Assam State India - Diphlu River Lodge

We flew from Delhi to Guwahati Airport to where we connected with our prearrange driver for the five-hour ride to the Diphlu River Lodge located on the edge of Kaziranga National Park. Check out

www.diphluriverlodge.com/ for more information. 

Assam State is located in north east India and has international boarders with Myanmar, Kingdom of Bhutan and Bangladesh. The food is less spicy in this state and the climate is cooler due to the higher elevation. We found the temperature very pleasant in November. The state grows tea which is well know and other agricultural products. Kaziranga National Park is a highlight of this area and is a frequent tourist spot for Indians.

Sunrise on the Diphlu River

Our room was located overlooking the Diphlu River which allowed us to watch what was happening along the river. Early every morning around 5 AM the men would be on their bamboo rafts and to catch minnows. At this time of the year, the mist on the river is often quite thick until the sun comes up.

Bamboo Raft

Collecting small fish

The lodge is beautiful with a common area open to the elements where visitors congregate, use the limited internet and have meals. The staff were extremely friendly and always smiling.

Our room was an independent cabin and Prince William and Kate had stayed there in 2016. The staff were very proud of the fact that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had visited their lodge.

Cabin #5

The room was lovely and the shower was wonderful. You felt like you had an outdoor shower but the convenience of being indoors.

Grounds

Assam is known for producing excellent tea. There are many tea estates along the road. One of the interesting things about the tea estates that the wild Indian Elephants do not like to eat tea. But the elephants will pass through the tea estates when they move through the area and not cause severe damage to huts or be chased by the locals. We attended a very interesting lecture about the conservation being done in the area to protect the elephants and allow them to move between their natural habitat.

Tea Plantation in Assam, India

We had decided to stay at this lodge so we could visit Kaziranga National Park. This is one of the last areas in northeastern India that is not disturbed by human contact. They have been doing a lot of conservation work to reduce poaching and increasing the mammal population. The park has the largest populations of one-horned rhinoceroses and Indian elephants. The area is a floodplain for the Brahmaputra River which also provides a wonderful area for the migratory birds from Siberia.

The major road that runs parallel to the park has a restricted speed limit to help reduce the number of animals killed crossing the road. The people of Assam are very proud of the fact that the rhino population has increased.

While at the lodge we had the opportunity to go on six half-day Safaris into Kaziranga National Park. To learn more about the park check out the blog entry on Kaziranga National Park.