Grand Bassin

High in the island's forested interior lies a crater lake that Mauritian Hindus hold sacred, believed to be linked to the Ganges. Known as Ganga Talao, Grand Bassin is ringed by shrines and watched over by enormous statues of Shiva and Durga standing over thirty metres tall beside the approach road, visible from far across the plateau. Monkeys patrol the steps, incense drifts over the water, and offerings of flowers and camphor float at the edges. Each year around Maha Shivaratri in February or March, hundreds of thousands of pilgrims walk here on foot from across the island, many carrying decorated wooden kanwars, in the largest Hindu festival outside India.

History

The lake's sacred status goes back to a legend that in 1887, or in the 1890s by other accounts, Pandit Jhummun Giri of Triolet dreamed of its waters flowing from the goddess Ganga. For a community descended largely from the half a million indentured labourers brought from India in the 19th century to work the sugar cane fields, the revelation offered a link back to the Ganges, and the first group of pilgrims, from Triolet, came in 1898, led by Pandit Giri Gossayne of Terre Rouge. In 1972 water from the Ganges was mixed into the lake and it was renamed Ganga Talao, "lake of the Ganga", and in 1998 it was declared a sacred lake (Wikipedia, Ganga Talao).

Highlights

• The lake and lakeside shrines - the sacred water and its temples.
• The giant Shiva and Durga statues - the towering figures by the entrance road.
• Maha Shivaratri - the mass pilgrimage in February or March.
• The forested highland setting - misty crater rim and surrounding woodland.

When to go

The cooler dry months from May to December suit a visit best, though the highlands catch cloud and rain in any season - bring a layer. Maha Shivaratri transforms the site into a vast, moving religious event; visiting then is extraordinary but demands care, patience and respectful distance.

Before you go

This is an active place of worship first: dress modestly, remove shoes where indicated, and photograph people only with permission. The macaques are bold and will take food and unattended bags - do not feed them. Highland weather turns misty fast, hiding the statues and the lake alike. During the pilgrimage, roads across half the island fill with walkers and driving becomes slow and inadvisable.

Nearby

Black River Gorges National Park, the Chamarel coloured earths and Curepipe's crater are all within reach.