Bhitarkanika - One Amazing Trip!

Bhubaneswar to Bhitarkanika is 142 km only which is about 88 miles, which is not much in comparison to the length of road trips in USA. But in Orissa, that's quite an adventurous outing. It had it's own charm though. After a long time, I saw the country side of the state where I spent my childhood. Never got a chance to see this Bhitarkanika National Park. This time, before even our trip from US planned, we had decided to visit!

Each house in village is an art in itself

It took us almost 5 hours to reach the park. Thanks to mom for packing awesome chicken & egg rolls and other snacks. To top it, cold water in the cooler, which would have been very hard to find otherwise. Of course, we still took a detour to go via Salepur. Dad wanted us to have Salepur Rasagolla experience after a long time. 

Salt water crocodile

We reached near the banks of Khola, which looked like any other big river in Orissa. As the story goes, the King of Kanika who had the rights to this National Park before Government took over, dug out so that he can have a short cut to go to the other side for hunting.

The boat was quite ready and we immediately started. The boatmen and his assistant were not more than literate but it was amazing how they educated they were on the flora and of course the fauna. They exactly knew at what location we should see what. We got to see a lot of salt water crocodiles. They were huge! The quietness coupled with vastness of this ecosphere took us to a different world. The spotted-deers, monkey families and plenty of king fishers, made us believe this piece of earth needs to be preserved at any cost.

Sun set in the National Park

Cottage

Bhitarkanika is a unique habitat of Mangrove Forests criss-crossed with numerous creeks and mud flats located in Kendrapara district of Orissa. One of the largest Mangrove Eco systems in India, Bhitarkanika is home to diverse flora and fauna. Bhitarkanika located between 86’-45” To 87’17” East longitude and 20’-17” to 20’-47” North latitude in the estuary of Brahmani, Baitarani, Dhamra & Mahanadi river systems, has unique attraction and a boast of nature’s most picturesque sites. 

After sight seeing in the boat, we reached Dangamal where we stayed overnight. Beautiful cottages with excellent amenities with a long veranda. In the night, one can see flocks of deers as well as other animals, including porcupine. The stay was accompanied with excellent oriya delicacies and services were very courteous and accommodative of needs.

Waking up to a misty morning!

The morning was equally impressive. The serenity of the place with a misty view of the river was quite refreshing. Our guide-cum-host was all in one. He can tell any piece of history related to the place or animal or bird with ease. A nice museum is located adjacent to the resort. Nestled amidst coconut trees and with a nice breeze, Bhitarkanika will be remembered for time to come!