Zuluk : A comprehensive Travel Guide of Old Silk Route, Sikkim tourism
Zuluk or Dzuluk is an abode of peace and a hamlet close to Indo-China border in the eastern part of Sikkim and considers as a part of old silk route. This pristine land is situated at an altitude of 9,500 ft above sea level in eastern part of Himalaya.
There are around 700 people residing at Zuluk, most of those people were immigrated from Nepal. This small village is situated on the top of a high hills. The main attraction of Zuluk is its eye catching zig-zag path,which is also called Zuluk loop.
From Thambi view point you will have a birds eye view of Zuluk and surroundings. This is a ideal place for watching sunrise and sunset over world third highest mountain Mt. Kanchenjungha.
From top of the loop you will find clouds playing hide and seek with Zuluk. At afternoon the whole valley hide under thick cloud.
A Night at Zuluk, old silk route
Best Time to visit:
Zuluk is accessible through out the year but keep in mind winter in Zuluk is severe. During winter Zuluk faces high snow fall and freezing temperature.
In summer the picture is completely opposite. Summer is wet and foggy here. During summer Zuluk and its surrounding hills remain covered with different kind of blooming rhododendron flowers.
Sunset, old silk route
Sight seeings of Zuluk :
Zuluk Loop:
Zuluk is famous for its incomparable loops of Old Silk Road and there are approx. 30 loops in this zig-zag path.
Ganek :
Ganek is the sunrise point in Zuluk on Old Silk Route. Start early in morning(4:00 am) to reach Ganek and catch glimpse sunrise over Mt. Kanchenjungha.
Nag Temple:
This cave like structured temple is dedicated to Nag Devata(Snake God). It is locally believed that this temple is formed naturally through a crack in a giant sized rock.
Thambi View Point:
At an altitude of 10,500 ft this view point is ideal place to watch panoramic view of zig-zag Zuluk loop on Old silk road with Zuluk village. Kanchenjungha is also much prominent from here.
Lungthung :
Lungthung or Dhupidhara is at an altitude of 12,500 ft from sea level. You will also find some home stays here. This is a popular spot for spotting Monal(National bird of Nepal).
Tukla Valley :
This is a war memorial built to commemorate the death of British soldiers, who died at the battle of Tukla.
Kanchenjungha, old silk route
Gnathang valley:
Gnathang valley is a small hamlet near Indo-China border and this is situated at an altitude of 12700ft. This valley is surrounded by high hills. You will find a small British cemetery, a Durga temple and a Buddhist monastery here. Click here to know more about Gnathang.
Old Baba Mandir :
This temple is build in the honor of Sepoy Harbhajan Singh and this is well maintained by Indian Army (cloud warrior regiment ). On the top of this temple you will find Harbhajan Singh’s bunker.
Old baba temple, old silk route
Kupup Lake:
Kupup lake is locally known as Hati lake for its Elephant like shape. This lake is surrounded by high hills.Beside Kupup lake you will find an Ice Hockey field and a golf course at an altitude of 13020ft.
Kupup Valley :
Kupup is a small valley situated at an altitude of 13900 ft. From Kupup Lhasa(Tibet) is only 520 km. You will even find a signboard mentioning distance with direction here from Lhasa.
Jelep La :
In Tibetan language ‘Jelep La’ means lovely level pass. this is a mountain pass between India-China. This pass is situated at an altitude of 14300 ft. This is the last point of old silk rout from Indian side.
In Tibet side this pass lead to Chumbi valley(in Tibet). This passs is closed after 1962 Sino-Indian war.
Menmecho Lake :
Menmecho Lake is situated at an altitude of 12500 ft. This lake is located 20 km from Chhangu Lake.This is a stunning beautiful lake surrounded with rich forest. This lake is famous for its Trout fish.
Menmecho lake, old silk route
Tsomgo Lake :
Popularly known as Chhangu Lake. Changu lake is 1km long, 50 ft deep and oval in shape. This lake was created by the melted glacier.
Nathula Pass :
Nathula is the gateway between India and China.This pass is open for Indian nationals only on Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday but recently central govt. has decided to close Nathula pass for tourist from April 2020 until further order.
Changu Lake, old silk route
How to Reach Zuluk :
To reach Zuluk one have to take a car from New Jalpaiguri(NJP). Podemchen is the entry point of Silk rout. For Silk rout one has to collect pass from DFO,Podemchen and this pass is available from Morning to 4 pm in a day.
Where to Stay at Zuluk:
Home stays run by local people is only staying option in Zuluk. Generally these home stays are attached with bath and basic necessities. These home stays are clean and hygienic. ‘Bukhari'(a room heater or fire place) is arranged by home stay owner to make room warm and comfort.
Snow Lion View Point : Karma Sherpa 9474145958
Kancha Mama-7602324999.
Gopal Pardhan 9609860266/ 7872883264.
Suraj Pardhan : 9734545435
Birds Eye View, old silk route
Distance Chart from Zuluk (approx):
Siliguri- 150 km.
Gangtok-110km.
Aritar-26km
Gnathang-15km
A doggy from Nathang valley, old silk route
Approximate cost of the tour as of 2020 – 2021 from Zuluk :
Rs 1000-1800 per head per day including food and lodging .
