Keonjhar -> Simlipal

Birds Eye view 

Today we travelled 105 kms in 6 hrs, but for once, that would not be a fair measure of speed. Although there was not much time spent on sightseeing before we hit Simlipal, our travel after the initial two hours of NH49 gave way to 20 kmph driving speed inside the reserve forest, which itself was for two hours more, including the time needed for issuing a vehicle permit. So all in all, the Punch displayed a mixed persona between a hare and a tortoise. 

Weather was absolutely clear, if not slightly warm, and jackets remained packed till the evening. 

Let’s a look at the day in more detail.

Leaving Keonjhar (7.30 am) 

As a town, Keonjhar is nothing to sneer at, with a pop of 1.8 million. Being a mining area, truck movements are pretty prolific, as we had seen yesterday itself. 

We were in two minds about our travel strategy, both revolving around breakfast and allowed hours of entry into Simlipal. Initially we were under the impression that the morning entry into Simlipal was restricted from 5.00-9.00 am, in which case we should leave Keonjhar before 7.00 am (it’s a two hour run), without breakfast, naturally. However, talk with the eco resort revealed that such restrictions apply to day-trippers, and if we had a booking inside for a night stay, we could reach as late as 12.00 noon at the gate. So we asked our Man Thursday at Keonjhar to pack bread and eggs for us, which he happily did. We had a car picnic by the roadside around half an hour before reaching Jashipur, the highway town from where the entry roads flow into Simlipal.

Entering Simlipal (10.30 am) 

Let me give a brief on Simlipal national park. Part of Mayurbhanj district in Orissa, it is quite big, being around 2750 sq km in area, and home to varied flora and fauna, including the big tickets like elephants and tigers, though they are difficult to spot, even in the core areas. There are various resorts or lodges scattered around the non-core areas. The park has many waterfalls, a couple of riverside picnic spots, temples, and long drive paths of red earth winding among saal trees, whose leaves lace the ground. The non-core areas have many villages inside. In fact, where we stayed was next to a village. Anyone going inside needs a permit, and personal cars (non-safari vehicles) need a separate vehicle permit. Only vehicles with ground clearance of 180 mm are allowed inside. Both permits are usually issued by the counter at Khairi, 5 km from Jashipur junction towards Keonjhar side, though day-trippers can obtain an online permit as well. 

Simlipal has a west side entry via Jashipur on the highway (gates Jaimuni and Kaliprasad), and an east side entry via Baripada on the highway (gate Pithavada). Since we were coming from Keonjhar, we drove up to Jashipur. NH49 was a dream, by and large, except where roadworks were going on. We wasted some time trying to find out Khairi, the permit issuing point for our vehicle (our personal permits were already included in our booking). Everyone seemed to know where it was except us. Process was perfectly smooth, I must say. 

There was a small museum dedicated to Khairi the tigress who was fostered in Simlipal for 7 years before she died of rabies, infected by a dog. To a certain generation of Bengalis, Khairi is almost an emotional issue. 

We turned right from Jashipur junction towards Kaliprasad gate, some 30 mins inside, where forestry staff check the permit before raising the boom. The tarmac road immediately changed to the red earth of the region, saal trees crowded around the narrow path, which started winding beside a fast flowing stream, later identified as the Khairi river. I cannot resist a comparison with the gates of Narnia opening up to show a different magical vista. Panna promptly went down to the stream to record it for posterity. 

The road was graded, rough, sometimes quite uneven, but not something the Punch could not handle. At badly rutted portions, I had to resort to ‘riding the ridges’ so that the central hump did not hit my underbelly. We were told that the roads inside the core area were much tougher. The red path, running like a gash through the forest, like vermillion on the parting of a new bride’s hair (rather poetic, what?), wound left and right, up and down, following the contours of the land. 

There was hardly any traffic today, and we purred along blissfully, although at a speed a tad slower than that predicted by Google maps. Incidentally, I had had the foresight of downloading offline maps on my phone, else I would have been left without navigation, like the Ancient Mariner. 

In Simlipal, it is futile to expect elephants and deer to pop out, unless on a safari, and even then it is slim pickings. We focused on enjoying the road. My map had shown up an Uski waterfall on the way to Barehipani, where we were staying. We were in two minds, since it involved some trekking, and it was pretty hot by then. Ultimately, we could not work out from where the trek was supposed to start and which way to walk, and we turned our car around, half relieved. 

Reaching Barehipani (1.30 pm) 

We had booked our stay at the Barehipani Nature Camp, again a project of OFDC. Although the camp itself was quite well constructed, with nicely appointed cottages, I personally was a little disappointed that it was so close to a village, on flat cultivable land. However, the deep forest impinged on the back yard of the campus, and a morning walk would probably be very nice. 

Meanwhile, we were served a very good lunch with lots of veggies, to which we added omelettes, which, we have discovered, is a far better alternative to egg curry. 

Barehipani waterfall (4.00 pm) 

There are two waterfalls that can be accessed from our resort, further down the road. One is Barehipani waterfall, around 5 kms ahead, another is Jaronda waterfall, around 40 km ahead. I was feeling like relaxing a bit after a solid lunch (Bengalis, unite), and begged off the trip to Jaronda that would have taken three hours going and coming. 

Therefore, after watching Raat Akeli Hai for a while (Don’t laugh - it’s something Netflix had automatic downloaded onto my phone), we poked Punch in the ribs, got on, and off we went to visit the closer one. A pretty drive through deep forest, descending quite steeply, brought us to the viewing platform of the falls, which is, in fact, across the valley on the other hill. However, it is 400m tall, the second highest in India, it seems, and the roar from the gorge below was clearly audible even from this distance. The slanting rays of the setting sun lit up the mountainside, lending visual warmth to the slight chill in the air that was making itself felt. We spent half an hour at this pleasant viewpoint, then started back, as I did not want to drive in the dark. 

Sitting outside the cottage, I suddenly felt the full impact of being offline. Nothing to scroll through? Nothing to watch on screen? Forced to commune with nature or watch the thoughts in my head? Lovely! 

6.00 pm saw a lad bringing us tea and French fries. I am still mystified as to why the tea in most of the eco-resorts tastes salty! Any idea, anyone? 

We were walking on the grounds post dinner, when we suddenly noticed the sky, meaning we were struck by its looks. It was teeming with stars, all of them unusually bright. The half moon was casting a clear shadow and the Orion could be photographed with a simple cell phone camera (well, just about...see below). This is how the sky must have been a thousand years ago, without our technology belching effluents into the atmosphere. Weather was pretty chilly and we moved indoors after a short spell of cosmic wonderment.

Tomorrow we leave for spending a night at Lodhasuli, before returning to Kolkata.

Photo credits: Panna Rashmi Ray