Sikkim Trek; April - May 2003

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Sikkim Tour

This is the trek that started it all! My good friend Martin Sidwell recommended me to John Howarth, who was looking for someone to share the expenses and the experience of his next venture into the Himalaya. It was my first opportunity to visit and trek in the region and the rest, as they say, is history.

Our trek was arranged by Kishore Thapa, owner of Pardick Trek & Tours Pvt. Limited. He's done a terrific job for John over the years and can be highly recommended.

This web site is based on the journal I kept during the expedition. If you'd like to read through the actual journal offline, you can download the PDF version:

Get the Sikkim Journal

As I re-read the journal long after the fact, I can see that I approached the trek with what the buddhists call "beginer's mind". I've experienced and learned a lot since this first journey in the mountains!

I have selected 180 of the 397 pictures I took during the trip. I have also added two of the pictures taken by John Howarth, the leader of our group. They can be identified by a credit line under the caption of each photo. The images on the web site are "snapshot" format, about 1/4th the size of the originals. If you have a particular favorite, I can send an original by email.

Seven (7) of the pictures are "Panorama" shots comprised of two or more individual pictures merged with Autostitch, a wonderful piece of free software. The panorama shots are 384 pixels high and as wide as they need to be to show the whole view at that height; use the scroll bar at the bottom of your browser window to move to the right for more of the image.

Let me know what you think, and enjoy the tour. Click on the "Sikkim Tour" link in the upper-left corner of this page or any of the destination links below to get started.

04/11 - 04/14 Preparations 04/15 Journey to Gangtok
04/16 Around Gangtok 04/17 Gangtok to Yuksom
04/18 Around Yuksom 04/19 Yuksom to Bakhim
04/20 Bakhim to Phedhang 04/21 Phedhang to Kokchurong
04/22 Kokchurong to Sumotang 04/23 Sumotang to the Goecha La
04/24 Chematang to Kokchurong 04/25 Kokchurong to Dzongri Hut
04/26 Rest day at Dzongri Hut 04/27 Dzongri Hut to Bikbari
04/28 Bikbari to Tipik Chu 04/29 Tipik Chu to Gomathang
04/30 Boktok Ridge Ramble 05/01 Exploring the Boktok Chu
05/02 Gomathang to Dundunz 05/03 Dundunz to Chunjon/Rimbik
05/04 Chunjon/Rimbik to Darap 05/05 Darap to Pelling
 
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