The east of India always inspires me and so I decided to travel to Gorumara National Park in between my schedule of work. Though it is always better to get a forest camp and witness the silence of the night and feel the fear of animals coming close to you but I didn’t have that privilege of time and thus I covered it in a single safari. There are two timings for safaris – morning and late afternoon. I would suggest you take the morning safaris as most of the animals come out to have their food and sun during that period. Try to be on the first car of your safari otherwise you will miss many glimpses of wildness. Though this park is famous for one horned rhinos , you can also find plethora of other animals as well.
It was a cold misty morning for me. I was staying close to Darjeeling and it’s not more than 3-4 hour ride from there (we also have halted for some pebbled river flowing in between). If you love nature, you will also like the road traversed during this journey as it is canopied by boulevards. After getting my tickets, our safari started and the jungle itself was enough to give that mysterious feeling in your nerves. The sunlight peeping through the trees created a magical environment and the silence of the morning have just increased the bar of my expectations. Soon we encountered peacocks on our way. It seemed to be picture perfect with the blue tone around the golden feathers. The guide also made us notice the footprints of tigers.
Soon we reached the tower from where we can peacefully witness the elephants and rhinos but that too from a far long distance. I ventured out a bit far and found a rhino having its fodder silently. I felt really lucky and got some pictures out of it. You can see the elephants from the towers with their kids. If you are fortunate enough you can also find some jackals and wolves crossing your ways.
After a breathtaking 2 hour safari, it ended in the main gate but it left us with some thrilling memories to cherish.