Elephant beach - Havelocks' best

21st December, 2009

TIME Magazine's rating for Radhanagar beach as one of the ten best beaches in the world lingered all of 20th  December. I thought it was right (though a certain beach in Langkawi, Malaysia kept popping up in memory ever so frequently); but that was till I reached Elephant beach.

Breakfast of hot idli-vada at Nala's Kingdom at 8.00Am. In a dunghy by 8.30AM, we were off on a half hour boat ride to Havelock's best kept secret. 

 Tucked away north of Radhanagar, and actually passed by when travelling to and from Havelock Jetty on the ferry this little piece of paradise somehow escapes the attention of day trippers. Strangely, this beach has no Number! Or someone did not tell me.

Most of the beach was supposedly washed off in the tsunami of 2004. Now only a narrow strip remains but so what. That's enough to keep your clothes and bags on.

After all, what is a beach all about, except soaking in the water!

The remains of the trees that got uprooted are still lying around. If you are innovative like my son you could use it as a diving platform, except that the water is so shallow that you'll be splashing down up to your ankles!

The waters here are crystal clear. The reason, to my mind, is the sand here. Unlike in Radhanagar and Vijaynagar, where the sand is ultra fine making it easily churned up and muddy, in Elephant beach the particles are slightly large and rounded. Sand here does not stick easily and drops off when you dry out.

And the hermits are here too in all sizes and shapes, competing for the next best shell, like in all the beaches in Havelock.

If you are a little more adventurous than I am, there is a whole new world for you to explore. UNDERWATER!!

If you are in the Andamans you cannot return without a peek at this fascinating world. The CORAL REEFS.

More about them soon....