My first trip to Mizoram, the last of the North-east states to
visit. Am excited as always because this region is incredible in terms of
biodiversity, varied cultures and of course delicious cuisine! We land at the
Lengpui airport. The drive to Aizawl is 32 kilometres from here. It’s a green
drive with varied vegetation. Aizawl
came to me as quite a surprise. More organised than any of the other Northeast
state capitals and extremely disciplined, traffic-wise; I am yet to understand
why this is so, but the traffic is so orderly and its rare to hear the horns
blaring. I was there at the beginning of December and indeed Aizawl felt
magical with Christmas preparations in full swing. But because of its close
proximity to Myanmar, Mizoram also has quite a mix of cultures.
For me, the best was yet to come as I was visiting the Blue Mountain
national park. Blue Mountain or Phawngpui as it is called in the local language
is the highest peak in the state of Mizoram. A fascinating six-hour drive
brought us to Sangao where we would spend the night at the Department of
Tourism guesthouse and proceed to the park the next morning. The guesthouse
could not be better located and accorded us a fantastic view of Sangao town and
valley. We started our journey to Blue Mountain the next day. We were initially
told that one needed to walk the last five kilometers to the park because of
the bad condition of the road. We decided to take it as it comes and arrived at
the village of Thaltlang that is at the base of the park. Snacks and several
cups of tea later, we are told that it is possible to travel the last five kilometers
in a four-wheel drive. And what a ride it was! The vehicle struggled up the mud
track and there were a few places where we did end up walking.
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| Local Market at Sangao |
We enter the park at Far Pak. Mizoram is a land of legends. It is believed
that there was a ruler of ghosts called Sangau who lived near Blue Mountain and
had a son of marriageable age. Across the peaks lived another ruler with an
eligible daughter. A marriage was arranged between the two. Sangau gifted a
pair of Hoolock Gibbons, while the girl’s side gifted a pine tree. Far Pak
means single pine and that’s how the place got its name. There are still a few pines there and I
wondered which one was the original!
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| Forest Guest House at Far Pak |
After a quick cup of tea, we were taken around the park. The first
stop was the edge of a deep gorge with a breathtaking view.
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| Hoping to see the Gorals |
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| View from Far Pak |
There was light
mist making the scenario even more exciting. We were told that there was a good
chance of seeing gorals (small goat like creatures, found in the Himalayan
region) and although we didn’t see them, it was easy to imagine them on that
precipitous ledge. We did see falcons swooping down into the valley. The state
bird of Mizoram, Mrs. Hume's pheasant as well as the elusive clouded leopard
are also found here, but I guess we just needed more time in the park if we
were to spot any of the two celebrities. As we stood looking down the valley, a
mist came over a blanket of white covered the valley. My trip to Phawngpui was
short, and I turned away with a promise to be back someday.