April 26 : Ghoom to Mirik
Night Halt: Mirik
Night Halt: Mirik
Darjeeling went to General Election 2024 on April 26. So as per the norm, all public places such as the zoo, mountaineering institute were closed. Accordingly we changed our plans.Instead of putting up in Darjeeling, we went to Mirik, famous for the lake with the same name.
The road from Ghoom to Mirik enroute Sukhiya Pokhri and Lepcha Jagat is known as Rishi Road and is the most picturesque road in Darjeeling.Road condition is excellent and the road goes through pine forests, tea gardens and small settlements.One part of road from Simana to Pashupatinagar nagar runs just at the friendly border of India and Nepal.
Our route was:
Ghoom -> Lepcha Jagat -> Sukhiya Pokhri -> Simana view point -> Pashupati Nagar -> Mirik
Lepcha Jagat needs a special mention. Its a quaint little sleepy villages with a handful of homestays surrounded by the pine forest. On a clear day,one can see the entire range from here.The homestays are run by the ethnic lepcha people of the place and they are trying to promote the place as a tourist destination in the coming days.We had limited number of days for this trip so we could not stay at Lepcha Jagat even though we think this place deserves a night stay.
From Sukhiya Pokhri, one road goes to Mane Bhanjan. Mane Bhanjan is the place to book cars if one is interested in going to Sandakphu.
From Simana to Pashupati Nagar, the road is on Indian side and the other side is Nepal.People can move
free from one side of the border to the other as many times as one wish in a day without any passport or visa. But I think to get further in, one would need some formal permission papers.At Simana, there is a viewpoint from where one can see the Mayu river and few houses in Nepal.
At Pashupati Nagar, there must be some popular temple because we saw devotees in large numbers.
As we went further down,we started seeing rea estates on either side of the road. Our route took us through Gopaldhara tea estate. At Gopaldhara there are 2/3 homestays and some restaurants. The tea estate has their own tea shop for visitors to sample their tea and buy. Okaitea tea gardens and Thurbo tea estate ( very beautiful ) will also be on the route approaching Mirik.
us
Gopaldhara
We reached Mirik Lake in the afternoon. Mirik Lake as known as Sumendu Lake stretches over 1.25km.The lake is naturally fed by spring and rain water and so it remains full all the year round.We checked in Pradhan Hotel which was just on the side of the lake before approaching the bridge. Our room was good with a balcony from where we could get a view of the lake, the horse track and the pine forests thereafter. Hotel staff was also helpful and friendly. Their restaurant makes great food so we had a good stay.
April 27 : Mirik to Kalimpong
Night Halt: Kalimpong
Night Halt: Kalimpong
Next day morning we explored the lake and the surroundings. Entry to the lake is absolutely free, but car parking charges are applicable.There are a lot of shops in the approach road of the lake.A lot of eateries, some permanent, some stalls. There are a lot of activities..One can just walk the entire periphery of the lake or do a horse riding.There is also option of paddle boat or row boat and fish feeding.Or one can spend the entire time browsing the shops and doing souvenirs shopping.We also visited the Saturday 'haat', which sells all local Gorkha items such as local food, sweaters, cardigans, plants, hair accessories even cloths and bags.
Haat
Afterwards we started for Kalimpong, back tracking the same way till Ghoom. Our family reached Kalimpong from Bagdogra that same day and we were excited to catch up with them to continue the rest of our vacation.
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