PELLING, THE QUEEN OF WEST SIKKIM.

Pelling is about 105 km from Darjeeling. The journey took us about 2 hours, as we travelled through farms on both sides of the road, followed by mountains throughout most of the journey and occasional plateaus. We reached Geyzing (also called Gyalshing) which is a district headquarter at a height of about 6500 feet, after which we climbed up further on a mountain top to reach Pelling situated at a height of 7200 feet.

There is an Upper, Middle and Lower Pelling, depending on the height at which you stay on top of the mountain. I found Upper Pelling more comfortable for staying as it seemed less congested and gave a better look of Kanchenjunga mountain, the main attraction in Pelling.

View of Kanchenjunga from Upper Pelling.

View of Lower Pelling from mountain top.

It is Kanchenjunga and its ranges which give Pelling its importance. Pelling is closest to Kanchenjunga for offering decent hotel stay to tourists. It is also a base for many trekking events in Sikkim.The entire range of mountains look beautiful early in the morning. One should see it from the helipad erected at the mountain top to enjoy the magnificent view.

The next morning we took a trip for sightseeing around Pelling. We saw a beautiful, tall waterfall called Rimbi waterfalls. The view was mesmerizing. The water was chilling cold. Simply dipping your legs in the small lake at the bottom of the fall makes you feel fresh. Rimbi waterfalls further down lead to Rimbi rock garden, a place full of rocks with a stream of water from Rimbi falls passing through.

Rimbi water falls.

Next, we took a road to a place called Khecheopalri Lake. This lake located about 35km from Pelling is a sacred place for Buddhists as well as Hindus. The lake has a serene atmosphere. You shall not find a single leaf on the surface of the lake, although the lake is surrounded by trees. It is believed the birds living in those trees keep the lake clean and tidy by immediately picking them up. One has to cross a foot bridge to reach the lake.The shape of the lake is said to be in the form of a human foot, believed to be that of  Gautam Buddha.

Khecheopalri Lake.

We left the sacred lake of Khecheopalri to reach our hotel in Upper Pelling. On the way, we saw a small town called Yuksom, which used to be capital of Sikkim in the 17th century.

The next day,we visited Pelling monastery and enjoyed watching Kanchenjunga from the helipad on top of the mountain. We walked through the narrow but clean roads of Upper Pelling. It was drizzling that day and we were enjoying the wind chill.

Pelling Monastery

Pelling is a very small place. All the three viz. Upper, Middle and Lower Pelling are at walkable distances on the mountain. Food of our choice was a problem here, but I would like to mention a restaurant called Melting Point in Middle Pelling which serves excellent North Indian as well as Chinese food. One can enjoy the mountain views from this hotel as well.

Overall, Pelling is a great place to be in. Highly recommended for tourists visiting Darjeeling and Gangtok.