The Bakthang waterfall is only 20 minutes drive from Gangtok town to a place called Swastik, adjacent to the army cantonment area. A serene waterfalls cascades down the rock forming a small pool down below. It is located along the 31A National Highway connecting to North Sikkim. In local language ‘Bak’ means a forest and ‘thang’ meaning meadow or place. The natural spring water source of this falls originates from the dense vegetation above this site which is preserved as a Smriti Ban by the Forest Department. This site is little away from the crowded market place and hidden from the urban sprawl. A offbeat place to relax and be completely free from pollution, noise and dust and much loved by many of the domestic visitors. The place also offers a cafeteria for tea and snacks and local photography services to take pictures with local costumes and dresses for visitors. Some of the adventure enthusiasts can also try rappelling down the cliff on a prefixed rope which is organized by the local tourism committee of the area. The local taxis conducting daily siteseeing tours of Gangtok include this spot as one of the points of interest to visitors.
