In this period of lockdown while staying at home, we can only open our phone gallery and see the pictures of our trips then remember all the happenings during that time. So here I am sharing my Purulia tour experience what I fondly remember while go through the images we clicked there. It started with having a holiday on Tuesday for bengali new year last year and as usual I started my planning after applying one day leave from office. This time we very well know that this has to be planned for some places which is not so far from Kolkata. After go through some searching on internet we decide to go to Purulia. So as decided after office I headed to Howrah station to board the Chakradharpur passanger train which will departure at 11:05pm at night. We had our already booked tickets in our hand so after searching the coach and make ourselves comfortable, train also started. Luckily I got my favourite seat, means the side lower birth so most of the time what I did is watching the scene outside and what always amazed me is how the nature comes at it's best whenever I get out of the city.
Next day early in the morning nearly at 6:30am we reached Purulia station. Here we booked a rental car to go to our hotel which is at Ajodhya hill top. One can go by bus also but that will take time and we have many things to explore in short period of time. So after freshen up in nearby tea stall and having our morning "cha" with some light breakfast, we headed to our hotel. We booked our room at "Youth hostel". After reaching the environment around the hotel make us awe. There is lots of trees with hummingbird but no noise, made the place so peaceful. But we couldn't enjoy much cause we have some plans to visit nearby places so we enter our room, take bath, make us ready and went to have our lunch at nearby hotel because there is no facility of canteen here. After having our lunch we go back to our hotel, by the time our car also reached to our hotel so without waste a minute we started our journey. First we visited a "Ram Mandir". In the occasion of Ramnavami there is a path(holy book reading) and Prasad distribution was going on and what I like is they literally invited us and with so much love give us the Prasad which is not so common in the city.
Fom there we go to "Mayur Pahar" a small tilla in Ajodhya hill top from where one can see the village of this hill top and also there is a small Hanuman temple in top of this tilla one can visit. There is some seating arrangements on the top so if you want to take some rest or enjoy the beauty you can with some pictures which is the must needed while traveling.
Then we started our journey to marble lake. But have to stop between as we could see a number of crowd on middle of the road to block our way. While waiting suddenly hear the sound of dhamsa, madol(folk musical instruments) and folk singing, and learn there is a mela going on there on the occasion of Ramnavami festival and people arrived there to take a part. So we asked our driver dada to take the car out of this crowd and called us till then we will take part to this village fair because there is a very few chances when we get to experience a true village fair. After some time he called us and we get back to our car and headed to "Marble Lake". After reaching, the view take our breath, lush green jungle above the black granite stone and in between the crystal clear water with peaceful surrounding. One can spend hours.
After spending some time we headed to our last destination of the day "Bamni Falls". The falls is little far from parking area so we started walking to the falls very enthusiastically but as the time begin understand this is not so easy as we thought. But after reaching to the point what we see erase all the tiredness. The water falling in the ground, surrounded with greenary. The falls playing Peekaboo with us amidst of the trees made the view amazing.
And our day ends here. After that we return to our hotel and called it a night.
Today is the second day of our journey and I was so excited that my morning started very much earlier than usual. So without wasting any time I come down in the hotel lawn with my mobile camera to click some pictures and enjoy the morning beauty.
Then we get ready in the meantime our car also reached so we said goodbye to this beautiful place and started today's journey. First we go for Upper dam and lower dam, which is a pump storage hydel project. First we visited the upper dam. One side there is a untouched beauty of nature with jungle and hill and the other side has a water body with clean water. In day time water pumped up to the upper dam and then at night released with a flow which helps to create electricity.
Then we get ready in the meantime our car also reached so we said goodbye to this beautiful place and started today's journey. First we go for Upper dam and lower dam, which is a pump storage hydel project. First we visited the upper dam. One side there is a untouched beauty of nature with jungle and hill and the other side has a water body with clean water. In day time water pumped up to the upper dam and then at night released with a flow which helps to create electricity
After spending some time at the upper dam we headed to lower dam view point .
Then we to Lahoriya Shiv mandir, a nearby temple from upper and lower dam and also a picnic spot. There again we experience the essence of village fair. In the occasion of Chaitra Sankranti (end of bengali month Charitra) there is a fair and charak puja going on where all the girls and women are clad in red border yellow saree and the boys and men in white dhuti. We could also see a charak tree.
Fom there our car take us to the Charida village, where the traditional Chau masks are are made. There we visited a museum made by the village people to showcase their art. After that we visited at couple of villeger's house and witness the process of mass making with paper, glue and clay and learn it take almost seven days to complete a full masks with decoration. After buying some as souvenir we left the place.
