The Hindu Business Line : Bitten by leeches... and the shopping bug

Recently in Gangtok How people from the plains behave in the mountains never fails to entertain tour operators, and the pahari people. For instance, in a green place like Sikkim, made greener by the continuous rainfall that lashed the tiny State last week, the grass gets thicker and the forest denser, becoming an ideal home to thirsty leeches.

After being stranded at Mangan for a night thanks to a landslide, while we were driving from Gangtok to Lachung in Northern Sikkim, we proceeded to Ravangla where our accommodation had been fixed in a beautiful property located about 4 km away from the little town of Ravangla. As usual, we were late – the birders and the photo enthusiasts in our group could just not have enough of wayside halts, not to forget the frequent ‘pit-breaks’ thanks to the cold weather!

After passing the little town well after the rays of the setting sun had disappeared and the persistent misty weather had taken over, a few km later we turned into the side path to begin the steep 1,500-odd ft, 1.5 km ascent to reach the Mount Nursery Resort where our accommodation had been booked.

Driving in pitch dark on treacherously curving and ascending mountain roads, where mist has descended to add to the poor visibility, makes you seek the benediction of all the gods you can remember. While only one person can drive, the others can pray, and we did just this. But soon we reached the resort where quaint, elegantly done up and dry log cabins awaited us.

Owned by Karma Takarpa, a landlord who lives in a village nearby, this facility has 12 rooms and a huge living-cum-dining area which is a sight to behold. The large hall looked more like a mini-museum and less like a dining hall; all the possible artefacts and handicrafts that you can fund in Sikkim were arranged here… right from warm, woollen carpets tossed across wooden benches and chairs, to different varieties of masks, enchanting head gear, bamboo mugs used for drinking rice beer – the unanimous vote was to continue with the delicious Sikkim Dansberg beer — wooden cups, cane baskets… name the handicraft and it was here.

Most of the members of the group were up at 5 a.m. to sight the exotic birds of the region, aided by Chong, the birding expert. Green-backed Tits, spotted doves, Verditers, brown owls and of course the beautiful bulbul were all there, giving out mating calls and making early morning music. The rains continued and soon several of us discovered that we had carried some extra visitors to our rooms — the leeches.

As Neil Law, our tour operator explained, “The cold and damp weather of Ravangala is ideal for leeches; they just love it, and latch on to any human footfall they can find.” But his words were cold comfort to his visitors, who were petrified of leeches.

While Neil and Chong could casually peel off leeches from their feet – twice one noticed Neil picking up and throwing two fat leeches from the steering wheel of his Scorpio – we had much excitement, accompanied by squealing, every time the unwelcome guest was noticed on one of our shoes.

Huge quantities of salt were produced and we were advised to rub it on our feet and even shoes, but apparently the leeches were hungry – it was after all monsoon time and not many tourists oblige them during this season – and could hardly be kept at bay.

After a while, as we walked around and Neil tried his best to show us the magnificent Kanchenjunga range which would have been visible had not the mist enveloped the whole place, we were more busy watching the ground and our feet, rather than the skies.

The tour was wound up with the last halt at the Aritar Retreat near the town of Aritar in eastern Sikkim, at an elevation of around 6,000 ft. A farmhouse belonging to a traditional Sikkimese family has been converted into a tourist resort. It has a honeymoon cottage and after much excitement and drawing of lots one of the lucky couples was packed off to the cosy room.

A brisk walk to the beautiful and picturesque Aritar lake was the only real bit of exercise we managed during the entire wet tour, even though a six-hour trek to the Rechela pass is possible with a night halt in tents, but obviously the monsoon is not the right time to do this trek.

A shopping expedition to Kalimpong, about three hours away was a highlight and the beautiful carpets bought in heavy rains will be cherished for a long, long time.

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Bitten by leeches... and the shopping bug