Bisnakandi

Bisnakandi is where several streams coming down from the Meghalaya hills across the Indian border meet in a wide bed of boulders, with the hills rising directly behind and a line of waterfalls visible on the slopes above in the wet season. The approach is by country boat for about an hour from the road head at Rustampur, moving up shallow channels between paddy and then between the stones, and the arrival point is the boulder bed itself where people sit in the water. Like Jaflong, the area is worked for stone, and quarrying has changed parts of the bed. It works best in and just after the monsoon when the falls are running and the water is high enough for boats to reach the top.

What you actually see

• Streams meeting over boulders - the wide stone bed at the confluence.
• Waterfalls on the Indian slopes - the falls visible above the border.
• The country boat approach - an hour up shallow channels.
• Sitting in the water among the stones - what most visitors come to do.

When to go

July to September, during and just after the monsoon, when the falls run and boats can reach the top. A day. Water level governs everything; in the dry season boats stop well short.

Honest expectations

Stone quarrying has damaged the riverbed and the working is visible. Boats cannot reach the site when water is low. Boat prices are negotiated and inflated. There are no facilities and litter is heavy. Crossing into India is not possible.

Nearby

Jaflong is east; Sylhet lies south.