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Travelogue
- Taratarini, Toptopani, Daringbari & Dhoboleshwar, Orissa
By
Mr. Debashis Bose,
Contributing Traveller
10-1-2007 to 16-1-2007
I10-1-07 : This time we
were 7 heads. We left Howrah by Gurudev Express at 11.25 pm and our
destination was Brahmapur.
11-1-07 : We arrived at Brahmapur at 10.10am, and then reached the bus stand by auto in 10
minutes. Our bus for Taratarini started at 11.05 am and reached at
12.20pm, covering 30 kms. We had lunch at a roadside
hotel and then went to Panthashala of OTDC by a trekker. It is a small,
calm and quite place. The Panthashala is at the top of a small hillock - a
nice location, clean and tidy. While at the top of the hill, we could see
valleys and ranges of hills around us.
Inside
the temple compound of the Taratarini Temple
Gradually the sun went
down. We went to the temple of Tara & Tarini. The old temple is
smaller while the new one is under construction - located just around the
old one. There were a lot of craftsmen giving shape to stone boulders.
This may take another two and a half years to be completed. Though there
will be a vehicular road, there will also be 777 steps. Around the temple,
there are lots of big trees and its serenity can be felt. Going down, we
reached Rishikulya river. Here we met two local young men who informed us
that a lot of pilgrims arrive at the temple on all Tuesdays of the month
of Choitro (15th March to 15th April) every year, to worship the goddess.
The other bank of the river is known as Purushottampur.
12-1-07 :
We hired a Tata
Sumo and left at 07.22am to Purushottampur to visit the temple
of Tumbeshwar Shiva and Dokshinakali Devi.
Temple of Lord Shiva near hot spring at Toptopani
Our next target was
Toptopani. Though there is a direct road, we went via
Gopalpur since some of our teammates had never been to Gopalpur.
Temple of Dakshinakali at Prushottompur
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Gopalpur - on-sea,
as it
was known earlier, is a very small place with a few hotels and shops on
the sea beach and around. We went for a stroll along the beach, had tea
and visited a few shops of local handicrafts. We also indulged in some
shopping. Next, we reached Toptopani at 12.25pm. Here again, we stayed at
Panthashala of OTDC. There are a few double storied buildings that offer
double bed room accommodations with attached bath, and a two room suite &
office in a separate building. There is an eatery in a separate building
as well. Toptopani is a calm and quite village with big trees,
almost within a jungle. We had our lunch at the eatery.
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In the evening, we went
for a walk and visited a hot spring from which Toptopani has derived its
name. As expected, the water of the hotspring was smelling of sulphur.
There are two separate bathing places near the hot spring, for gents &
ladies. The hot water has been taken by pipelines to a few taps on the
roadside and to the panthashala. Bathing in this hot water makes one feel
fresh and energetic. it has been said that this water is good for health.
We had our dinner at the same place.
13-1-07 :
After our
morning's daily routine and breakfast, we left at 10.30am by Tata Sumo and
reached Horbhongi Dam, 30 km away, at 11.45am. Here we spent 45
minutes, going around the dam & the inspection bunglow.
Dam at Horbhongi
Our next destination was
Daringbari, 240 km away and reached at 02.30 pm, at a height of
4000 ft. This place is also known as the Kashmir of Orissa, and it
is said that in the past, there was snowfall here. We had our
accommodation booked at the Panthaniwas of OTDC.
Another view of the dam
The Panthaniwas was not
very clean and the caretaker was not in a normal state. Anyhow, the rooms
were cleaned and we occupied our respective rooms. This is like a small
town and the temperatures are low here. Next day was Mokor songkranti, a
festival day and hence, the shops and markets remained closed. We decided
to purchase some ingredients to prepare our food for the next day. Here,
it may be stated that, OTDC has two types of accommodation for tourists -
Panthashala & Panthaniwas, the former has arrangements for cooked food,
while the latter does not provide food. There are a few utensils available
and food may be prepared with the help of the caretaker. We had our dinner
at a roadside hotel.
14-1-’07 :
All of us
jointly prepared our breakfast and lunch too and enjoyed a picnic at the
roof-top. Later, we left by the same vehicle to see the watch tower, about
2 km away. This is a decorative place for tourists and has a garden,
swings etc. for children. There were 10 steps to go to the top of the
watch tower from where a beautiful natural scenery of valleys and hill
ranges could be seen. Then we drove to pepper and coffee plantations. Back
to the Panthaniwas - after having dinner, the day ends.
15-1-07 :
We were ready by
06.00 am and left Daringbari for Dhoboleshwar via Cuttack, 300 kms
away. We had our breakfast en route, and had lunch at the ISKON temple at
Cuttack - very nice vegetarian food.
Sunset at Mahanadi river at Dhoboleashwar
We reached Moncheshwar at
02.35pm. and had to cross the Mahanodi river on foot, over the concrete
bridge, as the Panthaniwas of Dhoboleshwar was on an island. Here there is
only one Temple of Dhoboleshwar (Shiva) & the Panthaniwas. We went to the
temple for Darshan - this temple was built in 10/11th century by the
Utkalraj.
Temple of Lord Krishna (ISKON) at Cuttack
We also had a round on a
boat in the Mahanodi. Next, we went to the other side of the river, to
visit the temple of Moncheshwar (Shiva). We had our dinner at the
Panthaniwas. 16-1-07 : After breakfast,
we packed up and went to Moncheshwar. We availed the bus at 08.40 am and
reached Cuttack at 10.25 am. Many of us went for shopping. We had our
lunch at the Railway station canteen. We left for Howrah by
Dhauli Express and reached at 08.40 pm. By local train to Uttarpara. We
dispersed for “Home, Sweet Home”.
About Contributing Traveller : Mr. Debashis Bose
is a 72 year old retired Railway employee whose hobbies include travelling
& tourism, photography and amateur radio. He is a nature lover and prefers
to visit little known places as opposed to big cities with the aim of
enjoying nature in abundance. Before going on his regular tours with
family and friends, Debashis spends time in studying different places and
collecting information about them. On returning from the visit, he
prepares a travelogue, with sketch map & photos, so that he can inspire
others to visit these places and enjoy nature.
vu2dba@gmail.com
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