Tanguar Haor

Tanguar Haor is a wetland of about a hundred square kilometres in Sunamganj district against the Meghalaya foothills, a Ramsar site and an ecologically critical area, with the hills of India rising abruptly behind the water so that the setting is unlike the flat haors further south. It holds very large numbers of wintering waterbirds, a substantial fishery under a co-management arrangement with the villages, and stands of freshwater swamp trees standing in the water. The way it is visited has settled into a pattern: wooden houseboats hired from Tahirpur or Sunamganj for two days, cooking on board, mooring overnight on the water, with stops at a swamp forest, a village and a viewpoint. Trips are booked ahead and fill at weekends.

What you actually see

• The Meghalaya hills behind the water - the abrupt rise across the border.
• Wintering waterbird concentrations - large flocks through the cool months.
• Swamp trees standing in the water - the flooded stands within the haor.
• Overnight on a houseboat - the standard way the wetland is visited.

When to go

October to March; the water falls through this period and the birds are present in the cooler months. Two days. Houseboats book out at weekends and holidays. Nights on the water are cold in winter.

Honest expectations

Houseboat operators vary a great deal in safety and standards; check the boat. Engine noise and music from other boats carry across the water and can ruin the quiet. Waste from boats is a real problem. Bird disturbance from boats is common.

Nearby

Tahirpur is on the edge; Niladri lake and Sunamganj lie west.