Lepchajagat

 

Lepchajagat has a charm of its personal. Placed at an elevation of 6956 feet and very near to Darjeeling, this small village is a destination that we read in romantic novels. Packed with broad oak, firs and rhododendron trees, Lepchajagat is the destination where one can find there peace and calm. It is one such spot where the hassled and sleepy souls of the cities seek out a few days refuge in the lap of nature. Lepchajagat is one of the popular weekend locations from Kolkata.

I would no longer call Lepchajagat offbeat, at least not for the populace from Kolkata and Bengal. It is now a popular weekend leave from Kolkata and sees a lot of guests all through the year. Being placed only 18 km from Darjeeling city can also be a reason for its reputation.

Even with the travelers footfall, Lepchajagat remnants a stunning and popular location for the vacation loving Bengalis. And for the others visiting Darjeeling, I would advise you visit Lepchajagat and stay there for a couple of days. I am sure you will come back with a superb memory.

Lepchajagat – The World of the Lepchas

Nearby, the township is also popular as Lepcha Bustee. Accurately, Lepchajagat means the ‘world of the Lepchas’ (Jagat means world). As the name suggests, the spots was once mostly engaged by the Lepcha tribe. Today, a main part of the local area is a preserve forest area.

The Lepchajagat village itself is rather tinny with a some houses. There were no local shop close and the main market was at Sukhiapokhri 4 km away. This is where the loveliness of the place lies. Totally private, Lepchajagat offered a perfect spot to hide from the world and delve into your personal opinion.

The tall trees offer you privacy and the chilly wind crosswise your cheeks totally makes you happy. The scent of the fog is similarly delightful. The fog comes unexpectedly and you are not capable to see much ahead of you, and it disappears evenly fast. The high pine and fir trees give a majestic welcome while you wander into this world.

What can you do and experiences at Lepchajagat?

As I said earlier, Lepchajagat is all about calm and scenery. The whole area is bounded by forest full of pine, oak and rhododendrons. And all-along with the humble nature, you will also get the imperial vison of the Kanchenjunga range. A variety of Himalayan birds are found in these forests. The chirping of birds is one of the sounds that you will constantly listen to in Lepchajagat. In short, Lepchajagat is the destination where you can purely calm down and enjoy nature.

In the morning you can normally roam just about the village and forest local area listening to the chirping birds. Those with a keen attention in birds can also look out for these small Himalayan birds. In the sunset, you can sit alongside the fireplace sipping a cup of temperate Darjeeling tea and reading a book.

There are so upsetting sounds like the honking of cars, no smog. The only sound you must listen to at night is the buzzing noise of the crickets. There are no shops or markets, neither any nightlife attractions here. Lepchajagat is just the place to spend time with nature and self.

The WBFDC Forest Lodge stands at a huge destination. You can get the vison of the snow peaks from its terrace. There is also an air travel of staircase from the garden of the woodland cottage that leads to the forest.

Hawa Ghar: This is the vantage top from where you can see all the five mountain peaks of the Kanchenjungha massive on an apparent day. Hawa Ghar is placed just about 1 km from the Forest Lodge and can be arrived at during a simple walking trail.

Ghum Rock: This is one more location that you can visit at Lepchajagat. Placed at just about 1.5 km from the Forest Lodge at an elevation of 7900 feet, you can get some huge vision of the snow-covered peaks and the surrounding valleys from here. This is also a perfect destination for watching the sunrise.

 

 

Places to Visit near Lepchajagat

There are a few interesting places you can visit here. Ghoom and Darjeeling are equally rather nearby and can be visited from here.

1. Jorpokhri

Jorpokhri is a small hamlet located over a hilltop at an altitude of 7400 feet; it is only 5 km from Lepchajagat. The location has been named after the most popular magnetism of the village, the twin lakes. ‘Jor’ means two and ‘Pokhri’ means lake.

The area surrounding the twin lakes is quite beautiful. The area falls under Senchal Forest Reserve and is full of trees like fir, birch and oak. Jorpokhri is another amazing nature’s retreat that can be visited from Lepchajagat. At Jorpokhri Lakes, you can also see the rare Himalayan Salamanders, especially in the monsoons.

2. Ghoom Monastery

Ghoom is only 10 km from Lepchajagat. Well-Known as the Yiga Choeling Monastery, it is one of the oldest monasteries in the Darjeeling local area. This monastery is also popular as the Old Ghoom Monastery. The monastery is said to have the oldest Buddha statues in the local area. The statue is thought to have been building up by mud bring from Tibet! From the monastery, you will see the perfect vision of the Kanchenjunga ranges. On an apparent day, the sweeping vision of the snow mountain peaks can visibly take your breathing away.

There is one more monastery, Samten Choling Monastery close to. You can get a visit to these two monasteries. Ghoom Railway Station is also an exciting position to visit.

3. Pashupati Market

Pashupati Market is the popular border marketplace situated 15 km away from Lepchajagat at the India-Nepal border. The market is rather popular between the locals area and is well-known for the sale of trekking and hiking gears, winter wears, shoes, bags and backpacks and so many other things. However, if you wish to buy something from the Pashupati Market, make sure to verify the goods correctly, specially the well-known ones, lest you are specified a false item for consumption. Only Indians are allowable to go into the market with suitable ID verification.

4. Maneybhanjan

Maneybhanjan is a rather Himalayan hamlet and also the support camp for Sandakphu trek. The location is just about 11 km away from Sandakphu.

5. Mirik

Mirik is all about 30 km from Lepchajagat after cross Pashupati Market. It is one more gorgeous location popular for the Sumendu Lake (Mirik lake) bounded by the pine forests.

