By Esha Chaudhuri
“Nature Trails Meghalaya basically is a way of life, I wanted people to experience what I’ve 
experienced” says Founder and Manager of Nature Trails Meghalaya, Cliffton Warjri. A guided tour/trek venture to some of the untouched and unseen places of Meghalaya began on his own individual capacity and curiosity for nature. In words of the 35-year-old entrepreneur and resident of Golf Links, “Growing up, I was fascinated by nature. While others liked playing games, I enjoyed observing ants and spiders.”
Having worked as a social worker, Warjri closely learned about people’s lives in rural settings, their food, culture and practices. As he started documenting stories in text and visual form, having a background of being an artist and photographer, it helped him create art through these experiences. Speaking on his journey of how it all came together, he says, “After years of solo trekking and riding, I stumbled upon a group of likeminded people who let me into a tiny village, Mawlyngbna. It was here that I started discovering a new purpose to my life and what I really want to do and ‘Nature Trails Meghalaya’ was born. My objective then and now is to make people experience nature at its roots, to understand and live amongst local, eat their food and see the world through their eyes.”
Creating an experience for one and all, the tours are curated as per the age, physical conditions, and the needs of the people touring – children, family, and group of friends. There are walks organized especially for the visually impaired and differently-abled. Walks and Trails created with story telling and sharing of knowledge, information and experience. Light hikes to small waterfalls and pool dips, snorkeling at waterfall pools and hiking through dense forests filled with sounds of nature, wild flora, bat caves, and fossil treks are all a part of 
Nature Trails itinerary.
Symbiotic to a T
Heightened by extravagant displays on various social media sites, there has been a boom in the travel industry with new avenues and adventures but also with a lack of consideration for Nature. What makes Nature Trails unique is its consciousness towards the environment and its living species. Warjri elaborates, “Even before I started Nature Trails Meghalaya, I’ve always been a strong believer of conservation and practice it myself till date. I’ve focused on planting trees in the forests that I hike every year for the past nine years and will continue to do so. The only way to conserve is to motivate the youth to stop catching and killing of animals for thrill. In 2020, I’ve asked villagers of Mawkhan to stop fishing in one of the natural pools at the village by breeding local fishes. This activity has generated income for the villagers and the youths through catch and release angling for tourists.”
Hidden Gems of Nature
As is popularly known, Meghalaya’s climatic and soil conditions makes it conducive for thriving flora and fauna. Warjri accounts for one such rare find. He shares, “One of the most treasured orchids is the ‘Jewel Orchid’ or known in Khasi as “Tiew Dohmaw”, ‘ Tiew dohmaw, laiphew na ar jingmut.’ The orchid grows on damp marshy places and it is very hard to spot, as it is perfectly camouflaged within its surroundings. It is thrived for its beauty and rarity. The Khasis compare this to a person who does not boast of himself; commonly referred as to a Tiew Dohmaw.” He further adds, “The Green Jewel Orchid is probably my greatest find and gives me immense pride and joy that it is left where it belongs.”
Not only species, but he (Warjri) also makes mention of villages that he discovered during his time-off devoted towards explorations in nature. He says, “There are some other findings like Mawkhan Village that is surrounded by fourteen waterfalls, illuminating mushrooms and probably one of the cleanest villages I’ve ever walked across, with large boulders and flowers 
around the entire area.”
Happy Trekkers
Even though the pandemic weighed on the enterprise, Warjri draws inspiration from the silver lining in his story. He says “COVID-19 brought with it financial instability for most of us and also a slow recognition of my work, but it has done wonders for nature. It has led to the creation of many beautiful shrimp pools, wild flowers and small animals that I’ve ever seen.”
With the gates of tourism opening, Warjri breathes a sigh of relief, states, “people are starting to enquire about the trails and other activities. It has to some extent made people realize the importance of networking and working together.”
Speaking on the overall learning, understanding, and knowledge gathered in the aftermath of the escapades, excerpts of some of the travellers are listed in order –
Delhi-based travel blogger, Neharika said, “I loved it –they are really humble, helping and caring bunch of guides as well as divers. Such beautiful experiences like having lunch at the waterfall, seeing glowing mushrooms, listening to local children perform folk songs for us, welcoming families and local meals. It was a thoroughly beautiful experience.”
Traveller from Mumbai, Sachin shared, “My wife and I visited Meghalaya in April 2019 and we decided to drive down to Mawpun Cave in Janiaw for an overnight stay and a cave visit with Cliff. It was our first cave walk and the experience was something else. Once inside the cave, there is a whole new world of wildlife and sounds. It can be scary at first but with Cliff around and his knowledge about the cave, we were at ease and enjoyed ourselves. He also took us to another area, which was the site of a massive boulder, almost as big as a football field. Meghalaya is amazing and I’d definitely recommend others visiting the state to spend time exploring the interiors with Cliff and his wonderful wife.”
A frequent visitor to the state, Nayan Jyoti from Assam explains how his rendezvous with Clifton made Meghalaya a new experience for him altogether. He says “My friends and I visited Weiing and loved it for being so beautiful and the river trek was the most amazing part 
of the whole episode. We appreciate the arrangements; professionalism and hospitality provided by Clifton and are looking forward to many more such adventures in the future.
Another traveller, Chandralekha says, “It was one of our best trips to Meghalaya till date. Never knew that such beautiful campsite locations existed – truly exotic, clean and pristine. We stayed in Umkhakoi water park campsite, which was our first stay in a camp, arranged so well by Nature Trails. We were located near a lake that had lots of outdoor activities to engage in. The best time was the evenings when the site lit up with small fire torches and a cool breeze blowing. All of this, with bonfire, food and music – it really felt great being away from the city-life and among people so humble and kind.”
Shillongite and avid traveller, Kynteng Kharmujai says “Born and brought up here (Shillong), I’ve not seen the kind of places and natural beauty that Cliffton has managed to put together through his travel planning. The only word of caution in these treks is the weather, which 
makes tent living challenging, but Cliffton makes sure that there are homestays available close-by with food and basic amenities.”
The fact that nature and being in a natural habitat is rejuvenating and a point of recharge for most urban-dwellers in this modern age, the concept is taken a notch higher by Clifton Warjri and his team. After all, finding solace in nature is therapeutic indeed.