Ranthambhore National Park : The land of Machli

Elephant, Tiger, one horned Rhino, Asiatic Lion, Black Bear and Leopard forms the Big 6 of Indian forests. While you will like to avoid a close encounter with wild Elephants, the biggest of them all, for good reasons, you will be delighted to meet any one of the other five. A visit to Gir will almost certainly ensure a sighting of Lion, so does a visit to Kaziranga for rhino. Bear and leopard are almost everywhere, but very elusive. Tiger can be sighted relatively easily if you are at the right place. The aura of royalty around tiger has made it the most sought after animal in wildlife circuit of India. When a tiger walks, the jungle watches it with baited breath. The atmosphere changes dramatically, as if to pay respect to the king, occasionally punctuated by calls of the frightened deer or langur. The excitement of seeing a tiger in the wild can not be described in words. As part of my photography trips, I feel gratified to witness more than twenty of this magnificent beast in several jungles of India during the last one and half year. People who appreciate my photographs often ask about the place which guarantees a tiger sighting. It should rather be coined as where the possibilities of meeting the king are maximum. One such place is Ranthambhore in Rajasthan. The terrains of Ranthambhore are ideal for tiger sighting.

Male T24

Located just 450km away from, Ranthambhore is easily accessible from Delhi. Nearest railhead and town is Sawai Madhopur on the Delhi – Mumbai line. There are quite a few alternative routes for driving down like via Jaipur or Alwar or Bharatpur. So is the train connectivity. Once I had used Mumbai Rajdhani which landed me there in just 3 ½ hrs. This probably is the most comfortable way to reach Sawai Madhopur. Normally it takes about 6 hrs by train and 8 hrs by road.

My first trip to Ranthambhore came quite late in May 2012. Couple of earlier attempt had to be aborted to due to a highly corrupt system of safari booking. The online booking system has been hacked by local hoteliers and agents in connivance with forest officials. Within hours of opening of booking in Sept, 2011, all gyspy seats till April 2012 got blocked. Official rate for a seat in gyspy is around Rs. 550/- which are then sold for at least 1000 depending on demand. This manipulation was reported even in leading newspapers like with forest deptt assuring to address this issue. Till the time forest deptt wakes up, you either need to become victim or time your visit during off peak period. A large no of canters are also used for safari. Cost of a canter seat is around 400 as against a gypsy seat of 550. Canters are real nuisance to the jungle. Imagine yourself hauled in an open truck on a bumpy road to view wildlife. You can hear them coming from miles away. While a gyspy has only 6 occupants, a canter has a crowd of 20-30. Crowd is for cities, not for game viewing.

This year I decided to beat this manipulation by choosing to visit the park in peak summer. You will bother to venture out at near 50 degree temp only if you seriously love wildlife. Ironically both the summer months of May and June provide good sighting. Therefore these two months are ideal time for photographer. However high the declared density of tiger in a jungle may be, luck plays the final factor in getting to face this majestic beast in his backyard. My honest estimation is to face a tiger once every three outings. I keep one for exploring the terrain and the other for birding. In between, when luck favors, a sighting occurs. A sighting brings such joy to your soul that it gets exuded unknowingly. The faces of tourist coming of tiger territories tell the story point blank. One should not get disappointed if they do not get to see a tiger. A signboard at Bandhavgarh righty says ‘You might not have seen me, but I have seen you’. One should learn to enjoy the landscape, watch the prey base, look for colorful birds and suck in lungful fresh air. If you do this, you will enjoy all your trips to the wild.

male cub Sultan of T19

Ranthambhore is divided into 8 zones. Zone 1 to 5 constitutes the main park area.  Zone 6 to 8 is basically buffer and is best avoided during season. This is why you can easily get safari bookings for these zones. During monsoon (1^st July – 30^th Sept) the main areas of park remains closed. Zone 6 to 8 remains open even during monsoon. On enquiry I found that most foreign tourist arriving in India during July-October on this circuit are taken for a ride in these zones. You won’t get to see a tiger in those zones and the operators always have the excuse that ‘tiger sighting is a mater of luck’. However you may get to see leopard and bear in these zone. So make sure to book safari for zone 1 to 5.

