It was Durga Puja time in Kolkata. The city was preparing for the greatest festival of Bengal and I was preparing for my next trek which was Goecha La in West Sikkim. It was my dream trek for a long time. When I completed my first trek in Sandakphu, I promised myself in front of mighty Kangchenjunga that I will go there, I had to be there one day. And this was the moment when it was few days remain to achieve my goal, my dream.
So, I have started my journey to New Jalpaiguri from Howrah Station with my wife on 14th October 2018. We reached on time in next morning and started our ride to Yuksom. Yuksom is a very beautiful small town in West Sikkim. We have reached Yuksom at 10:30 PM. The full-day was almost tiring, so we took our dinner quickly and went for a good sleep.
Watch my Goecha La Vlog #1
Day #1: Yuksom – Dubdi Monastery: A small hike
The next day was our rest day and allotted for a small hike to the famous Monastery called Dubdi Monastery. We hiked for almost 2 hours up and down. Dubdi Monastery is a very beautiful place to visit. I took some photos and video footage and came back to our hotel after spending 1-2 hours there.
Pro Tips: Don’t miss this place. Plan your trip accordingly. It will be best if you allot one extra day before you start trek to Goecha La. This short hike is best for boosting your muscles before the big one.
Here are some photographs:
Day #2: Yuksom – Sachen: Let’s begin the long walk
The next day we started our trek to Sachen which is at the altitude of 7,200 ft. It was a 6 hours hike and we almost walked 8 km. The weather was not so good, it was pretty cloudy for most of the time that day. The trail was good, green & misty. We crossed 3 hanging suspension bridges. Overall it was a good experience for our first glance at Kangchenjunga National Park. Sachen is in the jungle, so our night accommodation was in camp.
Pro Tips: Try to reach Sachen as early as possible as it is in a dense forest there is no light source. Also, take dinner early and sleep early because the next day you need to walk long, so an early start is recommended.
Here are some photographs:
Day #3: Sachen – Bakhim – Tshoka: First view of the mountain peaks
Early morning from Sachen we started the next stretch for Tshoka which it at the altitude of 9,700 ft. This trail was one of the best compared to any trek which is through the jungle. It took almost 5 hours to complete 7 km of a hike. It was steep ascent till Bakhim where we took our lunch. From Bakhim you can spot Mount Pandim for the first time but we couldn’t, as the weather was cloudy. After Bakhim it was 2 km trek to Tshoka. This beautiful trail was with Rhododendron and Alpine berries. It was a walk to be remembered. We reached at the campsite around 4 PM. The weather was gradually improving and we luckily saw the view of Mount Pandim, Tenzing Khang during the Sunset and it was a magical golden view.
Pro Tips: Don’t litter into the forest. Don’t urinate near stream water.
Here are some photographs:
Watch my Goecha La Vlog #2
Day #4: Tshoka – Phedang – Deorali Top – Dzongri: Experience the highest viewpoint till now
The next morning our journey was started for the famous Dzongri campsite which is at the altitude of 12,980 ft. We walked beside the small Tshoka Lake with a gradual ascent. It was a long walk that day, we covered a total of 9 km trek within 7 hours. We took our launch at Phedang. This place was totally covered with thick fog when we reached there. After that, we crossed a very good view point called Deorali Top which was the highest point till now before Dzongri. The full range can be seen from that place but we were not so lucky. We reached at Dzongri camp around 4 PM.
Pro Tips: Carry packed lunch and enough water as there are no sources of drinking water en route.
Here are some photographs:
Day #5: Dzongri – Dzongri Top Summit: Too Near But too Far
Next-Day was a vital day for us. We did our summit to Dzongri Top which is at the height of 13,675 ft. At 4 AM we started and reached the top after almost 1 hour of the hike. The experience was surreal. The view of Kabru, Black Kabru, Kangchenjunga peaks, Mount Pandim, Tenzing Khang and many other peaks will give you goosebumps. I was speechless there. The sunrise event from the back side of the mountains and sea of clouds and the first ray upon the snow mountains will definitely bring you at this place again and again.
