One of the brightest members of the trek club – The Initiator had an idea to conduct a trip to this unexplored and inaccessible place. He shared his vision with another bright member – The Dependable, and that is how idea was born and as is said great achievements are a result of great ideas and rest they say is history…..
For conduction of the Trek cum Camping cum Rock Climbing cum crossing the river activities a well know mountaineering firm(Chandannagar Mountaineering Association) was roped for technical assistance – Camping, Rock Climbing, Crossing the River sessions. There were a lot of speculations and hindrances and eve of our departure came closer. Initially it was rain lashing the Eastern and North-Eastern part of the country, when the weather started to look good few days before we were about to start another bomb dropped – the remarks made by a privately owned Delhi based FM channel regarding Indian Idol -3 Prashant Tamang’s Nepali origin. It spread like fire and it rocked our expectation’s boat so hard that it was nearly capsizing. But we put our fears and pessimism aside and started for the even which we have been waiting for.
Finally 18 of us made to the Sealdah station, to board the train to New Jalpaiguri. The author was in constant touch with the support team which had already reached the source of the trek a day ahead regarding the situation at that place. Lot of the dust and panic created had already settled down by the time we reached New Jalpaiguri Station. The Vehicles were already waiting for us to take us from the hustle-bustle of the Siliguri town. Off we went to our destination for the day- Aritar. It’s a small village in Sikkim at 5050 ft. We camped at the banks of very enchanting and beautiful lake “Lambpokhri” (meaning: lamb – long, pokhri – lake). It was a great experience and we matched the occasion with a huge enthusiasm. Our guides from CMA told us about the camping discipline, how to pack our rucksacks, protection against leeches and intricacies of trekking. Evening was to be remembered with Swinging dance from all of us, a calm walk across the “Lambpokhri” to the silent Monastery and the night was dedicated to our very own renowned singer “Kishore Kumar”.
Spending the night in a tent was a first experience for most of us; excitement was in the air as we all receded to our tents. No pillows for the night-Need to sleep tight inside the sleeping bag.
Next day morning some of us (early-risers) went to watch the sunrise from watch towers nearby while rest (lazy-bones) of us went for a warming up session. We then had a quick breakfast not to mention people attended their nature-calls at a record time. Then we were ready to go ahead with the trek.
We started very slowly – we were able to trek only 1.5 km in the first hour but eventually we gained speed and then we were doing well even in rough patches. Few of us had a leechy welcome. We rested at a few points during the trek to appreciate the nature and study the local customs and their daily life.
By 1 pm in the afternoon we reached Mulkharka, a village in West Bengal at a height of about 8550 ft. We were about to go ahead with camping in one of the rice fields but leeches had already made life difficult. Finally we decided to stay in a villager’s house that had 3 spare rooms. The sense of humanity at this height touched us deep inside. They a quite a few toddlers and few grown up children; who became a part of our group. It was a great evening for us all we sang beside the camp fire singing Nepali, Bengali and Hindi songs. Some of us even took to tap a few steps. Meanwhile leeches had done a good job to toast the evening with our blood. Nights were cold and had a lot to offer. An innumerable lot of pranks were played if written; this article would take seven nights and seven days to complete.
In the morning around 4-30 am we started for the “Mulkharka Lake” , its one of the places where you would be able to see a reflection of the Kanchendzonga range on the lake. It’s a sight to behold. Just as we were about to start for the lake we saw a wonderful sight the clouds uncovered the Kanchendzonga range and white peaks were visible. There is only one word describe the scene –“Exhilarating”. This sight motivated us a lot and initiated a jump and eagerness to see the reflection on the lake.
Things were not rosy for all of us. Few of us who started late had a terrible experience. Looking at terrain and less visibility in the wee hours of morning added to it the cloud cover which decreased the visibility even further got lost in the way. Basically there was no trek route as such it was steep climb. It was a very frightening experience with leeches crawling around making its way to your legs and you have lost the way in between. Mobile phones came out and help was sought. Finally one of the guides came and ended the ordeal- showed the correct path to the lake.
Once we reached the lake there was a hide and seek game being played by the clouds which alluded some us the glimpse of the Kanchendzonga peak. But the experience was very fascinating. There was a lot of shutterbugs clicking near the lake. Once we reached our base in Mulkharka, it was “Remove all Leeches” that was being telecasted in all channels. I mean everybody had a leech as souvenir. Everybody has been struck by 10-20 leeches at least.
Few of our guides did the first aid and attended to all of us though they too had been beaten badly. We were in for a long haul then – attend to our injuries, have breakfast and take the way back to Aritar and then to Reshi. The trek back to Aritar had a look of “Come what may”, after our leech ordeal everybody was tough enough to take up any challenges. On the way to Aritar we met another canine friend aptly named “Tuffy” and he followed us upto the resort where we had light refreshments. After refreshment we board a vehicle to reach Reshi.
The name of the place “Reshi” come from the river “Reshi” which flows through the banks of the town. We went to the Green Valley camp in Reshi Valley. The path was through dense grassland which made the walk even more thrilling. Finally when we reached the resort it was a delightful sight. We couldn’t believe that we were supposed to camp beside the river.
Before the trainers from CMA called us for rock climbing most us had quick splash at the Reshi River. The water was cold but once one gets used to it was a very enjoyable. After a quick bath we went for the rock climbing session, the rock was not high enough but it gave us a good opportunity to learn the basics as most of us were novices in this field. Few of us went in deep thought by gazing in the river. It helps in introspection of our deeds.
As the sun went down festivities followed, a camp fire was made and we all sat beside it singing and cracking jokes. Eventually we shifted to a more appealing place – The watch tower in the resort. Without saying “Antakshari” followed with some special clues and conditions. It was really of great fun, we enjoyed to the hilt. As night set it, few of went to tents few decided to spent the night in the watch tower itself.
Early morning, we woke up with a heavy heart. After all, the fun filled days were coming to an end. We still wanted to make the most of our last day. We had a crossing the river session for us and if the river was ravaging Reshi it was sure going to a awesome experience. We rushed to the spot where the session was to held.
Now it was time to have the rush of blood run through the brain. It was a fantastic experience for all of us. First few moments hanging from rope gives one a big “High”. Then one has to cross the river monkey crawling while the river rages below. The sense accomplishment is at its all time high once one crosses the river. Few of were so ecstatic that they made it twice across. Finally it was turn of the trainers to show their skill – they were terrific.
After the session it was time for river splashing and lunch. Then it was time for us to leave this heavenly abode and proceed to our home. We had a saddened feeling while leaving, most of us wanted to stay on for another day but that was not to be. On our way back we stopped at Rangpo and few of bought Tea from the famous Temi gardens of Sikkim. As we left Rangpo we found ourselves admiring the effervescent and meandering Teesta. By evening we reached New Jalapaiguri from where we took our train to reach Sealdah.
There were few things worth remembering namely “gaon walaon”, “maine sab paudhe me pani pata diya hai" and above all as commented by one of our very own treekers “maine do raat se soya nahi hai”.
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