Bhutan - Lindsay Brown [156]
Pemagatshel Junction to Deothang
55km / 1¾ hours
Below the junction comes the day’s most dangerous section of road, the Menlong Brak (brak, or brag, means cliff in Sharchop), high above the upper Bada valley. The fragile road passes prayer flags, prayer plaques and chortens to reach the Dantak-sponsored Hindu shrine at Krishnagiri, where your car will get a tikka from the resident sadhu. It’s an amazing descent, with sheer drops putting the fear of Shiva into you.
From the two-road village of Narphung (with its one-way system!) the road passes a checkpoint to the Narphung La at 1698m. It crosses a ridge and climbs to 1920m before beginning the final descent to the plains.
The road weaves down, reaching the PWD camp at Morong at 1600m, whose workers are responsible for the Indian-style homilies that line the roads here: ‘speed thrills but kills’, ‘no hurry, no worry’, and our favourite ‘it is not a rally, enjoy the valley’.
The Choekey Gyantso Institute for Advanced Buddhist Philosophy marks the outskirts of Deothang at 850m. The town’s old name town was Dewangiri, and it was the site of a major battle between the Bhutanese and the British in 1865. The town is dominated by a large Royal Bhutan Army (RBA) camp and to the south is a chorten with the names of all those who died building Bhutan’s roads. A side road branches off here to Bhangtar, a border town not open to foreigners.
Deothang to Samdrup Jongkhar
18km / 30 mins
The road eventually hits the valley floor with a thud, as a rock painting of Guru Rinpoche marks the end of the Himalayan foothills. The road curves past Bhutan Chemical Industries to the fairly cursory customs and immigration check at Pinchinang, 4km or so before Samdrup Jongkhar. It is here that you will get your exit stamp from Bhutan, even if you are spending the night in town before heading on to India.
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SAMDRUP JONGKHAR
07 / elev 170m
There’s little reason to linger in this sweltering border town. The streets are jammed with Tata trucks and every morning and afternoon a tide of Indian workers crosses the border to work in the town. A Bhutanese-style gate decorated with a dragon and garuda bids you farewell as you cross into the heat and chaos of India.
Electricity is rather haphazard in Samdrup Jongkhar.
Orientation
The highway enters the town from the north, passing the small modern dzong, post office, Dzongkhag (former Hifi) Guest House and Bank of Bhutan. The main road crosses a bridge then turns left by an internet café into the compact bazaar area, where you’ll find the hotels, shops and restaurants. If you go straight instead of turning left, you will hit the border, with the Indian town of Darranga 400m beyond.
Information
Bank of Bhutan ( 251149; 9am-1pm Mon-Fri, to 11am Sat) Will change ngultrum into Indian rupees but not US dollars.
PCO & Internet ( 8am-9pm; per min Nu 1.50)
Sleeping & Eating
No hotels in Samdrup Jongkhar offered air-conditioning at the time of research.
TLT Guesthouse ( 251470; fax 251502) This Indian-style place next to the bazaar is probably the best option, with clean attached bathrooms and a decent restaurant.
Hotel Menjong ( 2511094; s/d Nu 650/850) The former Peljorling Hotel has spacious rooms but check the mattresses as these vary. There’s a decent lobby restaurant and bar.
Other options include the basic Indian-style Hotel Shambhala (s Nu 210-260, d Nu 260-360) and Hotel Friends ( 251544, r Nu 300), where some rooms come with an ‘air cooler’, as well as bathroom and satellite TV.
Getting There & Away
The easiest way to get to Guwahati is to arrange an Indian taxi through your hotel. A Bolero jeep costs US$40 for the 100km drive. Buses from the Indian town of Darranga, a 10-minute walk or rickshaw ride over the border, depart for Guwahati (Rs45 to 55) at 6.30am and 2pm.
Due to security concerns, all Bhutanese vehicles have to travel in a convoy as far as Ragiya (convoys do not run on Thursday or Sunday), 49km from the border. Indian vehicles face no such restrictions.