Go east

The Tinjure Milke Jaljale ridge in eastern Nepal is abloom in rhododendron every March.

Issue #138 28 March-3 April 2003

In this space every week, to no one’s delight, we find how Nepali politics and society have not changed. But let us take a break this week to look at how Nepali Times 20 years ago this week featured the Tinjure Milke Jaljale (TMJ) ridge in eastern Nepal that is abloom in rhododendron every March. 

The TMJ spans over 585km and up to 5,000m in elevation and is home to 28 species of Nepal’s national flower and saw more than 30,000 visitors on Nepali New Year’s day last year.

Excerpts from the report published on issue #138 28 March-3 April 2003:

It may not rank among the natural world’s most celebrated events like the monarch butterfly passage, phytoplankton blooms, wildebeest migration, or the New England fall colours. But the annual flowering of the rhododendron in Nepal is well worth travelling to see.

And the place to see it is the Tinjure Milke Jaljale (TMJ) ridge in eastern Nepal. In the coming weeks these scenic hills will be awash with red—not of political fervour but of rhododendrons in full bloom. The junction of Taplejung, Sankhuwasabha and Tehrathum is home to Nepal’s prime rhododendron forests and a natural niche for several rhododendron species. This is nature’s display case for our national flower.

If the regular in mid-hill topography is north and east-west ranging hills cut by longitudinal valleys, the TMJ ridge is different. It ranges north in one long stretch and extends from Dhankuta to Basantapur and all the way to the Jaljala and Lumba Sumba Himal and Tibet. The run-off from the eastern flank joins the Tamur river system, from its western flank, the Arun. The ridge is a recently peopled frontier, as the mixed nature of the larger settlements will tell. The more recent arrivals followed the roads into the area and the opportunities that came with it— portering, inn keeping and petty trade. 

…East Nepal is exciting even minus the flora—less explored, great ethnic diversity and wildlife, magnificent views of the eastern Himalaya and lots of adventure options for rafting and mountaineering.

From archive material of Nepali Times of the past 20 years, site search: www.nepalitimes.com

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