Chayatal Heritage Home - An outstanding offbeat destination in West Sikkim
This was our first trip to Sikkim and we were on the final day of the trip. I was sitting idle at Rinchenpong Hotel and thinking where to go. It was a cloudy day and drizzling from the morning. Though the scenic beauty viewed from our Rinchenpong hotel was quite extraordinary almost having a 360 degree view from the hotel rooftop restaurant, we were unable to relish this as clouds covered all around. We discussed with Mangal Subba, owner as well as driver of the cab we hired from NJP and had been with us all through our Sikkim tour, where to go as we won’t be able to go for any sightseeing if it continues raining. However, after some time, shedding away all our lethargy, we set out for Chayatal lake which is some 20 km away from Rinchenpong near Bermiok town up the hill. Chayatal is known for its picturesque beauty and serenity.
Chayatal, Hee Gaon, West Sikkim
As we went out of Rinchenpong, the weather suddenly favoured us and
the sun shone over the length of our journey. We started climbing up the hill
of Chayatal. Mangal, our driver was not very much acquainted with Chayatal road
as he was a resident of Yuksam. He missed the side road leading to Chayatal
emerging out of the main road along which we were travelling. By the time we
stopped and asked one passerby about Chayatal, we had driven quite a distance.
The passerby suggested to Mangal to take us to Nature Hill Top resort nearby
which was equally beautiful in natural view and we would be getting some hot
tea or coffee there.
We came out of the car in the front of the Nature Hill Top Resort and
the breath taking view instantaneously made me fall in love with the
surrounding. I was so mesmerized with
the nature’s beauty that I decided to spend our last night of Sikkim at this
place.
So I enquired at this place for rooms but to our disappointment we
found all rooms occupied. Hence, I started to search to local dwellers for
rooms for the night in homestay concept. I enquired to some local residents
whose house on the slope of the mountain caught my eye. Though it may sound
funny, I along with Mangal knocked from door to door and asked if they were
ready to keep us for the night in their house. Finally I got information of a
nearby home stay which was up the hill. I came to the spot and saw that to
reach the home stay we would have to climb more than 50 odd steps along the
slope of the hill. I started climbing up and after burning a considerable
amount of calorie I reached the place and instantaneously understood that my
search ended here. A two storied wooden hut about 75 years old, as I later knew
from the care taker boy, still very well maintained and recently painted, stood
among lush green cardamom garden. There were two new constructions by the side
of the main building. From the care taker boy I came to know the name of the
house as ‘ Chayatal Heritage Home’.
The scenic beauty of that area is just marvellous giving us almost
180 degree view of mountain range containing Mt Kanchanjangha. Constructed at
this place at the top of the hill, this homestay has great advantage of
offering such majestic view of the range of Mt Kanchanjangha which is the most
sought after criteria of tourists travelling Sikkim. Below is the view seen
during the month of November from this location.
But this is not exactly what I could see during the last week of May
due to too much cloud in the surrounding. Below is the view what I could catch
through my camera.
Moreover, one will get all required amenities here. Rooms are well
furnished providing great deal of comfort. Bathroom is spacious with 24 hours
hot water availability. During power cut the care taker boy provided us hot
water from the kitchen. One room can easily accommodate 4 adults. This home
stay has 05 rooms to offer.
Price of the rooms is also reasonable, as I was charged Rs 1500/-
per night with complementary breakfast, tea and soup in the evening. This seems
to be cheaper than Nature hill top resort nearby with almost similar kind of natural
beauty and other amenities. This is not to be mistaken that I have any
intention to reduce the grandeur of the Nature Hill Top resort. It is a great
luxury resort offering wide range of comforts and facilities to the tourists. I
am only saying that this home stay has similar positional advantage with
required infrastructure and decency to satisfy the need of a middle class tourist
travelling with family fairly enough. Here, I must recall the taste of the
morning tea served to us which I won’t forget for long. When asked, I was told
that the tea was prepared from the freshly extracted cow milk from a nearby
house and by putting cardamom from their own garden. In the evening and
following morning, Sri Mahindra Bista, owner of this property, visited us and
enquired whether we were having any type of problem. He was a young, energetic
and very cordial person and gave us all required information about the place
and requested us to visit again before we parted. Dinner was really tasty and
was served in a traditional manner in their 75 year old dining room. They
charged Rs 200/- for each non-veg meal and Rs 150/- for each veg meal which was
in my opinion was quite reasonable at this hard to reach place. In the morning,
in the complementary breakfast there we were served a local non veg item called
‘Chicken Shefale’ which had quite an interesting taste.
On request, they can also arrange a camp fire at their courtyard. As
the home is surrounded by natural vegetation in plenty, at night one will have
the experience of staying amidst a jungle. One will be thrilled to hear the
buzzing sounds of variety of jungle grigs all around in the silence of night.
At a nearby location, there is a Rhododendron sanctuary called
Bersey which can be reached within 10 minutes climb by stairs on the slope of
the hill. At this place enthusiasts can do trekking through a dense forest for
2 hrs. During the time of Rhododendron which is the month of March – April, this
place looks like heaven with all the trees full with red flowers in full bloom.
But as I visited this place during last week of May I could not have
this view. What I saw is a pure forest which nature lovers will surely enjoy.
Besides Bersey, there are a number of places having good tourist craze and can
be reached in one hour journey by car. Some are given below –
Chayatal
Singshore suspension bridge which is the second highest bridge in
the Asian Continent.
All together, my one night stay at this Chayatal Heritage Home was
greatly enjoyed by all my family members and all of us are looking forward to
having another trip for some longer time.
Finally I can say the real beauty of this place can only be
perceived by visiting this place and a trip to this place for true lovers of
nature will not be forgotten and will last in their memory for long.
How to reach the place : Nearly 150 Km drive from NJP Rail Station or Bagdogra Airport to
Chayatal Heritage Home, Bijanbari Hee Gaon, West Sikkim, PIN – 737113
For booking : contact Mr Mahindra Bista, Ph No. 9734312288, 8016010757,
9734142249
If you require a small car to book, you may contact Mangal Subba, Ph
No : 9647853487, He owns a WagonR purchased some six months back.
