The Ten Day Road Trip- Port Blair to Diglipur

After returning from the Neil Island trip, I left the next day on a ten day road trip that took me to one end of the Andaman, right upto Diglipur. It was the longest trip I had been while in the Andaman and while I had someone along with me on the other trips I was alone on this trip for ten days. I was anxious and had last minute second thoughts wondering if I should be making the risky trip. Already I was far away from my home and family, and this ten day trip would take me even further deep into the jungle. But I woke up at half past two and caught the five a.m., bus to get to Rangat, the first stop. I had planned to visit Diglipur next and on my return journey stop at Mayabunder.

I got to Rangat by one in the afternoon after crossing the Jarawa Territory. It was on the Andaman Trunk Road that I was travelling, and this time I could not glimpse the Jarawas who usually venture on the roads when the convoy is passing. I marvelled at some of the villages of the settlers deep in the jungles and it never fails to amaze me how they could spend their entire lives in the jungles uprooted from their native lands. Most of the people in Andamans are settlers from East Bengal who came after the Bangladesh war. I wished I could stay back and learn more about them but it remains only a wish.

I stayed at Rangat for three days and visited Bakultala, Kadamtala and also, Yeretta where I spent an entire afternoon sitting on an isolated jetty watching the sea. I was the only person on the jetty, and later I learnt that there is a ship that leaves for Long Island from that jetty. I got on to a bus on whim when I saw 'Yeretta' written on the bus. I wondered what place could be named 'Yeretta' and when I got there I found nothing except a kind of mangrove nursery run by the forest department.

I also visited Panchvati which shows the most gorgeous drives on Andamans as the ATR hugs the coast for several kilometers. (Picture is of a stretch at Panchvati) I went to a central school where Rahul, my room mate had studied. I took a long trek and for sometime was lost trying to reach the Turtle Bay resort. I visited a small fishing village and was surprised to find that the villagers were all people from Srikakulam and Vishakhapatnam of AP. I got quite a kick speaking to them in Telugu.

I went to a beach called Amkunj late one evening and once again felt lost when it soon grew dark. I spent some anxious moments waiting for a bus in the darkness of the jungle. The day I made a trip to Rangat bay which again is a fishing village and also learnt that a ship goes to Port Blair from there.

After three days exploring Rangat I left for Diglipur, another six hour journey. I was glad I had decided to do the ten day trip because I was seeing so many wonderful places and having interesting experiences. The picture above is a stretch of beach at Panchvati.