly see the snow melt and come down in the form of a waterfall. There were small purple flowers growing out of the ground all along the way, giving the whole place a colorful glow. This area is supposed to be a birdwatchers paradise and we could see why. As we were driving along, suddenly a big group of tiny birds would take off, fly in front of our jeep for some time, then do a tight right turn in such unison that it would have made the best fighter pilot jealous. As you watch these birds with amazement, another bird, slightly larger, with a black body and a lovely brown tail would start off from a bush and fly away. As you watch that wonderful bird with your mouth agape, there would rise a couple of tiny birds with wonderfully colored wings and fly away. I am not a bird watcher but I was sure taken in by the sheer variety of birds I saw during the journey. If a birdwatcher were to come here I am sure he will just die of sheer pleasure. The yaks, flowers, birds, waterfalls, snow capped mountains and the ever flowing river made this a journey which was unforgettable. This sure beat the journey of yesterday.

After traveling for quite some time, we encountered snow. There had been a very heavy snowfall the earlier day it seems and the whole area was now covered in snow. We traveled for some more time before we saw a large caravan of jeeps in front of us. A couple of vehicles had got stuck in the snow and all the people were trying to help these guys. We were stuck behind the vehicles for close to one hour and our dream of visiting Gurudongmar lake vanished. Somehow they got the vehicles out and we proceed for some more time. The snow was thicker here and almost everyone turned back since it made no sense trying to get to Gurudongmar. One guy had told us, when we were waiting for the traffic to move, that Gurudongmar was at a high altitude (17,000+ feet) and kids may find it difficult there. Gayathri was apprehensive and she was relieved when we turned back. We turned back at a place called Thangu, which was at 15000 ft, had tea there and proceed back to Lachen. Due to the heavy snow, we couldnt get to see Chopta Valley either. The kids though were very happy since they could play in snow again. We came back to Lachen, had our lunch and left for Lachung. Not seeing Gurudongmar was a regret.

The next day was our planned trip to the Valley of Flowers near Lachung. We were in for a surprise.