Mirik || Samendu Lake || Bokar Ngedon Choekhor Ling Monastery || Go gazing || Salamander Habitat || Drooling Day outs || Out Country || Trekker’s Day Out || Balason river valley experience || Bunkulung || Border Shopping || Mirik Outbound

Jagjeet's peek into the Mirik past

Mirik, a pretty hill station in the district of Darjeeling, West Bengal (India) made its touristic debut in the early seventies when the large swampy stretch teeming with the swamp weed, the aromatic sweet flag was cleared to make way for an alluring lake. Years ago there used to be two brooks that watered the bog and in the present garden plot stood the grassy polo ground where, during the days of the Raj, the gutsy, sports-freak Sahibs (tea garden managers who were basically of British or foreign origin) toted their polo stick. By 1979 the metamorphosis was almost complete and a stunningly beautiful lake stood in place of the old swamp. A boating facility was pulled in and with a lush garden Mirik had already become a craze by the early eighties with its assuring proclamation, the newest hill station in India. It once attracted as much as 14,000 tourists a day and there was a sudden boom in the growth of hotels, restaurants, other eateries and transport. Mirik today is well linked and still well visited with a marvellous out country.

"It’s a hotel Jagjeet invitation

….. Your Second Homecoming"

The simmer on Samendu Lake

The lake is still the focal attraction and the calm upon the emerald waters offer one much bliss that work like a balm. Boating could be relaxing, as you paddle mid-water a certain feeling of seclusion resurge and that previous dire need to escape the dinful crowds seem uncannily fulfilled. So remain lost amidst the ripples of the serene waters and as you gaze around, the hills looming on the periphery of the valley upon which the lake is sprawled appear just too mystical. Patches of pine forest are still lush at certain pockets while healthy young saplings can be seen thriving upon the hills that infuse a sense of revival. A long stretch of footpath skirts the lake that provide ample opportunity for a good exhilarating walk. The lake can be crossed over by a bridge to reach the opposite bank and a few minutes of walk up a neat set of steps departing from the main footpath lead to an old ‘Devisthan’ (meaning the abode of a Goddess), a holy place of worship consecrated by a lady seer amidst the woods. The place is much revered and visited by local devotees especially in the early morning. A small segment of the lake just by the main road teems with a variety of fishes which tourists love to feed. Its hard to miss the lake, and, by any means one doesn’t wish to.

Boat options - Two-men & four-men paddle boats, Shikaras (boatmen available at the boat pier).
Boat Timing - 10.30 AM to 4.00 PM from Monday to Sunday.

Bokar Ngedon Chockor Ling Monastery - enlightenment upon a hill

The seat of the Venerable Kyabje Bokar Rinpoche, the monastery belongs to the Kagyud order and draws a large number of devotees from far and wide. Sprawled upon a hilltop the lamasery has grown remarkably over the years and is today a massive complex. The Venerable Rinpoche was well known for his compassion and expert meditation practice that established the monastery as an important meditation center. Devotees and visitors from across the world somehow discover solace amongst the hills and in the placid pace of life in the village and wind up spending days, weeks, months and even years at Mirik.

The monastery can be reached by a brief ten-minute walk, a pony hike or a local cab.