North Sikkim Travel- Yumthang, Lachung, Lachen 

North Sikkim Travel: North Sikkim Tour

North Sikkim is probably the most beautiful part of Sikkim Himalaya. Mangan, the district head quarter of North Sikkim, is situated 65 kms away for Gangtok at an altitude of about 4000 ft. North Sikkim has immense potential of nature that includes approx 500 waterfalls, beautiful valleys, glaciers, hot spring, snowcapped Himalayan peaks & various types of rhododendrons & orchids. Some of the important places in North Sikkim are the Yumthang Valley, Lachung Valley, Lachen Valley, Gurudongmar Lake, Zero Point, Katao & Yumasemdong.

North Sikkim- Region Highlights

Yumthang:

Yumthang, The Valley of Flowers, is often compared with Switzerland. Yumthang is situated approx 142 km away from Gangtok, at an altitude of 1200 ft. The roadside along with the entire valley is covered with snow during the winter. One can alsosee numerous varieties of Rhododendrons & orchids during March to June. Yumthang is also famous for hot spring & its healing power on the bank of Lachung Chu.

Yumesamdong, another hot spring of North Sikkim on river Sbu Chu, is only 23 kms away from Yumthang. Just beside Yumesamdong there is Donkiyala Pass which connect the valleys of Lachung & Lachen.

Katao:

Katao Valley is just 24 kms away from Lachung at an altitude of above 15,000 ft. From Katao one can see the snowcapped peaks of Himalaya & beautiful valleys covered with rhododendron. Katao also remains covered with ice most of the time.

Lachung:

Lachung a small hamlet of North Sikkim is situated at an altitude of 8200 ft. 120 kms away from Gangtok. Lachung is only 25 kms away from Yumthang. A full day excursion to Yumthang valley can be a life time experience to any guest.

Lachen:

Lachen is another small hamlet of North Sikkim situated about 125 away from Gangtok, at an altitude of 9000 ft. higher than Lachung. Lachen is famous for its apple plantation & beautiful valley. There are many trekking routs from Lachen leads to some beautiful place like Green Lake. Gurudongmar Lake at an altitude of 14000 ft. along with the Chopta Valley is some of the important places that can be covered from Lachen.

Gurudongmar Lake:

Gurudongmar Lake is situated approx 50 kms away from Lachen at an altitude of 18,000 ft. The lake is on a high plateau adjacent to the Tibetan plateau. Gurudongmar is considered one of the most sacred lakes in Sikkim by the Buddhists as well as the Hindus. According to the Buddhists’ belief the lake is blessed by Gurudongmar Padmasamvava & it remains milky through out the year. Even in the extreme cold a part of the lake does not freeze. The lake is named after him, who was also known as Guru Dongmar. This is the source of Lachen Chu, an important stream in North Sikkim. Gurudongmar offers some magnificent views of Mt. Siniolchu & a very close view of Mt. Kanchandzonga, the world’s third highest peak.

Tso Lhamu is another important lake just 9 kms from Gurudongmar Lake at an altitude of almost 16,500 ft. it is the source of river Tista & also offers beautiful view of surrounding valleys.

Chopta Valley:

Chopta Velley is an unexplored destination of North Sikkim at an altitude of 13,300 ft. During the seson of spring the entire valley blooms with rhododendrons & varieties of orchids.

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Famous place to visit in sikkim by indifest.

 Famous Place to visit in sikkim by Indifest

Phodong Monastery

Earlier we have discussed that Sikkim is a place which has ruined over by Buddhism.
The place has great influence of the ethics of Buddhism. Local people there follow the
culture and tradition of the religion. There are six major monasteries in Sikkim.
Phodong monastery is one of the most famous monasteries in Sikkim. The Gompa is
situated in the 38 kms from Gangtok main town. It is one of the most essential monasteries
as it serves the religious purpose of the state. Recently, the monastery has been renovated in
new architectural design.

Phensang Monastery

Phensang monastery is also another must visit place among tourists. The Gompa
is situated on the very smooth slope which stretches from Kabi to Hodong and is
known as the best viewpoint in entire Sikkim. According to history, the monastery
was built in 1721. The place offers a pleasant feel to all the visitors and it is said that
it looks more beautiful in the monsoon.  Reportedly, the Gompa was destroyed by
foreign invaders but was rebuilt in 1948. All the lamas of that time took initiative to
rebuild the monastery.

Chungthang

Chungthang is a very beautiful place for trekking. The place follows Lachen and
Lachung Chu. The way meets the starting point of River Teesta. The nature has
blessed the place with all sorts of natural amenities. The Rocky Mountains and
the green dense forests have increased its beauty. The place is quite popular among
the trekkers and also with the people who are interested in mountaineering courses.
Here you can find some of the happening spots of rock climbing. Chungthang also
follows in the North sub divisional zone of Sikkim. The place is considered as the
junction for the two most famous passes of Sikkim. These passes are respectively;
Lachen and Lachung Chu. The valley has also a historical importance as it is to be
said that the place has been visited by Guru Rimpoche. Some find the foot and palm
print in the rock of the famous guru. Chungthang is also very famous for different Orchids,
Plants and Wildlife. The place is situated at the distance of 95 kms from Gangtok. It comes
under the Lepcha region

sikkim by India Travel Blog

Sikkim – II: Gangtok Zoo and Lingdum Monastery by India Travel Blog

As I write this, I am trying to think how Gangtok is different from any other hill stations. Like its other counterparts, Gangtok too has its share of some great views, a large number of hotels and a dedicated shopping area. The local travel agents have perfected the process of herding the tourists with three-point, seven-point and nine-point tours. I am unable to find anything to set Gangtok apart, except that it is yet to become a big fat dot in the tourist map. The number of people arriving here is probably much less than what you see in Shimla, Manali or Ooty and the number of hotels here are also not as many. But Gangtok is catching up, and catching up fast. The Government of Sikkim is doing everything possible to increase inflow of tourists year after year.
Yet, there is a feel good about Gangtok that you don’t necessarily see in other hill stations. You are less likely to see touts rushing after you the moment you arrive, trying to squeeze every bit of your money. You don’t see any kind of solicitors troubling you as you walk on the roads. People here are still nice and friendly. The hills around the town are still green and are not littered with hotels and resorts. Even the shopping street is so well managed that I don’t feel the claustrophobia that I tend to feel in other such places. Gangtok is still beautiful.

