Gangtok sits on a ridge in the Himalayan foothills of Sikkim, at about 1,650 metres, and on a clear morning you can see Kangchenjunga, the third-highest mountain in the world at 8,586 metres, floating pink above the clouds. Sikkim was an independent Buddhist kingdom until it joined India in 1975, and the culture is still a mix of Lepcha, Bhutia and Nepali traditions, with prayer flags on the rooftops, monasteries on the hills and a feeling of calm that surprises people coming from the plains. The state became the first in India to be fully organic in its farming, and the cities are noticeably clean.
The centre is MG Marg, a pedestrian street with cafés, shops and benches where families walk in the evening, and everything is built on steep slopes, with stairs and winding lanes linking the layers. Rumtek monastery, a few kilometres outside the city, is a major seat of Tibetan Buddhism, with golden roofs and the chanting of monks. Momos, thukpa noodle soup and fermented vegetables are the local food, and a hot cup of butter tea does not appeal to everyone, but it is a classic.
The Silk Route in the name of the ride refers to the old trade path to Tibet over the Nathu La pass at about 4,300 metres, which was an important link for wool, salt and tea until the border closed in 1962. It reopened for limited trade in 2006. Foreign visitors and many others need a special permit to travel on that road and to Tsomgo Lake, which lies at nearly 3,800 metres, so arrange it through an agent in advance. The roads climb in tight switchbacks through rhododendron forest and then bare rocky ground, with sudden fog, landslides in the monsoon and bitterly cold air at the top.
Gangtok is a city of thirty thousand with fuel stations on its main roads, but down in the Teesta valley, Singtam is a fifteen-kilometre run away and offers more choice. Fill the tank before climbing, as the roads are long and services few. The best time to ride is from March to May and from October to November, when the skies are clear and the rhododendrons bloom, and monsoon rains from June to September can close roads.