India 2016 (part X): Sundarbans National Park

Sundarbans National Park, West Bengal:

sunrise in the Sundarbans National Park

Following the field trip to Jaisalmer in westernmost Rajasthan, I spent two weeks working in the office in Jaipur. I only left the city again at the end of March, when a plane took me to Kolkata to meet a friend/colleague.

The plan was to continue with our research, but on the weekend of my arrival we were booked on a cruise to the Sundarbans National Park. We had wanted to visit this largest mangrove forest on earth for a long time and finally we made it! The Sundarbans are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, especially famous for its tigers! However, you are much more likely to spot wild boars, macaque, spotted deer, crocodiles, monitor lizards, or some of the hundreds of occurring bird species. The mangroves cover the vast delta formed by the confluence of the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers.

My friend had organized two berths on the 2-day-cruise of the West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation and it was fantastic. The boat, sleeping arrangements, and food were very good. We had a great time and got a good impression of the mangrove forest. However, if you want to do serious wildlife watching, you need more time to be able to penetrate deeper into the forest along its thousands of narrow channels! During our journey, we stopped at three watch towers: Sudhanyakhali, Sajnekhali, and Dobanki. If you check the photographed map of the national park in the gallery, you will see that we were only at the rim of this impressive waterworld!

kids on Holi in Jaipur

leaving Jaipur

our ship for the next two days

boats on the river

children swimming in the river

fishing

fisherboat near a village

fisherboat

fishing

checking the fishing net

hard life in the Sundarbans

boat on the river

boats on the river

public ferry

old church

entering the Sundarbans National Park

view from the ship

dense mangrove forest

tiny channel

at Sudhanyakhali Camp

way to the watch tower

Spotted Deer

young Spotted Deer

Spotted Deer

view from the watch tower

mangrove forest

tiny crab

“our” ship

Rhesus Macaque

water channel

Lesser Adjutant in the forest

at Sajnekhali Camp

Rhesus Macaque

Water Monitor

a crocodile in one of the camp’s enclosures

a terrapin in the breeding program

mongoose running around at the camp

swimming Water Monitor

view from the watch tower

a wild pig

view from the watch tower

Collared Kingfisher

sunset at Sajnekhali

early morning on the river

sunrise

fog in the water channels

sunrise

mangroves in the morning light

sunrise

mangroves

Great Egret

sunrise

mangroves at low tide

unknown bird of prey

Little Cormorant

Jungle Myna

Spotted Deer

mangroves

entrance to Dobanki Camp

Green Bee-eater

map of the Sundarbans National Park

tiny crab

mudskipper

entrance to Dobanki Camp

mangroves

on “our” ship

on the upper deck

the middle deck with the berths

the berths

view from the ship

fisherboat

boat on the river

mangroves at high tide

fisherboats

fisherboat

fisherboats

fisherboat

on the drive back to Kolkata

Already on the return journey, we discussed possibilities to visit this fascinating place again – this time for a longer period and travelling its narrow waterways with a much smaller boat! But for now, the next destination was Kolkata!

4 responses to “India 2016 (part X): Sundarbans National Park”

I sure love your travel adventures, Matthias. I have never heard of the Sundarbans, and really enjoyed seeing the watch towers, ship accommodations, and especially the wildlife. I found the morning photos on the water really inviting. Thanks so much for taking us along.