Ross & Smith Islands
Ross & Smith Islands, also known as Twin Islands, are connected with a 50 meters narrow sand bar and its seashore is bordered with thick tropical forest. The sparkling blue water makes it a heaven for leisure, sun-bathing, swimming and adventure activities like Snorkeling and Scuba Diving. Ross & Smith Islands are home to the Olive Ridley turtles and just near the beach is the turtle nesting point and marine sanctuary, which means, being the right place at the right time, one can even witness the turtle nesting.
Ross & Smith Islands are actually two islands joined together by a sand bar to make a single group of islands. To reach these islands, a speed boat can be hired and the ride would take around 25 mins from the Ariel Bay Jetty in Diglipur. What makes these islands truly beautiful and sets them apart from the rest of the islands is that these two islands are joined by a natural, sand bar. Water is crystal clear and gem green in color. Sun bathing in Ross & Smith Islands is a wonderful experience. During high tide, the sand bar disappears leaving a trail of water between the two islands and during low tide the sand bar appears again making the islands look majestic.
Ross & Smith Islands has a Marine Sanctuary which makes it an ideal place for spotting beautiful coral reefs and colorful species from the underwater. The beach is surrounded by tropical forests and is a preferred place for trekking and trail hiking by many tourists. The clear blue waters add a touch of cleanliness to the whole experience.
Saddle Peak
The grand Saddle Peak, located in Diglipur, rises from lush evergreen forest and overlooks the beautiful Andaman coast of North and Middle Andaman. At 732 metres, it is the highest point of the archipelago in the Bay of Bengal. The surroundings are a bio-diverse nature paradise as the thick jungle offers home to over 13 indigenous birds species, 36 indigenous species of insects and 6 species of indigenous trees. Due to the richness of the forest territory it is now made into a National Park.
Saddle Peak is popular for trekking and perfect for adventure seekers. The climb is steep and about 8 kms long. On a sunny day it could be a challenge for some of the most experienced trekkers too. Kalpong, the only river of Andamans flows through the forest and offers a refreshing fresh water stream where water is still drinkable. The path follows the beach and then cuts through different types of jungle up to the top. There are three viewpoints and the middle one is the best to get a birds eye view of the islands nearby. Saddle Peak provides a rare experience for eco-friendly tourists.
Kalipur Beach
Kalipur Beach is located half-an-hour ahead situated at a distance of 18 kms. from Diglipur and is also known as the Sunrise Beach of Diglipur. This is one of the most loved tourist's spots in Andamans. Primarily known for turtle nesting, it is one of the few beaches in the world.
Kalipur Beach is a turtle nesting ground and blessed with four rare species of sea turtles including Olive Ridley, Green turtles, Hawks Bill, Leather Black. For this purpose, the government has built a hatchery there and if lucky you can witness both turtles laying their eggs (late at night) or baby turtles being set free into the sea (early morning).
The Kalipur Beach has volcanic grey coloured sand and crystal clear water. This makes it perfect for swimming. During low tide the beach looks sullen with dead corals breaking the surface and some mangrove trees embracing the shore. Jellyfish are also found in abundance.
Lamiya Bay Beach
Lamiya Bay Beach is a wide, sandy beach that is long stretched along the sea and with rocks on the shore provides a different view of the sea beauty. You can see a wide assortment of dead corals on the beach.
Lamiya Bay Beach beach lies a few kilometers ahead of Kalipur beach and marks the foothill of Saddle Peak, the highest peak of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The beach has brown sand, water is clear, beach is clean and the place is beautiful. One can have a long and intense moment of solitude at the beach, while sitting on the rocks and hearing the waves crash against the rocks that produces a melodious sound and brings peace and calmness to the mind.
Lamiya Bay Beach is a pebble beach. The beach is covered with all round stones of different sizes and colour. It has a fish nesting area closer to this beach. The beach is truly blessed with natural beauty with stunning volcanic sand beach. The beach has eco-friendly huts and a watch tower to relax and enjoy.
Ramnagar Beach
Ramnagar Beach is a shrine beautiful beach located at a distance of 35 kms. from Diglipur. This beach is suitable for swimming. A nature trail for trekkers is an added attraction. This beach is well known for turtle nesting. Eco-friendly beach facilities like eco-huts, benches and seating arrangements have been provided.
Ram Nagar Beach is also a Turtle Nesting ground for Olive Ridley Turtles. The beach is surrounded by palm and coconut trees and other coastal shrubs. The beach bay is lovely with clear blue water, calm sea and yellowish sand. There is plenty of shade from the nearby trees and the place is perfect for a good read near the sea.
Ram Nagar Beach offers nice snorkeling with great visibility and lots of colourful fish along the S shaped coral reef, but one has to swim further into the sea to reach the best points with live corals. The beach is completely deserted most of the time and is best for those who seek some privacy. The stretch of beach here offers also a spectacular sunset view without any crowds.
Alfred Caves
Alfred Caves lie in Diglipur near Ramnagar Beach. The trek is through thick forests that leads to Alfred Caves - a cluster of amazing 41 caves. It is a den for swiftlets and fruit eating bats. The caves with a very narrow entrance, open up into chain of small caves inside.
Alfred Caves are the limestone caves with stalactite formations of Diglipur that change their shape every monsoon due to a chemical process. These extremely narrow caves are home to the Swiftlet birds that make a unique edible nest.
Alfred Caves has the mystical connected and separated series of 41 unexplored caves that have baffled many an explorer. These caves are amongst the least explored and understood places, but indeed they are among the most beautiful places on earth. The caves though appear very narrow, thin and small from the outside are in reality very long inside. There are caves within caves.
Mud Volcanoes at Shyam Nagar
The Mud Volcanoes at Shyam Nagar are located at a place locally known as 'Jal Tikry' near 'Hathi level' around 25 kms. (16 miles) from Diglipur. A chain of Mud Volcanoes could be witnessed in the green jungle of Shyam Nagar at Diglipur.
One has to trek for 15 minutes in the semi-evergreen forests to reach Mud Volcano. At the initial point, bigger and dormant mud volcano can be sighted. On proceeding further for few minutes fresh emerging mud volcanoes could be seen. Seating facilities along with information boards are provided for visitors.
Mud volcano is a natural wonder, hidden in the dense forests of Diglipur. There is a series of small muddy craters that have been erupting mud for quite a few years now. These craters are created by natural gases emitted by decaying organic matter underground which slowly push the mud upwards. One can wander around 41 active muddy craters, enjoying the surrounding nature and wildlife.
