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Big Cat Trail Leg 3 Ranthambore Tiger Reserve

Ranthambore is my favourite park.", Gaurav reminded me as I spoke to him on the phone. Gaurav Athelyes a friend and runs Jungle Lore - a wildlife tourism outfit. Hed suggested to me that I should definitely visit Ranthambore and promised to help us organise the visit. Our big cat trail landed at the town of Jaipur on 4 May. A harrowingly long drive got us to the town of Sawai Madhopur, where wed camp for the next two days for four drives into the forest.

Our hotel, the Hammir wasnt exactly in the lap of luxury. The fact that the AC wasnt working in the extreme heat when we arrived wasnt very comforting. That said, the hotel manager is quite willing to help guests out and help he did. Id definitely recommend the hotel if youre backpacking and are looking for budget accommodation. Im inclined to try the RTDC hotels or the Ranthambore Bagh the next time I go there, but I wouldnt recommend against the Hammir.

Our first drive was in the absolutely picture postcard - Zone 3. Mind you, Ranthambore is a huge forest (1400+ sq km), but the tiger reserve itself is only 392 sq km. To ensure minimal disruption to wildlife, the reserve is divided into 6 zones and the officials are quite strict to ensure that vehicles dont cross over. Zone 3 is truly a wildlifers dream - we didnt see a tiger (clearly), but the quality of wildlife and bird sightings were to write home about. The zones centerpiece, the Rajbaug lake attracts birds and animals alike. You could sit by its edge for hours and never tire of the sight. Our drive ended with a sighting of T-28 (a.k.a the Star Male) in deep sleep at the hunting palace in the distance. Disappointing drive for tiger sightings, but full marks for everything else.

Our next drive was in Zone 2. Yet again pretty good bird sightings, but nothing out of the ordinary with mammals. Well, let me be fair. For a long time we kept listening to chitals, peacocks and sambars screaming their lungs off with warning calls. After an hour of investigation, we decided to probe further at a bush which we suspected was hosting a tiger. Our driver reversed the jeep into position. Saad, our naturalist cried out "Tiger!". Excited as we were, we squinted but couldnt see a thing. After much pointing and gesturing, we saw the stripes of a tiger as testimony. No, we werent hallucinating. I have a photograph to prove it. Our second drive had gone by without seeing a tiger. Damn!

Our third and penultimate drive on 6th May morning was unusually dry. We had to go to Zone 1, a picturesque, hilly part of the park. Unfortunately for us, the forest chose to show us nothing that morning. For the most part, it was a long drive through the forest, with neither mammal nor bird sightings. I have so little to say about the morning, that Zone 1 remains my least favourite part of not just Ranthambore, but perhaps the entire trail. For some reason, Saad was very stressed that we hadnt seen a tiger. We didnt mind all that much, but it was going to be disappointing to leave without seeing the big cat in action.

Come afternoon, we decided that if we were really desperate to see a tiger, then that called for desperate measures. In India, when on important failure is not an option kind of missions, we often wear a bandana on our heads. I got myself just that from a nearby handicrafts store. We couldnt let Indias most famous tiger reserve let us go without some tiger photos. Our drive had an auspicious beginning- we were heading into zone 4, home to Machili, the worlds most famous tigress.

Our drive however, was quite eventful until we reached the top of a hillocks that seemed to have way too much human activity. "Theres got to be a tiger about.", said Saad. As we made our way to where everyone was looking, we saw a celebrity retinue of vehicles make their way to a better viewing spot. It was Priyanka Vadhra, daughter of one of our ex-prime ministers. That if course was secondary to the fact that we had spotted not one, but two tigers - together possibly to mate. On a second thought, it wasnt. You see, India has no dearth of very important people (VIPs) and people will go to all lengths to please them. So as it turns out, Priyanka and her family got the best viewing positions. Not that we has bad positions, but I wouldnt have complained about being in her jeep that day. As far as the tigers go, they were pretty relaxed even with so many human beings around them. They lazed around for a while, snuggled with one another for a few moments, took a few quick drinks of water and then were promptly on their way to enjoy each others company in seclusion.

As we returned back to our hotel in readiness to hit the road, we talked about how awesome this sighting was. Wed heard no end of the quality of Ranthambore sightings and this one surely lived up to the mark. I personally thought that Id just gotten a sampler of this wonderful, enigmatic forest - Ive got to come back here next year to truly enjoy the forest for an extended duration of time.

