Friday, June 19, 2020

Treasure of the orient: Gochela

After my solo trek to "Sandakphu phalut" with the Himalayan trekker. This time i got an great opportunity to trek in the part of Sikkim. Trekking the word itself makes my inner self activated. Don't know how the happiness and enthusiasm i feel if some one arrange it. This time again i got the opportunity to join the hands with HT. It's the 6th time which i feel happy and energetic to say that am joining the HT.

This is my second blog after my " To phalut - A solo journey" blog. This time with fixed departure group of 14 members from different states. It was the great moments to join the hands again with HT, as the service provided by them is always awesome. Hats off to my "HT"

A good phrase comes in my mind.

                        "Once a year  go someplace you  have never been before.- dalai lama "

This time *GOECHALA TREK* -A Trek That Takes You Close To The World’s Third Highest Mountain!!! Goechala is one of the a high altitude trek in west Sikkim. The trek that takes you close to the world's 3rd highest mountain.  It is famous for grand view of mountain kanchenjunga and other Himalayan peaks.

Here is a quick story of what happened and what we was in the 11days.

!!!My journey begins!!!
Day 1, 27 Sep 2019
My journey for the trek starts from Chennai(my home town). Flight was scheduled on 28th Sep at 05:00 AM up to Bagdogra. To avoid the last min rush and to choose the economic travel , I started my journey on 27th Sep night itself around 11:30 PM and reached airport around 01:30 AM by bus via Tambaram. Got the boarding pass and waited for the boarding flight to Bagdogra (nearest city is siliguri - West Bengal). During the security check in , unforgettable moment happened. suddenly by suspicious they asked me to remove the shoe, after checking they smiled and replied "All the best ". Without any delay i got into my preferred window seat.

Day 2, 28 Sep 2019

It was the post monsoon period in West Bengal so it was raining heavily when i landed at 07:45 before the arrival time. Airport was too small and not much commercial. Out of the group of 14 trekkers, i was waiting for the 3 trekkers who were going to join with me, 2 from silliguri , 2 trekker reached directly and 6 trekkers in the cab to Yuksom from NJP.

Met the 3 trekkers  one by one , from whom i first met Punit around 08:30 , Harsh around 09:00 and Umang around 10:30 AM. In  the meantime we all introduced ourselves. After our unity , we called the cab driver arranged by HT and start our journey in the chill climate. Cab started around 11 AM towards Silliguri to pick 2 more people. Due to heavy rain huge traffic was there. Packed luggage on the top of the cab for the relaxed travel.Around 12:10 , started from Siliguri towards yuksom which was 7 hours journey around  160 KM. The way was full of ghat. Six members were Harsh, Umang, Vinay, Vivek, Punit and Myself. All had the good interaction and all felt hungry so stopped our cab and had lunch around 13:30. Had roti and subji and left towards Yuksom .


On the way we saw the beautiful town(Jortang) where we saw very well organized and clean street and roads. There was  the beautiful hanging bridge where we saw two river joining together. 
A stretch between Malli to Jorethang

While going , we saw one section of huge landslide and bridge under construction. Due to mud, our cab went slowly and successfully crossed. we expected to reach yuksom around 17:00, but due to traffic and road congestion, we have to take the short cut roads to reach yuksom. Around 17:00 it  was pitch dark due to early sunset and it was totally remote area.


The driver was very well known to that place so bit relaxed. It was around 15 KM to reach the destination, the tyre got punctured and fixed it by driver immediately and left from that place. we reached the base camp around 19:00. By the time , the first cab also reached. We settled our cab fare of 1000 INR each.


We all stayed in the home stay kept all the luggage and refreshed ourselves. Room has 4 beds and we (Umang, Punit, Harsh And Myself) stayed in it. All refreshed quickly and kept ready all declaration document , address proof and photo copy that are to be handed over to HT. All were ready for the dinner and went to hotel. I was surprised to see Rhik - HT coordinator , he has the good experience of Goecha la trek. On the behalf of HT , he gave the introduction about the trek lead and other staff people of HT. By seeing me he was too surprised. All gathered for the dinner and introduced one by one.



