Chasing waterfalls in Meghalaya with family!

I am back now with yet another post about the beautiful gem that is Meghalaya, a land of mountains, rainfall, greenery, clean air, lakes and living root bridges is also home to some of the most stunning waterfalls of India.

We literally managed to visit just two of them and saw two more from a distance! Meghalaya is home to dozens of waterfalls, many of which appear during and post monsoon. We travelled during December and I would say the time was just right!! if you are someone who wants to visit with family, specially small kids or toddlers, winter is the season to visit, all the waterfalls here are rainfed and so the water level is significantly less at this time of the year. This makes it easier for you to hike up or down the falls, the route is clear and a lot more family friendly, The pool at the bottom of almost all the waterfalls are more shallow allowing you to also swim to your hearts content.

Here i am listing out whatever we managed to see and also ones which we had to skip due to lack of time or being a very difficult hike with a 4 year old.

Krang Suri water falls: We had two waterfalls scheduled for a day but managed to visit just one, Krang Suri waterfalls, is relatively still a hidden gem about 85 kms per way from Shillong, we stayed at a small nondescript resort in a village which is close to the waterfalls, The falls can be accessed both from the top and the bottom, while the top of the waterfalls is ideal where you find shallow pools of water to play with and can also indulge in activities like kayaking and swimming.

The hike to the bottom of the waterfalls is also pretty simple with plenty of places to rest and take pictures from. Half way through the hike you get glimpses of this beautiful wide curtain of water falls cascading down from the cliff forming a clear emerald green pool. Enroute to hiking down the waterfalls you also find clean washrooms and changing rooms for a small charge of Rs.10. I would highly recommend this waterfall of you are a first timer to this part of Meghalaya, not very comfortable with hiking tough terrains or are traveling with little kids. Again like all my other blogs and posts about Meghalaya, I need to mention here that I was blown away by how clean the water was in spite of all the crowd I found there.

Just 80 km from Shillong this falls can be reached within 2 hours from Shillong by road.

Krang Suri falls, a must visit for families!!

Phe Phe falls: Yet another hidden gem located in the same village hardly 2 kms from the resort we stayed was the Phe Phe falls, We were recommended by our local guide that Krang suri had an easier hike and we decided to opt for it. the Phe Phe waterfalls also is a relatively easy hike if you are just grown ups or even slightly older kids. the climb is a little more steep but the path is still well laid out. From what I enquired Phe Phe falls also does not have a changing room, so its better to put on your swim wear before you head there. we just caught a small glimpse of it from the top but we have heard only great things about this falls and can't wait for Dhriti to grow up a little more so we can tick this off our bucket list too. Oh yeah Meghalaya we are definitely coming back

Just 80 km from Shillong this falls can be reached within 2 hours from Shillong by road.

Don't judge by this narrow stream of water, the plunge and the pool is supposed to be incredible!!

Elephant falls: The rock from which the water falls resembles an elephant, therefore giving the name elephant falls. very close to Shillong this is a very popular and easy to access and a must visit for families and ideal of people of all ages,

Hardly 3 km from the city of Shillong this waterfall is easily accessible by road by both two wheelers and 4 wheelers

Seven sister waterfalls: This is also a fall easily visited from the town of Sohra (Cherrapunjee) representing the states of 7 sisters, this rain fed waterfall is at its best during the monsoons or right after that. accessible from the roads, this makes for a great spot for photographs and view point. This view point is just 3 km from the heart of Cherrapunjee

Nohkalikhai waterfalls: one of the biggest plunge waterfalls in the country, this waterfalls is also close to Cherrapunjee, the view point is accessible by road and this waterfall has a rather tragic story behind it. A woman named Likhai was tricked into eating the cooked pieces of her own daughter by her husband, upon realizing this she kills herself by jumping of this very cliff thereby this waterfall was named after her. Its also possible to hike down this waterfall but the place is off limits during monsoon.

Located within 7 to 8 km from Cherrapunjee the view point of this fall is easily accessible by road but a hike down to the falls would easily take 3 to 4 hrs per way and is doable from October to March

Dianthlen falls: What do I even say about this falls, off limits for all tourists as of now we were probably one of the very few blessed ones to stay at a place where we could constantly get a view of the falls. Due to some local communal issues this waterfall is now off limits for everyone. there are certain points though from where we can possibly get some clear views of the falls. A giant serpent which was the embodiment of greed and evil was said to have been slain by the local people here and thus the waterfall gets this name. This waterfalls is approximately 11 to 12 km from Cherrapunjee.

So what if this is shut for the public!! lets have coffee admiring its view!! The room with the view!! so me a better one ill wait!!

Lyngsikar Waterfalls: Yet again just a short distance of 18 km from Cherrapunjee lies this gem known as Lyngsikar waterfalls, Again crystal clear water gently cascading down from a wide cliff to form a clear and shallow pool of emerald green water, this waterfall looks straight out of another world. I would highly recommend this even though this is still a hidden gem, there are well laid out paths, very child friendly and also comes with changing rooms. Remeber this reel which went viral in Instagram? "What is this place?? This is heaven"

Located about 18 km from town of Cherrapunjee this waterfall has convenient

By far the best for toddlers, had a clear path laid out and Dhriti enjoyed this the most!! I also observed that since we had a lot of place to let the kids loose they had maximum fun here!! oh and just look at the clarity of that water!!

Wei Sawdong waterfall: This three tiered waterfall is close to Cherrapunjee too, While this also is closed for the public as of now, once open this is a must visit. If you are someone with a good fitness level and have a lot of experience in Basic hiking then the Hike down and up the Wei Sawdong waterfalls would be a breeze for you. Emerald green water cascades down the cliff forming a pool at 3 spots. the trek down the waterfall is short but intense and would require a lot of guts, confidence and surefooted ness, To my knowledge there is no proper path etched out making the falls even more special and untouched.

While we managed to visit the Krang suri and the Lyngsikar falls, we also managed to see the Phe phe and the Dianthlen falls from the top. The region is home to a lot more falls and there are a lot of random ones which can be seen during and post monsoon, Have I missed out on anything? do comment below.