Hey guys,
I would like to share a story of my recent trek to Goecha La pass, Sikkim, Himalayas, India.
The mountains are calling and I must go!
After having done around 19 treks in the Western Ghats of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, I thought it was a high time to enter the Himalayan venture. My first Himalayan trek was Kedarkantha (altitude of 12500 ft) , Uttarakhand in March. It was an easy to moderate trek where I had a thrilling experience. But after that I wanted to go for a trek with a higher difficult level and a longer one and that's when I chose Goecha La Pass trek in Sikkim. The main reason to choose this trek was to experience the views of Mt Kanchenjunga (3rd highest peak in the world at an altitude of 8586 m), Mt Pandim (6691 m), Mt Kabru (7412 m), Mt Rathong (6400 m), the Kanchenjunga ranges and the beautiful forest trails and meadows in the trek.
Campsites of the trek: Yuksom - Sachen - Tshoka - Dzongri - Thansing - Lamuney - Goecha La pass.
We get another campsite called Kockchurang while descending. The climb from Tshoka to Dzongri top was challenging as it was steep, but the views on Dzongri top were magnificent. Arguably the best view in the entire trek. I got see the spectacular views of Mt Kanchenjunga, Mt Pandim, Mt Kabru, Mt Rathong and the sleeping buddha (the entire Kanchenjunga range). On one side there were clouds and on the other side it was all mountains. It was magic to my eyes.
The trek is a strenuous one with a distance of 90 kms. It is a 10 day trek which starts from Yuksom which is the base camp. The trek was in the month of October 2019. The best time to visit the trek in in April, May and October, November period. The weather forecast didn't look great and it showed heavy rainfall. I could only pray to the mountain and sun gods and hope for a good weather. In the initial days of the trek, there was rain, the trail was slushy with leeches. Once we started reaching higher altitudes, the weather started to favor us and I was extremely lucky to have the best views from all the view points. Mountains can be humble and devastating at the same time, but what I saw in this trek was something beyond beautiful, inexplicable.
Throughout the entire trek I chanted Om Ma Ni Padme Hum (holy chant in the mountains of Sikkim) for good weather conditions and the mountain gods heard me. There's a window on the mountains where we get to see clear views. I got so see amazing views as we reached on the right time and it was a indeed a perfect window. I call it the window of Gods. The Thansing campsite deserves a mention. The staggering views of Mt Pandim at Thansing from close and meadows were something I couldn't take my eyes off (again thanks to the window as most of the time it was cloudy). We camped near river Prek Chu at Lamuney which was our final campsite before summit and it was super fun. Then comes the final summit day where everybody is eager and pumped up. I also got a chance to take some brilliant pics of the night sky - astro photography. The final day of our climb to an altitude of 15100 ft had arrived. We started our final ascent around 2 am, it was biting cold. Finally around 4.30 am, we reached the summit - Goecha La pass (15100 ft). I was panting and I could sense that achievement and hard work. I hugged each and everyone of my fellow trekkers on the summit and congratulated them. What a feat it was!
I sat down on the summit alone, the silence was beautiful. Everyone were waiting for the dawn and the sunrise to view the mighty Mt Kanchenjunga from close. Mt Pandim was at touching distance from the summit that I could literally throw a stone at it! I took out my mobile tripod to capture a time lapse video. The views in the dawn and that of sunrise are highly unforgettable. The moment when the golden sun rays kissed Mt Kanchenjunga and its adjacent peaks, tears started rolling down my cheeks. It was tears of joy. I had my special moment. It was such a privilege that the weather cleared out and I got to see the best views of Mt Kanchenjunga, Mt Kabru, Mt Pandim from so close. I mean these are some of the biggest mountains in the world and it was a feeling of sheer goosebumps. I literally bowed down to the mighty Mt Kanchenjunga.
We spent around one hour on the summit, clicked some amazing pics and started the descent.
While descending, we got to witness a high altitude alpine lake, lake Samiti. It was beautiful and I could see the reflection of the snow capped mountains on the water, the water was crystal clear! I met a lot of amazing folks in this trek and I will cherish this lifetime. Each and everyone in the trek loves adventure, mountains and meeting like minded people is always special. Every time I go to the mountains, I always experience and learn something new, but what I experienced in this trek is inexplicable. This trek will reverberate in my mind forever. Mountains have a special place in my heart.
Here are few pics I'd like to share
Hope you enjoy it.
Waking up to this spectacular view at Tshoka campsite
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Mt Kanchenjunga from Dzongri top
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Sleeping buddha as seen from Dzongri top (starting from left - Mt Rathong (the one after the extreme left peak), Mt Black Kabru, Mt Kabru, Mt Kanchenjunga))
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Mt Pandim from Dzongri top
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Mt Pandim as seen from Thansing campsite
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River Prek Chu at Lamuney Campsite
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The view of Mt Kanchenjunga before sunrise from the summit
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Golden rays kissing Mt Kanchenjunga (tears of joy moment)
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The golden cap
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A proud moment!
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Beautiful meadows
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Lake Samiti while descending - The beautiful reflection of the snow capped mountains on the lake
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Some night sky photos shot on OnePlus 7 Pro. Edited with Adobe Lightroom
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I would like to sign off by stating one of my favorite quote below:
"The mountains were his masters. They rimmed in life. They were the cup of reality, beyond growth, beyond struggle and death. They were his absolute unity in the midst of eternal change." ― Thomas Wolfe
Nature has so much to give us, plethora of emotions.
Thank you so much for taking time to read this.
All my pics have been shot from my OnePlus 7 Pro, hands down to the camera and a big shout out to OnePlus. Never Settle. Go Beyond Speed. Thank you!
Regards,
Nagarjun
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