Sijuk is the name of a couple of waterfalls which are near the Sijuk khal (a canal). This is the first of the two Sijuk waterfalls (here is the other one). These two waterfalls join together and form the canal Sijuk. Locally the canal is also known as Shishuk. This is an arm shaped waterfall with a height of 40-50 feet. Though this is easy to access from Khagrachari district, it is actually located in Rangamati district. The waterfall of the Sijuk canal falls into the River Kasalong, which later falls into the Kaptai lake.
After deciding on this short tour of Sijuk Waterfalls, I have formed a team of three this time. Despite poor road conditions and other hectic factors, the bus dropped us at Khagrachari town by 8:00 in the morning. Though I was actually prepared to reach by 10:00 in the morning. So I got an unwanted extra two hours. After a quick breakfast we started for Dighinala using a CNG driven auto rickshaw. It actually costs 500 taka, but after bargaining we managed it for 450 taka (as of 2012).
By that time I also contacted our guide Moni Chakma who is also a bike rider. While he was waiting for us in Dighinala, by that time we were enjoying the picturesque beauty beside the road from the vehicle. We reached Dighinala at 10:00 am in the morning, and without wasting any time we started for the village Nondoram using two bikes. Five of us were on two bikes. By the way we have hired both bikes for 1600 Taka (800 each) + 200 taka, and also they will be guiding us throughout the tour.
We reached Nondoram village by 11:00am in the morning. The village is beside the river Kasalong. I heard the name of the river, but never had a chance to visit. This village is actually located at the union of Rangamati. Before this village an Army camp is located on the way. Any travelers passing through this road must enter their names to that camp for security purposes.
After changing the dresses at a tea stall from the village we started trekking through the hillocks. We had our guide Moni Chakma and other bike riders with us. Other one was lazy and stayed behind for a nap. It was an extremely hot day without any wind. But in spite of the tiring trekking, we trekked for a continuous one hour and reached the Sijuk khal (or canal).
Some tribal people pronounce this canal as Shishuk khal. The canal is formed after joining the two mighty streams from the waterfall. We explored the left side (also furthest) stream first and the right side (also nearest) stream later. But still I’m writing here the nearest one first. It was actually around a half an hour of strolling against the flow of the stream. The level of the water was having an average height of 3-4 ft. But at some points the water level was near 6 ft. Also the canal is totally covered with dark forest. Sometimes the surroundings were kind of scary to me.
As the depth of the water was too much, the flow of the water was less. The water was kind of stagnant there. A lot of rotten leaves were all over the water. Also a lot of leaves gathered under the water. At some places the mud under the water produced gasses with bad odors with bubbles when we were walking over it. In some places the water was too dirty.
The more we were progressing, the more we were welcomed by the Hati poka (an insect). Trust me, those microscopic insect bites can cause hell a lot of pain. Spiders, wasps and scary looking mosquitoes were there too. To add misery, I found some leaves were stingy. The soft brushing of those leaves with the arm caused itching.
Throughout the tour we put our camera inside the waterproof bag because of the water level of the stream. We wanted to protect our camera in case if we slip of fall in the water. And it was a hectic job to open the bag and bring camera. That’s why we only took photo when we were waiting for others to join, or we were taking any break.
After passing through such hideous things we finally reached the waterfall. We could hear the roaring sound of the waterfall but could not see it. That portion of the stream was covered with large rocks. All of the rocks were covered with mosses and ferns. Those are the best hideout for snakes and other reptiles. Also crossing those stones was not easy. At some point the water level was up to my chest. We saw a snake crossing the stream in front of us. We all got nervous by the sudden move of that snake. It took us a while to get back into sense again. And after that we wished not to see any snakes, and we didn’t see any.
After jumping and bumping through rocks we have finally reached the First Sijuk waterfall. It had a mighty water flow. Shorter than the other one, but mightier than the other one. Recently on August 15/16 of 2012, two tribal sisters came to collect snails from the stream. But unfortunately one of those poor girls slipped from the waterfall. Her name was Champa Chakma. To rescue her, the elder sister of that girl also fell from the waterfall. Thus death embraced both of them. We’ll all die someday. But accidental death is not expected anymore. I can only pray to God for taking good care of those girls who are now living in another world.
Sorry for forcing you to read that sad story. Anyway, the weather was gloomy due to dark clouds in the sky (though it didn’t rain fortunately). When we returned back to the Sijuk khal, it was 5:00pm in the afternoon. Read the next article to know how we returned back to Dhaka.
How to go
In short, first go to Dighinala of Khagrachari. From there hire bikes to reach Nondoram village. Each bike would cost 700-800 taka for the whole day. From Nondoram village, hire any local people to show you the path. They may cost you around 200 taka. If they do not know about the Sijuk waterfall, just tell them about the Sijuk Khal and the waterfall on that khal. Also, if you can find the Moni Chakma from the Dighinala, in that case you’d not require any guides. He knows about both the Sijuk waterfalls pretty well. You can use his bike to ride, and use him as a guide as a compliment.
Read the other article for the Second Sijuk waterfall.
Sijuk waterfall 1 (or First Sijuk waterfall),
Rangamati,
Country: Bangladesh.
Written by Lonely Traveler,
For the blog alonelytraveler.com
Friday, 07 September 2012
দিঘিনালা থেকে নন্দরাম-সিজুক১-২ ; টোটাল কত কিঃ মিঃ ?
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+++ কেউ যদি এইখানে বেড়াইতে যাই, তাইলে যেন আমরা কিছু ফালাইয়া না রাইখা আসি… আমরা যে এইখানে গেছিলাম, এইটার কোনো নিশানাই ঐখানে রাইখা আসা যাবে না… মনে রাখবেন উপরের দিকে থুথু ফেললে নিজের গায়েই লাগে… জায়গাটা ময়লা আবর্জনা ফেলে নষ্ট করলে কিন্তু আমাদের দেশের একটা সুন্দর জায়গাই নষ্ট হবে, যা আমাদেরই ক্ষতি…!