An essay on the distances of the nearby places and tourists spots of Kaziranga.

Hello friends. As the tourist season in Kaziranga is approaching, I wanted to share with you a few essential details, especially for the tourists coming here. The following note may seem to be only factual, but would be very useful at times.

Tourists from different parts of India usually start their journey to Kaziranga from Guwahati. The road distance between Guwahati and Kaziranga is 228 km and it takes approximately 4hrs to cover the distance by car.

The places we come across while coming to Kaziranga from Guwahati are:

Jorabat, Sonapur, Jagiroad, Nagaon, Puranigudam, Samaguri, Amoni, Missa, Kaliabor, Kuwaritol, Jakhalabandha, Burapahar, Bagori, Kohora. Bagori and Kohora are the two forest ranges which tourists usually visit when they come to Kaziranga.

Tezpur is another important place, the distance of which to Kaziranga National Park is 81 Kms. It takes about 1hr 30 min to cover the distance by car. Tezpur is also a tourist spot and has many tourist places to see, especially religious ones. While going from Kaziranga to Tezpur, one goes over the Bhumuraguri bridge over the mighty Brahmaputra, just before reaching Tezpur. 

From Tezpur one can go to another famous tourist spot Tawang, in Arunachal Pradesh. Tawang is approximately 325km from Tezpur. But taking into account the road conditions and weather, the time required to cover the distance is difficult to calculate. It is better to be prepared to stay one night on the way. While entering Arunachal Pradesh, one also requires an inner-line permit, which has to be arranged beforehand at Tezpur.

Distance between Kaziranga to Jorhat is 86 km by Road. It takes about 2hrs to cover the distance. This information would be useful taking into account the fact that the nearest airport and major train station is at Jorhat.

From Kaziranga if one wants to venture eastwards, he has a few options. For tourists there are two places of interest. One is Majuli and the other one is Sivasagar. Majuli is famous as the biggest riverine island. Tourists usually go there to see the Assamese Vaishnava religious culture. Going to Majuli depends on the availability of ferries. From Kaziranga it takes 2 hrs to reach Jorhat. And from Jorhat one has to go to Nematighat (Jorhat to nematighat is 16km) where ferries can be got to reach Majuli. The ferries can drop you at different ghats in Majuli. You shall have to get down where needed. Nematighat to Majuli by ferry takes about 1 and ½ hours.

Sivasagar is the other eastern tourist destination. It takes about 1hr 30 minutes to cover the distance of 58km from Jorhat to Sivasagar by car. Sivasagar is a historically important tourist destination.

Approximate driving distance between Sivasagar and Kaziranga National Park is 148 kms via Jorhat or 3 and ½ hrs by car.

Beyond Sivasagar is Dibrugarh and Tinsukia. From Dibrugarh going northeast there are a few tourist spots. I would not mention about them here as more time is required to visit them and are usually not included in the Kaziranga itinerary. The driving distance between Dibrugarh and Kaziranga is 231km and takes about 5hrs to cover it by car.

The driving distance between Jorhat and Tinsukia is 274 km

Shillong is another famous tourist destination which is usually visited by tourists coming to Kaziranga. The road distance between Shillong to Kaziranga is 291 km and the time required is 6hrs approximately.

Friends please provide feedback so that I can include more important matter in my tourism posts. Please feel free to ask questions. I would try to answer them to the best of my knowledge.

Thank you.

Kaziranga Calendar

October to May is the tourist season of Kaziranga. The two safaris that tourists can enjoy here are supposed to continue throughout the 8 months season. But there are some changes that come about due to various reasons. The safaris usually do not start from 1st of October. It is often 2nd of October. And the other end of the season is cut short by almost a month. The reason is always water. Flooding is a detrimental factor that affects tourism. One more time that the usual safaris come to a sudden halt is when census of animals is done. The census is usually done in March and is completed in a day.
       There are other things that are important from the point of view of tourists. The dry season and the spring season when the dead grasses are burnt are the two times best for catching sight of most of the denizens of Kaziranga. The dry time is from November to February. And the grasses are burnt in March.
           

Tourist season in Kaziranga is about to start.

