Lachung: Your Himalayan Dream

Being at Lachung

Lachung is small village prettily perched on the banks of Teesta river. This was singularly the most banal representation of the town ever provided in words. In reality, the town is your first snow frontier in North Sikkim, it is where the sun shines on the golden mist and naked mountaintops, it is a place of innumerable waterfalls, it is a place of weird celebrity landmarks, a town of bitter coffee and sweet tea. This is a place of Kahwa-esque morning and maggi soup dinners, it is a place where crystal green waters of Teesta ebbs and flows. Have one look at the waters and all the border disputers between India-Bangladesh seem justified. You wouldn't want to share such mysterious waters with anyone else.

This is also a town where endless walks don't make you feel lethargic but rather energized, here every building has its own private waterfall in the backyard. The steep slopes of the town offer a splendid exercise routine, which invariably you should in order to keep yourself warm and functional. This is a town where almost every structure doubles up as a homestay and every local is friendly and inviting.

The town is the touchdown for your grand entry into the Snowy Himalayas and justifies its position as base, The sounds of the military firing range can be heard for miles and so can be the trembling of the mountains. It is also a place for hot rice plates and cozy furnishings where you will find every excuse to not take a bath in the morning. 

For some there is nothing to do and for others the village offers something to be occupied for a lifetime, the day begins early, the night falls sooner, the long strolls become even longer here. Sitting a the precipice of the only bridge between two halves of the town while staring dangerously at the roaring waters of Teesta might be the most relaxing undertaking ever undertaken by you.

There are countless selfie spots, multiple long shot DSLR view points and a plethora of instagram worthy shot spots but it all ceases to matter. Here despite with all the gadgets surrounding you might find an unreasonable voice inside your head that these don't matter. May be the voice isn't such unreasonable after all!!

Where to eat in Lachung

Pre book a homestay befoe you leave from Gangtok. The meals are rice based, have home-flavor and are served piping hot. There are multiple coffee and booze shops dotting the town where one can find a nightcap and early morning shots quite easily.

So..

Words are dirty, they do know justice to what you witness here. Pack your bags and just leave. You will be doing yourself a favor.

!Lachung Tip!

Hire a local driver from Gangtok itself, there is no vehicle available from commute in the village. The roads are extremely tricky and difficult to navigate so rule out your self drive ambitions.

Reaching Lachung

Reaching Lachung is only possible by road where you travel on the roads built by Border Roads Organization and you are filled with great measure of respect for the deeds of valor and duty performed by our men in uniform. We don't thank them enough.  One can find the list of registered tour operators here. The rates are uniform through-out and are prefixed, and that's such a relief. A list of hotels and homestays can be found here.