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Odisha Part 2 - Puri: The Experience of Jagannath

The temple of Jagannath at Puri is one of the four most important temples across India. Sometimes called the Char Dham – Badrinath in the north, Rameswaram in the South, Dwarka in the west, and Puri in the east – these temples mark four corners of our country, and each of these temples has a connection to Adi Shankara. He is said to have travelled to each of them, thus marking a sacred geography of India, long before the country actually existed. Among these 4 temples, 3 are dedicated to Lord Vishnu, while only Rameswaram is dedicated to Lord Shiva, though the lingam there is said to have been installed by Rama. Further, Shankara set up Mutts at 3 of these sites (or very close to these sites, like at Badrinath, where the mutt is at Joshimutt), while the mutt in the south is at Sringeri in Karnataka, quite a distance away from Rameswaram. Coming back to the topic, I have visited Rameswaram most often, Badrinath during my childhood, and Dwaraka a few times, but Puri had stayed out of re...
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The Winged Beauties of Satpura





The first thing that struck us at the Denwa Backwater Escape were the number of butterflies and dragonflies fluttering around.



The colours and their patterns had us bemused and fascinated, little though we knew about them.



Over the next couple of days, our guides rattled off names and species, though I remember only a few today. Which is why, I am settling for showing you the wide variety we saw, minus names and details!




When it came to birds, however, we remember a lot more of the names. After all, we were seeing some for the very first time!



Spot Billed Ducks and Ruddy Shelducks, together, in pairs! 


Whether we were walking around the resort, venturing into the jungle, taking a boat ride on the river, or simply sitting near the backwaters, there were plenty of birds to be seen.





We saw over 50 varieties of birds, without really going in search of them! These pics are just a few of those I managed to capture!



This beautiful raptor posed for us on the ground, but I can't seem to identify him! Help please! 

This Black Winged Kite eluded us all day, but settled on a tree in front of our window, just as we were getting ready to leave! 

I have created a collage of the photos simply to reduce the number of photographs in this post. For those of you who want to look at each pic in detail, here is a slideshow…





Or, to head over to the Album, click here. 

This was in November, before the migratory birds had arrived. You can imagine what it would be like now!

I visited Denwa Backwater Escape in November 2014 on an invite from Pugdundee Safaris to explore the Satpura Wildlife Sanctuary. You can read more about the trip on my other posts about the experience.



Information:
  • The Satpura National park is located in Madhya Pradesh, and the backwaters of the Denwa river from the Tawa dam marks one of its boundaries.


How to Reach:
  • By Air: The nearest airport is at Bhopal (176 Km)
  • By Rail: The nearest major railway station is Itarsi (70 Km), which is well connected to all parts of India. Other accessible railway stations are Pipariya (50 Km), Sohagpur (19 Km) and Hoshangabad (50 Km).
  • By Road : There are a few local buses to Sohagpur, but there is hardly any regular public transport to the sanctuary itself. It is best to hire a car from Itarsi or Pipariya.

Where to Stay: There are plenty of hotels in the vicinity of the sanctuary to suit all budgets. We stayed at the Denwa Backwater Escape, which is certainly one of the best options in the area. The forest department also has accommodation near the entry gate of the sanctuary.





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Location: Satpura National Park, Hoshangabad, Madhya Pradesh 461881, India

Comments

  1. Varun NayakJanuary 28, 2015 at 7:53 PM

    Brilliant!!! Such a visual treat.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Arun MuthusamyJanuary 29, 2015 at 9:25 AM

    wow so many of them. Beautiful pictures.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJanuary 30, 2015 at 2:31 PM

      Thanks Arun, but these were just a few of those we saw :D

      Delete
  3. R Niranjan DasJanuary 29, 2015 at 11:51 AM

    Wonderful captures.

    ReplyDelete
  4. BikramJanuary 29, 2015 at 3:17 PM

    beautiful I loved the dragon fly all pink

    such radiant colors WOWOW

    Bikram's

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJanuary 30, 2015 at 2:31 PM

      Thanks Bikram!thats my fav shot of the dragonflies too!

      Delete
  5. CharukesiJanuary 30, 2015 at 1:54 PM

    You've got some great bird shots! Which lens did you use? I got interested in birding for the first time during my recent trip to Corbett. Now to take it more seriously... :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJanuary 30, 2015 at 2:33 PM

      Thanks Charu! btw, i just commented on your post, and then saw this comment :D

      and i dont use a dslr.. all these pics are with my nikon p510 :D am too lazy to lug around a dslr with all those lenses right now!!

      So, does that mean you saw plenty of birds at corbett? its time i go again.

      Delete
  6. ParamJanuary 31, 2015 at 7:08 PM

    What an experience! I have always loved Jungles and this one seems so full of life.

    ReplyDelete

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