Tawang Travel Guide

Tawang’s history has been an accident of geography. High up in the North West corner of Arunachal that just into Bhutan and shouldered by China (Tibet), it has traditionally been remembered only in times of war. A land of passes high enough to look down on airplanes, shaded white in winters and an unrelenting green in summers, broken only by sudden spears of waterfalls and placid lakes, Tawang is typical of border landscapes difficult adventure and beautiful tourist spot.

Half the fun of visiting Tawang is in reaching there as it involves driving over 200km of Himalayan country, weaving through a kaleidoscopic quilt of scenic and cultural variances. You can opt for an 80 minute copter flight from Tezpur but you will miss one of the most scenic chill drives India offers albeit one of the longest.

Following the age old trade route connecting Tibet to the Brahmaputra plains your journey will get exiting the moment you turn northwards from Tezpur in Assam, 347 km short you’re destination. A little after Sari Duar a traditional trading center and entry point into the erstwhile Ahom kingdom the road enters elephant country the Nameri Wildlife Reserve. If you are driving after dusk you face the prospect of having elephant herds blocking your passage. Once out of the forest, the road follows the turbulent Bharali River, whose waters constantly threaten its existence, washing off sections and tragically a few careless tourists each year.

Making the border a Assam and Arunachal is Bhalukpong 60 km from Tezpur a tiny commercial center on the rivers edge that gets overrun by angles every winter. The most interesting part of the ride is the section beyond Bomdila 100 km after Bhalukpong. It’s the start of your Himalayan adventure one of crazy hairpin turns and breathlessness due to a combination of awesome scenery and rarefied air.

The real climb starts from the Sela Pass 109 km ahead of Bomdila which at 13,828 ft is the highest motorable pass in the North east. The approach to Sela is usually marked by og, traces of landslides and imperfect roads. After crossing the Sangrila and Baisaki army camps, the air takes on a suddent chill. Atop the pass, there is a temple and three small lakes, The two lower ones are interconnected, while the third one is located at a slight distance above the pass. Back on the road after cutting through a pine forest you will reach Jaswant Garh 21 km ahead a war museum and memorial of the Indian army. A bend beyond is the vast Tawang valley and one can glimpse the seemingly tiny yellow roof of the tawang monastery 57 km away. A little after Lhau is a crossroad one fork leading to Bum La at the Chinese border, a restricted area the other into the heart of Tawang where a giant Army War Memorial greets visitors on the outskirts. Perched on a vast slope of the Himalayan mountainside is Tawang. The Tawanchu River flows in a gorge to the south while to the east tower a few peaks. And dominating the skyline like a mighty medieval fortress is the massive Tawang Monastery.

The comparatively tiny sanctum of Urgeling the birthplace of the 6th Dalai Lama stands a little away from Tawang Monastery. Attended by a solitary monk this simple shrine is the perfect hermitage. The huge tree growing beside it believed to have tree growing beside it, believed to have grown from a staff thrust into the ground by the 6th Dalai Lama himself casts copious shadows all around.

Also rebuilt recently the Sange Ryabelling shrine is located at a slight distance. A few kilometers from town is the Khinme Monastery a regular Himalayan structure, which belongs to the Nyingmapa sect and is popularly viewed as the oldest shrine of the area. Not far from the fork on the Tawang to Bumla Road is the Singshur Nunnery.

Around Tawang

Bomdila 187 km
Spread over the southern face of the Bomdila Ridge the town marks your entry into the region of Himalayan or Tibetan Buddhism. At the end of the bazaar line stands the Lawer Gompa a beautiful monastery built in traditional Tibetan design. High above the town is the Garden Rabgyeling Monastery better known as the Upper Gompa. Bomdila is also the best equipped town en route to Tawang so break your drive here. The hotels are basic but clean.

Taktsang Gompa 12 km
Taktsang Gompa or Taktsang Gompa half an hour by car from Tawang is one of the holiest Buddhist shrines of Arunachal Pradesh. Standing amidst high mountains, its sanctity is credited to Padmasam Bhava the maverick missionary who brought Buddhism to Tibet.

Not far away is the serence Sangeshar Lake 3 km renamed Madhuri after a dance sequence of the film koyla starring madhuri Dixit was shot here.