All discussed about the trek plan and handed over all the documents and everyone was tired so got sign off for the day and went to room around 22:00. Next 10 days it's going to be fun and challenging for which all were eagerly waiting for.

Day 3, 29 Sep 2019
!!! Good morning yuksom.!!!
(yuksom-Sachen)
The dream trek begins today. :) the climate was chill as it was rainy. Woke up around 05:00 and did the bath. Bathed well as the next bath will be after 10 days(i.e after trek finishes). All got refreshed and had tea at the restaurant. Back to tent and packed all our rucksack and gathered at the hotel. It was the breakfast time. I ordered bread omlet , kellogg's and black tea. All did according to their wish. By the time Rhik came for the send off and did some discussion regarding the excursion. 



Started our journey towards our first camp site sachen 08 KM altitude of 7200 feet followed by trek leader at the both the ends. On the way kanchenjunga national park was encountered where we are going to walk next 8 days. At the entrance ,interpretation center was there where we got the details about the kanchenjunga national park like birds , animals , mountain peaks, and many more. Near by there was the cage for capturing leapord.





Front row left to right and back row right to left in order of trekker name: Aveek,Sourav,PK,Bijit,Puneet, Umang, Cirag,Kiran-Trek lead,Rajarshi, Pankaj, Harsha, Myself, & Vivek


Vinay

With the heavy back bag around 13 to 15 KG , our journey started. It was thick forest with greenery surrounding by steams and narrow path. Few paths were ascent and few descent. Trek was very well organized that at the both ends trek leads are following for the safety of the trekkers. Reported 1st suspension bridge and also big arch of kanchenjunga national park which seems officially welcoming the trekkers. The trail was quite rocks and steps. Encountered the first yak on the way. yak and mules were used for the logistic purpose. Yak is huge and calm. I enquired about how much weight it can carry on their back. They said around 50 KG. (shocked !)



Walked around 2 1/2 hours saw another suspension bridge, captured the empty bridge after all the trekkers passed by. Sweeper (the guide at end point) Agam waited for me till I finished taking snaps. It was the wooden bridge where already landslide happened. Saw good water fall and had water as well. After the walk of 4-5 hours saw the welcome board of Sachen(2189 meter). Reached Sachen around 14:00. We already packed our lunch from yuksom itself in the lunch box. All were dam hungry so had stomach full of lunch and waited for the logistics. We all waited in the small hut for an hour till they pitch the tent.






Almost 5 tents were pitched out of which 3 people got accommodated in 4 tent and 2 people in 1 tent. I was totally wet due to rain , so dried up myself outside the tent. Umang , myself and PK(scientist) grouped and stayed in one tent. Took a nap for sometime. Around 05:30 PM it was quite dark. The camp site was too muddy due to rain. So all switched on the light and was waiting for the dinner call. There was also another group of trekkers who pitched their tent next to us. All have to go to same hut for dinner. All nicely had the dinner and myself filled my water bottle with hot water and kept in the sleeping bags(to keep warm. :)). Had some discussion about the next day challenge(Tshoka). Around 08:30 PM , we all came back to tent. It was quite spacious for 3 people. All wished "good night" and happily went inside the "sleeping bag" for keeping ourselves warm.


Day 4, 30 Sep 2019 
(Sachen to Tsokha)
Today morning started with the bed tea-"BLACK TEA". Around 06:30 am  we woke up and got the call from kitchen team that target to leave Sachen by 09:00AM. Sikkim is known to be clean  city wherever we go, we get rest room, no problem at high altitude too. Nicely had our breakfast -bread toast , jam and omelett and for lunch we are going to get the hot lunch at campsite.


Tsokha was around 04km from Sachen . The trail was up and down with patches started with a slow move one by one after the healthy breakfast. "Bakhim" is the place where all trekkers take rest. It is a pit stop /resting point. Valley view was awesome from Bakhim. The way towards Tsokha was dense forest and luckily no rain .On the way we saw 60 11th grade students from Bangalore for goechela trek. On enquring we came to  know that "it is the part of academic" , surprised and happy to see the school student for the adventurous activity. They are about to complete their trek. During their time , the weather was not clear to see the view point.One student happily said that " you people are lucky" as climate was favorable. Signing off from the student , we started to walk ahead.


