Himalayan Cycling Tour
Siliguri Cooch Bihar Chalsa Lava Kalimpong Darjeeling Bagdogra
Daywise Tour Plan
Bagdogra/NJP – Siliguri
Arrive Bagdogra and transfer to your hotel in Siliguri. The afternoon is free for your to get accustomed to your bike.Cooch Bihar 84 kms ride
We start our first day of riding with a transfer out of the busy city of Siliguri. We follow the busy main
highway out in the countryside to a point where a smaller back road leads off to towards Bangladesh.
This is the real starting point of the tour! After setting up we head off south through a landscape of
jute fields and rice paddies still farmed by ox-drawn carts. At one point in the ride you’ll see a fence
off to the right – this is the Bangladeshi border, the first neighbour of India that we will sight on the
tour. We plan to ride 69km flat kilometres today. There are a few busy sections near some of the
towns but in general this will be a pleasent ride. Before reaching Cooch Bihar we will board our
support vehicles to drive into the crazy traffic of this busy little city. Cooch Bihar was once the seat of
colonial power in the region and the stunning palace here in a reminder of the city’s former glory.
Cooch Bihar – Chalsa 73 kms ride
When you see that traffic in Cooch Bihar you’ll understand why we transfer out of town before starting
the ride. But once on the bike we are again on beautiful back roads through farming community and
small towns. Today we enter tea territory which will be your constant companion through the journey.
Chalsa is another small that sees few visitors but our hotel in the jungle is an ideal place to unwind the night.
Chalsa – Lava 61 kms ride
It’s time to take on the Himalaya. After a few days of seeing the imposing mountains in the distance,
today is your chance to ride high up in the clean mountain area – quite a contrast from the humid
lowlands of the last few days. Starting at an elevation of 200m we will finish the day at 2000m – the
highest overnight stop of the tour. We start off with a gentle ride along laneways through a tea
plantation. From about the 20km mark it is climbing for the remainder of the day – take you time as
we have all day! Following a beautiful valley uphill the road eventually bends away from the river and
seemingly climbs up the side of the mountain. The plan for the day is to allow everyone to ride as far
as they like and then transfer up to Lava once they’ve had enough riding. This means that the
stronger riders can have a crack at completing the ride and those that want to relax can travel straight
up to the hotel in Lava. Lava is a small mountain town, again with few visitors but with crisp clean
mountain air.
Lava – Kalimpong 38 kms ride
After the hard work of yesterday, today is a relatively easy day that tends downhill. But this is the
mountains and we start the day with a small climb out of town. There are plenty of stops along this
route so we will take our time to enjoy the views, temples and villages.
Kalimpong – Darjeeling 56 kms / 3 hours drive
This day we drive to Darjeeling and the road to Darjeeling from Kalimpong is a busy road.
Arrive in Darjeeling and afternoon is free to explore the town on your own
Darjeeling – Bagdogra/NJP 93 kms drive
After breakfast you will be transferred to Bagdogra in time for your onward connection.