In my school days we used to call it Kanchenjunga. The official name by which the mountain is now known is in Nepalese language The mountain is partly situated on the border of Sikkim and partly in Nepal.
When I saw that mountain for the first time was in 1962 January from the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute in Darjeeling. We were housed in the Swiss Cottages on the premises and while attending a seminar in the open,the mountain provided a magnificent backdrop throughout the day.
**We also had the opportunity to meet Tenzing Norge - the 1st Indian to make it to the top of Everest, his charming daughter Pem Pem who was studying at Wadia College in Poona, and other famous Mountaineers Brig Gyan Sing, Col Kumar, and Capt Kohli
We also had the opportunity to view the sunrise from Tiger Hill.The sight is still etched in my mind. The surrounding in complete darkness and one by one the mountain peaks turning golden as if some one is switching on the lights,starting from Kanchenjunga and ending in Mt.Everest.
On our way back to Kolkatta in the Dakota in which we flew,we had Dr. Miller who was the co climber of the Everest with Sir Edmund Hillary. He showed us all the peaks right up to the South Col of Mt. Everest.
I visited Darjeeling with my wife and some friends in 2007
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| At the HMI |
I was looking forward to have a repeat of my 1962 experience. Unfortunately all the 3 days we spent in Darjeeling it was raining. We visited the HMI but the valley was covered with clouds. On the way to Gangtok we just had a glimpse of the mountain.
We had planned to go to Peling very close to the foot of the mountain but had to cancel the visit due to landslide.
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| From the hotel |
While in Gangtok we had the sight of the Mountain
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| From the Hotel |
We also had the experience of seeing the mountain at the dawn. .
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| At the sunrise |
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| Mt. Kanchenjunga under sunshine |
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| Kanchenjunga in its full glory |
In Gangtok our friend took these magnificent pics of the mountain in its full glory . Here I feel justified in calling the mountain by my school days name Kanchan Ganga meaning sacred river of gold
** In my previous blog I had forgotten this interesting part of my visit to Darjeeling which i thought was worth narrating
Kanchenjunga Mountain in Darjeeling is the third highest peak in the world, with an elevation of 8,586 metres. Darjeeling is synonymous with sprawling green and picturesque tea-estates. Click here to know more about Darjeeling tourism.
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