Going
for some excursions into the natural world of West Bengal? Then Sundarbans must
be on your bucket list. If you have not visited Sundarbans yet, it is advised
to visit the place once and for all. It’s a once in a lifetime experience – we
can almost guarantee you that. Sundarbans is located in the delta that crows
the Bay of Bengal and that which lies at the terminus of 2 great rivers
including the Brahmaputra and the Ganges. We went there to see the nature, what
we saw was quite elusive; the royal Bengal tigers were hard to sight but were a
special feeling altogether when we were successful in spotting a couple of them
in the heart of the dark dense jungles of Sundarbans.
A part
from being one of the world’s largest populations of Royal Bengal Tigers, the
Sundarbans are also easily one of the largest dense mangrove forests in West
Bengal. The forest of Sundarbans derives their name from the word mangroves and
sundari. The place was named after trees, rather than the tigers. Looking for
some splendid time in Sundarban, then these mangrove jungles will provide you
with much needed entertainment. There are tons of papadums in these endless
jungles.
After
a long hour’s drive, you will find some tea stalls and food stalls for the
tourists and locals. You can get some crackers and sweet tea along with some
bread and butter. You can hire a caravan, car or even a jeep to travel into the
dense jungles. If you are driving in groups, then this would be a great
experience. If by any chance your car breaks down, then you can get Sedan or a
humble mini-bus for you to ride as a replacement vehicle. Once you reach the
end of the river, a local ferry awaits you. These ferries were made out of
local water bottles and also known as laden cars.
The
laden car will drop you at the end of the dock, thus reaching towards
Bangladesh. With lots of effort we got to towards the muddy flats downstream of
the dock. The eco village lies 200 feet towards the home for the whole night. These
contain a little hotel of cottages with a cultural heritage as backpackers can
thoroughly enjoy this place. The evening boat tour was splendid, thus ending
with a beautiful moonrise. We sat down to enjoy the performance of local folk
musicians in the area. Each of them was playing different instruments.
Musical
instruments included the tabla, harmonium, bass guitar, drums and other unknown
instruments that you may get curious about. The next morning was quite awesome
with a peculiar spine chilling experience of being able to see the infamous
royal Bengal tigers. We first stopped at a small port, which was the entrance
to the national park. You will be picked up by some park rangers who will
answer all your questions and guide you through these endless dense jungles of
Sundarban. Just a heads up – the locals venture into these jungles to collect honey
and are killed by these tigers as a result. At least 1 out of 20 locals who enter the
jungles are mauled by tigers. That’s some serious talk.
A part
from the royal Bengal tigers, you will spot other animals and species as well
while on the tour. Once the whole tour is done with, it’s a long bus ride back
to the city. All over it was a fun journey as there is a very meagre chance of
spotting a real royal Bengal tiger and that if you are lucky enough. If you are looking for a tour operator in Sundarban, you will find plenty with tons of
Sundarban package tours available online. Just book one and Walla! Happy
journey!
