Are you among those people who love the buzzing of cicadas, chirping of crickets, twittering of migratory birds, trumpeting of elephants, howling of jackals and wolves? If yes, Joypur forest/jungle (in Bankura district, West Bengal) would be the ideal travel destination for you. As value-added benefits, you will have the beautiful fragrance of wildflowers, unknown incense-bearing boughs, intoxicating order of Mahua flowers and fruits, and the soft odor of the moist forest vegetation.
If you are an
adventure seeker and nature lover, you will have Joypur in a different cloak.
Beauty, adventure and suspense are waiting at every nook and cranny of the
beautiful yet wild forest and granaries compacted with enormous and heavy trees
and tendrils of wild creepers. Wild animals are waiting in dense thickets
behind asymmetrical wild trees for their live actions for prey. Anytime, you
can have a rare view or unusual sight of a predator jumping on its prey or a
hyena chasing a deer. Thrill and excitement in many folds of it will make your
Joypur trip a memorable one.
Many
adventure seekers, globetrotters, and wonder-lusters select Joypur for adventure
tourism. Local Bankura district people choose it for a happy weekend travel
destination. They spend their leisure here when they want to explore something
thrilling and exciting in a lush and dense forest. Come and explore this ideal
tourist destination and wildlife hotspot to soothe your eyes and recharge your
internal batteries.
Location of Joypur forest in Bankura District
Located at
3C4P+5GW, Jangalmahal, Joypur forest is only a four-hour-north-west drive away
(155 Km) from Kolkata. Joypur is an ideal village laced with emerald beauties
of greeneries and forests of the Jangalmahal range. The opening part of it is a
small town with some multi-storied commercial and residential buildings,
financial organizations like post offices, banks (3), government offices,
privately and publicly held educational institutes (schools and colleges), hotels, restaurants, guest houses, and resorts. The neighboring villages- Salda and Hirapur
are famous for many age-old stone temples and heritage structures.
Places of attractions at Joypur, Bankura
Joypur Forest
Spreading an
area of over 120 square kilometres, Joypur forest is a part of
Junglemahal. This solitary sanctuary
covered with dense forests is known well for the elephant corridor and deer
crossing. Teeming with shal, sonajhuri, palash, kusum, mahua, mango, and neem
trees, it facilitates heavenly abodes to elephants, deer, monkeys, Chitals,
wild foxes, wolves, jackals, Indian pythons, hyenas, and some rare species of
migratory birds. The emerald green dry deciduous forests with their tall trees
and draperies of creepers do not let the sunlight touch the forest floor and
open postures in many places. After 12, verdurous glooms or darkness in the
forest oozes from between the skyscraping trees through the tangled maze of the
bushy creepers. Although it hosts many Indian animals and birds, the main
inhabitants of this wildlife sanctuary are wild foxes, elephants, deer
(chital), wolves, and Hyenas.
Flora and fauna of Joypur forest at a glance
Flora- Sal, Sonajuri, Palash, Kusum, Mahua, Mango, Neem,
Teak trees, etc.
Fauna- Deer,
elephant, chital, wolf, wild boar, fox, Indian python, hyena, and various
Indian and migratory birds
Joypur Watch Tower
Located just
beside the natural damp (Samudrabandh), the Joypur watchtower serves as an
observatory in the Joypur forest for offering a kaleidoscopic and panoramic
(360) view of the entire jungle and its adjacent area. This is a very good
option to get the live action of a predator to its prey. Dawn and dusk are the
best time to visit the place from the watch tower. From the observatory, at
dawn, the sun appears to be a red sphere pepping behind the forest and coming
out from the golden water of Samudrabandh. In the late afternoon, the
overwhelming beauty of the forest starts disappearing with the gradual setting
of the sun that begins dipping into the wine-red water of the Samudrabandh like
the top of an orange.
British-era watch tower Joypur
Apart from
the Joypur watch tower, inside the jungle (approximately in the middle of the
forest), another brick-build mossy watch tower called the telegraph tower gives
you a 360-degree panoramic view of the forest. Although built in the British
era, people mistakenly give credit for it to the Malla Kings.
British-era runway
You can
easily find a British-era runway very close
to the telegraph watch tower.
Somudrabandh
It is a natural dam created by down streaming of water
from jungles and adjacent small hills. During its flow, it carries away various
types of poisonous snakes, venomous reptiles, and pythons. This is famous for
water safari. Paddle and engine boats are available for boat trips or boat
safaris. The main attraction of it is the small restaurant and coffee house
located in the middle of the dam on a man-made island.