Hired Car will cost : Rs 3200-4500 per day including Driver, fuel charge.
For sunrise point extra charge is applicable.(Taken when i went there ).
Temperature of Zuluk :
In Summer – Max: 18° c Min: 2° c
In winter-Max 10° c Min: -2° c
Permit for Old Silk Route, Sikkim
One can not enter old silk route with out a proper permit. The permit for old silk route ( Zuluk and Nathang valley) can be obtained from the office of Sikkim tourism by providing valid id proof and photo.
If you like my photography, you may be curious that which camera i used? Here is the camera i used for this trip. You may purchase this from Amazon with a special discount directly from our blog:
You may also like to read about another part of Silk Route, i.e Gnathang Valley
To know more about Sikkim visit wikipedia
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I have learn a few good stuff here. Definitely worth bookmarking for revisiting. I wonder how a lot attempt you place to make the sort of fantastic informative website.
I expected an exhaustive silk route plan NJP to NJP.Where to stay at nights,Car cost,if possible any contact person(from your own experience)etc.
Sorry I dont have no of Travel Agents.
But i can help you out to make a good plan.
Helpfull
Thanks for stopping by my blog.
Hey just stumbled upon this post while exploring few photography location in East Sikkim. I will be staying in nathang valley , zuluk and aritar. Can you guide me on best vantage points and location for sunrise and sunset.
Thanks for stopping by my blog.
For sunrise you may visit zuluk top or lungthung view point or thambi view point and for sunset the best place is gnathang valley itself.
I hope it will help you.
Thanks man. The first photo on the blog which shows the zig zag road, where was it taken from. And also the one titled Kanchenjungha.
I will be reaching East after covering North, so will take the Nathuala pass, Baba Mandir road to reach to East. I am wondering should i spend a night at Nathang valley or Lungthung. From a sunrise and sunset point of view Lungthung seems close to various places.
Photo of zigzag road with sunrise was taken from zuluk top. Kanchenjunga was taken from thakbi view point. I will suggest you to stay one night at gnathang.
Thanks again.
May require a bit more help with planning, thanks in advance
Day 1 – Reach Nathang by 3pm. Go to Eagles Nest point for sunset and over night stay at Nathang
Day 2 – Early morning sunrise at Lungthung View Point or Thampi view point (not sure which would be best). Leave toward zuluk and stay overnight there.
Day 3 – Early morning sunrise either at Ganek or zuluk top (unable to locate on map). Leave towards Aritar and overnight stay there.
Day 4 – Aritar to Bagdora
You plan is perfect.
You will get glimpse of mount Kanchenjunga throughout this route.
IMO day 1 is perfect.
Day 2: sunrise from lungthung. Overnight at zuluk.
Day 3: sunrise from zuluk top as well as thambi. First go thambi watch sunrise there then visit zuluk top.
Keep working ,splendid job!
Hello. And Bye.
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Very nice
Hi Abhibrata, your blog is really helpful with all those information…I and my family- 2adults and 1kid (4years) plan to visit Sikkim in 1st week of May for 4 days. Can I cover above mentioned zuluk old silk route, Lachung and Rumtek in this duration?
Hi, stumbled upon while searching for trip to Zuluk and it’s nearby locations in September 2019. I am confused on whether to start from NJP to Rongli/Zuluk and end at Gangtok or Its best to start from Gangtok side and end at Rongli/Kalimpong. Please suggest. I have only 2n/3d time, so can we cover this entire circuit?
Thanks,
Laxmi
Better start from Njp
Start early reach aritar,
2nd day aritar to zuluk
3rd day zuluk to nathang
4th day Nathang to Gangtok
Your blog is very nice. I remember my first visit to North Sikkim. Zuluk, Aritar, Padmachen, Gurudongmar Lake everywhere was so amazing. At Gnathang valley we spent 1 night there and the day was Buddha Purnima. We visited Buddha temple at 7pm and it was amazing.
Fantastic photography and appropriate description.
You have furnished the right information that will be useful to anyone at all time. Thanks for sharing your ideas.
Silk Route Tour
This information is helpful to travel enthusiastic from all over the india. Adorable SilkRoute is a Destination Management Company from Kolkata,India.It is focusing on Easter Himalayan Zone like Sikkim, Bhutan,North-East,Nepal. Initially we are focusing on Sikkim & North-Bengal Sector. We are delivering our best to tourist with undisputed ground level inventory support. Being a FIT (Free Individual Travel) premium operator we are glad to provide you the unforgettable travel memory with us.
However Zuluk is the main Point of Interest in Old Silk Route Tour (East-Sikkim). Taste the charm of mountain climate on 10,000 feet . Enjoy the adventurous ride on most curving roads(95 Turnings point) in India. Now days it is fast arising as a new tourist destination. Zuluk creates its tourism undisputed value due to the excellent view of the eastern Himalayan mountain range including the Kanchenjunga from here. For this trip to the area requires special restricted area permit(RN/GN Permit). The permit shall be issued by us with necessary documents.During the summer months, the area and its surrounding hills are covered by thousands of blooming rhododendron.
Really awesome place and lively pictures. East Sikkim is very beautiful