Our next destination was "Pakhi pahar". With the name one can imagine there will be lots of birds to watch. And true to its name you could see a lots of birds but in drawing. One of artist from Kolkata along with his students draw these beautiful numbers of birds all over the hills. And we can only say a heartfelt thank you to him.
Then we headed to "Pardi dam", a man-made dam with the beauty of hills and nature. This place is very quiet due to less people.
Fom there we come to Purulia town where we already booked our room for the day at Youth hostel. We already had our lunch on the way so after freshen up, go to bed to take some rest. Then in the evening we went for local sightseeing like Saheb Bandh, Subhash Park, Sun temple and while coming back packed our dinner and have it.
This is the third day and this morning start with little different as we have planned to visit Jaychandi hills, so after purchasing the tickets we take a memu train (Chakdharpur-Gomu memu) to reach Adra station which is the nearest from Jaychandi hill. One can take train to Jaychandi station also but these trains are mostly available from Asansol. After reaching there we booked a Toto and started our journey to Jaychandi hill youth hostel. This place is really beautiful with surrounded by Jaychandi Pahar(hill). One can spend hours only seating at the varandah of this hotel and watching the numerous of birds and listen their singing. Here they have the canteen facility so we don't have any rush to go and freshen up. We take our time enjoy the beauty and then after taking a bath went to have our lunch. In the evening after the sun setting down a bit we started our journey to Jaychandi Pahar, which is a walking distance. On the way there is a children park to spend some time. Finally we reached there and trust me I was so excited because for us (Bengalis), this place is a emotion. Here the famous Satyajit Ray directed movie Hirok Rajar Deshe was shoot here. After watching the surrounding we started to climb the stairs to reach at the top. Almost after 350 numbers of stairs finally we reached at the to. There is a Mata mandir and a Hanuman Mandir situated. So we quickly took blessings from both the temple and strated to explore. One side you can see the entire village and the other side the paddy field with setting sun, one can't ask more than this to enjoy the nature
This place is paradise to all the rock climbers. After spending a amount of time and watching the sun set, we went back to our hotel and decide to go early to bed.
Today is the last day of our short trip. So in the morning around 7:30am we leave for our first location which is Garh Panchkot.
This place held memory of the ruins of Panchkot palace, where bargis attacked in the 18th of century. It is heard that during Bargi attack when they defeated the king's guards, 17 wives of the king committed suicide in the nearby well to save themselves. Now there is only the Visnu temple is in good condition, others are ruined and may be in next some years it will ruined completely. But only Visnu temple itself shows us our reach terracotta works which one can see in the temple wall.
Fom there we headed to Panchet dam, this dam opened in the year of 1959, at Dhanbad district of Jharkhand State. It constructed accross the Damodar river. There is a picnic spot down the way and snake garden made and maintained by single handedly. We visited the snake garden then the nearby park and headed to our next destination which is Baranti.
It takes nearly one hour to reach. We already ordered lunch in a nearby cottage so in the time they prepare our food we decide to explore the place. So first we visited the Baranti lake, then decide to walk through the village to experience the village life. There we finally found a Palash tree(Flame of the forest) with few Palash flower scattered here and there and we are like finally!! Found it.
After having our lunch we went to visit Birinchidham, a shiva temple in top of a hill.
and here our three nights and four days tour ends. From here we came back to Adra station, boarded our train(Rupashi Bangla) and reached Howrah. But as they said you can't get or experience every thing like that we couldn't watch the Sunset from Baranti.....
Now come to the tour cost -
Tain fare(Sleeper class)- 140/- (each)
Purulia station to Ajodhya hill one car - 950/-
Sight seeing cost one car - 2500/-
Ajodhya hill room(Ac three bedroom)-1200/-
Food(one person)- 100/-
Hotel fare at Purulia(Ac three bedroom)- 850/-
Food(one person)- 70/-
From hotel to Purulia station- 200/-
Purulia to Adra station -10/-(each)
From Adra to Jaychandi Pahar- 100/-
Hotel fair at Jaychandi(non AC three bedroom)- 850/-
Food(one person)- 100/-
Last day sightseeing- 2000/-
Food (one person)- 200/-
Rupashi Bangla fare(each) - 140/-
Here I want to mention we were three persons and mostly we traveled by car so expenses were little more. If you have time or you don't want to explore as much as you could then it will cost less. Like one can take a bus to reach Ajodhya hill, and also while returning do the same. One can reach Baranti by train(nearest station is Muradi), same with Panchet dam.