Camping in Sikkim

It all started with my son wanting to do a trek on his birthday. A quick google search took me to Thrillophilia and Sweety Mallick was very helpful in finalising our itenerary for Sandakphu trek. Makkan Singh and Kavish Rathore were also quite helpful. On Day 1, our family of four reached our homestay at Kopidhara near Mane Bhanjan. We were greeted by Tashi and Anmol. We were soon joined by our other team members, three cousins from Gujarat, one Danish National and a lady from Mumbai. We bonded almost at once and enjoyed the Diwali cracker show at this small village and the simple dinner our hosts had prepared for the night. Tashi gave us a good brief on Dos and Donts for the long trek ahead. This was our first multi-day trek. On Day 2, we started off by 0830 hrs for a steep trek of 6 km through the pine trees. Our senior guide Santa Dada, a gentle soul in his 50s had joined us by then. He took the forward position and Anmol, our other guide in his 20s took up the rear. We were a group of nine with ages varying from 15 to 48 years of age. We had great view of Kanchenjunga and Singalila Range all through the day as we took a tea break at Meghma, lunched near Chitrey and stopped for the night in a homestay at Tumling. Our hosts at Tumling had arranged for a cosy fireplace. Santa Da and Anmol gave my son Dhruv a traditional Nepali greeting on his birthday. We enjoyed the Diwali celebrations at our host's place which was a musical one with the entire village in attendance. Some of us danced to the Nepali numbers sung by the locals. On Day 3, we started off by 0900 hrs and this time also weather was very pleasant with clear view all around. We trekked along a gentle climb to lunch at Kayargutta and finally reached Kalapokhri homestay by 1630 hrs for our night stay. After a simple dinner we retired early. On Day 4, we started by 0830 hrs for our last leg of journey to Sandakphu. It was a steep trek but we enjoyed each moment with the group. We finally reached Hotel Sunrise our last stop atop Sandakphu by lunch. We were surprised to see that the hotel was well stocked with goodies and variety of dishes. It was warm inside the restaurant. Towards evening we trekked to the sunset point and though we could not have a glimpse of Everest and other peaks due to dense fog and clouds, we could enjoy the various hues of the sky due to the setting sun. We came back to the hotel and enjoyed a sumptuous dinner consisting of Chowmein and fried rice. Electricity was available only through solar panels and diesel genset for a limited time. Water was also scarce since it had to be brought by tanker from halfway uphill. So we retired early. On Day 6, we woke up early in the morning (0430 hrs) to get a glimpse of Everest, Kanchenjunga and the other famous peaks along with Sleeping Buddha pose. It was quite foggy and the clouds made it difficult to catch the Mt Everest peak clearly, We then started our climb down back to Seppy through a steep slope. This time Anmol took the forward position and Santa Da took the rear position. We quickly reached our lunch point at Gurduk, Sherpa Himalayan Homestay. The climb down was arduous due to the steepness and rocky trail. We were very tired by lunch due to pressure on the knees. The weather was also very foggy and the mountain ranges were not visible. However the Shrikola river and Timbure village gave us scenic views. We reached our Homestay at Seppy by dusk and our hosts headed by Sushant made our stay comfortable by offering us veg momos with tea and later a simple dinner. We were very tired and quickly retired to bed. On Day 7, Sushant was very helpful in dropping us back to Kopidhara and arranging vehicle for the way back to Siliguri. The entire trek was made very memorable by the bonding within our group despite the varied age difference. We had great fun and will always remember the great time we had. We carry a lot of photographs for remembering those fun moments we had. Thank you Santa Dada and Anmol. Thank you Thrillophilia. Thank you all the hosts en route Sandakphu and back. Regards and Best Wishes.

"One of the best experience in my life till date. Sandakhphu trek had mesmerizing views and sceneries. Enjoyed like hell. Its great for beginners. So beautiful, so ecstatic, so adventurous. Trekking guide especially DK sir was so helpful and patient. Loved his songs. Food was great all the way. I would definitely recommend for everyone to try once in a lifeime. "

"Overall a good trek. The Himalayan Trekker guide, Arpan, was very friendly and helpful. I would definitely recommend it for beginners. Seasoned trekkers might find it a bit easy."

I decided to do a solo Himalayan trekking in a spur of the moment, on a Sunday afternoon. I randomly googled for the organisers and Thrillophilia were the only guys to come back with answers. They suggested me to do the Sandakhphu trek as it was my first trek as well. And I am glad they did.I would recommend this trip to anyone who is looking for an adventure as the difficulty is easy to moderate. This lets you experience not only the rich flora and fauna of the region but also gives a glimpse of the lifestyle of the pahadi people. Finally, as we watched the Mountain Goddess Kanchenjunga shining in all its grandeur, at Sandakphu, we felt every bit of the effort is worth it.

this amazing trek to sandakphu is one of the best treks to be found in the northern part of india. the trek helped us to learn more about the local life style and tradition.It was a quite challenging track but the beauty that awaits when u reach the top is worth tha pain and hardwork.

I went on a trek to Sandakphu and Phalut in Nov 2015. The region is at India-Nepal border. Sandakphu and Phalut are respectively the highest and second highest peaks in West Bengal. I'd say this should be on top of list for adventure and thrill-seekers and Himalayan-lovers.