Advice for Sikkim in early April

Planning a 5 nights trip to west Sikkim 1st week of April 2012.
Want to see the rhododendrons & the mountain views.Is early April a good time or March?

Please advice on the must stays - Kaluk/Uttarey or head for north Sikkim to Borong or Yumthang?

We are looking for a non rush laid back trip- walks no hard treks.
Just to relax & enjoy nature.

April and May are the best months to see rhododendrons. The best places to see them are around the Yumthang valley in North Sikkim and Varsery Rhododendron sanctuary in West Sikkim.

Each of the places you've mentioned have their own uniqueness in terms of beauty. Kaluk offers a wonderful view of the Eastern Himalayan range including Mt. Kanchenjungha, Uttarey's beauty lies in its wonderful valley, North Sikkim for its stunning landscape valleys and lakes. Make an itinerary based on your prefrences. April would be a good time to go to North Sikkim, where you'll find rhododendrons aplenty or Varsey (accessible from Hiley by a 4 k.m soft trek, a trail that passess through a dense forest perched with copious rhodendron trees).

If north Sikkim covers landscaped valleys, lakes & rhododendrons then would you suggest the north & not west? And which one or two places would you suggest we stay in that case, bearing in mind that we will not go up to the lake which is 17000ft asl.

Alternately, if its the west, will the route to Hilley & the pass to Varsey (not the full trek) show up with Rhododendrons? Or is the full trek mandatory for the sighting? I'm aware Varsey will reveal the rhododendrons in abundance but will the route to it give us some sights in plenty?

Between north & west where would the ranges be more visible during this time of the year?

We are in our mid 50s & tire out easily due to certain health handicaps.

Thanks for all your help.

sagarneel, what can i expect to see in march second week as i will be travelling to gangtok and lachung. will the flowers be in bloom. or will it still be snowing. is it a good time to visit or should we postpone the trip to last week of march/first week of april

The reason why I always advise people to travel to North Sikkim atleast once in their lifetime is due to its stunning beauty. Be it Yumthang or Katao or Yumesamdong or Gurudongmar Lake, nothing can beat North Sikkim in terms of beauty.

Let me explain the North Sikkim tour first - A North Sikkim trip is tough to arrange on own (hassles of permits et al), and is mostly done as a package by getting in touch with travel agents. There are various packages which the agents offer and the cost of the same is determined by the number of days and the hotels used during the trip. Most people halt for the night in Lachung (the base for a trip to Yumthang Valley and Yumesamdong) and Lachen (the base for Gurudongmar lake, which is at an altitude of 17,800 feet asl). If you want to drop Gurudongmar lake, you can scrap off the Lachen part entirely and go for an exclusive Yumthang visit. In that case, you should stay in Lachung (~ 8,000 feet asl). The plan should be like:

Day 0 - Leave Gangtok and reach Lachung. Overnight at Lachung.
Day 1 - Lachung to Yumthang (if interested you can also visit Zero Point/Yumesamdong). Return to Lachung. ON at Lachung
Day 2 - Lachung to Gangtok.

Please note, even Lachung-Yumthang-Gangtok is possible in a day, however the journey would be very hectic.

However, you won't get a view of Mt. K from Lachung/Yumthang. If you're lucky, you might get a view from Singhik en route to Lachung (infact Singhik offers the best views of Mt. K in Sikkim, however, there's no decent option to stay there).

Since you talked of your age, I would advise you to talk to a physician before taking a final call. If your health permits, you should travel to North Sikkim, I am sure you won't regret.

The route to Varsey from Hilley is full of rhododendrons. Infact the trail is a part of the sanctuary. You need not walk all the way upto Varsey to see the flowers....the trail has them aplenty .


Although no one can gurantee a view of the ranges, West Sikkim (Kaluk, Bermiok, Varsey, Rinchenpong, Pelling, Yangtey, Biksthng, Chakung etc etc ) is a better place than North Sikkim to view them. However, as I said, if you're lucky and can catch a glimpse of Mt. K from Singhik, you'll never forget the view. Parts of East Sikkim offer good views too, however, thats a different story.

If I am to select one place for viewing a long range, I'd definitely go for Kaluk, which offers a stunning view of a long Eastern Himalayan range.

As I mentioned earlier...talk to a physician before taking a final call. Plan as per your physician's guidance. Remember, Yumthang is at an altitude of 12,500 feet.

Chances of seeing rhododendrons in full bloom is very slim in March (even late March). Mid Apr-mid May is the best time to see them. Yumthang is likely to have snow in mid March, although it depends on the amount of snowfall the place has been receiving and the weather during the time you're planning your travel.

Thank you for all the details.I did go to Chhangu, Nathula etc 15 years ago & enjoyed it thoroughly. Badri, Auli 8 years ago. I found that at Auli I was uncomfortable at night & past Badri at Mana village I got a severe headache. Coming down to Joshimath I felt fine. So heights with less vegetation is not for me any more. Alas!s

So west Sikkim it has to be.I was planning 6th April, but should I push it back by a week? The only apprehension is that the eastern Himalayas get foggy as the warmth settles in, though the flowers will be more then, right?

So for 5 nights,where do you suggest? Day 1 being flying into Bagdogra & driving to ...& day 6 being driving back to Bagdogra.