On the way , we have encountered the suspension bridge connecting one hill to another hill and the river flowing under it (River Prek Chuand the colorful prayer flag were tagged on the bridge which was too beautiful to see. I took the empty hanging bridge with the colorful  flags flying and started our walk towards Bakhim, huge fog was crossing due to which there was "0" visibility. 


Later it was good. Reached Bakhim around 12:30-13:00 where small hut was there. Some trekkers reached early and ordered black tea and some reached later. After a small break , we started our walk towards Tsokha. It was not that much big day. Trail was also descent. 




Finally reached Tsokha around 14:30. At all camp site we have  trekkers hut which costs around 100 INR per bed. Reached hut and waiting for logistics to pitch the tent. Had our lunch poori ,raita and subji with discussion about today trail  among the trekkers.


Finally the tent was pitched and all took rest for 01 hour. After that there was the small plan to visit small monastery which was 600 meter away from the camp site. All started our walk towards monastery which was bit up hill. It was post monsoon period then also unfortunately rain came. Due to which sky was not clear. Hope fully for another couple of days will get the good clear view. From the monastery  top we can see the full view of Tsokha.                                                                           

Due to some function(Work was going on) monastery was closed. Around 17:30 it became pitch dark , birds were flying beautifully going back to nest. Enjoying  the nature , we started our walk towards the tent. Reached tent and had black tea nicely. Had some chit chat about the next day with trek lead and fellow trekkers. Around 19:15 , got the call for the dinner. Had dinner nicely. hoping for the good weather the next day all signed off for the day. I had cards with me, so played card in the tent for a while and then all slept.


Day 5, 01 Oct2019 
(Tsokha to Dzongri)

It was quite challenging trek from Tsokha to Dzongri as the altitude of Dzongri is double as compared to other place covered so far.Trail was ascent and descent. The next day would be the acclimatization day at Dzongri to get adopted to the climate and altitude. Early morning , clear sky , the sun rays falling on the mountain.We can see mountain pandim but suddenly the clouds covered so can't able to see the full view. But on the way we can see the mountain range in very close view if weather is clear.



All the trekkers got refreshed around 07:30-08:00 with their rack sack for the adventurous day as the distance and the altitude both high when compared to previous days.Today packed lunch due to long day. There was no rain such but cloudy. Started to walk around 09:00 and the trail towards  Dzongri was awesome. There is one pit top named  phedang where all have the plan to have lunch. Started our walk towards phedang , the way was rain forest with wooden steps surrounded by big trees so have to be careful while walking. There were other trekkers group too on the way Dzongri and had some chit chat too.


It was around 13:30 when we reached phedang. Some reached early and some later. All had their lunch nicely at phedang but i didn't. Had my dry fruits and thought to have my lunch at Dzongri.



Rain started and bit slippery too. Finally reached Dzongri around 15:30. Dzongri also have hut facility. If we go solo we can stay over there. All became tired due to long day walks. Mine shoulder was also paining  due to 12KG rucksack. Tent was already pitched. so kept all the belongings and had my favorite black tea for refreshment. After sometime had my packed lunch fried rice. 



All were happy with the trail. After some refreshment there was a plan visit the hut where small shop was there. After reaching the hut , had momos nicely and almost most of the trekker were there and we had a chit chat with local people. The hut bit warm and every one not willing to move out due to warmness. 


There was a special drink" Chhaang or chang " is a Nepalese and Tibetan alcoholic beverage also popular in parts of the eastern Himalayas cost around 140 INR(100 ML). 

Next day is the acclimatization day in Dzongri. we have enough time to settle up so that no altitude sickness will impact us. Next day plan will be going to Dzongri top and back and resting day. Around 19:30 , got the call for the dinner. Had dinner nicely. Hoping for the good weather tomorrow signed off for the day. Back to tent and time to take a nap.