Once you book online, the zones are also allotted online randomly. For tatkal and current bookings, zones are allotted manually and hence get manipulated. Most regulars to the park know how to manipulate it. The zone you get further decides outcome of your safari. Zone 5 happens to be the worst one. However zone 5 has the finest green area of the jungle called Bhakula. It also provides the some of the best landscape of Ranthambhore. Even if you get to see a tiger in zone 5, it will not be from close. Rest of the zones provides equal chance to see a tiger. I have seen tigers in zone 1 to 4, but none in two trips to zone 5. There are 3 gates – one for zone 4 and 5, another for zone 1. The third gate opposite the fort entrance opens to zone 2 and 3. Zone 3 used to be premium. Most of the landscapes of Ranthambhore you see in Nat Geo / Animal Planet are from this zone. The tigress, who rules the area around Padam Talab, has traditionally been the queen of Ranthambhore. It was once ruled by legendry Machli (T16), and now by her offspring Sundari (T17).

Officially Ranthambhore had about 46 tigers (2011) over an area of roughly 400 sq km. Every year you lose some tiger to poaching, death or migration to other area. You also get new cubs adding to the count every year. T17 and T39 are two tigress who had had given birth this season. Tigers generally live for 15-16 years during which it gives birth around 4-5 times. The prey base at Ranthambhore is good which is why tigers have flourished here. Here you can see herds of Sambhar deer, the favorite prey of tigers. In other parks, Sambhar deer are found in group of 2 or 3. The landscape is generally dry with rocky terrains. There is quite a large no of natural water bodies in the park which had helped in sustaining wildlife. Padam Talab (zone 3) and Malik Talab (zone 4) are two large lakes like water bodies where you can see crocodiles as well.

Besides the zone, the driver and guide also play key roles in tiger sighting. Guide and driver are allotted randomly on a roaster basis. Photographers generally handpick guides by paying a premium officially. I had one drive with Kalim, who happens to be brother of popular guide Salim. Kalim was driver for a Nat Geo shoot in April, 2012. I was impressed with his skill. The bad thing is that once you drive with guy like Kalim, you start comparing others with him. Foreign tourists had pampered these guides and drivers by paying handsome tips. They easily judge the tip paying potential of the tourist they are carrying and conduct the trip accordingly. Depending on probability of tips, the guide and driver will search for tiger at every possible spot. Else they will stick to regular tracks. Contrary to what some may think, tigers do not pop up out of nowhere in the middle of a road during safari. Tigers are to be tracked down reading signs in nature – like pugmarks, calls of animals like cheetal, sambhar or langur. This is where your guide and driver come into play. Tigers generally sleep all through the day and keep moving within its territory all through the night. It is highly active during early hours of morning or late evening when it hunts. The guides and drivers know which tiger frequents which area.

Female T41

Third important factor is your safari companions, specially if you have not booked full gypsy. It is important to travel with like minded people. The people who are traveling in your gypsy can kill your trip. Often people share the gypsy to cut cost. You can hire the entire gyspy by paying for all 6 seats. Hiring a full gyspy will cost you around 4000 per trip. Else you can book as many seats you need. For all my trips I had booked 3 seats. Most of the time my companions were also in group of 3 (small family) and had to be picked from a single resort. But occasionally they were 2+1 meaning they had to be picked from two resorts delaying your entry to the park. Such delay for evening trip is OK as tiger movement starts around sunset. But for morning safari, this delay can be crucial. I had bad companions in 2 out of 9 safaris I took this year. One of them was a couple with a 2-3 yr child. My request to such people is not to go to jungle and spoil others trip. Jungle safaris, where one has to sit absolutely silent at times, is not meant for small kids. Take kids to jungle when they start appreciating it. Imagine how it would be with canter where several groups will have to be picked. Or how other 25 plus would behave when it is difficult to deal with 2 or 3. Patience is another key. Once you track down signs of a tiger, you may have to wait patiently, sometimes for hours, for the tiger to make a move. Therefore a gypsy having a max of 6 people is ideal as you can expect other 5 to be as patient as you.

