Sikkim Rhododendrons in Lachung

North Sikkim - Lachung

We drove from Gangtok to Lachung - a small mountain village at 8600 feet close to the Tibetan border. http://www.mapsofindia.com/maps/wildlife/wildlife-sikkim.htm 
It took 7 hours by bumpy twisting roads to reach Lachung. The drive goes past many hydroelectric dams on the Teesta River (now up to Stage V), some near Lachung is being contested by local Lachungpa, Lepcha and other minority people. It was also seen that some dams are not completed by the construction companies, leaving a mess of concrete in the river.
http://www.indiatogether.org/teesta-environment and http://blogs.agu.org/fromaglaciersperspective/2017/05/02/gurudongmar-glacier-retreat-teetsa-river-hydropower-sikkim/

Lachung has been besieged by Indian tourists to the point where most of the hotels are leased and operated by Indians from other areas of India, mostly Bengalis from Calcutta. Many of these hotels are ugly buildings that advertise Bengali comfort and food. Sadly there is a lack of Lachungpa culture. One leaves with photos of the pretty flowers but knows nothing of the people.

Here is an account of the pretty flowers

The beautiful Yumtang Valley leads to Shingba Rhododendron Sanctuary where more than 38 different species of Rhododendrons are found.

I wish I knew the names of the different Rhododendron species we saw - there was such an amazing variety of flower colors, bush sizes, and leaf types.

A lone yak walks in the mist as we entered the park. The weather was drizzly and chilly so our views and ability to walk about was hindered.

Driving into the sanctuary signs of landslides were common - perhaps nature's way of halting some of the tourist traffic. Near the entrance to the Sanctuary is a memorial to the regiment that built the road.

The first Rhododendrons are purple mixed with white shrub Rhododendrons it is a good start. But then the weather started to deepen into fog and drizzle.

Vibrant reds and delicate pinks

 A Fire-tailed Sunbird perched in a budding bush.

Cold and wet a female Orethrum dragonfly clings to a juniper.

The rhododendrons varied in shrub size, leave shape and color it was not possible to capture very many of them in the heavy rains.

Indian tourists rent warm woolies and boots to wear on their one day visit to the sanctuary, most come from warm regions so they feel very cold.

The river is lined with prayer flags for the Lachungpa believe this helps guide the soul of the dead away from the present world.

A few birds were out in spite of the rainy weather - below is the Rufous-gorgeted Flycatcher

 On the water was an Ibisbill, a Himalayan resident species of wading birds. 

Blood pheasants appeared once the constant convoy of Indian tourist cars had left the park. We saw several cross the road but they were fast at disappearing.

Driving above the sanctuary is a pass called Zero Point over 15,000ft and a few km from the Chinese border. On the way to Zero Point the signs warn that the area is protected and permits are needed. However the number of permits seem to have no restriction, the road hums with traffic, despite the weather.

 A sign on the way to Zero Point and finally below in the snow at the top.

Next Day:
After such a miserable rainy day the following morning was clear and lovely but our trip to the sanctuary was over and we had to leave.

A few examples of Lachungpa houses and their love of flowers.

A very old, 1940's, Nissan truck sits unused on the road in Lachung.

 A clean start to the day, a cat sits in the sun cleaning itself.

 The traditional Lachung village

At our lunch stop, a cute baby was enjoying his bath in a small basin.

The colorful house belongs to the family of the young girl below - she takes care of her brother while her mother works. Her mother proudly said the young girl was number one in her class at the local school.

A roadside vegetable market has lovely banana, pineapple and lots of fresh vegetables. The road jams were taking so long that we often got out and walked while our driver waited for the road to open. It was a good way to meet people, get some exercise and see close up what was happening.

Women work hard as laborers to build the road, which is painstakingly slow as they hammer large rocks into small rocks. The roads need a lot of work and workers as you can see. However, the number of tourists and the jeeps carrying them seem undaunted by the horrible roads.

Now on to Yuksom