Day 6, 02 Oct2019 
(Tsokha to Dzongri)

All were exited that today is the rest and acclimatization  day in Dzongri  because of high altitude. woke up around 03:30 to view the beauty of sunrise. Have to walk 45 min up hills to reach Dzongri top. 




From the dzongri top we can see kanchenjunga ,pandim & other mountain ranges. we all started climbing slowly as in the mountain the sunrise is bit early. We reached the Dzongri top around 05:30. We are too lucky that the sky was very clear. 



The golden first sun rays falls on the mt.kanchenjunga , pandim & other mountain ranges. It was glittering like gold. Took the snap and also group snap at Dzongri top. Enjoying the blissful morning with the cup of black tea. Got the 360 view of the mountain. The clouds were floating on the opposite sides of the mountain. We are too lucky to see the sunrise as the weather was not good few days back. All the trekkes roamed here and there and spent the valuable time by taking the snaps. Started walking towards the camp site.  Reached around 09:00.



As today it was the resting day , all came back to the tent and took rest for sometime. Afternoon it was pretty rainy had a hot lunch enjoying the rain. Had a short break post lunch and there was the plan to see the other places of Dzongri by having a walk around 04-05 KM.  



Started our walk and warm up ,on the way we saw cattle shed where yak and mule will stay and the food will be stored for them. Sherpa will take care of them and they will stay with them. Spend some time viewing the scenery. As the rain going to drizzle we started our journey back to base camp. On the way had momos and black tea  in the small shop and got warm up too. Back to tent and got refreshed ourselves. 



Around 19:15 , we got the dinner call. All had dinner and some discussion among the trekkers and later signed off from the dining place and back to tent. i was almost in half sleep around 22:30 , by mistake somehow i lost all my  memories in the phone. No auto back-up so totally upset that i lost all my memories in the trek which i took till now. i don't want to restart the mobile before that i need to check with service center once back to base Chennai. Thank god i have another mobile so that i can continue for the upcoming days. Sleepless night due to that factory re-set.




Day 7, 03 Oct2019 
(Dzongri to Lamuney)

Morning weather was pleasant and sunny. Today trek is Dzongri to Lamuney via Kochurang & thansing. Today plan to reach base camp from where we are going to walk to goecha la view-point 1.       


All the trekkers got ready around 09:00 with good stamina. We started our walk towards destination. During trail we are able to see the lost view of the Mt pandim and other mountain peak. It was bit uphill so took many breaks in between.  The view which we got to see at Dzongri top , we can see the same here too. Took the snaps of the nature and started walking. On the top of the mountain we could see trail to Kochurang & Lamuney. There was the hut in Kochurang  where trekkers used to stay. If we go solo we can stay over there and proceed for the journey.


Climate was bit cloudy and foggy. Bit drizzle too but manageable. Till Kochurang it was downhill and very steep too. Have to be careful. Too muddy too for keeping the steps. We were able to see the campsite of Lamuney which is one of the view point while on the way to Kochurang. Thansing  is the point where all the trekkers are going to lunch. Reached Kochurang after the walk of around 2 1/2 hours. Some trekkers reached early and some were on the way. All had a short break and had my dry fruits and walked Nearby Kochurang hut where prek chu river pass through near by. Again started walk after rest. 


Ahead there was two small wooden bridge over which thick fog was crossing and beautiful scenery to view. One of the wooden bridge was too weak as people using it more frequently. After crossing the bridge again it was bit uphill, bit slippery, rocky and muddy too. All were keeping their steps very carefully and very awesome as the excursion was along side prek chu rivers.




Reached Thansing  and had our lunch. There was the trekkers hut too if want we can stay and take rest. Had hot lunch of noodles soup and favorite khichdi with papad combination which was too good and yummy. All had the refreshment drink black tea after lunch to make our selves warm. Unfortunately one of our tent mate PK not able to come with us. As his shoe got worn out at Dzongri itself. He bought the new one too but as it was  new shoe bite so not able to walk properly. So decided to stay at Kochurang itself. On the way we met one solo trekker so again the group of 14 was formed. Again 14 trekker stated excursion towards the base camp of Lamuney.

