Pondicherry

– The Amazing Ride On The Chunnambar Backwaters

By Meera

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There is something magical when one goes on a winding journey from a river to the endless expanse of a sea. Traveling in a steamer and enjoying the windy, choppy journey, I ask you to visualize my thrilling experience in just three minutes. It is not just the Arabian Sea but even on the Bay of Bengal and the eastern coast of India, one gets such moments to take up such escapades once in a while. 

 As we were winding up our visit to Pondicherry,  Loganathan, our guide-cum-driver who took us to most of the sights in this old French colonial town, was insistent that we should not miss this incredible experience. Although we had hardly any time at our disposal since we were taking the night bus back to Bengaluru, he dropped us off at the Chunnambar Boat office by 3 pm. I was already exhausted as it was a hot Tuesday afternoon and pretty sticky and sweltering even in the month of January.

View from the ferry

This Chunnambar boat house is located on the banks of  river Chunnambar which is just a few metres before it joins the Bay of Bengal. Waiting on the river banks of Chunnambar backwaters for some time, I finally purchased my tickets for a return journey to Paradise Island. I thanked my stars as there were hardly any people at the ticket booth, maybe as it was a weekday. But this resulted in waiting for the boat to fill up as people slowly started trickling in. As we set out at 3.45 pm, the cool winds wafting in soothed me immensely.

One thing I would like to emphasize here, my dear readers, this is a perfect day out with your family and friends if you want to escape from the day to day hustle and bustle of city life. We started the journey only after donning our life jackets. This is compulsory and everybody including kids have to wear it. Once you seat yourself preferably on the outer side of the boat, the ride takes you all along the river for almost 30 minutes.

With the wind rushing in strongly from all sides, one forgets the aches and pains and the sweat that runs down your back turns so cool and refreshing. It is an enthralling experience with a spectacular view of the verdant coconut gardens and mangrove forests. But it is the colourful bridge on the highway that grabs my eyeball.

The Mangroves

The ferry ride on the Chunnambar while making way our way to the sea is very soothing as one can gaze on and on at the thick mangroves. If you plan a visit in the aftermath of monsoons, the backwaters are fresh and verdant. I could spot a lot of birds while on my return ride the seagulls and other water birds were making a lot of soft and deep sounds. 

 Although I don’t want to sound academic, a very riveting aspect about such a ride is that the river and sea water do not immediately mix. One finds a sharp transition from greyish-green river water to the bluish seawater. If any one of you have noticed, since the sea is deeper than the river, the waves change character often. Even as we reach the sea, the waves are huge and longer between crests. But in the shallower river waters which have currents, the waves are close together and steep.

The Beach

Before I forget to mention this very important information, the Chunnambar Boat House provides a variety of rides and one can opt for speed or group boats. Group boats which carry around 20-40 people are commonly available. To enter the Boat house, one has to buy an entry ticket. The fee is quite nominal, about Rs 20. After criss-crossing a park, restaurant and lodging facility, one reaches the boating area where the tickets have to be purchased for going across to Paradise Island. Please do not get confused by the chart at the entrance showing different boat prices. Usually, group boats are common and one has to pay Rs 300 per head for a return journey while one can spend some 3-4 hours at the island. But remember, the last boat is at 6.30 pm.

How To Reach

The Chunnambar Boat House which is open from 9.30 am to 6 pm is located seven kilometres, south of the main town. It is about eight kilometres from Pondicherry town and all along the Cuddalore Main Road.

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