Standing atop a high cliff in Pfutsero (pronounced as Foot-sero) in Nagaland one can only close one’s eyes to soak in the serene beauty of the place with white clouds rolling over the green mountain tops. The scenery around Pfutsero resembles a postcard picture of Zurich, Switzerland. The town is only about 50 km from Nagaland’s capital city, Kohima but, unfortunately, it remained one of the least explored places in the state. For a long time, accessibility to these locations remained negligible for visitors, who could not venture out beyond Kohima. Hence, not many would have even heard of Pfutsero’s name earlier. However, a 62.56km two-lane highway connecting Pfutsero with another lovely township Phek has now brought these places onto the travel and trade map.

Be it for a nature lover, bird watcher, or trader, one would fall in love with the diversity of the entire region. The main incentive to visit Pfutsero is because it is practically the highest town in Nagaland and the coldest in the state. Sometimes in December, snowflakes fall on the adjoining valleys turning them from a beautiful green cover to a sparkling white landscape. In the past, the appalling condition of the roads made travelling time-consuming and turned dangerous owing to landslides during monsoons. It sometimes took more than five hours to cover the distance between Pfutsero and Phek, which now takes around two hours making travelling easier.

Beginning from Pfutsero, one can venture on mountain hiking to the highest peak in Nagaland, the Glory Peak to see the expansive panoramic views of the adjoining mountains and valleys. If you are visiting the place between November and December, you will be fortunate to experience the beauty and charm of cherry blossoms around the mountain and the town. Pfutsero is largely inhabited by Chakesang tribe, who are very warm, charming, and hospitable people. The small waterfalls and springs all along the highway add an extra dose of charm and vivacity to the people and their habitat.

Travelling further up on the highway, our next stopover is at the quaint little village of Chizami. Apart from the lush greenery all around the place, the village is synonymous with the famous “Naga Handloom Shawls”. Weaving is a part of the culture of the local inhabitants, and they wonderfully recreate intricate designs on the shawls. These shawls were earlier traded in a select few urban centres in the northeast, but the development of highways has now made it easy to sell these products across the country’s border and in faraway cities in India. Another attraction in Chizami is hiking on Mt. Kapamodzu, which provides an opportunity to see the rich biodiversity of the area.

Beyond Chizami, comes the Pholami village alongside the highway, which sits below the foothills of the Zanubu Range in Phek district, one can visit Dzudu Lake. A unique feature of this lake is nothing ever floats on the surface of Dzudu Lake despite having thick foliage around it, residents believe some supernatural power in the lake keeps it clean.

The highway finally ends at Phek town, where a visit to the Shilloi Lake showcases the migratory birds including the Siberian Cranes and other species. The lake is landlocked between pine tree forests and is famous for its fishing spots.

These exotic locales remained isolated and unexplored for various reasons, primarily due to the lack of a proper road network connecting these interior towns and villages with the mainstream. NHIDCL’s effort to raise the connectivity has increased direct people-to-people contact and enhanced the commercial value of the region and the flow of tourism. The highway constructed by the National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation (NHIDCL) has opened new avenues both for local inhabitants and for out-of-the-state visitors to travel for leisure and trade. This highway now makes it possible for travellers to cruise through the entire stretch of around 65 km from Pfutsero to Phek. The road also takes you through two other picturesque villages – Chizami and Pholami – that fall between the two towns.

We will discuss more about another important highway project in the northeast in our next blog…