Lamuney trail was not challenging. There was big meadows but can't able to see due to cloudy. It was the final camp site to reach our destination goecha la view point. Lamuney was very calm and there was no trekkers hut , only kitchen hut was there. All the trekkers reached the camp site around 16:00 and all were dam tired as it was the long day almost 14 KM walk. Went to tent and got refreshed and waiting for the dinner call. Next day morning have to start early so had dinner and every one planned to nap early without any further discussion. 

The main target was to view the view point 1 sunrise. All were discussing about the goecha la view point during dinner time. There are three viewpoint 1,2&3. Due to some restriction view point 2&3 was closed. Snow leopard was roaming and risky too due to moraine trail and landslide also it was banned recently. Can get the approval of view point 2 at least but not due to restriction. So bit disappointed. Till 2016 VP3 was allowed by that time it was not that much commercial but now a days it was too commercial and that's was the reason stopped. View point 2&3 were around only 04 KM by max from VP-1. Below the VP-1, there was samiti lake which was too beautiful , which we going to  see tomorrow.   

Day 8, 04 Oct2019

Goecha La (View Point 1) to Kochurang

Trek to Goecha La VP-1 and back to Kochurang (16km)
It was the long day. The journey of the trek was to view the VP-1 then to Lamuney and then finally to Kochurang. The main target was to view the sunrise at Goecha La. The weather was also favorable to us. All were ready by 03:30 Started to climb around 04:00. Since it was pitch dark and very chill everybody switched on the head torch to got to the VP-1. It was bit uphill and we saw samiti lake on the way. Due to early morning we can't see the full lake. Slowly the sky was getting brighter and saw big mountain fully covered with fog. 

Reached goecha la view point-1 around 06:00 and it was bit cloudy. We are bit unsatisfied that we are not able to see the clear sunrise due to cloudy weather. We are waiting for the clear view. After sometime the weather became clear and the sun-ray fall on the mt kanchenjunga. Blue sky and white snow which seems as the gold was glittering. Mt Pandim & Tenchenkhang can also be seen from that point. Got 360 view all surrounded by the mountain. All were too  happy that finally our trek satisfied for which we were waiting for. As there was the restriction for VP-2 & VP-3 spent time in VP-1 and took the beautiful snaps. After sometimes all started to descend towards  Lamuney. 

The view of the samiti lake from top with blue and light green was amazing. While descending trek lead -Kiran said blue sheep,blue sheep and we are lucky to come across. All the eyes toward them. Bunch of sheep were climbing towards mountain. Luckily took the snap by zooming it. Around 09:30 we are all reached the campsite of Lamuney. 



Took rest for sometime. Since its going to be long day, sipped our breakfast. All are busy with packing and removing the tent. After sometimes directly had our lunch and started descending. While coming we talked about the two bridge out of which one was weak. The Weak bridge got broken touching the water flowing under it. All were thinking and bit afraid that how to cross the river.


Trek lead checking out the option how to cross either we have to find new way or else crossing via broken bridge. The River Prek Chu in full speed crossing but we took the brave decision to cross the river. First Trek lead did the trail to make sure broken bridge stable or not and later asked us to cross one at a time. Myself crossed 1st by holding the hand of Kiran-trek lead and successfully crossed. Thank god(Thinking in mind). Similarly one by one crossed with the help of holding hands. There was another batch at Kochurang. Half of the logistics were crossed and half of there was at another side. Our batch HT crew somehow manually  crossed all the logistics safely. Our team mate PK was eagerly waiting for our return. We are very happy to see him back again. Shared the experience which we had beyond that point which he missed due to his shoe bite. Now he is all-rite.

Our tent pitched near by River Prek Chu and again we three stayed in the tent. Got refreshed and waiting for the dinner. Had our dinner at the trekkers hut. All were fully satisfied that it was the worth day of the trek which all were looking for lucky to see everything clearly from VP-1. Happily returned to the tent. As it was long day ,all were bit tired. So went for the sleep by waving good night.

