Often when we look at our lives, I'm sure many of us lament at the way we have no time, in today's age of time crunch, to appreciate the small and simple things of life. Our hearts yearn for those days when we often went to the open fields, stole sugarcane from the ripening crops and ran for our lives having being caught by the furious farmer! Of those days when life was so much more than high-tech gadget and sky scrapping cement structures!

Personally, I long to be able to go back to those days when I could just sit on the beach for hours  and marvel in awe at the majestic sunset… where nature still stood and protected form the onslaught of human activities.

A place of such natural beauty, where there is a harmonious blend of various natural communities is Pirotan – one of the 42 islands in the Gulf of Kutch (Arabian Sea)  and a part of the first ever Marine National Park near the Jamnagar district of Gujarat.  Pirotan Island is only 12 nautical miles away from the harbor, Bedi, in Jamnagar. The former name of this island is ‘Pir Jo Than’- place of  the sacred man ‘Saint Khwaja Khizer Alaihisalaam’. In the lap of this island, today, rests the body of this holy man.

Although people have been visiting the island to pay homage at the sacred shrine of Khwaja Khijer Alaihisalaam for over a century, it is only during the last twenty years or so that it has developed as a tourist destination based on its natural beauty. Matchless in its marine beauty, it boasts of being the only island where one can witness the boundless beauties of the sea without having to actually go under the water!

Even today this island is extremely raw and unexploited by human activity. The only human activity witnessed here is the staff of the forest department and the operator of the only cemented structure on the island- the light house. Permission from the Forest Department, Custom Department and Port Authority must be sought before visiting the island. 

The ebbing of the tides paves the way for the tourists to see the treasures of the Arabian Sea. But a visit to this island is at the behest of nature! A trip to the island needs to be planned in accordance to the cyclic flow of the tides. The tide rises after a cycle of 12 hours. Since the only means of reaching the island is by boat, the timings of the tide need to be kept in mind before making a trip to this island.

Having reached the island, white pristine beaches and a wondrous world of the sea creatures welcomes your. A walk of about 2 feet into the water after the tide ebbs allows you to see the fascinating underwater world of corals. Once the tide recedes, often nestled among the rocks one can see amazing sea creatures like the octopus, which is known to change it’s colours frequently!

This island is also home to several other marvels like the jelly fish, star fish, puffer fish, sea horse, huge green sea turtles, lobsters and several endangered sea turtles like the Green Sea, Oliver Riddley & Leather Back. The island also boasts of sheltering several species of coral reefs, hard & soft corals, sponges, prawns, crabs, molluscs, sea mammals, water birds, terrestrial birds and  plenty of brown, green & red algae. Oh and how kids love it when they can see a playful dolphin jumping in and out of the water!

I’m sure I wouldn’t be wrong if I said that the sound of the waves mixed with the bird calls, the  gushing of the waves and salt in the breeze, an unexploited land where you can see nature at it’s best, will create for your memories of a land that is even in today’s day an age – a rarity!
   
You have to take the permission of the Forest Department, Custom Department and Port Authority. Tracking, Educational Tours and Tours held by some well known Trusts get the permission easily. Smoking and drinking is prohibited on this island. You are not allowed to take anything out of island. Though the surface of the belt by which you have to pass on to see the Marin life is hard and sharp which can cut the common shoes. So you have to wear hunter shoes. You can not come out of the island before twelve hours. Some creatures of this sea are toxic. So it is dangerous to visit this place without guide.

On this island creatures are living under the rocks. So the guide or the experienced person can make us to see these creatures. Except creatures you can see colorful Corals. Before visiting the Pirotan Island you have to visit the Marin Life Museum so you can understand the creatures and their fundamental behavior and qualities. After that you can enjoy the trip to Pirotan.