[ajayc123]

Superlative photography. Very sharp compositions. Night/low light photography is done like wow! I lost count of how many times I would have said ‘Oh my God!’ while looking at the pictures. It was a feast.

You have to tell us more about how you did the pictures.

[vprao]

Originally Posted by ABHI_1512

Permits were arranged by a person who was very highly recommended by TurboNath as well as my contact in the Army. In my eagerness for the permits, I ended up with two permits but there was a twist in the permits as well. More on that in the next post, let's make a start, shall we ?

Dear ABHI_1512, I'm planning to take my Thar from Mangaluru to Sikkim (Approx 7500kms to and fro) on April and the anxiety of getting permits for non-Sikkim vehicles is killing me. The whole point of this trip is to take my Thar to Gurudongmar lake and Zero point. I would be really appreciate if you could share with me the contact of the agent who helped you with permits.

[ABHI_1512]

Originally Posted by vprao

Dear ABHI_1512, I'm planning to take my Thar from Mangaluru to Sikkim (Approx 7500kms to and fro) on April and the anxiety of getting permits for non-Sikkim vehicles is killing me. The whole point of this trip is to take my Thar to Gurudongmar lake and Zero point. I would be really appreciate if you could share with me the contact of the agent who helped you with permits.

Hi vprao, I don’t know if you want to visit North Sikkim directly or via Gangtok. There are agents in Gangtok who are attached with hotels and can arrange for the permits. However, I did the trip through Mangan and so the permits were made from Mangan only.

I see that I can’t PM you, so request you to mail me at Abhishek_1512@yahoo.co.in and I will pass on the number of the guy who did the permits for me. The guy only replies through WhatsApp though. Hope this helps.

[vprao]

Much appreciated Abhi! I'll send you an email.

I'll be travelling through Gangtok. However, my homestay owners there as well as few travel agents whom i contacted advised me against taking my own non-Sikkim vehicle to restricted areas as permits cannot be obtained for the same. They say rules have changed and they no longer issue permits to non-Sikkim vehicles. However, my Lachung/Lachen homestay owners said there are no issues with non-Sikkim owners.

I'm not sure if this permit issue is really as complicated as it looks to be or just a plot by the travel industry!

[kousikjana]

Yes, it is exactly as you have guessed. It is a myth set by travel agents. I would suggest you obtain permit from Mangan. You may contact any home-stay owner and they will do that for you. Normally they charge 1000 bucks. If you stay with them for one night they give you more priority. In fact it is best to stay one night at Mangan.

I went on April 2022. I got permit for my Ford Figo upto Lachen and Lachung. They did not provide permit for Gurudongmar and zero point for non SUV vehicle.

I went beyond Lachen until next checkpoint. Couldn't go to Lachung due to time constraints.

Best of luck.

[vprao]

I got through an agent in Mangan, who has agreed to get me the permit for Lachung/Lachen (Thanks to [b]ABHI_1512/B]). I'll be entering Lachen on a Saturday. Not sure if the tourism office is open or not on Saturday and hence I didn't want to take any chance. Else, I would have tried getting the permit myself to bust the myth.

[Red Panda]

I am a big fan of your TL. This one too is just excellent to say the least. Gurudongmar is also in my wishlist. Your TL will certainly come handy and I will
also contact you if my plans materialise. Also, wonderful photographs.Just loved it.

[Mr.Independent]

Originally Posted by ABHI_1512

Hi vprao, I don’t know if you want to visit North Sikkim directly or via Gangtok. There are agents in Gangtok who are attached with hotels and can arrange for the permits. However, I did the trip through Mangan and so the permits were made from Mangan only.

I see that I can’t PM you, so request you to mail me at Abhishek_1512@yahoo.co.in and I will pass on the number of the guy who did the permits for me. The guy only replies through WhatsApp though. Hope this helps.

Hi Abhi_1512,

I am planning for a roadtrip from Odisha to Sikkim. Plan is to take my own non-sikkim white number plate vehicles to North/East sikkim. I have dropped an email regarding the permits needed for the tour. If you can pls take some time out to respond. Thanks.
Cheers...

[carsirdar]

It is a beautiful written and well travelled piece. At least for us North Indians it's a veritable trove of information.

[ABHI_1512]

Originally Posted by Mr.Independent

I am planning for a roadtrip from Odisha to Sikkim. Plan is to take my own non-sikkim white number plate vehicles to North/East sikkim. I have dropped an email regarding the permits needed for the tour.

