Yesterday, I had the pleasure of going on a half-day bamboo rafting trip at the Periyar Tiger Reserve. In all honestly, I am not a very nature-y, outdoorsy person at all; I am deathly afraid of bugs and spiders, and I usually don’t go trekking in the woods unless someone drags me. Yet, let me just say, bamboo rafting was one of the most magical experiences I have ever had!

When I arrived at the PTR office at 7:30 AM half awake, I was handed a pair of strange looking socks, which were worn over the foot and covered the area below the knees to prevent any leeches and splints getting into the skin. Then we began our one and a half hour hike to the reservoir. Along the way, we saw footprints of leopard cats, tiger’s territory marks on trees, giant spiders with intricate webs across several trees, monkeys, and plenty of elephant dung. The park ranger kindly pointed out all the different types of spices and herbs that were in the forest such as ginger, cardamom, lemongrass, pepper, and etc. The walk was mostly peaceful and bearable except for the few moments when I encountered gigantic spiders and caterpillars and squealed helplessly.

However, once we got to the water, I couldn’t help but stay absolutely mesmerized. The vast reservoir expands out to the right and to the left, and with no one else around except for the two fellow tourists and the park rangers that guided us, I felt like I was in utopia. We rowed our way across the lake on a raft made entirely out of bamboo and arrived on the other side of the lake, where elephants are known to roam around frequently. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to spot any animals, but I would have gone just for the views and sense of peace on the water anyway. The reservoir is incredibly mystic, and I really felt like I was in a movie, searching for elephants and tigers in the wild Indian jungle!