Hi Sagarneel,
Planning a trip to N.Sikkim (3N/4D-Lachen -Lachung -Gurudongmar Lake - yumthang and 0 point) sometime in april end . We are 2 adults and 2 kids of 6 yrs. Considering kids do you think it is advisible to skip N.Sikkim (especially Gurudongmar) and prefer West sikkim? We do not want to take any kind of risk.
In that case which are the must see places of west Sikkim to be covered in 3N/4D?
One more doubt -I read on IM that no one can predict wheather conditions in North Sikkim and due to road blocks etc many places can not be visited.If we have done booking with agent and unfortunately not possible to go there can we dynamically change the plan and move towards west Sikkim? How do you handle that part with Agent or it is a common scenario in Sikkim? Do we need to get quotes for both the N. and W. Sikkim from agent as an alternative?

rainbow9,

Before Sagarneel answers your query on whether its safe to travel to Gurudongmar with a 6 years kid , please let me answer your query.

It depends. I know many families who had travelled even with 2-3 years kid. kshil, has travelled to the same altitude many times with his 6 year kid. Hence it depends - you should discuss this with your physician before taking any decision. As part of precaution you might carry portable oxygen cylinder and the medicines. There is no guarantee of how your body adjust with the extreme altitude(Specially when you are ascending 8500 ft within a time span of 4-5 hours) , however the natural beauty of these place can be guaranteed.

Regarding West Sikkim , I think Pelling , Uttarey and Kaluk(Bermiok) all are must-see and having their own beauty. It depends on what you prefer to see.

Regarding the other part of your question regarding weather condition and road-blocks in North Sikkim , I would say it depends on how you deal with your travel agent. But just to eliminate that unpredictable condition of North Sikkim , you can better book the North Sikkim package on spot, rather than prebooking it.

If you push your trip back by a week, the chances of seeing rhododendrons definitely go up. The flowers start to be in full bloom by mid-April. As far as clarity of weather is concerned, it certain;y won't be as clear as Autumn, but my gut feeling is - if you stay in West Sikkim for 5 days, you can definitely expect atleast one clear day. However, its really tough to predict Himalayan weather. We can only hope for the best to happen.

Let me make an exclusive West Sikkim plan for you then.

Day 1: NJP-Kaluk. Overnight at Kaluk.
Day 2: Kaluk. You can visit the entire day at leisure, or go for short trips to Rinchenpong monastery (4 km from Kaluk), Reshum gumfa (a very soft trek 1 k.m ahead of Rinchenpong monastery) etc.
Day 3: Kaluk - Bermiok (4 k.m).
Day 4: Bermiok-Hilley-trek on the trail to Varsey as long as you want (dependign on how much rhododendrons you find en route).
Day 5: Bermiok.
Day 6: Bermiok-NJP.

You can also think of alternating Bermiok with Uttarey, which is a beautiful valley in its own rights, but devoid of the view of the Eastern Himalayan ranges.

Please feel free to ask if you have any more questions.

My only word of advise would be to talk to your physician. Although a lot of people travel to North Sikkim with kids, whether someone will have a problem depends on the individual's health. However, there are a lot of good medications to combat altitude sickness....you should (both kids and adults) give them a try in case you finalize your North Sikkim trip.

Please check post # 9 for a list of places. You can plan a couple of days in Kaluk and two more in Bermiok/Uttarey. A lot of people travel to Pelling, however, I never reccomend the place as I find it too cluttered. Yangtey and Biksthang are places which are off-beat and offer tranquility in addition to good views. Let me know what you decide finally, I'll try to make a customized plan for you.

Interesting question. However, I don't see a lot of chance of the road getting blocked during the time you are travelling. The road blocks in North Sikkim either happen due to excessive snowfall or rains, which cause landslides. Since you'll be travelling in April, chances of snow en route is very less (although it depends on the amount of snowfall for that particular year); and so are the chances of a shower heavy enough to cause a roadblock. However, as the gospel says, no one can predict the weather, I'd definitely suggest you to keep a plan B ready, and get a quote for both the circuits. However, if you are travelling to West Sikkim, you can save a lot of money if you arrange on your own (you can dynamically change your plan, just keep the contact number of the hotels ready). If you go for a self-arranged tour, talk to your operator specifically regarding refund of money in case you North Sikkim tour gets cancelled due to some natural calamaity (if they are not interested in refunding the advance amount, you can ask them to arrange for cars within the same cost).

Thanks. Is Bermiok similar terrain wise to Kaluk? What about hotels there? Any suggestions please.

Bermiok and Kaluk are at similar altitudes. Kaluk offers the view of a long range of the Eastern Himalayan ranges, whereas Bermiok offers a closer and a framed view of 'K' (however 'K' is the only peak visible from Bermiok). Both the places are pretty well vegetated.

A good place to stay in Bermiok is Hotel Silent Valley. You can contact Mr. Subrata Sarkar at (0) 9733136939.

You can have a look at my recent trip log to these place here to have some idea.

Thanks.We have extended our trip by one more night. So 6 nights.
Shoould/can we do Uttarey first for 3 nights? Is Pelling worth a visit from there or Yuksom. Which should be the base, Uttarey or Yuksom?

Then next 3 nights at Bermiok or Kaluk.Should the mountain views get fogged out those days, which is prettier & more comfortable to stay, hotel wise?

my advice to you is to stay away from yaksum, the rhodos are amazing there but it is a hard trek up