Darkness descends early in autumn. It’s only five in the evening but the road ahead is dark. Our Sumo has put all its lights on to negotiate the steep ascents and hairpin bends on the mountain road cutting through a jungle. There is not a soul in sight to ask for direction and we don’t know where we are.

We had crossed Soren, a hamlet in west Sikkim, and, according to the driver, are somewhere near Kaluk. But he wasn’t confident. We had been told that Hee Gaon, our destination, is about 7-8 km ahead of Kaluk on the road to Dentam.

Our only link to the outside world is the cellphone, which, surprisingly, is working. But every time I called up the owner of our hotel in Hee for directions, his first question was: “Where are you?” To which, unfortunately, we had no answer.

Suddenly the car headlights caught a signboard by the side of the road, proclaiming Hee Police Outpost. As I yelled to the driver to stop, a young man materialised out of the darkness. He introduced himself as the brother of our hotel owner and informed us that we were close to Hee Bazar.

The 8-km road to the resort is paved with stones and is still being built. To add to the fun, there are several hairpin bends. Our driver never stopped cursing his bad luck till we reached the resort.

We had started from Siliguri around noon. The road is along the bank of the Teesta till Melli, where we crossed the river and reached Jorthang, the business centre of south Sikkim, in the late afternoon.

An hour’s rest and some refreshments later, we crossed the Rangit to enter west Sikkim and started the steep climb towards Soren. We then drove past Kaluk and reached Hee Gaon around 7pm.

It was quite dark and cold. We were exhausted more from the excitement than from the long journey and went to bed early.

Hee Resort was opened by Sikkim chief minister Paban Chamling on December 3, 2006, under a rural tourism project. It started functioning in May last year.

The village is serene and far removed from the hassles of modern life. A waterfall cascading through the hamlet has created a pond in front of the resort, which faces the majestic Kanchenjunga range. The kitchen serves organic food and traditional Limboo food — “Khabze” and “Jero”.

The 300 houses in the village are inhabited by Limboos, who were originally part of the Kirat race mentioned in The Mahabharata. They inhabited the dense jungles at the foothills of the Himalayas before migrating to the greener pastures of Sikkim, Bhutan and Darjeeling. The community follow the teachings of Teyongsi Srijanga who came to these parts from Nepal in 1740.

We spent the morning exploring the village. The first stop was Yuma Samyo Manghim (the temple of Teyongsi Srijanga). We then went to Srijanga Phuku (cave) where Srijanga is said to have hidden his book of knowledge in a box. The box has turned to stone imprisoning the book of knowledge forever.

The trek to the Pheng Doji waterfalls and the Red Panda gate of the rhododendron sanctuary is a must for tourists. Varsey, famous for its rhododendrons, is only 22 km from the Red Panda gate.

A walk down the stone-paved path through the sanctuary under the shade of rhododendrons is delightful, particularly in late May when the flowers are in bloom.

Samma Tar, a camping ground, is 14 km from the Red Panda gate. Porters, tents and camping gear are available in Hee.

The weather was fantastic the next day. With snow white clouds wafting under a turquoise sky and butterflies fluttering all around me in the cool breeze, I laid down in the resorts’ courtyard, gazing at the Kanchenjunga lording it over the green mountains and the Rishi Khola (mountain stream).

Going

Hee Gaon is about 150 km from Siliguri/Bagdogra. You can either hire a vehicle (about Rs 2,500) or take a “share” jeep to Jorthang. Alternatively, you can take a bus and then a jeep for Dentam. Get down at Hee bazaar and trek the remaining 8 km. On prior intimation, the resort can arrange a pick up from Siliguri/Bagdogra or Hee bazaar.

Staying

Hee Resort. Contact Help Tourism, 143 Hillcart Road, Siliguri. Ph: (0353)2535893/2433683. Calcutta office: 67A Kali Temple Road, Ph: 24549719. There are several tourist attractions around Hee. You can hire a vehicle to visit Pelling, Pemayangtse and Khecheperi Lake. Another route is Uttare (last Sikkimese village near Bengal border) via Singsore Bridge (second highest bridge in Asia over a gorge).