Gopegarh Eco Park - Where History, Folklore and Nature Creates Symphony

When it comes to going on a weekend trip, there are just two choices for you, as far as the type of location is concerned. What I mean is, you either select a place that’s choc-a-block with weekender crowd where you ‘party hard’ to shake off your weeklong stress and hit your desk on the following Monday, all pumped up, to face the music of the week ahead. Or, you go visit a place that’s far from the madding crowd as Keats penned in his ‘To One Who Has Been Long In City Pent’… to breathe a sigh of relief from the hectic schedule that you’re a part of…to look at the blue firmament above with eyes wide open and painstakingly try to count the countless stars for hours lying on your back on the grassy carpet below…to hear a koel’s mating call at noon with no other man-made noise around. It’s a pure bliss to tired souls! Personally, I prefer the second type of weekends, where I can be alone with Nature! Or for that matter, get away from civilization (literally) and enjoy the sights and sounds of natural surroundings to reboot my senses.

And, my personal favorites are those little known and yet to be known places which holds a lot of potential in terms of enriching the tourism of my state. I keep looking for such uncut jewels among the umpteen travelogue articles, travel magazines, online groups and forums, which are usually dominated by news of popular destinations; and whenever I could spot a place or two – there’s no turning back “once the voice is heard.” One such place I visited on the last weekend before the Pujas this year is Gopegarh in Paschim Midnapur district - a jewel in the dust, ready to be picked!

To be more precise, Gopegarh Heritage and Nature Eco-Tourism Centre is the place I have been to and stayed overnight inside the forested area in a bungalow (booked online; details given at the end of the post). The area falls under Midnapur Forest Division and except a few village houses bordering the perimeter of the Eco-tourism Centre (park area), there is simply no civilization around for miles. A watch-tower inside the Eco-Tourism Centre gives a panoramic view of the virgin greenery around sans humans! Phew! That’s a relief I guess, you too will agree with me, if you’re equally eager as I am to get away from man-made sights and sounds. In the distance Kangsabati river flows through meandering landscape with paddy and vegetable fields on her either banks. The railway bridge over Kangsabati River is the nearest landmark visible from the watch tower along with Midnapore and Kharagpur town establishments which can be seen near the distant horizon. The uninterrupted quietness of the place gets ruptured only when trains pass over the bridge blowing a shrill whistle. But as soon as the whistle fades away, nature begins her symphony, crickets’ starts their chorus and birds join in the orchestra while dogs from neighborhood never misses to mark its presence with  occasional barks.

How Did I Go?

I boarded the Howrah-Midnapur local at 6.30 AM from Howrah station, which arrived at Midnapur Junction at 10 AM. From the station I booked a rickshaw which took us (me and my friend) to Gopegarh Eco Park (as the locals call this place) within half an hour. Gate 1 (main entrance) is where the rickshaw took us (later we figured out that time taken could have been much shorter had we traveled along Midnapur-Dherua road via Rangamati instead of Vidyasagar University road via Gope College). The road condition changes from being smooth (near Vidyasagar University Campus) to potholed and bumpy as soon as locality vanishes and we entered the Sal (Shorea sp.) tree lined wilderness of the countryside. Nonetheless, the rickshaw ride was worthwhile! It was late September at the pick of the monsoon and the blue sky with fluffy white clouds beckoning the homecoming of Uma (Goddess Durga)… the rustic setting and the mild breeze caressing our sun-kissed souls, only interrupted by an occasional drizzle, had a magical effect on us. The beginning of a long-cherished weekend lay ahead of us, my anticipation grew stronger!

Arriving at Gopegarh Heritage and Nature Eco-Tourism Centre, we were astounded! A very well maintained and decorated park in the middle of wilderness, with ample place for visitors to roam around, stroll or simply sit alone or with a partner or a in a group. In a word, a perfect place to spend a whole day with your loved one or organize and enjoy picnic or group outing. (Day passes and Picnic spots within the park can be booked online as also from ticket counter)

Gopegarh Heritage Building

The main attraction of the Gopegarh Heritage and Nature Eco-Tourism Centre is the Gopegarh Heritage Building, which actually is a ruin of a palace built by Gope King (a local raja or king/ landlord who owned the entire area) In fact, the name Gopegarh translates in Bengali as the Fort/citadel of the Gopes (Gope + Garh). The site of the ruin is inside the Eco-park. A board is displayed in front of the site mentioning that the very place has mythological ties (as per folklore), it is believed that Gopegarh was part of the Kingdom of Virat (Virat Rajya) as mentioned in Mahabharata. Hence visitors are requested to maintain the sanctity of the place! With all due respect we ventured inside the ruins of the heritage building and found a snake pit and an anthill inside the dilapidated mansion.