Ranthambhore offers plenty of options to stay put. Sawai Madhopur landscape is generally dry and hence resorts here are not like the ones you get to see around greener parks like Corbett. This means that the campuses of resorts are not lush green. A double occupancy hotel room (AC) costs about 1000 bucks, while a night at a resort would cost you at least 2500 bucks. Staying at hotels on Ranthambhore road closer to town is not a bad option as it also offers access to local restaurants. The added advantage is that if you stay on first row of hotels on Ranthambhore road, you are likely to be picked first and hence you get seat of your choice. The safari booking office is in the city and hotels are on the 10 odd km road to the park. Further you are away from city, the more is your possibility of being picked last for safari and hence almost no choice of seat. Given the greener surroundings, the RTDC Vinayak is not a bad option for staying, though it is located bit far from the town. If you are staying in a resort, then make sure to bargain for AP rate. Else you will end up coughing a lot for buffet meals.

I had a fantastic first trip in May, 2012. The place I choose to stay was ‘Ranthambhore Bagh’ owned by well known naturalist Aditya ‘Dicky’ Singh. Though a bit pricey, it provides a homely environment with excellent staff. I had sighting in 4 out of 5 safaris. The icing was an encounter with Machli, the icon of Ranthambhore. Fell in love with the place so much so that I made a second visit in June. Wiser from the last visit, I could made my second visit cheaper by almost 10K. You gain experience only by travelling. A rough estimate of 12K will give you 4 safaris with two nights stay and meals for a couple, which is quite decent. Add a couple of thousand more a resort stay. In Ranthambhore I have found a destination where I will be coming back again and again. Looking forward for the park to open after monsoon.

(Send a feeler at call4tiger@gmail.com to arrange an ideal Ranthambhore trip.)

Nagzira : a sleeping gem

It was around 1030 one night when I had received an invite to visit Nagzira WLS. Nagzira? Where? While I continued to speak to Rajneesh Naidu of India Reconnoiterd, my mind was Googling to find this place on the map of India. Rajneesh was hosting an event named ‘Rendezvous at Nagzira’ where he had invited 20 guests from different spheres of life. I had a busy travel schedule for May, but the idea of meeting many photographer friends was enticing. Talking to some of them did not solve the mystery as all of them were clueless about the agenda of the event.  

11^th May, 2012. The Indigo flight from Delhi to Nagpur departed on time and arrived before time. I like travelling by Indigo for this reason. Udai, Shovna and Suez Akram (of Serai Tiger Resort, Tadoba) was in the same flight. We shared the vehicle provided by the organizers for the 120km road trip from thereon. It was peak of summer in May, and Nagpur happens to be one of the hottest places of India. We had the AC on for 100km, but switched it off for the last 20km of the journey to acclimatize. In two hours we were expected to be out on a safari under a blazing sun. As we left the highway at Sakoli and started moving through a sparsely wooded area, the warm breeze wafted in made me feel that it would not be hot as was expected. Green cover always helps to keep temperature couple of degrees lower.

Jai displaying Flehman's Response

Some guests had already arrived at the camp. The campsite is just inside the first level entrance gate to the park. Visitors to the park have to obtain entry permits at this gate. We joined the lunch party which doubled up as a familiarization session. Motley of crowd from various walks of life – conservations, tour operators, media, photographers, tourists, resort owners, formed the group. I was happy with my tag of tourist. The campsite is a socio-economic development initiative of Forest Deptt and is run with the help of the Pitzeri Village Eco Development Committee, a body of local villagers.  Most of these villagers are rehabilitee from the core area of the park. As a conservation initiative, Rajneesh’s group has provided financial assistance to the project. The 5 acre campuses have about 10 basic tents of different capacities, each equipped with a cooler. The campus has a rustic feel about it. A few more trees will make it cooler. Tents layout also needs to be re-worked. There are a few small shops outside the entry gates which stayed open quite late for the remoteness of the place.