 

 

Our Experience at Lepchajagat

As we took the road towards Sukhiapokhri from Ghoom, a 7 km drive took us to the foggy heaven of Lepchajagat. Lepchajagat had been in our bucket list for long. So when we got a couple of days leave, we packed our bags to Lepchajagat.

Lepchajagat has a few homestays and a Bungalow of West Bengal Forest Department. We had booked our rooms at the Forest Bungalow and our car took us right there. The Bungalow stood imposingly and the gate made a screeching noise as we tried to open it. We had visited in the monsoon. The weather was cloudy and the bungalow was shrouded by a veil of mist. From a distance, it just looked like a Bhoot Bungalow! I was almost ready for an old caretaker coming out with a lantern in his hand!

However, nothing of that sort happened and a sturdy young man came out from the bungalow. We checked into one of the rooms. Quite wonderfully, the lodge was not hosting so many guests’ visitors at that same time. We came to know that there were only 2 families in the cottage apart from us.

The Forest Bungalow was a two-storied structure and was evidently build up in the British time. The rooms are rather huge with made of wood floor and a fireplace in every room. We thoughts it would be a grand live here. But the maintenance of the Bungalow was rather pitiable. There was a solo warden who looks after the construction. There is a way from the forest Bungalow that leads to the forest. But the caretaker does not really support the people to go there, the cause is strange. We, however, went a small indoor the forest and did not find anything unsafe there.

The vision of Kanchenjungha was wonderful from the terrace of the Bungalow and 2 of the suite. Maybe that is why people favor staying in these Bungalows. Government properties always get the perfect location!

The next day, we roamed just about the local area in the morning. We walked just about the village and the forest and afterward walked down the actual road with the aim to arrive at Jorpokhri on foot. We did not go all the way and returned as it started raining. However, the entire day was spent beautifully in each other’s company. To us, Lepchajagat was just the location to calm down and rejuvenate. We did not want to rush and visit location. We basically wanted to soak in the wonders of nature and that we did to our fullest.

A location becomes more stunning because of the people inhabit there. This can be actually said about Lepchajagat. The people are so pleasant and helpful. They will help you in any way they can. We had tea from a homestay, but they refused to take any money from us! “You are our visitor”, that was all they said with a smile on their face.

Lepchajagat can be weekend retreat for all those who want to spend a pair of days in the lap of nature apart from the nervousness of daily life. So next week you could also be at Lepchajagat.

How to reach Lepchajagat?

The close to railway station is New Jalpaiguri (NJP). The nearby airport is Bagdogra. Lepchajagat can be arrived at from NJP, Bagdogra or Siliguri by hiring a car. Otherwise, you can get a shared jeep from Siliguri or NJP to Ghoom. The sumos available towards Darjeeling will go down you at Ghoom. From Ghoom, you can take one more shared jeep or employ a full car. Getting a shared jeep to Lepchajagat from Ghoom is a bit hard.

Lepchajagat is 18 km away from Darjeeling and you can appoint a car from Darjeeling Chowk Bazar Taxi Stand to Lepchajagat. If you do not get any shared motor vehicle to Lepchajagat, you can take one to Ghoom and then one more. You can also tell your homestay proprietor or the caretaker of the WBFDC Lodge earlier to organize for personal cars for pickup from a decided location.

 

 

What to Stay at Lepchajagat?

The WBFDC Lodge

You can live at the West Bengal Forest Department Corporation (WBFDC) Lodge. This is middle-range lodging. Earlier it was a British Bungalow build up all around 1800s renovate for travelers by WBFDC. A thin lane from the major road leads to the bungalow. There are 5 rooms in the bungalow include 2 suites. While all the rooms are stunning, the perfect one is the suite on the first floor. Most perhaps it is named Guras. It offers a huge vision of the Kanchenjunga range. The room rate is from Rs3000.00 to 3500.00

The bungalow has to be booked earlier to your visit and can be booked online.

Most of the rooms have made of wood panels, large cupboards and fireplaces. There is a caretaker looking after the visitor. He takes your foodstuff orders as fine. But the instructions need to be told from earlier than. The food is normal but rather delicious. Electrical energy is still a problem. You can expect power cuts in the elevated season.

Tip: You need to tell the caretaker to hygienic the rooms and make the beds. They usually don’t do it if not specially told.

Homestays at Lepchajagat

You can also live at the homestays. These homestays supply basic lodging, fooding and the populace is rather pleasant. The homestays are placed just nearby the actual road. I will list a some homestays and their contact number for your assistance.

1. Pakhrin Homestay
2. Salakha Homestay
3. Kanchankanya Homestay
4. Lepchajagat Green Valley Homestay

Best time to visit Lepchajagat

March to May (spring and summer)

The spring and summer months among March and May are a best time to visit Lepchajagat to hit the temperature of the plains. The climate remnants cold and windy in the morning and a bit chilly in the nights. Be ready for the peak season mass in this time. You will find rhododendrons blossoming in the month of March.

June to September (Monsoon)

June to September is the raining season. As this is not generally a suggested time for a visit as most of the trekking trails would be inappropriate due to rains. Also, rains can also hamper your plans for seeing the sights. Though, the monsoon has a divide appeal. The clouds and mist hang over the spot make Lepchajagat totally romantic and attractive. It is the time when you can sit idle, relax and enjoy the rains in serenity. We had visited in the month of July and enjoyed the cloudy and foggy atmosphere of Lepchajagat.

October to November (autumn)

October and November is a nice time to visit. Normally, the sky remnants apparent and you get nice vision of the mountain ranges. In October, the climate is also excellent.

December to February (winter)

The winter season among Decembers to February is also a best time to visit Lepchajagat. Once again, the sky remnants apparent. But it can be rather chill in the early mornings and night in the winters. Take enough woolens with you in this time.