The wooden floor creaks. Foot steps reverberate into a hollow tone. The snow beats outside, rain drizzles and the wind howls.
And the flame of the candle, stuck at the mouth of a beer bottle, flaps. It blows thin, sounds like fluttering and looks like it will be gutted but relaxes and glows again. Through the condensation in the windows, more fog is seen.Evening resembles night as the snow batters down.And a couple of silhouettes that of a human and a dog – appear in the frame..the dog wagging its tail and looking at its master. And both are heading towards the only accommodation at Phalut – the trekkers hut – where the bathroom mug has an inch layer of ice, icicles hung from the tinned roof and beer bottles are boiled in water to be consumed. Hostile may be an understatement to describe the situation at Phalut, but it presented with an invaluable experience.
First Day
A couple of days back, late in the afternoon and after a brisk hailstorm at Manebhanjan we walked and climbed past Chitrey with the guide Nima resembling a mountain goat against the black sky and I following him at a distance. Breathes draw sharp and long and forces me to pause very frequently. Earlier in the day, I got down at NJP railway station, rented a cab, breakfasted at Kurseong Tourist Lodge and alighted at Jorebungalow and after 2 more cab rides landed up at Manebhanjan. Ideally I would have wanted to spend the night at Manebhanjan. But, time was short and so started the dizzying walk as we crossed Chitrey in the first hour, reached Lameydhura for a quick tea break and then the light was lost, for we had started late.
So with a head torch that Nima carried we walked through unmarked trails, blistering cold wind blowing..Sometimes the lights of Darjeeling appeared when we were walking on the ridge..but in the shortcuts,there was darkness of the night, for there was no moon to be seen. It hung thick, and through the barely visible torch light, saw light rain and sleet fall. At 8 in the night..steep, cold and muddy path we reached Skhikhar Lodge..and after an hours rest beside the fireplace, with tea and refreshments and dinner..I slept like a log until the alarm clock rang through the darkness. And when I woke up, saw the blue hour unfolding – The Kanchenjunga range, pale and white, clean and clear standing before my eyes.
Second Day
After a breakfast of Tibetan bread and to accompany it – tea and bad cigarettes and morning silence with breaks from roosters and birds and sunshine and pine trees and the whole mountain range now burning white and bright – we descended from Tumling to Gairibas. Patches of snow lighting up in the sunshine, trickles of water flowing when the sun was a little stronger and the steady downhill path made for a carefree, fulfilling and happy walk..as I was swinging the trekking stick in the air, watching only for the pebbles and large rocks that lay astray. Deep pine forests and panoramic mountain ranges, we walked fast and hard for the distance was long..sweat drips, but vanishes before it reaches the temple, dried by the cold..Around 4.30 in the evening I reached Sherpa Chalet at Sandakphu.
Third Day
6 o clock next morning and I was up watching another spectacular sunrise over the Everest and Kanchenjunga ranges. Sandakphu was covered in white. Dustings of snow above and black ice beneath and hence walking was risky. Managed to find a quaint spot with prayer flags flying above and surrounded by green conifers and sat in silence, shooting the transition of colours. Everest, Makalu, Lhotse resembling pyraminds sitting close to each other; Chomo Lonza, The Three Sisters panoramic. Toasts, omelettes, tea and (again) bad cigarettes later, we walked through the Ale camping grounds and up and down the paths, sometimes plunging into deep forests that opened up into a clearing and meadows, now brown and dry and spaced with snow and wind. Trees are bare, leafless and barks are pelling off. The Chauris come to these places to feast upon grass but now fodder is absent and Chauris have disappeared. Just to listen to the wind and solitude I sit for a while and wonder in April when there are more tourists and flowers and insects and birds.
After noon, the clouds take over and its dark and dull and sad and walk feels slow and depressing..Little rain starts, fierce wind blows and in some more time we find ourselves entering the dark, ill lit hall of the Phalut trekkers hut. Hung from the wall is a photo of “INS Vipul – Missile Vessel Squadron”. I order for maggi and tea. Tea is liquorless, odourless and very, very sweet. Maggi is forgettable. Rest of the evening I sleep in the cot, wearing smelly clothes and watch the candle flicker and flutter as the wind and snow takes over.
Day Four
After overnight slow had raided Phalut, I make my way through the snow and climb to the view point. Very, very unique. The high point of Ghosha appears like a hurdle in all the photographs. A mule track actually exists and runs from Phalut to Gosha to Varsey. Apart from Rangpo and Sillery Gaon area this is another border crossing traverse from Bengal to Sikkim. Orange sun make the snow around Phalut burn like gold. After a quick breakfast we descend through trenches, forests and land up in Gorkhey. Its a gradual and even path from Gorkhey to Rammam and then all the way downhill to Srikhola. A 30 kms walk completed in 7 hours.
The trail is infectious. And even though its painful, it always beckons …Back to the mountains, the valleys, forests, streams…where you can hear its gurgling rivers, howling winds, rustling leaves…its cold, its warmth …one journey and its rippling return journeys later, its a symbiotic existence of the trail and the traveller.
Itinerary
Day One: Overnight train from Sealdah to NJP to Manebhanjan (Shared Cab). Manebhanjan to Tumling (Walk)
Day Two: Tumling to Sandakphu.
Day Three: Sandakphu to Phalut
Day Four: Phalut to Srikhola via Gorkhey, Samanden, Rammam and Rimbik
Guide Cost: Has shot upto Rs. 700 per day (Jan’17) from 400 per day (in Mar’16)
Total cost ~Rs 9000
