Wetland Watch.8.Mulkarkha Lake:A Wishing Lake of Kalimpong Range, Darjeeling District, West Bengal

Mulkarkha lake (Figs. 1-3), a natural lake situated at an altitude of 7300ft., is one of the few mountain lakes in West Bengal. It is located near a village also named as Mulkarkha close to the north east part of Bengal-Sikkim border in Kalimpong range, Darjeeling district, West Bengal. The lake is connected by a semi concrete road coming from south Sikkim, although villagers use a common trek route which is also popular among tourists. It starts from Lingsey through Jhusing, Tagathan and ultimately leads to Mulkarkha. The trek route to Mulkarkha lake is one of the most exciting trails of the Himalayan foothills. The lake is considered as sacred by the locals as they call it as ‘Wishing Lake’ or ‘Manokamana lake’. The most fascinating feature of this lake is the reflection of Mt. Kanchenjungha on its tranquil waters. Both locals and tourists are known to tie clean and colourful cloth pieces as a sign of their wishes towards this lake. The water body is surrounded by dense forest which consists of trees (Fig. 3.) like Himalayan pine, Himalayan fir, Japanese red-cedar, teak and others which are most common in rain forests. There are a number of worth seeing places like 200 feet waterfalls, enchanting views of Mt. Kanchenjungha, ageless Buddhist monasteries and remote villages with hundreds of bird species, butterflies and flowers.