We had a great trip to the Sunderbans (translation - beautiful jungle) over the weekend, with plenty to experience regardless of whether we spotted tigers. The journey there involved a jeep, a boat, a walk and a cycle rickshaw before we finally made it to the village where we would be staying. First impressions - complete calm and peacefulness - the perfect escape from the bustle of Kolkata. The first thing we did was to head to the lake (every few houses in the village have their own lake dug into the ground for bathing and washing and, I guess drinking). The water in the lake was not exactly sparking - and when we put our feet down you cold understand why. The bottom consisted of a thick, sticky layer of clay-like mud. Still, the water was as warm as a bath with occasional surprisingly cold pockets and after a long journey was very welcome. My first thought after was to rinse of the river water in the shower. Until I realised that the shower water came straight from the lake.
After lunch we took our first trip out to take a trip down the river. On the way our guide told us a bit about the vollages in the area. It was a comfort to know that it had been 9 years since the last tiger attack in our village. Less comforting to that it was 15 days since the last attack in one of the neighbouring ones. Just about every family in the area has been affected in some way by tiger attacks through the years and they have a definite distinction between tiger attacks in the forests and in the villages. Each year, for a 2 month period, the villagers are allowed into the usually out of bounds jungle to collect honey. During this time they run a risk of attacks from tigers in their own territory. If this happens, the villagers do not blame the tiger, itis the fault of the men. If the tiger comes to the village and attacks however, it is another story.
Our first river trip was not into the protected area of the reserve itself but around the inhabited islands. We saw a large number of different birds and stopped off on a 'beach' where we was (and held) horseshoe crabs. We also saw some fascinating mud fish which can be caught deep in the mud, and burrow their way back in when released. The mud on this 'beach' was a little unpredictable. At times it was practically sand and solid enough to walk on. At others it was basically clay and we would find ourselves sinking down to our knees in it.
Next, we visited a busy island visited by it's neighbours for it's busy market. Here, we sampled the local rice liquor which smelt of yeast and tasted, well, disgusting. 8 of us squeezed into a tiny hut where a woman heated the liquor for us. There is no electricity in the Sunderbans so we were lit by a candle and felt very much as if we were in some illegal drug den. At 2% alcohol it's hardly lethal!
When we got back to our village, we were treated to some local music and a drink with fried local prawns before dinner. As we retired to our beds holding an oil lamp to light the way we were looking forward to the next day of tiger spotting despite the 5.30 start...
It was a long day. We were on our boat by about 6am and left it at about 4pm. There are nudred of islands in the Sunderbans which the tigers move between at will. A total of 275 tigers inhabit the area (on the indian side rather than the Bangladesh side), and the mangroves are thick and only above water for a certain part of the day, meaning that tiger spotting is a real challenge! We spotted plenty of deer, monitor lizards and some beautiful birds including parrots whilst desperately scanning the forests for a glimspe of orange. Unfortunately many of the leaves are orange, which adds to the problem! Kev and I were lucky enough to catch a glimpse during the morning of a tiger, although it was so quick that not everyone on the boat was so lucky. Still, we had a lovely trip with or without tigers and the Sundarbans are a magical place.
I really wish I had been able to remember more than the first verse of The Tyger during the day.
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright,
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire in thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare seize the fire?
And what shoulder, and what art?
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand, and what dread feet?
What the hammer? What the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? What dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?
When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb, make thee?
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright,
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire in thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare seize the fire?
And what shoulder, and what art?
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand, and what dread feet?
What the hammer? What the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? What dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?
When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb, make thee?
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright,
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?
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