Day 5 of Our Assam–Meghalaya Trip: Living Root Bridges, Dawki & Mawlynnong Experience

Living Root Bridge at Mayleylong

& a Long Return to Shillong

By Day 5, we were already feeling the impact of continuous travel and long walking days, especially after the demanding Double Decker Root Bridge trek on Day 4. Still, this day was planned to cover some of the most talked-about places in Meghalaya—Mawlynnong and Dawki—before deciding how far we could realistically travel by night.

Starting the Day from Cherrapunji

As planned, we started from Cherrapunji early in the morning.
Although the initial plan mentioned an 8 AM start, we actually began closer to 9 AM, which turned out to be more realistic given how tired everyone was.

The distance from Cherrapunji to Dawki is around 80–90 km, and without any stops, it can take 4–5 hours. Since we had multiple places in mind en route, we knew it would be a long day.

First Stop: Living Root Bridge Near Mawlynnong

Our first stop was a Living Root Bridge near Mawlynnong village.

This bridge is often casually referred to as a “single root bridge,” but technically, it is also a living root bridge—similar in concept to what we had seen in Cherrapunji.

How This Bridge Compared to Cherrapunji

• In Cherrapunji, the root bridge trek involved around 2,000 steps
• Here, it was just about 150 steps

The experience itself felt quite similar, but the effort required was far less, which suited us perfectly after the previous day’s exhaustion.

We spent about an hour here before moving on.

Mawlynnong Village: Clean, Calm, but Walk-Heavy

After the living root bridge, we headed to Mawlynnong.

Mawlynnong is widely known as Asia’s cleanest village and received recognition for this in 2012. On entering the village, the cleanliness was immediately noticeable.

• No plastic waste
• Whatever garbage existed was organic and green
• No artificial litter or visual clutter

The village itself is beautiful and well-kept. However, covering it properly requires 2–3 km of walking.

Given that:

• We had already done major walking the previous day
• My wife and kids were still recovering from the Double Decker trek

We chose not to explore every corner extensively and moved on at a comfortable pace.

Mawlynnong to Dawki: Short Distance, Slow Progress

From Mawlynnong, we continued towards Dawki.

• Distance: 15–16 km
• Travel time: roughly 1 hour

Once we reached Dawki, the main activity planned was boating on the Dawki River.

Dawki River Boating: What Actually Happens There

To reach the boating point from the parking area, you need to descend around 300 steps.

There are multiple boating points in Dawki. Our driver took us to one where he had a commission arrangement. A useful tip here is to look specifically for the board that says “Dawki River Boating Point”, rather than blindly following suggestions.

Boat Packages (Reality Check)

There are two packages:

• 45 minutes – ₹1,000
• 1 hour – ₹1,200

In practice:

• Both cover almost the same route
• The difference is mostly explained through attractive wording

The extra ₹200 is positioned as access to an island, but the island itself is not particularly special. Still, we chose the 1-hour ride.

During the boat ride:

• We visited the island
• Covered the Bangladesh zero point
• Observed the river acting as a natural border, with one side belonging to India and the other to Bangladesh
• You can clearly see Bangladeshi nationals across the river

The clarity of the water and the experience of being so close to an international border made the boating worthwhile.

Visiting the Bangladesh Border

After boating, we headed to the Bangladesh border area.

Here, you can:

• Walk right up to the last point
• See the armed forces from both sides standing nearby
• Take photographs and return

It’s a short visit, but interesting from a geographical and experiential point of view.

Deciding the Next Move: Guwahati or Shillong?

We were in Dawki until around 4:00–4:30 PM.
At that point, we were unsure whether continuing all the way to Guwahati made sense.

Initially, the plan was to return via Jowai and cover a few spots there. However:

• We had already spent a lot of time at Dawki
• Most places in Jowai would be closed by the time we arrived
• Waterfalls around Jowai again involved a lot of walking, which we were not prepared for after Day 4

So we skipped Jowai sightseeing entirely.

Reaching Shillong & Choosing to Halt

We reached Shillong around 7:00–7:30 PM and decided not to continue to Guwahati the same night.

Instead, we stayed at Orchid Lake Resort.

A Real Scam Experience: Orchid Lake Resort Booking

This stay came with an important lesson.

While searching for the hotel’s contact details on Google, we came across a person offering a very attractive deal. However, he kept insisting on full payment before arrival.

This raised suspicion, and we refused to pay.

Later, we found out:

• The person was a scammer
• He had no official connection with the hotel
• The hotel management was already aware of him

Despite knowing about the scam, the hotel staff mentioned that nothing substantial had been done to stop him, which was disappointing. This was the first time we encountered such a situation during the trip.

It’s a reminder that even Google search results can mislead, and direct confirmation with hotels is critical.

Staying at Orchid Lake Resort

We reached the hotel around 8:30 PM.

• This was the best room we stayed in during the entire trip
• Also the most expensive, at around ₹5,000
• Spacious room
• Comfortable bedding
• Good overall experience

Although it was slightly over our usual budget, the comfort felt justified after such a long and tiring day.

Final Thoughts on Day 5

Day 5 was long, layered, and exhausting, but also insightful.

We realised something important by this point:

Meghalaya is not a destination where you can casually fit in many places without preparation.

Most attractions involve:

• Long drives
• Walking
• Physical effort

To enjoy Meghalaya properly, planning, pacing, and realistic expectations matter far more than just ticking places off a list.

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