After the summit at the top, we came back to our campsite. Took rest, roamed around in the afternoon and slept tight as we had to leave for Thansing the next day and it was the most treacherous walk till now in this trek.
Pro Tips: Do take 3 layers because it’s very windy and cold up there at Dzongri Top.
Here are some photographs:
Goecha La Vlog #3:
Day #6: Drongri – Kokchurang – Thansing: Most treacherous walk till now
En Route Dzongri La we walked most long-distance this time. It was 10 km of hike and it took approximately 9 hours to reach Thansing campsite.
The view of this trail was just out of the world. Most of the time Mount Pandim and Tenzing Khang will be on your sight. Though people use to come in this trek to see Kangchenjunga but you can’t ignore Mount Pandim because it will remain with you most of the time during your walk and play hide and seek with you from behind the clouds. It was a gradual walk through meadows and descend to reach Kokcharang
We reached Kokchurang hut around 1 PM and took our most awaited lunch at there. After 2 hours we started again and this walk I will never ever forget. It is just a fairy tale walk. The trail is going just beside the Prekchu river. The misty ambient, fog, light, the sound of the river water flowing will definitely give you chill. We have reached at Thansing camp around 5 PM. We hiked from 12,000 ft (Kokcharang) to 12900 ft (Thansing). From Thansing We luckily saw the sunset color over Pandim and it was awesome. I took a timelapse video of it.
Pro Tips: Don’t forget to take an ND filter if you like to take long exposure pictures of Prekchu river’s flowing water.
Here are some photographs:
Day #7: Thansing – Lamuney: The Final Night
Thansing to Lamuney is the easiest that beautiful walk I ever had. The altitude of Lamuney is 13650 ft and it was 4 km trek for 2 hours approximately.
Here are some photographs:
Day #8: Goecha La view point 1 Summit – Samiti Lake – Lamuney Camp – Kokchurang Hut: Our D-Day
The next day was the D-Day for us. We slept early at 7 PM because we have to wake up as early as possible. We got up at 2 AM and started for the final summit push at 2:45 AM.
It was killing cold outside that time. Under the full moon, Kanchenjunga looked like a queen in front of us. The temperature was around 2-3 degree at that time. But it was below 0 degree around 11 – 11:30 PM. We took some dry fruits, cake, hot tea, water with us because it was very tiring to reach the final point before sunrise. Though we managed to reach just before the sunrise and we witnessed one of the great shows on the planet earth. We totally mesmerized by the color of Kangchenjunga peak in front of us. I took lots of pictures, videos, timelapse there. It was an emotional moment when I lifted our national flag from Goecha La view point one. It was a great feeling.
To reach Goecha La view point 1 which is at the height of 15100 ft, it took almost 3 hrs to cover that 5 km distance. The last 2 hours were steep ascent.
After spending almost 3 hours there we were starting to return back. On our way, we took 1-hour rest at Samiti Lake. This lake is one of the beautiful gifts God gives us. You will surely amaze by its crystal clear blue, green water.
After coming down from Samiti Lake to Lamuney camp we took hot breakfast and started descending to Kokchurang and rested there for that night.
Pro Tips: Do take extra camera batteries. Put those batteries inside your thermal and down jacket. This will save the charge. Do take dry fruits, water, hot tea with you during the final push to the summit.
Peaks you will spot from Goecha La View point 1: Kabru South, Kabru North, Kabru Dome, Kangchenjunga, Gocha Jupano, Mt. Pandim, Simvo, Tenzing Khang
Here are some photographs:
Day #9: Kokchurang – Tshoka Camp
The next day we came down more and rested that night at Tshoka Campsite. This time we saw a good view of the mountain from Tshoka as the weather was clear.
Day #10: Tshoka – Yuksom
This was the last day of our trek. The last few km of descending and finally we were at our Yuksom hotel. We reached Yuksom around 5 PM. We freshened up and came back to Gupta’s Restaurant which is one of the well known and popular restaurants at Yuksom. We celebrated there for our successful trek to Goecha La.
Next-Day we started for New Jalpaiguri station early morning and reached around 4 PM there. Our train was on time and we reached our home safely, happily the next day with lots of good memories and desire to come back again and experience these beautiful mighty mountains of Sikkim.
