After a comfortable and warm night and a copious Rani breakfast of Millet porridge and fruit, buckwheat pancakes and tea I set out with Mafa for a mooch around Yoksum starting with a visit to a(nother) local gompa. Gompa having been bypassed we continued down the road to where Mafa could point out the track whereby she had, in part, reached Yuxom from Khecheopalri before turning back and making another steep ascent to a Chorten/ water tank, which was surprisingly worthwhile in the end for no real discernable reason. Retracing our steps we did find the gompa, old, secluded and run down. I enjoyed circumambulating it and having hailed a passing pilgrim monk was able to admire a 1000 armed Avaloketeshvara rupa inside.
A cup of tea later, we visited Red Panda once again and arranged for our rucksacks to be sent to Tashiding so that we could do the monastery trail there the following day unencumbered by them. From thence once more to the Coronation site where we slowly got cold talking on a bench above the throne about family, friends, dreams etc.
Cold enough we left the site and separated, me to visit the sacred Kathok Lake, whose waters had been used in the coronation ceremony. I made my way around it, sat for a while and then decided to circuambulate it three times and was on my fourth lap when a young caretaker (they start them young in Yoksum I noted) advised me they wanted to close.
That evening, after a huge plate of veg or egg biryiani and an unnecessary onion pakora, Mafa and I sat up talking until relatively late before, with hot water bottles and flasks, retiring to our beds.
Another long, comfortable and dream infused sleep over, another fabulous breakfast (part) consumed, Mafa and I set off for our treck along the monastery trail to Tashiding. Rani, the owner of Limboo, had advised an early start given that the trek might take 8 hours so we were on the road by 8.40 am on a gloriously sunny morning in Sikkim, led for the first ten minutes by a cow/yak who determined our early pace.
The first stop for me was Dubdi Monastery, the monastery of one of the first Sikkimese lamas, it being a given that to reach it I would have to make a steep ascent on which I was overtaken by the caretaker and his son who opened the site up in time for me to enjoy it's serene beauty.
Joining Mafa, who had visited the monastery previously, we continued the trek along forest roads and past waterfalls and streams, stopped for a cup of tea and taste of local cardamon at a local farm and then continued on our way to Hongri monastery partly accompanied by Abislek (?) the boy from the farm, who left us once I had declined to give him my fleece (I need it!). We both loved Hongri monastery, one whole of which had collapsed after an earthquake but which exuded peace and quietude none the less. Peaking inside through a hole in the locked door we spied a large and impressive Padmasambhava rupa.
The remainder of our breakfast (buckwheat pancake and millet roti) eaten, we continued our winding and fairly level way through the forest and past a couple of villages, one the site of a party (Springstein playing) and another the host to a well attended local football game, until we reached Sinon Monastery. By this time I think we were both a bit weary and gompad out so, not spending much time here, we started on the descent to Tashiding, which we eventually reached as the light was beginning to fade. One wrong turn and two steep climbs later and we had reached Sanu's homestay where we were to spend another long and dark night after hot bucket showers and a decent vegetarian and rice dinner.
