Dooars

Chalsa

Chalsa is a few kilometers from Malbazar on the way to Dooars from Siliguri. The national highway connecting the North-East with West Bengal passes through Chalsa. From here the road to left leads toSamsing which is about 15 km. The road to the right goes toLataguri (20 km) via Gorumara National Park.

Till only recently the small village was mostly known for the weekly market at Mangalbari Hat and as a stopover for buses plying in Dooar. In the last few years, Chalsa has gained in prominence as a tourist destination due to its proximity to the Gorumara National Park just 10 kms away. There are private accommodations available near Chalsa from where you can visit the Gorumara National Park.

Chalsa can be your base for visit to other tourist destinations nearby including Samsing, Bindu, Murti etc. Arguably one of the best resorts of Dooars, the Sinclair's retreat is located on a hillock close to Chalsa. The place is also famous for the many tea gardens surrounding it. Apart from the Chalsa Tea garden, you can also take a stroll inside the beautiful Ivill tea garden.

Whenever you think of refreshing yourself off the monotonous life, you should remember the name Murti, a small village on the bank of a shallow stream of the same name in Jalpaiguri. Last December, we teamed up and got ready with our backpacks to spend the weekend at Murti. We took Kanchankanya Express from Sealdah at night and reached New Mal next morning. Our hired car was ready there to take us to the resort of the West Bengal Forest Development Corporation at Murti. It was a foggy winter morning. Quietly flows the river Murti by the side of the resort. And on the other side of the river sleeps Gorumara National Park. 

Checking into the room we refreshed quickly and got out for a walk. It was so pleasant to walk along the road running through the tea gardens. Sometimes we plunged into the gardens and plucked a twig or two. Then we came back to take our lunch at the resort and booked our tickets for a trip to Gorumara watch tower. The possibility of having a glimpse of different wild animals and birds like bison, deer, peacock, and even leopard is great from Gorumara watch tower. We started for Gorumara watch tower at 3 p.m. We collected our guide from the check post of the forest. We saw peacocks here and there on our way to the watch tower. 

How to go there: 

Murti is well connected by road from Siliguri. The nearest airport is Bagdogra and the nearest railway stations are New Mal and New Maynaguri.