The story of the weekend in the Sarander forest surrounded by rivers of red water and seven hundred hills

With a two-day vacation from urban life, you can visit the deep jungle and the beautiful beauty of nature - mountains, waterfalls, rivers. Only seven hours by train from Kolkata.

Seven hundred hills! Are there really so many mountains there? This question has been on my mind ever since the talk of Saranda began. I went and saw that it was not. The number may be a little more than that.
I look at that, just the mountains. Their height is low, covered in dense forest. This vast mountain range and jungle flows through the heart of the river Raktava Raktav Karo. Which has created different waterfalls coming down from different lakes.

Saranda Forest is a landlocked country of seven hundred hills, with red rocky lands rich in iron ore, dense jungles, mountain ranges and rapids flowing over an area of ​​about 620 sq km from West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand to Keonjhar district of Orissa.

This jungle was once occupied by the Maoists. Now he has no problem. There are many animals in the forest such as bears, leopards, elephants. But due to the perimeter and density of the forest, the chances of meeting them are very low.

We were at the Saranda Safari Resort. The resort is quite open, with a river flowing by. Dense forest on the other side of the river. The sound of the river flowing smoothly is enough to make the mind feel good.

Here is the package system. Breakfast to dinner, 3 seatsin and 3 nights and 4 days from Barabil station will cost only 6 thousand rupees per person. If there are 7-8 people in the group, it can be read a little less. The fare to go to other places or to go on a night safari in the forest is also different. The amount of food is enough and the taste is good. Keep a bottle of mineral water with. Local water may not be tolerated.
The staff of the resort is very helpful and the owner of the resort Latifbabu is a very gentleman. The cottages lack a little maintenance as the resort has been closed for a long time due to Maoist harassment. But compared to the natural beauty of the place and the resort, it is better not to put it in all sorts. The resort also has swings, slip and badminton courts.

The ideal time to visit Saranda is from October to March. As it is a hilly place, it gets very hot in summer and in the rainy season it becomes a terrible river. On the other hand, it feels cold on a cold winter night. The temperature is 4 to 6 degrees. Sitting in front of the fire and eating barbecue, the cold is quite enjoyable.

• How to get there: Barabil Station on Howrah-Barabil Janshatabdi Express from Howrah. If told in advance, the resort will take the car. It takes about half an hour to reach the resort from the station.

• Where to stay: It is better to book in advance, because there are very few places to stay in Saranda area:

1. Saranda Safari Resort: www . sarandasafariresort . in (07008148746/09437004216)
   II. There is 'Santur Tourist Lodge' in Manoharpur (09601553292)
   . SAIL's Meghalaya Guest House. It has to be booked through Cell.