Age-old heritage structures
Joypur and its neighboring villages bear witness to
many age-old heritage structures and their constructors.
Gokulchand Temple/Mandir
Located at
Gokulnagar (the adjacent village of Joypur), Gokulchand mandir is one of the
largest pancharatna stone temples in the Bankura district. Established deities
here are Radha-Krishna. Built-in 1639 by Raghunath Singha, Gokulchand mandir is
one of the easiest 17th-century Hindu temples of the Malla kings. This stone
temple covers 23,500 sq. ft. along with the at-chala and its adjacent terrace.
It stands 64 ft. in height with its highest pinnacle. Temple walls depict
various sculptures of the avatars of Vishnu and various mythological incidents
and raslila motifs of lord Krishna. Made with stone carving, all sculptures
evoke a different kind of sentiment with their wholeness, harmony and radiance.
The volume and mass of these sculptures are heavier like Gothic architecture.
These appear to be lively, unique and mysterious when you stare at them closely
for a while. These can easily eclipse any classical and oriental architecture
for their richness, liveliness and complexities. These accentuate a different
kind of sentiment with their splendor, servility and beauty. The original idol
of the temple (Lord Krishna) has been removed and stripped of its ornaments to
carry away to Bishnupur. However, the real idol of Lord Krishna is brought back
to Gokulnagar every year during the Holi festival and kept here for 5 days. The
deity is worshipped here with an auspicious celebration for five days.
Navaratna Temples
Other than
the Gokulchand mandir, you can visit nearby Navaratna Temples built in the
early 19th century. Located at Dutta Para and De Para of Joypur village, these
temples welcome you with triple entrances and beautiful terracotta panel
orientations on the entrance gates and temple walls. The panel reliefs are
excellent for their delicacy and subtleness. Here, volume and mass are much
lighter than the stone-carved temples. Each panel relief depicts an event of
the Ramayana, Mahabharata, Puranas, and Mangal Kavyas.
Where to stay
As mentioned
earlier, you will find a few hotels, guest houses, and resorts in small
township area of Joypur. Both budget and
luxury lodging are available here. As all of them are not good, a wise and
thoughtful selection is always advisable. A wrong choice can give you a bitter
experience. To get suggestions and advice, you can call 9800842187/6291433677
or send WhatsApp messages to these numbers +918972315366/9800842187.
Delicious dishes and mouthwatering gourmet cuisines of Joypur
Here, you can
expect the original taste of organic foods and delicious dishes served in
multi-cuisine restaurants located here. The most interesting part is that a few
fine dining and casual dining restaurants inside resorts prepare fresh
delicious dishes from the animals living at their farms. They are famous for
using livestock to prepare palatable dishes or mouth-watering foods. Their
unique presentation styles and wafting aromas from delicious dishes will make
you feel hungry. You will desire to savor those plates at the earliest. Culinary heritage, gourmet connoisseurs, and
the adequacy of fresh organic ingredients have raised the bar of excellence in
the hospitality industry of Joypur. Be very careful while selecting a
restaurant at Joypur. To get advice and suggestions, you can contact mobile no
9800842187/6291433677 and WhatsApp numbers +918972315366/9800842187.
The best time to
visit
Late winter
is the best time to visit there. As the skyscraping wild trees receive new
leaves, incense-bearing boughs and multiple new branches on them, the forest
appears to be fresh and lively. It will look like emerald-green land.
How to reach there
Travel By train
The nearby
railway station is Bishunpur. Joypur is only 15 km away from Bishunpur railway
station. Besides, Bishunpur railway station is well-connected with Gokulnagar
railway station. The only inconvenience is the frequency of the trains on this
route is very low.
Travel by bus
Joypur is
well-connected to Kolkata and other major cities in West Bengal and India by
various roadways. Therefore, you can use surface transportation facilities to
reach here. Many private and public buses can take you directly to Joypur bus
stoppage from the various points in West Bengal and other Indian states. West
Bengal State Transport Corporation Company runs many non-stop and all-stop
buses from Kolkata that let you get down at Jaipur or Bishnupur bus stop. A
road trip by bus is cheaper and more convenient for travelers.
Travel by car
If you would
like to take the convenience and flexibility of a Joypur trip in a hassle-free
manner, you can travel by car.
About the travel writer
Suman Jalal, a professional content writer and travel blogger, is the writer of this blog. He runs a web development company and a content writing firm named Creative Web Design Experts and Freelance Content Writers India, respectively.
