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!
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