Veeru making a majestic entry to the scene

Post lunch we setout for first safari. The core area of park is about 5-6 km from the entrance gate. You have to cross a second gate, which was the earlier boundary of the park. I shared the gypsy with good friend Udai and Shovna. Local lad Bhavesh Nirwan was the 4^th companion in our gypsy. The park is like his backyard where he comes almost every weekend. Having him as our companion was an added bonus as he had excellent knowledge of the jungle. The park was in news those days for regular sighting of A-mark female tigress with her two sub-adult cubs Jai and Veeru. This peace of news has ensured a heavy stream of tiger tourists. 99% of the tourists are day visitors who have single point agenda – tiger sighting. Tiger was low on priority on the first trip. We wanted to have a feel of the forest. Roads are fairly well defined and were in good condition, though dusty. Terrain is mixed, but generally plain with occasional hillocks to climb. The forest has only one natural water source, a lake by which the forest rest house Neelay is located. Till the camps came up, this was the only option to stay. Due to scarcity of natural water sources, the Forest deptt has built many artificial waterholes across the parks which are the lifeline of the park. In summer time, waiting near these waterholes provides rich dividends as animals will invariably come to these to quench thirst. Safari generally moves checking one after another of these numbered waterholes. ‘Pehle 2 no check kar lete hein, then we will go to 7no’… this is how Bhavesh and the guides decided our course of safaris. During the four safaris, we had many sighting of A-mark and the two cubs. After having covered most corners of the jungle, we decided to wait for them at a waterhole on our third safari. After locating Jai and Veeru, we choose our spot carefully by the nearest waterhole anticipating tiger’s route to the waterhole. During the hour long wait, Jai and Veeru were resting inside bushes, around 100 mtr off the waterhole. The tiger tourists, many in private AC cars, were crowding around that place trying to get a peek of the sleeping tigers. To many of them we looked stupid to sit out in the sun, but we knew what we were expecting. Jai and Veeru did not disappoint us. They came out one by one, walking majestically to the waterhole, along our anticipated path and provided us with one of the best photographic sightings of my life. The light was great for photography. Eventually we left our spot after 10 min of relentless shooting to let others enjoy it. The other fantastic sighting was of a flock of about 20 wild dogs. We missed a leopard sighting by a whisker. Despite our effort, we missed Dendu, the dominant male which is known to be temperamental and charges at vehicles.

Nagzira is yet to be declared as a tiger reserved. It is a Wild Life Sanctuary (WLS), an IUCN Category IV habitat. It was declared a WLS in 1970 and has an area of 152sq km. Both the core and the buffer area are being extended to expand the habitat. All the villages have been rehabilitated out of the core area. It has about 15 tigers, besides leopard and bears. The prey base appears to be small which is a cause of concern. Lack of natural water bodies will continue to hound the park. The lone lake is big enough and was having enough water. Tankers use to pump water from this lake and ferry it to the artificial water holes.

Tourist facilities at the park as of now are limited. Because of lack of infrastructure tourism is at nascent stage. The gypsies are too few and most of them are rickety. These are apparently 3^rd /4^th hand brought from other parks. Rajneesh apprised us of an initiative to finance new gypsy which are likely to come by October 2012. Once new vehicles arrive, entry of private vehicles, at least the diesel ones, will be banned. Authorities are forced to allow private vehicles which were a nuisance. The moment the tigers appeared in the scene, it was a melee. The guards had hard time controlling vehicles. This has come to be a common issue almost all tiger reserves. Nagzira is no different.  Accommodation as now is also limited. Besides the tents, there is a forest rest house. A luxury resort was seen coming up in the periphery of the park. Make sure to book your accommodation and safari before you reach. In my opinion, one should combine this visit with Tadoba.

On the final evening the group sat down to share their experiences and suggestions. The agenda of this event was to expose this motley crowd to this place called Nagzira and discuss on the dos and don’ts to make it a quality destination in future. Sustainable development with concern for conservation was the focus of discussion. Need of the hour is to find a sustainable alternative livelihood for the locals to keep them falling prey to lucrative poaching. Development is a two edged sword. Developing tourist infrastructure will bring in more tourists and hence more means of livelihood for locals. More tourists also mean more funds for forest to spend on conservation. On the other hand, development will destroy some its wilderness and pristine charm. Nobody wants Nagzira to be a la Tadoba or Ranthambhore. It will attract quality tourist only if it can stay untouched of mass commercialization like many other tiger reserves. The big positive for the park is that it has Tigers and they are regularly seen.

