Saturday, September 3, 2011

In and around Pelling

5 am. The alarm goes off. I drag myself out onto the hotel terrace to get early morning views of Kanchenjunga. Cloudy day! Damn!

Kanchenjunga is behind those clouds :P




















Plan to explore Pelling by foot today. Then maybe hike around for the next 2-3 days. Met an Australian at breakfast - he was hiking to Yuksom today. He suggested going to the tourist information center for getting more info on hiking trails.

First stop for the day was the Pemayangtse monastery. A 20 min walk from the hotel. Not much to see or do here. Instead of coming back to the main road and continuing to Rabdentse, I took a walking trail which seemed to be going in the same direction. Almost got lost! Had to change direction, walk through fields and rejoin the main road. Well, atleast I got to see some great views!





























Finally!





















Rabdentse was the second capital of Sikkim. The capital was shifted here in the late 17th century from Yuksom. The ruins are a 15 minute walk from the main road. The trail has dense woods on either side


























To keep you going, the Archaeological Survey of India keeps offering words of encouragement!







A little bit of history





















Finally the ruins!






















The site also offers fantastic valley views






Walked back uphill to Pelling and continued to the other side of town.

Stopped at the Tourist Information Center. It was closed. Sunday! I had completely lost sense of day and date! There was an interesting poster outside the office



























Continued on the scenic route to the Sangachoeling Gompa. A steep climb to get there but the lovely road made it worthwhile























By the time I came back to Pelling, I was dead tired. Gave up any hopes of hiking around the next day. Instead, signed up for a day sightseeing tour.

In the evening the hills offered a great view. Sadly still no Kanchenjunga :(





















Next day morning some peaks were visible but still no Kanchenjunga. Maybe my date with Kanchenjunga is destined for another time :)





















The were were another 5 people on the sightseeing tour. This time the experience was much better. Some snaps from the day

Rimbi waterfalls, more like a trickle though!


























The rock garden























The Kanchenjunga waterfalls, a bit more than a trickle!




























A reminder





















Yuksom - some more history























Khecheopalri Lake













































Last stop for the day, the Singshore bridge. This is the second highest suspension bridge in Asia























Returned to the hotel late in the evening. Decided to leave Pelling tomorrow. Next on the cards -Bhutan!

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