Sukna to Chunbhatti.

Route

How the trail goes.

The trail follows the century-old Hill Cart Road from Sukna up to Rongtong, four kilometres above. The road crosses the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway tracks several times in the first stretch. From Rongtong you have a choice. Stay on Hill Cart Road for another four kilometres to Chunbhatti. Or take the Shivkhola Road towards Sepoy Dhura, turn left before the tea factory and reach Chunbhatti in ten minutes from there. The second option is steeper and rewards you with the Shivkhola Viewpoint over Gulma and the plains.

Highlights

What stays with you.

• Two kilometres through the Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary. Elephants and peacocks are reported.
• The 1881 Z-Reversal between Rongtong and Chunbhatti. Time the hike with the toy train and watch it cross the road forward, reverse over the top and emerge above you.
• Shivkhola Viewpoint on the Sepoy Dhura route. The Mahananda meandering past Gulma to Siliguri.
• A park two kilometres before Chunbhatti with views of the Khaprail army camps and Kurseong above.
• Lighter traffic than the Rohini road, which now carries ninety percent of Siliguri to Darjeeling vehicles.

Waypoints

The route, hour by hour.

1. 00:00Sukna trailhead, foothill floor
2. 00:45Mahananda Sanctuary forest section begins
3. 01:30Rongtong (4 km mark)
4. 02:00Z-Reversal viewing point
5. 02:45Chunbhatti

What to carry

Five things, no more.

• Water, 1.5 litres
• Light fleece, removable
• Trail runners, not hiking boots
• Phone on aeroplane mode
• A notebook, if you write

Back at base

The morning ends here.

Cold plunge by 08:30. Sauna twenty minutes. Breakfast at 09:00. Deep work by 10:00.