Veeru in a royal stance

A lively deliberation that evening enlightened us about initiatives being taken at different corners of India. It was heartening to know that trusts are being set up for each park where all gate fees collected will get parked and will be used only for conservation and socio-economic activities undertaken by the park management. Till now all gate fees collected used to go to the common state treasury, which is used by cash strapped state governments for all purposes – from paying salaries of government employees to build roads elsewhere. We all believe that fund generated from tourism of a wildlife park should be used only for conservation and maintaining the park.

Rajneesh played a perfect host. From cabs to safaris to food to meeting with forest officials – they took care of everything during those two days. Their hospitality had blown us over. They took care of even small details like, ensuring bottle of mineral water in the cabs. I made several new friends during those two days, some of whom I may not meet again. But Rajneesh is the one whom I will certainly be meeting again and again in future. Looking forward to my first trip to Tadoba.

Bandhavgarh Trip Report : April 2012

Let’s start with the stats of the trip - 12 tiger sightings and 1 leopard sighting in 4 safaris.

It was my second visit to the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve in less than a year. I fell in love with the park on my first visit last year. Of the all parks I have visited, it provides the best possibility of seeing a tiger in wild. Despite the high possibility and a good tiger density, sighting of a tiger in wild is still a matter of luck. And if luck is with you, you are bound to see more than one tiger here. We saw 12 tigers in this trip. Two of my friends who were in a different gypsy saw 8 in 4 safaris. A minimum of 3 safaris is benchmark out of which at least 2 should be in Tala zone.

Despite large no of tiger sighting, the trip did not started off well for us. This time I took my mother to show her a tiger in the wild. Misfortune stuck us even before we landed at Umaria as my mother’s purse was stolen in the train (Jammu Tawi – Durg Express) where she lost her mobile and cash. With a bit of sadness we arrived at the Green Woods Resort. The resort is about 6 km from the Tala gate which turned out to be a bit too far for a small place like Tala. It is actually inside the Panpatha WLS. The other resort there was the Tiger Lagoon. These two resorts are the farthest located resort at Tala. For the 6am safari, you have to leave resort by 5:15am. If you leave by 5:30am, you are bound to get late. We had stayed there for we could bargain a nice package. Though located far away, its location is quite scenic.

We had planned and booked the safaris well in advance, in Feb itself. It is very important to get safaris for Tala booked in advance. Booking online is not easy as the web portal is problematic. After a couple of futile attempts to book tickets ourselves, we had got it booked through the resort and got the receipts mailed to be double sure that safaris are booked. On our arrival we had found that because of a long weekend, there was considerable rush at Bandhavgarh. So much so that even the Magadhi zone with 65 vehicles was also sold out. Under pressure, the resort staff did not handle the safaris well, even for other guests.

Magadhi madness

Our first safari was planned for Magadhi zone. It was on the afternoon of our arrival. Being a non-premium zone, a safari in this zone cost Rs.3100/-. There is only one area where you get to see tiger in this zone – the Mahaman dam. As it was quite early for tiger movement, we decided to take a round of that area. But finally returned to the Mahaman dam. There was lot activity those days around the dam with Mahaman female with 3 cubs and Mukunda male giving them company. But this being only point to have a tiger sighting, all of 65 vehicles would converge there creating a scene of chaos. Entire stretch of 100 meters or so was blocked by gypsies leaving no passage for tigers to cross. The result was that, in the late afternoon one tiger came out from the bushes and as there was no passage for it to move to the pond, it went back. Only a couple gypsies could see it, one of them being my friends. For my friend Sanjib, it was his first tiger sighting after 2 futile attempts at Corbett. He was the happiest man that night. The no of vehicles allowed – 65 had scared me even before I had booked a Magadhi trip. Even half that no would have been too much. This scare actually turned into a nightmare with 65 vehciles in that evening. It is always better to pay 1000 bucks more for a Tala trip. In fact this Mahaman dam area falls under A-C route of Tala. If you do 3-4 safaris in Tala, then you are bound to get at least one A-C route trip, which would mean you not only have access to Tala zone tigers, but also to the only tiger sighting point of Magadhi zone.

