Travel & Tourism
By Birat Anupam
TEHRATHUM, August – As temperatures soar across southern Nepal, waterfalls in this hilly district in Province-1 in eastern Nepal have turned into a tourist magnet.
The rainy season may have its downside – like floods and landslides – but the rains have added glamour to the waterfall as they accumulate more water during this season.
In the Province 1, people have been flocking to Hyatrung waterfall of Tehrathum to enjoy its majestic beauty.
Before 2017 local elections, Hyatrung had a privilege of being the “tallest waterfall in the country”. This titular status was lost after more waterfalls started coming into the picture.
When the local government of Pachal Jharana Rural Municipality of Kalikot measured the height of the Pachal waterfall, Hyatrung trailed behind. The height of Pachal was measured at 381 meters against Hyatrung's 365 meter.
Famous waterfall
Despite being reduced to the second tallest waterfall in Nepal, Hyatrung has been the tallest waterfall in Province 1. Other noted taller waterfalls in the province include 300-meter-tall Fungfunge waterfall of Taplejung, 191-meter-tall Ghorle waterfall of Sankhuwasabha and 130-meter-tall Pokali waterfall of Okhandhunga.
There are dozens of other waterfalls in the province. Namaste waterfall of Bhedetar is the most popular one. Thousands of people from bordering Indian states of Bihar and West Bengal come to visit the fall.
Though Hyatrung has a great touristic value, its water volume is not so good. It does have good volume of water even during the rainy season. Locals say the waterfall does not look like waterfall during dry season.
According to Bhogendra Shrestha, Chief Executive Officer of Phedap Rural Municipality, home of Hyatrung waterfall, it has good water volume roughly from mid-April to mid-October.
Hyatrung lies in the borderland of Phedap ward number 4 (Sandu) and ward number 5 (Ishibu). Locals have urged their local government to put extra efforts to increase flow of waterfall volume at any cost.
''If Hyatrung does not have enough waterfall, who is going to call it waterfall anyway'', says Tej Prashad Limbu, a local. ''We need to put more investment to that end. We can work on other facilities later on.'' Previously, Hyatrung had poor access.
Getting there
Now it’s more accessible. Hyatrung is in close proximity to Mid-Hill (Puspalal) Highway. It is just few minutes' drive from Batase of the highway section via Sandu School. From Tamor corridor highway connecting Dhankuta to Taplejung, Hyatrung is just couple of hours' drive away.
Likewise, Hyatrung has close connectivity with Mechi Highway. It is just few hour drive from Panchthar section of the Mechi highway as Hyatrung is close to Panchthar also. In this way, Hyatrung is one of the most accessible waterfalls in mid-hill zone of Province 1.
The Hyatrung waterfall is just three-hour long drive from Myanglung, the district headquarters of Tehrathum. However, for locals, it is just a matter of one and half hour in the adventurous dirt road track from Halimela to Sandu.
There are some waterfall-related accidents in the Province 1. The most tragic one was recorded in Namaste waterfall of Dhankuta four years ago. A youth from Itahari named Bikram Tamang died after a rolling boulder from the Namaste waterfall hit him.
Hyatrung, luckily, has not recorded such accidents as of now. No causalities and harm have been recorded as of now. Locals say there are no chances of stone falling in the waterfall. Though it is known as the tallest waterfall in Nepal, there has not been proper infrastructure development around the waterfall.
Facilities
There are some facilities like truss bridge, an indigenous Limbu-style home and foot track with railing and a picnic spot and viewpoints. In addition, plans are afoot to construct a long suspension bridge.
However, when it comes to accommodation, there aren’t many options nearby. One has to either return to Poklabang, headquarters of Phedap Rural Municipality, or has to travel all the way to Myanglung for good accommodation.
No good home stays are there for domestic and international travellers. No hotels are available as of now. Also the Hyatrung trail remains hidden as there are no signs showing the way. Outsiders have to repeatedly ask locals for finding right track to travel to the waterfall.
(Photos: Hyatrung Jharana Tourism/Facebook. Texts: RSS)
