Would you believe, if I tell you that we were actually chased by a herd of elephants ?? Okay, now there is nothing to get scared off. We were inside our jeep, with proper guides and a pro driver. And not to mention the famous Kukri that our guide had, it made us feel absolutely secured from any form of danger....
The Dooars or Duars are the foothills of the eastern Himalayas in North-East India around Bhutan. Duar means 'door' and the region forms the gateway to Bhutan from India. So you can reach Dooars area via 3 ways
1) Via Air - Land in Bagdogra & take a cab (2 h 58 min approx 134.3 km)
2) Via Rail - Land in Siliguri or NJP from Kolkata and take private or shared cab to Dooars area (2 h 44 min approx 125.4 km)
3) Via Roadways - From Kolkata hire a cab or take a bus (17 h 56 min approx 790.4 km). Note if you take a bus you have to get down to Siliguri or NJP.
So we were 3 friends and we chose to do a Jeep Safari in the famous Jaldapara National Park in Dooars. Jaldapara, the vast grassland with patches of riverine forests was declared a sanctuary in 1941 for protection of the great variety flora and fauna, particularly the one-horned rhinoceros, an animal threatened with extinction.
We started our journey from Kolkata and we boarded the famous Darjeeling Mail from Sealdah Station. Once we landed, we took a private cab from NJP station to reach Jaldapara National Park.
Tips : Try to book a train which takes you to New Mal Junction or Hasimara, the closest railway station to the Dooars region.
Day 1
We had booked the Jaldapara Tourist Lodge from the website of the West Bengal Government and trust me guys that was the best decision we could have done. The journey from NJP to the Jaldapara costed us around 2k
Tips - There are two lodges for WB govt in Jaldapara, one is the Jaldapara tourist lodge & the other the famous Hollong tourist lodge, which is actually situated inside the dense forest. We chose the former, as we wanted to go out & explore local markets also.
Let me show you few pictures of the property :
Now, let me tell you what happened, we were supposed to reach NJP at 8 am however the train delayed and we reached at 11 am. From there after taking the cab we reached the resort at 2:30 pm (cab broke down in the middle). Ok so we had done our formalities for check in and by that time it was already 3:30 pm. The booking counter for the jeep safari was inside the resort campus luckily. The person sitting at the counter told us the last jeep leaves at 4:30 pm and for the next day they don't have any schedule and day after tomorrow we are checking out.
Uggghhh.... big problem :(
So we have one hour to take shower, get freshen up have lunch and attend the safari.
But guess what ?? Oh yes we did it..... ;)
So if you take one jeep for yourself it would cost you around 1.8-2 k, but luckily we got ourselves two uncles who were ready to share the jeep with us. The total cost for three of us were Rs 1470 and the jeep had a total of 5 people.
Tips :
a) Try to book the first safari in the morning or the last one, the chances of seeing animals will be double.
b) As soon as you reach, try to book the safari, as it fills out first
c) They also have elephant safari which is not recommended for elderly people (my opinion).
Leaving everything aside, we started our journey inside the forest and trust me it was beautiful. The lush green forest on both sides, the barking of deer, the scream of peacocks was surely something which we dont get to see and hear in our daily lives and we felt that after a long day of hassle, this was definitely worth it.
The first point where we stopped was the Hollong Bunglow. The guide told us that you can actually see a one horned rhino here and they come every evening to eat salt which the rangers provide to them (strange isn't ??). So we waited patiently, and guess what that moment finally came where we saw a one horned rhino....
From there we went to a watch tower to capture the glimpses of wild bison
We saw few glimpses of captive elephants
We saw hundreds of peacocks through out the way !!
Once the trip was about to get over there was a complimentary tribal dance to add to the trip, and we enjoyed it very much with a cup of tea accompanying with it :)
Okay now the climax, while returning suddenly we stopped in the middle of the road, there was another jeep in front of us filled with a group of youngsters like us, but the mistake they did, they were shouting like anything and moreover they were clicking selfies with flashes on.
Tip : Do not ever light something in the middle of the forest.
We saw that they stopped their jeep in the middle and were clicking selfies with a herd of elephants passing by. We also thought that it was a best time to click some snaps, but wohhhhhh... all of a sudden they started chasing us. We got so so scared that for a fraction of second we thought some mishap is about to happen. Our driver made way and started driving as fast as possible and when we went to a far distance he informed us that we are safe and not to worry.
The scene of an angry male elephant running towards us with a loud trumphet is something to get scared of. Not only elephants can grow as large as about 13 feet (4 meters) tall and weigh as much as about 6 tons, but they can run 25 to 30 miles an hour (40 to 48 kilometers an hour) and can crush whatever comes in their way.
What a scary encounter it was, luckily our guide was there with us and we knew we were safe. That was an encounter I will never forget in my entire life.
Luckily we survived and we came back to our resort. We ordered Desi Chicken and Chapati for dinner, and trust me the dishes were perfectly made.
Total Cost for 3 days including food was :Rs 740o (3 people)
Okay before we end I noticed something, which I wanted you guys to see !!
Scary right ?? A coffin lying under the river bed in the midst of the jungle. Well did not have much time to investigate on it as it was getting darker.
Let me try to conclude it :
You cannot miss this jeep safari, its wonderful and trust me I could not get all the pictures but you will definitely see a a lot of animals. Do not trust all the reviews you read on the internet.
Tips :
a) Try the safari in Jaldapara rather than Gorumara or Buxa as there you will get to see less animals.
b) Try to book the West Bengal Govt lodge, they are one of the best in the country, hats off to the Govt. You dont have to put alarm on your mobile to get up in the morning, the scream of peacocks from the jungle will help you to do so.
If you want to set off for these safaris, you cannot do so at your own will. This is because there are several restrictions that are imposed on visitors by the government. This is done mainly for the protection of the animals. So, the best way to tour these wildlife hubs is by booking jungle safari tours and travel packages.
Thank you
Sayantan Mukherjee
Next episode coming for Phuntsholling........ ;)