Day 9, 05 Oct2019

 Kochurang-Tsokha- 18 KM

The target for which the trek was organized has been achieved.Everybody's dream fulfilled. Now the walk toward downhill. It seemed that trek going to end in couple of days.Tent was pitched exactly to the river-Prek Chu.



When we came out of the tent we were able to see the clear view of the mt. pandim with the snow peaked mountain. Had break fast of Kellogg's , phulka roti and subji(Matar & chana). Enjoyed the full breakfast. Today also it was the packed lunch(pasta). Everybody packed the rucksack and ready to leave. 

The uphill route and the down hill route was bit different. While going uphill the trail followed was Tsokha to Dzongri (via phedang) & Dzongri to Lamuney (via Kochurang). while downhill trail followed by Lamuney to Kochurang (via phedang) will be same but to reach Tsokha from Kochurang (via phedang) instead of via Dzongri we opt the other root. The downhill was muddy and slippery too , but manageable so all enjoying the climate and started to descend. The climate was moody but not that chillness as expected so wore only one layer of dress. Reached phedang where everybody has the plan for lunch. We saw the small hut for trekkers resting point. All the trekkers  reached the hut one by one had the lunch nicely, after a litter break everybody started moving. The trail between phedang and tosokha was full of fog. It was calm all the way. We all reached Tsokha finally around 16:15. All were fully satisfied with the day. Remaining day was the rest day. Again the same tent mates myself , umang and PK stayed together.Refreshed ourselves and were waiting for the dinner.



After the dinner there was the plan for the success party. As the next batch going to come the HT crew members will stop at sachen itself the next day. Celebrating the day end by cutting the cake for the HT crew members. Good dedication by guide and the supporting staffs. Discussed about the pros and cons of the trek done so far. HT provided the complementary certificate for successfully attempting the Goeche la to all the trekkers. Talked about the upcoming plans too. All were too happy and satisfied with excursion so far. Final good bye to the HT crew who are going to stop at sachen. 

Back to tent and signed off for the day. The next day would be last day of the trek. From Tsokha to Yuksom via sachen. 
   

Day 10, 06 Oct2019

Tsokha to Yuksom via sachen.

The weather was pretty sunny and was very clear. All were relaxed as there was no rush to leave early on that day. All packed the rucksack and gathered for the breakfast. It was kellogg's and bread omelette. Had nicely and started to move around 08:30. All packed the lunch veg sandwich in the limited quantity.After breakfast all gathered at the same time and started move towards sachen. Plan to reach Yuksom in the evening. The trail was bit up and down with the couple of bridge on the way. The hanging bridge which we crossed while coming , the same bridge going to cross. On the way we saw many batches coming for the trek. Many of them were solo. The trekkers who are coming as solo can cut short the trek days and finish it of with in a short period of time. For the solo trekkers especially it is advisable to hire a guide as they know the weather condition and trail.It would be the moral support for the trekkers too.


Finally reached sachen. All had their packed lunch of sandwich. It was good. Some of the trekkers who reached early were taking rest for a while. Every one finished with the lunch. All started toward base camp-Yuksom. Some of the HT crew stopped at sachen itself. So said final goodbye and handshake started moving forward. On the way we crossed the hanging bridge where colorful flag were tied up. It was flying which looked beautiful. I like the view very much. AS we started to move , drizzling started. After some time the rain started heavily. After some walk we were able to see the welcome arch of kanchenjunga  national park. Again the another last hanging bridge on the trail and took a small break over there and had some dry fruits to boost myself. After refreshment started to move. 


