Lava

Lava is a small hamlet of close to 40-50 houses, about 34 km from the town of Kalimpong in Darjeeling district of West Bengal. The village surrounds the periphery of the Neora Valley National Park and serves as the gateway to the diverse flora and fauna of this region including the red panda and satyr tragopan. The Lava monastery in the main market area has a huge open courtyard and accommodates close to 100 monks in the temple complex. The nearby attractions include the famous Changey waterfalls and Rachela Peak. Rishop and Kolakham are two other small clusters of rural communities that lie within a radius of 15 km around lava which serve as offbeat places to unwind in this region. WBFDC (West Bengal Forest Development Corporation) maintains a few cottages in this area for the nature enthusiasts. The confluence of two rivers Teesta and Rangiit on the way to Lava from Tinchuley provides a lot of opportunities for the amateur photographers to go trigger happy. River rafting from Melli, about 20 km from Kalimpong and 7 km upstream of Teesta Bazaar is a much sought after activity in this part of the region.