Bhutan - Lindsay Brown [143]
Ura to Thrumshing La
36km / 1¼ hours
Beyond the office of the Thrumshing La National Park and the Japanese-funded hydroelectric plant, the road crosses the small Lirgang Chhu on a bridge called Liri Zam to enter the territory of the national park. It climbs past overhanging cliffs and cedar trees, more often than not framed in mist, and crosses a ridge that is labelled Wangthang La on some maps. It then drops into the Gayzam Chhu valley and starts climbing again past a road workers’ camp. Because the soil is very sandy, the road is unstable and has left a large scar on the hillside.
Three kilometres before the pass is a small park that features over 40 species of rhododendron. It’s possible to follow the trail inside the park and hike up through the forest for 40 minutes to the pass. If you have a keen interest in rhododendrons it’s often possible to get the park ranger to accompany you and point out the different species; mention this to your guide in advance and ask at the national park office in Ura.
If you are lucky enough to travel on a clear day, watch for a view of Gangkhar Puensum (7541m) as you approach the pass. A mani wall and prayer flags adorn the pass and a fallen sign proclaims: ‘You are at highest point’. This is Thrumshing La (3750m), 85km from Jakar, and the border of Mongar Dzongkhag; you are now officially in eastern Bhutan.
Thrumshing La to Sengor
22km / 1 hour
The eastern side of the pass is much rockier; the road switchbacks down through a fir forest past a road sign that says ‘Life is a journey, complete it’. At about 3000m, 20km from the pass, the route emerges from the trees and enters the pastures of the Sengor valley. The settlement at Sengor has a few houses near the road, although the main part of the village, about 20 houses, is in the centre of the valley. If you’re carrying a picnic lunch and have not already eaten it, this is an excellent place to do so – there is no good place to stop for the next two hours. A sign in Dzongkha adorns the rustic Kuenphen Hotel ( 03-635002) where you can get a simple local-style meal. A large road-construction contingent here toils to keep the pass open.
Sengor to Kuri Zampa
62km / 1¾ hours
The next stretch of road is the wildest in Bhutan. Five kilometres beyond the Sengor valley the road begins a steep descent into the Kuri Chhu valley, clinging to the side of a rock cliff, with numerous streams and waterfalls leaping out onto the road. The frequent fog and cloud on this side of the pass makes it difficult to see what’s below – for which you should be profoundly grateful, since more often than not, there’s nothing.
There are several chortens here – erected as memorials to the almost 300 Indian and Nepali contract labourers who were killed during the construction of this portion of the road. As you drive along the narrow track that was hacked into the side of a vertical cliff, it’s hard not to be concerned that you might well join them soon. Prayer plaques and Shiva tridents offer some limited spiritual protection. There are no settlements here except for a camp at Namling, 22km from Sengor, where a crew works frantically to protect the road from tumbling down the mountainside.
About 17km from Namling, after a long descent that traverses the side of a cliff, the road reaches safer ground and leaves the territory of the Thrumshing La National Park. At Yong Khola it emerges into the upper part of a large side valley of the Kuri Chhu, a lush land of bamboo, ferns and leeches (and good bird-watching). You pass cornfields and descend to the valley floor on a road that winds around like a pretzel. Rice terraces appear and tropical fruits such as mango and pineapple start to flourish.
Atop a hill on the opposite side of the river, near the kilometre marker 123, is a view of the ruined Shongar Dzong. There’s not much to see – just some stone walls almost hidden by trees on the top of a hillock – but this is believed to have been one of the earliest and largest dzongs, perhaps built as early