Our Stay - When Evening Came

Soon after our arrival, we ordered our meal at the (only) canteen, located hardly 50 meters from the bungalow that we have booked. By the way there are two bungalows for overnight stay named– Pathik and Priya. One air-conditioned and the other non-ac. We stayed at the non-ac bungalow. Both bungalows are double bedded, bed rooms are spacious with satellite television; there’s ample space for dining, bath and a private balcony overlooking the forested area. Opposite of the bungalows is the watch-tower which is about 40 feet (with an overhead water tank) with two tier observation decks for viewing. After lunch both of us climbed up the watch-tower, sat in the shade of the overhead tank on the topmost deck and chatted all afternoon.

When daylight dimmed we went for a village walk. Walking along the narrow pedestrian strip, created overtime by locals, winding through thick foliage of the forested area, we came to gate 2 of the park. It was getting dark, so we decided to turn back and made our way back to our refuge for the night. As evening came and darkness descended fast, the whole area appeared mystical and too some extent eerie! For there were no souls except us two and the canteen guy and a night guard inside this entire forested area. The uninterrupted cacophony of crickets and croaking of frogs kept us on vigil as we sat on the lower deck of the watch tower during most part of the evening looking up at the starry sky above! Such pristine night sky with countless stars winking back at us through the ether… I will remember the sight for a long time!

Visit to Gope Nandini Temple

Next morning, we followed a village track and walked down a flight of stony steps through a dense undergrowth and came outside the park premises. It was a ‘shortcut trail’ we discovered and both of us were beaming with sheer excitement of our discovery! The road from Midnapur to Dherua ran along the perimeter of the park on the outside. Now we were on that road and as we walked a few blocks we spotted a temple by the roadside under a huge banyan tree. Locals call it Gope Nandini temple. On enquiring some village elders, we came to know that during the reign of the Gope Raja (the erstwhile king of Gopegarh) a curious incident happened. A stone merchant was travelling along the road when one of the stones fell off from the cart. But he could not lift the stone back nor could anyone else. Henceforth he left the place. A few days after, a local Brahmin saw a divine vision where mother goddess herself instructed her to build a temple and worship the stone as Gope Nandini (form of Mother Goddess). Under the patronage of the Gope King, this temple was built and it remains till today as a holy place of worship among locals. For we have seen vehicles slow down at the very front of the temple and drivers, conductors and passengers alike leaning out their arms and touching their forehead in a holy gesture (the Hindu form of a short version of namaskar) asking for blessings from the Goddess Gope Nandini.

The Best Was Yet To Come!

True! We have been enjoying the blissful greenery with all its sights and sounds for the last 24 hours but it was time to bid adieu. Before we left Gopegarh, there was one desperate attempt on my part to catch a glimpse of River Kangsabati. We walked along the Midnapur – Dherua road and with guidance from locals discovered a village road meandering through paddy fields that leads up to the banks of the river. It was almost a two kilometer walk through dirt and dust but we enjoyed every bit of it…the baby green paddy field on either side…the rustic ambience, the smell of the freshly tilled earth, the distant Kash Phul or Kans grass (Saccharum spontaneum) nodding in the morning air and the river’s call beckoned us from afar! Kangsabati River flowed in her majestic mood…the blue sky above with white fluffy clouds gliding by, the glistening ripples on the river and the silky white kash phul abounding both the shores gifted us a memorable sight, never to forget!

Gopegarh may not be a terrific location for popular tourism but it holds potential for being an off-beat eco-tourism destination. The park is well maintained and security was good with ample lighting (solar lights) all across the park. A day or two stay during winter is best recommended and obviously picnics and group / day outings are also recommended. So what are you waiting for? Head over to Gopegarh next weekend and enjoy your stay at this historical place amid the symphony of nature.

For Booking Contact Details:

West Bengal State Forest Development Agency, Aranya Bhavan, BLock LA-10A, Sector- III, Salt Lake, Kolkata, West Bengal 700098 | Ph: 033 2335 7751 | Email: wbsfda@gmail.com

Online Booking : http://wbsfda.gov.in | Gopegarh Eco Park office no: 03222275869