3rd February - To the Hills

Facebook tells us that this is the second year running that we have ridden the Darjeeling Mail from Kolkata to New Jalpaiguri (NJP) on the night of the 2nd/3rd February.  We appear to be getting into a rut. We found our 2 berth coupe without a hitch and settled in. Departure is on time and the TTE attends promptly so we can lock ourselves in and hit the sack. The only bum note is the disappearance of the medicine pouch which contains the Nytol.

We wake as it is getting light. Just like last year West Bengal is shrouded in fog but this year it is thicker. In places visibility is down around 25 yards and we are breaking no speed records. When we pass through a station D is able to establish that we are already over an hour late.  This is particularly bad news as it means there are no chai vendors yet, as they get on at Kishanganj, the last stop before NJP.  When we get there we are nearly two hours late and the vendors waiting on the platform look absolutely frozen. Fortunately the chai is still hot and we risk a rather tepid bread omelet. Slowly the fog lifts and train speed picks up. As we approach NJP the sun breaks through.

Unlike last year we remember to pick up our hats before we leave the train and D is spared a 400 yard dash to retrieve them. We climb up to the footbridge and head to the north side. On the way we cross over the narrow gauge platform that is the southern terminus of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. Six years ago this platform was rarely used and people were living on it. Today it looks much tidier and there are two coaches with passengers at the platform and an NDM6 diesel loco in the distance. We are not taking the DHR today but hope to get a trip in a few days time.

At the far end of the footbridge we descend into the frenetic melee in the car park where onward transport to the hill country is on offer. Our plan is to get a shared jeep to Gangtok, the capital of the small Himalayan State of Sikkim. We almost get led astray by a man offering us exclusive use of his small SUV for Rs1650 but then hear the barker for the share jeep. Rs 300 each but we buy a 3rd seat so that we get the front row next to the driver to ourselves. The bags go up on the roof rack as the barker drums up more business. It doesn't take too long to get a full load, the driver plus us two in front and four people on each of the two rows behind us. In front is cozy enough and D has to lift his leg and put his foot on the dashboard every time second gear is required. How on earth they get three passengers alongside the driver is beyond us.  Behind must be like sardines. 

From the station we take a road called the Siliguri Eastern Bypass which is in appalling condition,  so bad that West Lothian Highways Department would be ashamed of it. We have seen a few badly surfaced roads in India but this is definitely in the top three. D gets plenty of exercise as second is needed quite a lot. Once free of the built up area the road is much better and we make decent progress, without much need for second gear. We take the route up the Teesta Valley, which once had a branch of the DHR but it was badly damaged by floods during the 1950s and never reopened. These days the valley is notable mainly for a series of hydro electric dams dominated by steep forests on either side. We see our first monkeys of this trip. Most of the traffic seems to be either tourist vehicles or military and we guess that the latter explains why the road seems to be well maintained.  

After a couple of hours we arrive at the Sikkim border control. All foreigners have to have a permit and register. Luckily the lady who dealt with our Indian visas in Edinburgh before Christmas spotted Gangtok on our itinerary and gave us a form to complete which meant our visas included a 15 day permit. We just have to register, which means having our details copied into a big ledger. A Swiss couple, sitting in the back row of our jeep, need to go through the whole process and have to go to get photocopies of passports and visas. The jeep parks up and waits. The Indian passengers disappear except for one lady who retrieves her bag and gets into a smaller local taxi. The Swiss reappear and we chat with them while we wait for the driver. He appears but some passengers are still missing.  Eventually they appear and we set off again. The process has taken about an hour.

The road gets much steeper, with hairpen bends and narrow sections. D's foot spends more time on the dashboard than on the floor. Painted along the roadside are slogans promoting  safer driving. Our favourites are "Enjoy the Valley,  it's not a rally" and "Drinking whiskey makes driving risky" although "It's a highway, not a runway" gets some votes.  Sikkim is noticeably cooler and appears to be almost litter free, a big plus. Eventually we see Gangtok spread out across the side of a mountain in front of us. A few more hairpins and then we turn off the road into a cavernous underground car park that serves as the jeep terminus. We recover our bags and are accosted by a local taxi driver. Our guest house is uphill from here and our bags are quite heavy. We suspect his price of being top side but just want to get there so we agree. His car is tiny and labours up the hills but gets us to the Mintokling, Lonely Planet's recommendation. There are steep steps down from the road but our driver shouts down and a porter appears.

 The guest house appears to be on several levels with the office near the top. We are welcomed by Pema, the lady manager, who quickly deals with the paperwork and tells us that we have been given the suite for the price of a deluxe double. We are shown down another flight of stairs to our room, light and airy with a separate sitting room. We have a view over the tidy garden and way in the distance is the hazy peak of Kanchenjunga, the world's third highest mountain. R is still rather drowsy from yhe travel sickness pill that she took after we relocated the medicine pouch. D has no excuse but we promptly fall asleep. We wake as afternoon is starting to turn to evening. There is a clearer view now of Kanchenjunga.  It is getting decidedly chilly so put in a request for a room heater (additional charge). There is plenty of hot water so we shower and change into warm, clean clothes before heading out to explore.

Phone mapping works well here and we are soon down on the spacious, traffic free main street MG Marg. There are crowds about and for the first time we see queues at the ATMs. We will not go short of places to eat here. As it is Friday our audience will expect to see a pub photo so we go for a token beer. Just before arriving at one end of MG Marg we had passed a couple of bars opposite a funfair. We pick one and climb up the stairs where there are balcony tables overlooking the amusements. The beer is a little warmer than par but the accompanying peanuts are very tasty. Sikkim is a duty free state so the bill is cheaper than most. Our walk back up the hill is punctuated by halts to regain our breath. Back at Mintokling we join the crowd in the dining room and have noodle soup, spring rolls and onion pakoras. The portions are huge and we struggle to finish everything. Back in the room the heater proves to be a wise investment.