Next morning we set out for Tala. We had booked our both Tala trips in the morning half. Second half safaris are not good for photography as light falls off very fast once it is past 4:30pm or so. The resort staff created another mess by changing my gyspy. The driver had to revalidate the pass. We lost almost 20 min of prime morning time. Later I realized that we lost that time more for the driver then the resort staff. The driver had actually killed time at the counter. In order to save fuel, some drivers tend to waste time at every possible opportunity and uses short cuts in connivance with the guide. With such a driver in tow, I had another bad trip. Though the route was A-C, we did not see any tiger. My friends again saw a tiger that trip, that too in A-C.

While returning we had started to feel a bit depressed. Misfortune and bad luck was refusing to leave us. Before coming to Bandhavgarh, I had a feeling that one would not see a tiger here only if he carries extreme bad luck. Was that happening to us! I felt bad for my mother who at almost 63 had taken all the pain to come this far to see a tiger in wild. She wanted to go to Jaipur, instead I took her to Bandhavgarh. Even my wife and daughter had started showing signs of stress, despite having seen tigers earlier. During the noon break, we tried to keep us upbeat by shooting birds and butterflies at a stream flowing near our resort. I know that with 8 more safaris lined up in next two months at Ranthambhore and TATR, I will get to see tigers. But time was running out for my mother.

The safari that evening was for Khitauli zone. My friend and mentor Shivang Mehta who was leading a photo tour had told me previous evening that there is only one place in Khitauli to spot tiger – Damdama water hole. He saw a tigress there once out of five safaris he took. So he suggested waiting there. After entering Khitauli gate, we came across human settlement. It was more of a buffer zone then a core zone. We wondered as to how to how those village children were playing in an area which is frequented by Mukunda male. Given the human habitation around, the chance of seeing a tiger appeared further remote. But this time my both my driver and guide were good. God sent them to lighten our misery. The guide suggested that a new male is getting sighted regularly at Mazhargarh River. While most gypsies were seen returning for a wait at Damdama (which also helps them saves fuel) ours decided to press further. One need to make an entry at a gate at the end of the road, then cross the main road to Borohi to enter into the Mazargarh area. When we had reached Mazargarh, there was no tiger, but around 6-7 vehicles were waiting. Just imagine that out of 25-30 odd vehicles that had entered the zone that day, only 6-7 had come this deep. This is where the importance of a good driver and guide lies in a safari. Thought the spot looked ideal for tiger spotting, no tiger ventured out that evening. No luck. As was time was running out eventually all vehicles left, we being the penultimate ones. Only a gypsy with couple of photographers with bazookas stayed back. While returning there were no vehicles in sight for long. We were comfortably seated as not even a deer was in sight. Then the vehicle braked suddenly. A leopard had jumped onto the road barley 50 feet in front of us. The braking of the vehicle also startled it. What a moment. I had seen many tigers in wild, but not a leopard. Honestly speaking, I had told my wife before departing that I wanted to see a leopard this time. And it had just happened. By the time I pulled my camera out it leaped into the bushes. I got a couple of docu shots of my first leopard sighting. Being almost evening with very low light did not give me a good shot. But I was happy. So do all of us – my daughter, wife, and more importantly my mother. Even the guide and driver were ecstatic. They are used to tiger sighting, but leopard sighting is very rare and hence it was special even for them.

Surprisingly enough, my friends saw another tiger that evening. That too in Khitauli  zone. It was not one of the generally seen tiger there. This made 3 out of 3 for them. That evening everyone was happy. The moods have changed. So did our luck. The resort organized a folk dance program that night. Sipping beer we discussed events of the last two days. We decided to start off early next morning and try for route B-D.

