Gurudongmar Lake: Sikkim Diaries

To put it quite bluntly, Gurudongmar Lake is the Big Daddy of all lakes.

It stands on a really cool altitude of 17100 feet, a feat very few other lakes can boast of. It is considered sacred, so people cannot really go and take baths and do other unspeakable things that the other lakes have to endure. Oh, and yeah, you can't find any kind of vegetation around the lake; not a single plant, not a single bush. The land there is as barren as a slate. It is all mud and stones, my friend. Plus the occasional block of muddy ice.

The Journey
The road from Lachen to Gurudongmar is like an ever winding coil of rope, and the Avomin tablets weren't helping; within an hour into our journey I started retching violently and puked my guts out. This delightful episode repeated itself a couple of times, and thankfully, as a result, I went into a weakness-induced sleep that I did not come out of till we reached the lake.

We were mid-way when the driver told us that if I felt any worse we were to turn back; the pukes could be the result of me not being able to adjust to the altitude. He grimly pointed out that first-aid options at the Lake would be minimal, and if any of us had even a headache, we were to turn back immediately or it would get real risky, real soon.

The Lake
The lake is pure awesomeness. You could sit there for ages, just marveling at the picture before you - a perfectly blue, cloudless sky (the clouds are all around you), a beautiful frozen lake, snow covered peaks, and the utter serenity of the place renders you almost speechless. We didn't have much time though - barely enough to glance around and take it all in, and yes, just enough to click a couple of pictures.

The army
Within no time at all we were on our way back, and I had to fight the urge to wave to the army guys as we passed. It was a new found respect I had for the army - braving such adverse weather conditions away from their families... not easy! Not to mention the Chinese border sitting prettily just about 3 kms away - as if the bitter cold and the scarce Oxygen weren't enough.

Getting there
We had to submit 4 passport photographs, along with our ID proofs and address proofs to get a permit to reach the lake. The army divisions there have strict rules about this, and a vehicle cannot pass beyond their checkpoint if the travelers are not prepared with these beforehand.

I can go on and on about this, but I see that this has become quite a lengthy post already.