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This pristine village is bounded by the Kachenjunga
Mountain Range in the North and the river gorge Relly Khola in the south.
Chatakpur is only about 80 Kms from NJP or Bagdogra, 26 Kms from Darjeeling and
17Kms from Jorebungalow, Ghoom. Once upon a time this village was a timber den
and people used to rampantly smuggle out the timbers. But the forest department
has taken the initiative to remodel it to an eco tourism place where the
villagers actively participate in it in order to make tourism an alternative
source of livelihood other than just farming.
Located at an altitude of
7,887 feet, Chatakpur is a paradise for nature lovers as one can get a
spectacular view of the imposing mountain range of Kanchenjunga and at the same
time experience the overwhelming lush green forest in a quiet village setting
with a population of only around 90 people and 18 village houses.
How to reach Chatakpur :-
From New Jalpaiguri (NJP) station or
Bagdogra airport, the easiest is to go towards Kurseong (either by taking the
Hill Cart Road, otherwise through Rohini Road), and then further up (towards
Darjeeling) to a small village on Hill Cart Road known as Dilaram. Here you
take a right turn for Bagora, another small village. From Bagora, Chatakpur is
about 40-45 minutes drive. Another way is to first reach Sonada via Rambi, then
Mongpu and Jorebunglow. Chatakpur is around 7Kms away from Sonada.
While coming from Darjeeling, come down
to Sonada which is an hours drive and then go up to Chatakpur (Appx. 7kms).
Note : You should not take a small
car or even an Innova for Chatakpur. The last several kilometers is a boulder
road and only vehicles like Sumo, jeep, Bolero etc with good ground clearance
can negotiate that. Also the last stretch of the road passes through jungles.
Attractions & Activities in
and around Chatakpur :-
You can view the Sandakphu from the
Watch Tower in Chatakpur, 10 minutes walk from the tourist cottages. This view
tower is also known as the sunrise point, and as expected the view of sunrise
from here is simply awesome. Some argue that you perhaps get better view of
sunrise over Kanchenjunga than what you get from Tiger Hill which requires you
to travel for 40 minutes from Darjeeling early in the morning. While here, it's
only 10 minutes walk to the tower.
Kanchenjunga range will be with you all
along on a clear day. And that probably is the main reason why tourists love
this place the most.
From the tourist cottages if you go 100
meters or so to the right, you enter the jungle. There are several forest
trails here through lush greenery which are ideal for light treks. You should
always take a trained guide with you for treks as there are many wild animals
& birds like leopards, barking deer, Shrike, Warbler, Bulbul, Magpie and
several others. If you are lucky, you can even see a Red Panda.
A trail from the eco cottages leads
down to a nice small pond, locally known as pokhri. It's about 10 minutes
walk.
There are only 18 village homes in this
tiny place, and the villagers will do everything possible to show you what they
have or do. You can pick garden fresh organic vegetables from the farmland, or
even feed or milk the cattle if you want. In fact you can buy organic
vegetables really cheap and take back home.
And there are those elderly folks in
the village who are waiting to tell you the stories about this place, it's
history, people and their culture. You will love to hear them on a lazy
afternoon as you sit under the sun on the courtyard.
After sunset the locals perform
traditional folk dances on request to entertain tourists.
Best time to visit Chatakpur :-
You can visit Chatakpur year round
except in the monsoon season (July to mid September) when it is not possible to
explore the forest. The tourist eco village resort remains closed during this
time. Winter time between November to February can be extremely cold. So bring
adequate winter clothing during this time.
For
Booking you can contact us;
Call us
at +91-8670752141 or +91-8900699294
Mail us
at tours@adieu.co.in
Website :
www.adieu.co.in
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