Dandeli by road. Review on Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary

We started by car on 11thMarch 2008 at around 6 in the morning from Hyderabad for Dharwad. The route was Hyderabad-Homnabad (160 Km on NH-9), from Homnabad we took NH-208 passing through Gulbarga- Jevergi- Devar Hippargi- Bijapur- Kalhur- Bagalkot- Nargund and from there to Dharwad. The road was in a very bad shape from Nargund to Dharwad, full of potholes otherwise from Hyderabad to Nargund the newly laid NH-208 is excellent.

We visited the Gol Gumbaz, at Bijapur, which is the second largest dome in the world; the kings of Adil Sahi Dynasty which ruled the place for over two centuries constructed this imposing structure.

This monument should have been called ‘Gol Gumbad’ instead of ‘Gol Gumbaz’ as there is no such word as ‘Gumbaz’ in Urdu, Persian, or Arabic languages. To the best of my knowledge, Persian was the court language of that period. Sadly, like all other historical buildings, this memorial is also being vandalized by unscrupulous elements. Graffiti is scribbled all over the place, and the plaster is also coming off the walls. This mausoleum needs to be preserved or else an invaluable historical heritage will soon loose its beauty.

After completing the job in Dharwad, on the 12th, we decided to visit Dandeli wild life sanctuary, so after lunch at about 2 pm we started for Dandeli, which is about 60 Km from Dharwad, and from there the wild life sanctuary is another 10 km from Dandeli town. By the time we reached Dandeli it was past 5 in the evening and was getting dark therefore we had to drop the idea of going to the Sanctuary, instead we stayed in the 'Jungle Lodges and Resorts' in the town overlooking Kali River. The first thing, which struck us, was the terrible condition of the road from Dharwad to Dandeli. It took almost three hours to drive 60 Km, The road is uniformly bad with huge potholes. The authorities should first make the tourist spots easily accessible, then only suggest the tourists to visit them. To drive on such roads one needs a 4x4 SUV. Ours being a Chevrolet Optra Sedan, which has a  low ground clearance similar to other cars in this class, scrapes through the uneven roads all the times if one is not very careful while driving. No doubt, the roads are in a very bad shape but the drive through the dense forests right up to Dandeli town and beyond is a visual treat. One should try to take this joy ride as often as one can as there is nothing quite as beautiful as the scenery, which unfolds as one drives  on.

However, once you are there, perhaps after 3 hours of arduous journey you feel great to think that such pristine places also do exist so close to civilization. 'Kali' river with its rapids made this small town popular otherwise there is nothing other than a paper mill here. The river flows through the Dandeli town. It is amazing to see that the Kali River actually looks black as the name suggests. There are large deposits of Manganese mettle in the bottom of the river, which makes the river water look black although it is clear and colorless and even tastes good. We were informed that this is the only place in South India in which River Rafting is possible.

We stayed at 'Jungle Lodges and Resorts Ltd' Dandeli, (Tel:08284-31585). The manager Pravin Shankar is polite and very helpful. There is another very interesting man called Arjun, who takes you on a boat ride. This exotic round boat is called 'Tokra'. This man Arjun is a great entertainer and knows a lot about jungle and wild life. He showed us the ‘Tadpoles’ which were to become frogs after they mature. He also showed us the presence of a crocodile while we were on the ‘tokra’ boat with him. There were a stream of bubbles breaking the surface and according to Arjun the crocodile was present some ten feet below the surface of water. He also told us that there are at least two hundred crocodiles in a stretch about half a kilometer of Kali River abutting the Jungle lodges and Resorts. Fortunately, they never attacked humans so far.

Kali River is also a bird watchers paradise. As I am, also a bird enthusiast, I could identify at least ten different bird species with the help of the guide Arjun who himself is very knowledgeable, knows a lot about birds, like an ornithologist. He also took us on a watchtower, which he constructed with wooden logs on top of a tree in the dense forest overlooking the Kali River to see wild life. This hidden watchtower is in fact a platform on the treetop from where one can see wild life without disturbing birds and animals in the wild and offers a panoramic view the river and its surrounding jungle.

I strongly recommend the lovers of nature to visit this place.