On Trail, Off Trail

The pull of the forest is undeniable. It attracts us, beckons us to enter and explore the green and the dark, even lose our way. What pulls us? Is it a long-lost memory of a past when our ancestors lived much closer to nature, surviving as hunter-gatherers? Is it simply a yearning for change from cities of concrete and steel?

Not many forests are left standing in Bangladesh, but when I am in the forest – whether it is Kalenga, Lawacherra or Sundarban – I usually walk on trail. These trails have been made by others who came before me to make it easier for people to navigate through the forest. Sometimes I have to cross a bamboo bridge where a stream cuts across. The trail meanders through the trees and then, when I am least expecting it – voila! -  a lush green meadow in the forest's bowel, with birds singing overhead.

In the morning sunlight hits the forest at an angle, the shafts of light illuminating the leaves, branches and trunks. As morning gives way to noon, the sun moves overhead but somehow the forest is darker as   light is blocked by the canopy. In the afternoon, angled light once again enters from the side. At twilight, silhouettes of the rows of trees stand black against the darkening sky. And so the play of light and darkness repeats day after day.

The forest teems with life – from the smallest insects and flies, through spiders, reptiles and snakes, squirrels, monkeys and other mammals, and of course many birds. But not all are easily seen: man is the most feared creature here. A complex food chain supports the hierarchy of life. When flowers bloom or fruits appear on a tree, insects gather there first, then birds and mammals to eat pollen, fruit, petals, nectar and insects, finally bigger birds and animals to eat the smaller ones. 

It is one thing to walk on trail, but adventure awaits those who walk off trail. After all, most forest creatures do not follow trails meant for humans. The great scientist Edward O. Wilson, celebrated for his study of ants, collected thousands of ant species from tropical forests. He always walked perpendicular to the trail to find the most ant samples.

I too had to go off trail in Uganda in 2014, when we were tracking mountain gorillas at Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. After an hour of following trails in the wet, green mountainous terrain, our trackers found gorilla footsteps. Leaving the trail, they led us along slippery slopes, down hills of tall grass, slipping and sliding, trying to hold on to small branches or trunks when we could. Sure enough, we found the gorillas – the entire family sitting around some trees with edible leaves, munching away, quite far from the trail!

There are risks going off trail, of course. The path is not clear, and, particularly in hilly terrain, it is easy to become disoriented. Chances of stepping on a snake are higher, because others have not walked this way. Roots and fallen branches and trunks impede one's progress. One has to take each step very carefully. But surprises abound.
So what will it be on your next great adventure? On trail or off trail? 

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