WHERE BEASTS NEST IN BEAUTY |
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Be prepared for anything once you enter
Jaldapara National Park of Doars. Anything
means any event that can be counted as a
sheer delight or a massive disappointment to
a wildlife enthusiast. There is a chance that a
herd of elephants will cross your path almost
from a stone throwing distance or a rhinoceros may walk
with you side by side and there is also a chance that after
spending 2 hours inside the jungle you may have to be
satisfied only by seeing few peacocks and some deer.
That is common in every safari of the world then what
makes Jaldapara so distinctive?
The answer lies in its unique set up.
Nature has decorated this misty spectacular forest with
everything. The deep and dark wood of shaal and sishu is
often contrasted with zones covered with elephant grass.
In addition to many water bodies and rivulets, three
small rivers viz Malangi, Hollong and Khawa flow inside
the park. Now and then behind the shadow of woods,
wild creatures - mammals, insects and reptiles pass
silently. In the kaleidoscope of light and shadow they are
often spotted in their most natural environs. In the middle
of the elephant grass, gigantic bison and one-horned
rhinoceros keep on grazing while leopards roam in his
demarked arena. In a nutshell, Jaldapara is an amazing
amphitheatre of wild life that every wanderlust will hate
to give a miss.
Jaldapara is one of the national park of Doars of
Bengal that dons a distinctive crown on her head. This
dense forest announced as a reserve forest in 1941 is now
a 216 square km forest that houses some of the most
beautiful fauna found in India.
It is bison everywhere in Jaldapara.
Known as Indian gaur this huge creature with it’s massive
horn and mussels often looks directly at visitors eyeballs.
In the green Gangetic plain of Doars elephant grass
grows in wild and there bison a social animal set ups their
kingdom. This tallest species among wild cattle is a pure
vegetarian by food habit but it is too dangerous if confronted
face to face by any chance. The largest bovia
native are found here in abundance. The regal looking
beast peacefully cohabits in grassland with other giants
like elephants and rhinoceros. However you are advised
to watch him from a safe distance only.
Jaldapara enjoys an international fame as the 2nd
biggest home of world’s one of the most amazing animal
that is Indian one horned unicorn rhinoceros.
After Kaziranga National Park of Assam which is
home of nearly 2300 such animals, Jaldapara is populated
by nearly 300 rhinos. The vast green rain forest with
abundance of water is an ideal nest for this endangered
species. Rhino spotting in Jaldapara is a feast for your
eyes. They are found either roaming in grassland or resting
in muddy pool or the sand of the river bank. They
come close to your safari jeep or safari elephant sometimes
too close that it seems you can touch them.
However it is better not to dare that. Though a pure vegetarian,
an Indian rhino weights around 2300 kg if it is a
full grown male. Once this entire region connected by forest
with Nepal, Assam and Bhutan was densely populated with one horn rhinoceros.
However mindless poaching for it’s horn and skin has
now made their numbers limited in Bengal. Apart from
Jaldapara National Park there is just one more national
park in Bengal named Gorumara where rhinoceros are
still found. Thanks to human brutality, from rest of the
places they vanished many years ago.
You have seen nothing in Jaldapara if you have not met
the gentle giant of the forest.
It is the sudden and thrilling appearance of elephant
that makes this jungle safari an unforgettable experience.
The entire green belt of north Bengal is a corridor of elephant
movement. Almost every day one or more huge
group of elephants sometimes as big as 65 in numbers
move from one jungle to another for the search of water
and food. Here they come from Assam or sometimes even
from Manipur. From here they move to Nepal or nearby
Chilapata forest. An encounter with a herd of wild elephant
is perhaps the most spine chilling jungle experience
for one who understands wild life. When a group
moves by smashing grasslands and breaking bushes
under their jumbo feet, the soil rocks and the dust flies.It
is time one has to obey every single rule demanded inside
of a jungle. A casual over enthusiasm can invite unimaginable
danger. It is elephant that has priority over everybody
else. No risk can be taken in front of mahakal a
name by which elephants are referred by local.
There are three watch towers inside of this national
park. The first one is called Jaldapara watch tower while
the 2nd one is called Harindanga. Both the towers overlook
a vast green carpet of savannah grass land spread
over vast floodplains of Himalayan foothills. From these
watch tower chances of spotting wildlife is broad.
However the zigzag beaten road on which safari jeep runs
is the real theatre of action. With watchful eye and click
of luck you can witness lizards, leopards, wild boars, deer
and even in a very very rare case a royal Bengal tiger. The
first watch tower had a salt pit where salts are kept to
attract rhinos and elephants. If luck takes you there on
right time trust me you can have the most throbbing feel
of your life to see some wild giants from few hands away.
The best watching point of Jaldapara is Hollong watch
tower.
Here on the bank of Hollong river tourism department
of Bengal Government has built up a tourist guest house
with excellent visibility of jungle and its inmates. Your
thirst for jungle experience will not find any major reason
to complain if you are lucky enough to book Hollong
tourist lodge. From the gate of park a jeep needs to run
nearly 7 km inside the forest to reach the lodge.
Equipped with all modern facilities it overlooks a
rivulets and on the other bank of that from dark and deep
vegetation of woods wild life runs like a movie.
At Hollong one does not need to come out to even gardento see a wild rhino or a group of bison standing on the other bank of the river.
From bedrooms and balcony
of the tourist lodge wildlife of Jaldapara reflects like a documentary.
From Hollong resort forest department organizes elephant
safari.
Though the service is limited to few tourists and subject
to book in advance it has it’s own charm. Elephants
take riders inside that deep of wood where sunlight hardly
touches the soil. It walks over the bush and rivulets giving
the maximum chance of hidden rhinos, lizards, deer
and leopards. However it covers only 2 km and in set
route where as a jeep safari covers more than 25 km in
one go.
If you have enough on the ground then now you can
chin up to experience another face of this park. Known
as the paradise of bird lovers the park is home of several
rare birds. Bengal Florican one of the rarest bird can be
spotted here. Apart from that almost every branch and
log of trees are habited with unknown yet beautiful birds
like crested eagle, hornbill, purple sunbird, scarlet
minivet, kingfisher and many more. Bird that is most in
abundance is peacock. No wonder one of the beaten
track of the jungle is named a peacock avenue.
Like every other national park in India Jaldapara is also
facing threats of encroachment and poaching. Still this is
encouraging enough that the size of the park has
increased and there, inside of the deep forest, between
light and shadow three giant creatures viz elephants,
bison and rhinoceros are still peacefully cohabiting
Travel Logistics:
# Jaldapara National Park is in northern part
of Bengal near Madarihat town.
# Nearest big station is NJP and nearest airport
is Bagdogra.
# From station and airport it takes 3 hours
plus to reach Madarihat.
# Madarihat also has a small station.
# West Bengal Tourism has 2 accommodations
–- One inside the jungle and one at
Madarihat town. Both can be booked
online.
Useful website – www.jaldapara.in
www.wildbengal.com, www.wbtdc.gov.in
# Many private hotels are there but Govt
accommodation is best as jeep safari and
elephant safari booking is done form here
only.
# Jeep safari takes longer time than elephant
–- there is no elephant safari in afternoon.
Govt tourist lodge organizes a light and
show sound in evening on wildlife - a
unique concept found nowhere in India
except at Jaldapara.
This article was published in The Hitavada on 24th September 2017
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