Boating experience in Pichavaram, world's 2nd largest mangrove forest

For this adventure, we decided to drive one of my friend's cars, a Toyota Etios, from Chennai to reach our destination.

BHPian raptor_diwan recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I was bored out of my mind at work on Sunday morning. I had a week off starting the next day, and I was itching to travel somewhere. I started browsing the internet for ideas, and I came across an article about the best places to visit in Tamil Nadu. One place in particular caught my eye: Pichavaram, the largest mangrove forest.

I had heard about Pichavaram before, and I had always wanted to go on a bike ride through the forest. Usually, I spend a long time deciding where to go on vacation, and I usually end up choosing a hill station. But this time, I was determined to visit Pichavaram.

I gave my buddy a call, the one who lives near Pichavaram. It turns out, he was also back in his hometown and excited to join us for our adventure. He insisted on arriving early, so I asked him for a specific time. He mentioned that even 5:30 AM would be suitable. As someone who values my beauty sleep, avoids driving at night, and dislikes arriving too early, I assured him that I would be there as soon as possible.

I was all ready to hit the road with my bike. I promptly shared the location and some pictures with a few of my other friends, asking if they would like to join. Within no time, I managed to convince three of my friends to come along, making it a total of four. We decided to use one of my friend's cars - a Toyota Etios for the trip.

We coordinated our meeting and aimed to start early, but not as early as 5:30 AM to reach Pichavaram. Meanwhile, he called again and asked if we ate non-vegetarian food. Oh, the audacity! I proudly proclaimed, "Indeed we do! It seemed like he was planning a lunch for us over there.

We started at 4 o'clock, not intending to reach at 5.30. It would take almost 4-5 hours to reach Pichavaram from Chennai.

We were sleepy at that time, yet excited for the boat ride.

We took a few chai breaks.

After reaching the destination my friend had recommended, we discovered it was a dry village with only one shop. My friend approached us and requested a car to fetch some diesel in a can. It appeared that the boat we were going to ride was not an official Pichavaram boating service, but rather someone known to my friend.

While waiting for him to return, we enjoyed a cup of tea at the one and only shop and indulged in a few vadas.

He returned, and we made our way to the starting point from where we were going to embark on the boat ride. I was carrying the diesel can with me.

This is our ride for today.

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