The steam train
Circling the loop.
Alokverma87 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Public domain · Pinakpani — CC BY-SA 4.0 · ANKAN — CC BY-SA 4.0
The Batasia Loop is a spiral on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway below Ghum station, about 5 km from Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal and about 3 km from the town in a straight line. It was built in 1919 to ease the gradient of the climb, so the track winds around itself from the foot of a small hill to its top. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, known as the toy train for its tiny engines and carriages, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A neat garden of flowers and paths fills the loop, with a memorial in the centre, and on clear days there is a view of snowy Kangchenjunga above the hills. The little blue steam train puffs around the loop, and visitors gather to watch it pass. You can drive from Darjeeling or ride the tourist train, which stops at the loop. Early morning is best, when the sky is clearer before the clouds build, and it fits easily into one outing with Tiger Hill.
Circling the loop.
On clear days.
Flowers and paths.
Below Ghum, near Darjeeling, West Bengal, India
By car or the toy train.
In the morning.