Milky waters cascading down red earth over towering hills-The first though which came to my mind when an excited me looked out of car shields. The first view of falls can be seen from the roads itself. I guarantee you will be awestruck by the views of the Khandadhar Waterfalls.
Stay Options- The Forest department of Odisha has lovely cottages near the base of falls. The same can be booked via Online only on their official website-https://www.ecotourodisha.com/index.php.
If you are travelling from any near city , the one night stay is enough to trek and explore the falls. But If you are travelling from State Captial Bhubaneswar , then I would recommend to stay for 2 nights as it takes 2 - 3 hours depending upon your fitness level to trek to the base.
There are 2 categories of Cottages here -Eco cottage and Cottage. The Eco cottage lies inside the Ecopark which is nicely developed with greenery and a childrens play area . Its nearer to the Stairs which lead to the falls. What it lacks is a view of the falls which is visible from the Cottages which are built atop a hill a bit away from the Park gate. These are in high demand because of the falls view, best for people who dont want to hike but still can enjoy the views with a cup of shimmering hot tea from the verandah of your cottage.
The cottages are very well furnished with huge bedroom, king size bed, sofa , hygenic toilet, a balcony and a front porch with cane furniture. We spent majority of our time in our porch. We were lucky to get the Cottage number 4 from where you can clearly see the falls. Others don't get the views as the falls are hidden behind tall trees.
Things To Do-
1-Visit the Ecopark-
It has a nice stream, loads of greenery, and children's park. It also has a cafeteria. Ample parking space before the entry gate.
2-Hike to the base of the falls
Put on your energy shoes and hike 650 steps to reach the base of the falls. It requires a lot of energy
3-Trek the fall via forest path
If you want a more natural experience, then there is a forest trail from the nature camp which takes you to the base of the falls
A view of the falls from the Nature camp cottage no-4.
After a tiring trek, we returned to the cottages below, for a warm cup of refreshing tea and hot pakoras. The evening went by chilling beside a camp fire.
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