When we are close to Yuksom , i switched on my mobile as we came in to the network area after 7 days. We reached Yuksom around 17:00. We were near to village and started distributing chocolates with the kids.All were happy for the successful attempt. We are going to stay in the same lodge where we stayed earlier. After 9 days we were going to refresh ourselves- Bath. :)


Everything went well. Only worry was about my phone which i have to service it in Chennai. Informed my family and know about situation and everything seems good. After refreshment had some fruits. Everybody was planning to go to Yuksom bazaar. Had veg momos-boiled it's my favorite too. So had it  nicely finally the success part with all trek mates. :)

I have little cramp on my leg so not able to walk properly.Applied medicine and bed time. Done with packing so that tomorrow morning will be free. Finally the trek ends with full satisfaction. During dinner we met Rhik too. All shared their own experience with him. Talked about the pros and cons of the trek.And also talked about the next plan. That's for the day. Said good nite with everyone and went for the sleep.

Next day travel day from Yuksom to Bagdogra (6-7 hours) Travel.






Day 11, 07 Oct2019

Yuksom to Bagdogra (6-7 hours)
Good morning Yuksom .!!! 
It was the final day in Yuksom. Travel day by cab(160 km). It was the shared cab which cost around 1000 INR per person, which would cover the three places(Siliguri, NJP,Bagdogra). All the trekkers got refreshed and going to start from Yuksom around 09:00. Rucksack ready and ready to get in to cab.






It was the bright sunny day in the morning. Planning to visit monastery near by Yuksom bazaar and spent some time over there and relaxed  for a while. We had our breakfast -bread sandwich & my favorite black-tea. Rhik came for the send off. During the time discussed about the next trip plan. Hope next would be definitely big expedition trek. Kept as a suspense for now. Happily joined the hands and said (chalo wapas milenge). Cab came on time and placed all the things on the cab.All said final bye bye to Yuksom and left to Bagdogra. 

We started our journey around 09:30. The travel was around 07 hours. There was the plan to have lunch in between is the small town-Jortang. We reached the town around 12:00 noon and had thupa and spent some time over there. There was the huge crowd in the town due to festival. It was the last day of durga pooja, which is the famous festival of West Bengal. We left the town around 14:50. we are very close to the Bagdogra city.On the way to the city , there is  a bridge-coronation bridge with diversion which lead to Burma. While heading towards Bagdogra , there was heavy rainfall around 17:00-16:00. Due to which there was hug traffic jam. The cab stopped at the private bus stand in Siliguri. We all get down and few trekkers who are going to travel from Siliguri,  few trekkers going to travel from NJP and myself and Umang going to travel from Bagdogra. So we are going to stay in the hotel at near by hotel close to Bagdogra airport. As it was rainy we are not able to move immediately. Every one standby for sometime till rain under control and we finally say good bye to every one. Myself and Umang  hire the auto to reached the hotel around 18:30-19:00.


At the reception , we settled the advance amount and checked-in. We refreshed and had the plan to walk outside. Got refreshed and left from the hotel 19:30. As it was the last day of durga puja, huge mela was organized and people were enjoying. Due to rain , there was water logging at all places.

After worshiping goddess durga , we had a plan for the dinner. We both had our dinner  nan, panner gravy and lassi. Had a walk for a while and came back to hotel. 


Myself going to chennai and umang going to travel bombay. From hotel, the Bagdogra  airport was around 04 KM. It will take 15 min from the hotel to the airport. I had the plan to leave the hotel around 06:30. Umang had the plan to leave bit late as his flight was scheduled around 11:00 and mine was around 08:30. Time to sleep. 

Day 12, 08 Oct2019

(Bagdogra  - Chennai)
I woke up around 04:00 and got refreshed. I got ready around 05:30 and woke up umang , said final good bye to him. Around 06:30 , i left from the hotel. Took the auto and reached airport around 06:50. Hardly 15 min of travel. He charged 100 INR. Checked-in and got the boarding pass.

Saw the veg momos , my favorite so had my breakfast-momos which was very economic. Bought 08 pieces for 80 INR which was very cheap. Enjoyed the hot momos. The flight was on time boarded the flight around 09:00  and landed around 11:30. From Chennai airport i took the cab to reach my home in chennai. As i have to go to office in the second half :) and regular work begins till next travel... :)



                      


    !!!Over all enjoyed the trek and fully satisfied with journey.!!!

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