The tourist season of Kaziranga is on its way. Preparations have already started for the various safaries to go inside the park. Meetings are being held among the park authorities, elephant and jeep safari agents for the smooth running of the safaries during the season time. Bookings for rooms to stay in Kaziranga have also begun. Kaziranga is becoming dry. The flood waters have all receded leaving behind lakes and plain land. The forest authorities will mark out a possible route in each range for jeep safari. Along these routes roads will be made although they will be left unpitched. The routes for safaries are so marked so that tourists can have a good view of most parts of the jungle, while also keeping the safety of the tourists in mind. For elephant safari, elephants which were until now employed in other activities in other places will be hired and brought to Kaziranga. Responsible park officers will evaluate the suitability of the elephants for safari. The park will be ceremoniously opened for tourists on November 1st. And thereafter everybody concerned with the park will be very busy for the next 6 months. It is a unique kind of job that they do, which allows them to rest for 6 months and work for the other 6 months. In one way you have more holidays than any other occupation. But during the season time you have no respite either. Then there are no Sundays or Saturdays. The park is open everyday.

Kaziranga in Summer

Well, Kaziranga is a world famous wildlife sanctuary. During the dry days there is no count to the number of people who come to visit it. But does anyone know what it is like to be here in summer.
        As the hot summer day ends and evening surrounds us, the sound of the cricket and the frog engulfs everything. Almost every light bulb lit in the open gets covered by thousands of insects the names of most of which have never been catalogued. Suddenly a tiny crawling creature appears on the floor under the bright ceiling light. It is a small insect, but if it bites it might cause a lot of pain. And the story goes on....
       This is a picture most people might fear of. But the people who know and like nature care the least. As summer is half way through, the situation is more different. The jungle is covered with flood water. The bigger animals like the deer, rhinos, buffaloes, elephants and others begin to have a tough time. The grass which is the main food of these animals goes under water. Some of the animals come out of the jungle into human habitation and cause a lot of confusion.
       It is said that there is a reason why flood occurs in Assam. Many decades ago, in the year 1950, a very powerful earthquake shook Assam. In that earthquake massive blocks of land were moved. Wide cracks appeared on the ground. One hill actually slided into the Brahmaputra river blocking the water flow. It is believed that after this the riverbed rose and the river began to widen. When there is more water during the rainy season, flood occurred.
       Not only Kaziranga, but the whole of Assam suffer huge losses every year due to flood. Every problem has an end. Probably there would be a solution to our problem too. But when.

The less known Burapahar range elephant safari.

Elephant safari is a favorite activity among all the tourists who visit Kaziranga. It is also a good way to get into the forest which takes one to the actual habitat where animals live, without disturbing them. But few travelers know how to get the elephant safari. While it is easy to have a seat booked through a hotel or resort, people are often left helpless as to which range should they choose for the ride. The 3 ranges seem to be quite different. All know the central, and some think it is the only one. A few know the Bagori range and most often they are given this range. But the fact is that there is another very good range where also elephant safari can be got. It is called the Burapahar range. One can get the seat booked there.
        Burapahar elephant safari is unique for the fact that the ride here has a duration of 1 full hour. There are 3 elephants which take the tourists through an undulating terrain with marshy areas, streams and grassy level ground. For the most part the elephant carries the riders through thickly forested areas. There are different species of deer, rhinos, buffaloes, wild hen and birds which can be seen from the elephant. The animals often hide behind the elephant grass. But the elephant takes the riders close to the animals. Ultimately everyone appreciates this ride. It is a heart quenching elephant ride one has ever had. People often complain of the short duration of the elephant safari. But this is not the case here. I personally went in such a trip. What I found was extraordinary. It was like a beautiful dream, a great movie which I watched, only that it was in real life. You shall have the same experience, I can assure.

Our garden.

These are flowers from our garden.

The four ranges of the Kaziranga National Park.

Kaziranga is dry now. The tourist season has arrived. All the flood waters have gone. The brown tracks of land that were once under water can be seen inside the jungle. The animals come to feed on the green shoots of grass that are appearing on the surface.The park is supposed to be opened on 1st of November. There are 4 gates from which one can enter the park. The best is the central range also called Kohora. This range can be toured on jeep or elephant. As this is the central part of the jungle, there is more chance of seeing more animals. But the Bagori range(the western part of the jungle) is more beautiful and look natural with many trees. The Bagori range also has elephant and jeep tour facility. Hills N Lakes Resort is situated near the Bagori range. All the animals are seen here also.The tourists often describe seeing rhinos, deer, pelicans, lakes full of fish, buffaloes, etc . There is an eastern rangeccalled Agoratoli.It is famous for migratory birds.The 4th and the last range is the Gorakheti or Burapahar.It also has jeep and elephant safari. This range is the wildest of all the four ranges.