The Ganga Sagar Mela takes place on Sagar Island, a small island in West Bengal, about 100 km south of Kolkata as the crow flies. Alas, I am not a crow, so to get there from Kolkata was quite a journey. Like every other pilgrim, my trip began with a drive of about 4 hours to catch a ferry.
The ferry crossing takes about one hour, but the wait to get on is, not surprisingly, interminable. Furthermore, there is a short window when you can get on, as the ferry cannot cross the river at low tide. When you finally reach the other side, there is another one-hour drive to get to the southern part of the island. So, this journey is not for the faint of heart. Of course, I had it much easier than the pilgrims, some of whom travel for weeks from far away by bus. I met some groups from Nepal and others from Chhatisgarh, indicating their devotion.
