Tales
from Bhigwan
#Sunrise#Wooden
Boat ride #Flamingoes.
#1. On a wintry
weekend I decided to head out to a rural town in hinterland of Maharashtra near
to the town of Sholapur called Bhigwan. The town on its own has no significance
but what is significant are two villages Kumbhargaon and Diksal which are
nestled among the backwaters of Ujni dam.
#2. The shallow
backwater coupled with the climatic conditions have resulted in the creation of
an aquatic habitat perfect for the various migratory birds like the greater
Pink Flamingoes , stork,Black drongo and the Eurasian spoonbill.
#3. So I set out towards
Bigwan, a small dusty town situated on the state highay connecting Pune with
Sholapur. The distance of Bhihgwan from Pune is around 100 Kms. From Bhigwan
one needs to leave the highway and turn left to go towards Kumbhargaon which is
one of the two main sites from where one can hire a boat to take oneself out to
the bird habitat.
#4. The journey should
be planned in such a way that the boat ride should commence just at the sunrise
or few minutes after that so that the climatic condition is ideal for bird
watching. As the day moves on it is going to get hotter and the exercise of
bird watching gets more demanding, hence early mornings are always preferable.
#5. I stayed overnight
at Baramati which is 40 kms from Bhigwan so that I did not have to drive early
morning and was able to reach the village just after sunrise. Another point to
note is that in case for those who are serious about bird watching with photography,
pls hire a single boat for which one needs to tie up with the local contacts in
advance as boats are limited.
#6. Breakfast as well
as lunch can be arranged in the village itself so the basics of the trip are
covered up. It is advisable to take a personal vehicle as the village is at a
distance of 08 km from the Highway.At Baramati one can also visit the Siddheswar Temple
dedicated to Lord Shiva. This place is the the sugarcane region of Maharastra
and one can enjoy the delicious drink at the numerous road side stalls set up
on the highway.
The visuals follow …
