Into the Sundarbans Mangrove Forest and back
The M/V Bawali, our home for the next week.
At night, we headed to the ghat (dock) around 8 pm. It was as stressful as normal with many individuals coming and going from ferryboats and private boats, stands hawking food, and lots of honking vehicles. Bachchu, the boat owner, led us to the right put on the ghat. The wood nation boat of M/V Bawali, our home for the next week, arrived and helped the previous tourists off. The crew quickly assisted fill all our equipment and travel luggage onto the wooden boat. When we were settled, they crossed the channel to where the Bawali awaited us.
Pinky and Masud on the country boat with our two armed forest guards. Dipu is steering in the back with Sanju and Nasir is on the right.
The Bawali, which means wood cutters, is a 60-foot long Sundarban Tourist boat with 6 cabins, one for each of us. We were originally to join her in the morning. To comprise time for the hold-up, she travelled overnight so that we can reach our first drop in morning. We got on board, settled in and had dinner, a buffet of multiple delicious dishes as typical. Still, it was several hours before we got underway. After the long drives of the last days, this will be a lot more peaceful, although slower, method to take a trip. We invested the night chatting and swapping stories prior to turning in. We were still in the Pusur River head south towards the worlds biggest mangrove forest.
Masud determining the elevation while Ira (Eera) records the measurements.
When I awoke the next morning, we were deep within the forest, showing up to our objective after breakfast. Katka is a much checked out traveler site in the Sundarbans and we saw a variety of other boats. Nevertheless, we were going to an RSET website inside the forest. I do not have a GNSS site here, so this was my opportunity to see the RSET measurements being done. As always, we were accompanied by 2 armed guards to secure against tigers, periodically yelping to terrify them off.
Sanju and Ira determine the density of sediment that has actually accumulated on the tile.
With Pinky and Masud in charge, and Ira, Sanju and out two boatmen helping, it went relatively rapidly. Masud and Ira added the measurement arm to the monument and made the 72 measurements of the elevation around it. Meanwhile, Pinky and Sanju situated the sedimentation tiles and determined the density of the deposits. The distinction in between the change in elevation and the sedimentation will yield the shallow subsidence above the base of the rod. Both sites were done by 11:30 am.
Pinky setting a new sediment tile flush with the forest flooring.
Considering that the weather turned rainy, we missed out on the chance to choose a walk and the beach, and began for our next location. The boat sailed out of the river into the Bay of Bengal and into the next channel to head back west towards Hiron Point. Around sundown we passed the area called Kokilmoni and hove to near Tinkona Island.
Sunset over Tinkona Island in the Sundarbans Mangrove Forest.
We waited up until the next morning to cross the 10-km broad channel to Hiron Point. The Bawali waited outside the channel while we took the nation boat in. The sidewalk to the tide gauge has actually broken since our last visit, so we will not visit it this time
We were still in the Pusur River head south towards the worlds largest mangrove forest.
The boat sailed out of the river into the Bay of Bengal and into the next channel to head back west towards Hiron Point. It was a beautiful walk through the forest, with a few deer along the way.
We strolled the 1/2 mile to the websites and set to work, with Pinky and Ira along to see the GNSS site. The RSET group still have 8 sites to check out over the next two days at Sorbhatkhali on the south side of Polder 32.
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The RSET team operating in a rice field. The small fields of dense seedlings are being transplanted to the larger flooded fields.
My GNSS network is working once again, collecting data to better figure out the tectonics of the subduction zone in northeast Bangladesh and the subsidence of the delta in the southeast. Together they will improve our price quotes of the dangers from a potential big earthquake in eastern Bangladesh, and from water level rise and environment modification in southwestern Bangladesh. My meetings in Dhaka in between the 2 service runs will help establish brand-new tasks for continuing our research study here. It has actually been an effective trip and I am ready to return home.
Sanju and I fulfilled Chris as he strolled back after surveying the greenery in the location for confirming his remote picking up analyses.
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The walkway to the Hiron Point tide gauge has broken considering that our last visit.
We likewise brought a modem now that Hiron Point has phone service and successfully got it online for the very first time given that it was set up in 2012. When we ended up two wild boars were wondering around the premises.
Downloading a years worth of information from the Hiron Point GNSS onto my laptop. It has been that long since someone was here.
It was a stunning walk through the forest, with a couple of deer along the way.
One of the wild boars wandering around the forest ranger station.
After returning to the nation boat, I was shocked that we sailed upriver. When we continued that way, I found out that we were going through the maze of channels to the next main channel to the north. Along our 1.5-2 hr. boat trip we saw lots of deer, a couple of monkeys and a crocodile. Near completion, we harvested the fruit of a golpata tree (Nipa palm), and hacking it open with a machete, we got to attempt its fruit. We rejoined the Bawali simply in time for our usual 2:30 lunch and headed to the next site.
Pinky and others on the raised pathway through the forest with its lots of damaged slabs.
After ending up, the RSET team headed to their second website outside the polder. Sanju and I went to find Chris and then took the speedboat to the RSET amongst the mangroves
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Among the many deer we spotted from the boat and the walkway.
When done, we began the transit to our last site. We strolled the 1/2 mile to the websites and set to work, with Pinky and Ira along to see the GNSS website. This last site likewise went well and we headed back to the Bawali feeling satisfied after tea with the headmaster.
An egret removing in the early morning as we sail through the Sundarbans.
The RSET team still have 8 sites to visit over the next two days at Sorbhatkhali on the south side of Polder 32. 4 are in the Sundarbans and 4 are within the polder.
Cruising through the Sundarbans we saw great deals of proof of shifting channels. Here the land is accreting and small brand-new trees are colonizing the fresh land.
Chris and I, however, are heading home. First, we will satisfy the smaller sized M/V Mowali (Sundarbans honey collectors), to take us back to Khulna. Then the next day we travel back to Dhaka and lastly catch our flight back to New York, after the needed COVID test