Hi, have replied to your Mail queries. Just to mention here again that North Sikkim is not fully open for tourism yet. Only Lachung side is open although Lachen side will also open eventually. Do update yourself about the current road conditions and permit conditions before embarking.

Regards.

Originally Posted by carsirdar

It is a beautiful written and well travelled piece. At least for us North Indians it's a veritable trove of information.

Thank you for the good words. Do visit this wonderful part of India.

[scorched_earth]

Many thanks for this post. I made an attempt for Gurudongmar in 2019 April, unfortunately could not proceed beyond Thangu due to heavy snowfall, landslides and a bit of avalanches. In fact I could not visit most of the high altitude places in North Sikkim.

This is why I always prefer visiting wilderness, no one gets a VIP darshan, we need to wait for our turn and only enter the place when almighty decides so. Money, power and clouts are irrelevant in that place. Thankfully had majestic views of the Kanchenjunga massif, especially from Singhik, various shades of rhododendron and Primula. Wherever there were streams and wilderness we sat and experienced Wordsworth moments or rather moments that cant be described with words.

I have bookmarked your page as well as the write ups of other travelers, hopefully someday I will make it to Gurudongmar when I visit my home in Kolkata. For us in the south, seeing snow is a big deal and it takes 3-5 days of driving (depending upon which section of the Himalayas one is going) to the mountains.

You should plan Pithoragarh or east Uttarakhand sometime, as you, Samba, Travelmania, Haisaikat, SayakC to name a few of my favourites, like the mountains so much.

[BlackBeard]

Nice write up & beautiful photographs. NE India is indeed amazing!

Last year en route to Darjeeling we got caught in a traffic jam for 2 hours plus in Sevoke road, thankfully it was a Taxi.

Originally Posted by scorched_earth

You should plan Pithoragarh or east Uttarakhand sometime, as you, Samba, Travelmania, Haisaikat, SayakC to name a few of my favourites, like the mountains so much.

Most Bengalis love the hills & mountains...

And correctly said, wonderful travelogues and beautiful pictures from all the gents named by you.

[arnieshwartz]

Beautiful posts, and brought back memories of our trip to Sikkim and Darjeeling last year. We were lucky not to encounter any traffic jams or landslides and had a very pleasant time touring the places. We really enjoyed the rugged scenery, the many waterfalls by the road in the hills, the view points, the trip from our hotel in Lachung up to Zero Point, rafting in the Teesta river, the cable car ride in Darjeeling, the Darjeeling Zoological Park and the visit to the Yiga Choeling Monastery in Darjeeling.

It's a very different experience from going to say Ladakh for the Himalayas, and catching a glimpse of the elusive Kanchenjunga in clear skies was indeed a highlight of our trip.

[suvrog]

Great travelogue as always. Its always a joy to read such as yours. This revived my memories from 2022. Sikkim is very close to my heart as well.

[ABHI_1512]

Originally Posted by BlackBeard

Nice write up & beautiful photographs. NE India is indeed amazing!

Most Bengalis love the hills & mountains...

Thanks for the good words BlackBeard, that thing about Bengalis needs no more affirmation I guess

Yes, NE India is amazingly beautiful and surely deserves more attention in terms of tourism. One must visit and experience the beauty of the vast areas for sure. Do give it a shot soon before is it is devoured by the vagaries of commercialization.

Regards
Abhi.

Originally Posted by arnieshwartz

It's a very different experience from going to say Ladakh for the Himalayas, and catching a glimpse of the elusive Kanchenjunga in clear skies was indeed a highlight of our trip.

Thank you so much for your kind words. As you rightly said, there is a certain old world charm about Darjeeling which pulls us every now and then to this small little town in the lap of Himalayas. Nothing comes close to seeing the Kanchenjunga range on a bright sunny day sipping a cup of coffee. Keep travelling and do share about your experiences.

Regards.

Originally Posted by suvrog

Great travelogue as always. Its always a joy to read such as yours. This revived my memories from 2022. Sikkim is very close to my heart as well.

That's a picture that tells us the beauty and grandeur of the place aptly named Gurudongmar. I am sure you had a wonderful and thrilling drive to the top. And regarding Sikkim, it's like a home to me, at least that is what I would like to believe

Keep travelling,

Regards.