And the most beautiful part of the town is perhaps the zoo spread over a large area. When we started planning our first day in the town, I suggested that we go to Gangtok Zoo first.
‘Would you really like to see the zoo?’ some one responded immediately.
In return, two of us who had been here earlier said quickly in unison – ‘it is a beautiful place.’ It is an open-air zoo spread across a large area on a hill with plenty of space for each of its inhabitants. A zoo is indeed a confined space, but the sloth bears, snow leopards, pandas, civets and wolves living here still have plenty of space to walk around in their large enclosures. Sometimes these enclosures are so large that you won’t be able to see them without waiting for them to emerge from the woods. A family of pandas, a family of bears and a bunch of civets living here seemed happy, considering that they live in confined spaces, but a leopard and a Tibetan wolf looked lonely and brooding.
The paths that connect these enclosures go through thick woods and bamboo groves running for several kilometers. The cool weather of Gangtok has allowed a large number of flowers to bloom along these paths, forming bright yellow and purple dots in the woods.

A Tibetan Wolf
A video on Red Pandas in Gangtok Zoo by Sankara.
Lingdum Monastery is located in a quite place in the middle of woods – the kind of place perfectly suited for spiritual pursuits. The facade of the monastery is a long two-story structure with large windows. A long wall of prayer wheels stands on the open area in front of the monastery. The monastery looked large, but I wasn’t prepared for what is inside.

As I walked through the front door, I was taken away by what I saw. Standing in the center of the monastery, surrounded by thick woods on all sides was a superb seven-story building adorned with Buddhist symbols all along its walls. In front of it was a wide open space where several young monks were on a learning session. The maroon-robed kids were dancing gently to the sound of drums in small groups, swaying their hands and occasionally jumping back and forth. Behind them, the tall tower rose high, superbly decorated with vibrant colours and beautiful paintings. In the next minute or two I took a few pictures of the monastery, but soon realized that in the short evening I was to spend here, I would rather sit quiet and take in the peace of the atmosphere than go on a clicking frenzy. I put away my camera and walked alone quietly along the monastery, feeling a sense of peace growing within me. As I write this, I realized that the experience of being in the monastery was beyond words and stopped making further attempts to describe the inner joy of being in the place and experiencing a feeling of nothingness, a feeling that nothing else but being there really mattered.

A video of monks practicing their steps by Sankara.
As the sun made his way beyond the ridges and the last rays of light kissed tower of the monastery, we retreated to our resort walking away unwillingly from the monastery. As we drove into Gangtok town and walked amidst revelling tourists at the shopping center, I wondered if these monastic retreats played a significant role in keeping the people of Sikkim friendly and in keeping Gangtok a hill station that is a lot more charming than its counterparts.

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sikkim(final part) by composed volcano.

Sikkim (final part) by composed volcano

View of the Kanchenjunga from Rinchenpong(pic credit: Varsha / Ranjit)

Rinchenpong also boasts of the old-world but absolutely striking Rinchengpong monastery. The local sightseeing also includes the Poison Lake and the Heritage House. Rinchenpong begs you stay for at least two days and that’s what we did. Our last leg of travel included visiting a bit of West Sikkim which prides itself about Pelling. Pelling offers splendid views of the Kanchenjunga range. At Pelling you can also visit the Khecheopalri Lake (a sacred lake to the Tibetans and Buddhists) and the Singshore Bridge (the second largest hanging bridge in Asia).

Young Monks at the Rinchengpong Monastery(pic cerdit: Varsha / Ranjit)

Local sight-seeing at Rinchenpong took us to the quaint but absolutely beautiful Rinchengpong monastery, the Poison Lake (yes that’s the lake’s name) and the Heritage House. West Sikkim also boasts of Pelling, a small town hamlet that also offers magnificent views of the Kanchenjunga peak.

Khecheopalri Lake(pic cerdit: Varsha / Ranjit)

The Singshore bridge(pic cerdit: Varsha / Ranjit)

All good things must come to an end and our trip certainly was coming to an end, you know that when you have just about enough money to cover your travel back home. But that does not mean its goodbye to the North-East. We have to come back travel some more, perhaps next time it will be Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya…(should start planning now…perhaps )
Places to see
•    Rumtek Monastary
•    Nathula Pass
•    Rinchengpong and Pelling (great views of the Himalayan range)
Things to do
•    Buying the local masks some made out of bamboo roots
•    Alpine cheese (gouda cheese)
•    Drinking beer (Dansberg and Hit!)
How to get there:
Air : Closest airport is Bagdogra which is appx. 5 hrs drive away from Gangtok (Sikkim’s capital). You can also take a helicopter ride from Bagdogra to Gangtok provided you get seats!
Rail :  2 Railway stations are Siliguri (114 kms.) and New Jalpaiguri (125 kms.) from both these places you can drive to Gangtok which takes roughly around 4-5 hours.