We and the Roads

Driving a car in Europe is something which everyone wants to do. The public transportation in Europe is very good, you will get flights, trains, buses from any corner in Europe. Public transport are sometimes cheap as well. A high speed bullet train might be costly but an overnight bus journey or an intercity flight is always cheaper if you plan in advance. Still the experience of driving is different altogether.

There are 2 kinds of people, one who loves the sea and the other who loves the mountain. I can definitely say I am the second kind. I have been to the Himalayas numerous times, but everytime I visit the hills it feels like the first time. The mountains have always brought a smile on my face. Its is also very difficult to stay away from the mountains for too long. Once you have felt the essence of the hills its hard to love any other place. That is why Sikkim comes to mind first when I am planning for a roadtrip. You can never get bored of Sikkim. Our last trip to north bengal/dooars was a nightmare. Due to heavy rain and flood we were stuck there for 4 days. While returning to Kolkata my car was damaged severely. Thats another story and I will write about that in an another article, but for now lets talk about West Sikkim. I did plan for West Sikkim during monsoon but we went to Dooars and was badly stuck. West Sikkim is most the dangerous place to visit during monsoon, but at the

Last year during Easter I was in Scotland. We had a massive road trip and I drove like anything. You can read more of that here- Scotland - Driving thorough the mountains, lakes and sea . As I work for a British client I get holiday this time even if I am working in India. After doing some research Lava and Loleygaon sounded to be a good destination. I havent been to these places before. They are not very far from Siliguri. The hotels were booked  online from the West Bengal Forest Department's website. Lava is a small town in north Bengal's Kalimpong district. Lava is the entry point of Neora Valley national park. Its a small town which has been a prime tourist destination for years.The route to Lava isnt in good condition but very scenic. There are 2 routes to Lava, one via Kalimpong and the other one via Gorubathan. We took the second route becase I didnt drive on this route before. There are lots of tea gardens on the Gorubathan route. We reached Lava before lunch.

In 2010 I visited North Sikkim for the first time, with my college friends. I used to ride a bike then and from that time I dreamt about riding to North Sikkim. Time has passed and I shifted from bikes to cars, but the dream was still there. Many people have been to Leh and other places but very few could manage to North Sikkim. And to be honest I hardly know 2 or 3 people who has done the full circuit in their cars. Not because its tough, because there are certain rule by Sikkimese Govt which doesnt allow private vehicles. But they do allows bikers. So cheer up if you want to ride !!!