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If you wish to visit Ranthambore, remember that its one of the most tourist friendly parks of the country. Finding accommodation is quite easy as is booking safaris. The only catch is that youre likely to get a different driver and a guide each drive unless you do something about it. Especially when youre new to a forest, youre better off having the same naturalist guiding you through all your drives. The way to do this is to ask your hotel or to contact a wildlife tourism outfit such as Jungle Lore. That apart, just enjoy the Ranthambore forest (photos here) and the several surprises it keeps throwing at you. As far as we are concerned, were now heading to Delhi so we can get our connection to Bandavgarh, our next stop on the big cat trail.

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Big Cat Trail Leg 1 Kanha Tiger Reserve

The tiger is not the only important animal in the forest. Spotted deer, sambhar, bears, jackals, and several other animals dot the jungle landscape. Add to that the avifauna of Kanha National Park, and the tigers perhaps a minority amongst the wild attractions of this reserve. All this said, theres something that sets your blood racing when you come face to face with this large, magnificent, enigmatic predator. The fact that it is so elusive makes the whole act of tracking no less than a Sherlock Holmes whodunit mystery, and the act of finding one something to write home about.

The first leg of my vacation was with a few friends I was meeting for the first time. Sahana and I has been to Kanha earlier and were familiar with what to expect. Sowmya, Pratima, Santosh and Pramod joined us as first time visitors to this amazing forest. I was particularly excited about this visit given my success spotting animals in the thick November forest last year. Javed, our trusty driver from last time was in tow - as always with a keen eye for any signs that the dusty forest roads or the dry tree branches offered.

If youve been on an African safari, youll perhaps find the notion of having to find animals quite weird. As it turns out, animals in the subcontinent are quite different from animals in Africa. Lions and cheetahs display sociable traits and are more accommodating of human presence than tigers who are reclusive and avoid human beings like the plague. I believe theyre also developing an evolutionary response to poaching by staying away from humans as far as possible. Also, the dense Sal forests of Kanha and their expansive, tall grasslands provide a challenge for animal viewing at just about any time of the year.

Theres something magical about spotting animals in the wild despite these challenges though; I can say that in particular about our first tiger sighting of this trip. It was in the early hours of morning, 7:45 AM to be precise. We were scouring the forest for signs of predators. Wed run into a bunch of handsome barasinghas (swamp deer) and captured some great snaps. Our disappointment from the last day of not seeing tigers on the previous day was palpable. Three people in the group were still awaiting their first ever tiger sighting and there was a strange tension in the air. "Im feeling lucky today.", I told Sowmya. She hadnt taken me seriously until we ran into another safari vehicle that told us theyd crossed paths with a tigress. "She crossed over to the right", said the other driver. Javed is a keen naturalist himself and his instincts told him that this was a mother on the move to rendezvous with her children. "I think shell cross over to that road", he said.

We wasted no time taking a turn and then we all held our breath and waited. "Tiger... look there, shes moving", said Javed. I must tell you, I saw nothing. I marvel at the eyesight of these local people - they see things that us city dwellers can never notice. "Dont worry, shes coming this way, right behind our vehicle." said Javed. I kept my camera trained at the fire line where we were expecting her to emerge. And emerge she did, resplendent in the red morning sun - the play of light enhancing her beauty. This was Collar-wali, Kanhas only collared tigress at the moment and a bold, breeding female. She seemed unperturbed at the sight of the safari vehicles around her, a quick disdainful look at all of us and off she was; disappearing into the bushes on our side. A few moments earlier, we were shivering in the early morning wind. Now, some of us were breaking a sweat!

That encounter turned a corner for us, though the sightings that followed didnt necessarily measure up to her elegance. We saw her adolescent cub and another bold tigress in the Mukki zone in the following drives. Our trip was generally a pretty good one, though weather chose to play spoilsport for most of the afternoon drives. We saw most of the animals of any repute except sloth bears, leopards and wild dogs. Amongst birds, we saw and photographed several species as well. Youll have to take a look at my photographs for a more visual storyline.

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Im now on the train to Junagadh to reach our next destination, Gir Forest National Park - the last home of the great Asiatic Lions. I can tell you Id be jumping up and down in excitement if this cooped up railway compartment allowed me. The excitement of seeing these amazing beasts in the wild is giving me goose bumps already. More on that in a few days when I leave that destination.

If you want to visit Kanha, talk to Gaurav Athelye of Jungle Lore to arrange Javed or his brother Shakirs services. He can arrange transfers for you and also help you select accommodation of your choice. For what its worth, we stayed stour usual haunt, the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Hostel inside the forest, right beside the Kisli gate. I strongly recommend staying either there or at the Baghira Log Huts, a far more comfortable resort of the state tourism corporation. Both these places are in the middle of the forest and youll often be lucky to see jackals, Indian bison, sambhar deer, chital and several birds in the vicinity. When night falls, the entire area goes pitch dark - leaving just you and the starlit sky for company!

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