Next morning, we set out for our final safari with elated mood. It was again Tala. By tipping the driver of last trip I had ensured that he remains with us for this final trip. While my friends got route B-D, we were again assigned route A-C. While misfortune followed us, everything was going right for them. My wife was not happy with it. She tried to get the route changed to B-D, but eventually gave up and resigned to fate. The drivers counseled her as it is not route, but luck which matters for tigers. However by starting early we could enter the park as soon as the gates opened. Every min of prime time in morning is very crucial. Losing 15-20 min might be a disaster.

Vijaya aka Kankati

Barely 10 min into our trip, we had our first tiger sighting. The Kankati female (Vijaya) was sitting majestically just 20-25 feet from the track. It was an ideal sighting. I mean the way one dreams of sighting a tiger. The next best is a tiger walking straight at you, as if looking into your camera. The elusive tiger had finally appeared in a grand way. There were just 6 vehicles. It is not a melee seen on Magadhi. Only 8 vehicles allowed into each route at Tala out of which 2 misfortunate vehicles went different way. Everyone had enjoyed those 20 min when Vijaya gave us a majestic darshan. She has 3 cubs around 6 months old which were playing at the hill nearby. After sometime she stood up and started walking towards the hill where cubs were playing. But then changed her track midway and vanished into the bushes. We decided to follow the cubs. Forest deptt elephants were chasing the cubs in the hills, probably to manage one of those notorious tiger shows. Forest deptt mahouts have become notorious to chase away tigers from areas closer to road, to deprive tourist from an easy and free sighting. If tiger remains inside bushes, then it is a tiger show, meaning lot of tips to the mahouts. Please for god shake; do not tip the mahouts after tiger shows. They are actually fleecing tourist. The cubs of Vijaya were running up and down the hills. They did not provide a good sighting.

The guide decided to move on and instructed the driver to go to Mahaman. The guide Tej Pratap aka TP turned out to be a jolly good fellow. His sense of humor kept us entertained. The collusion of driver and guide previous day had deprived us a take at Mahaman. On arrival at Mahaman, we found another melee. It was pure chaos. There were at least 3 tigers in the bushes about 100mtrs away. It was the Mahaman family. Vehicles have left no passage for them to come out. Later I came to know from Shivang that Mukunda male was also there, but it was chased away by the greedy mahouts. Though tigers were visible, it was not a good sighting. We decided to move on.

After arriving at centre point, we were offered the option of either trying to spot the Vijaya cubs or go for tiger show which was happening with Banbai (Wakeeta) family in route B-D. On enquiring I came to know that even majestic Bamera male (now Sashi) is also there. The thought of seeing Bamera again made me decide in favour of the tiger show. When we had arrived there was a queue of about 7-8 vehicles. We had to wait for about 20 min for our turn. The Banbai female with 3 sub-adult cubs were cooling off in the bushes by a stream. Bamera, the father of the cubs, were paying them a visit. A 2 day old sambhar kill had kept the family there. One of the cubs was seen trying to finish off whatever is left of the carcass. It was nice to see 5 tigers together up so close. It was my third sighting of majestic Bamera.

As it was well past 10am, we headed out of the park. We were more than happy. We were ecstatic. The count of tiger sighting of the trip that morning is 12. Unbelievable, but true! Luck had finally smiled on us. Thus we had 2 trips with no sighting, 1 trip had the leopard sighting, and 1 trip had 12 tiger sightings.

Bandhavgarh is rocking with so many cubs. Vijaya, Banbai (Wakeeta) and Mahaman – all are having 3 cubs each (as of April 2012). Now my friend Sanjib vouches that if there is any place which almost guarantees a tiger sighting, it is Bandhavgarh. I wish there was little less crowd. Next time I will plan my visit when there are no holidays around. I will certainly skip Magadhi and instead will do Tala and Khitauli.

Singapore and Malaysia : Should you be on a package your or not

A package suits the tourist, not the traveler. Packages seriously restrict one’s mobility. Travelling on your own gives you the tremendous flexibility of having your own schedule and visit all places you want to visit. 99% of my travel in India has been without any package and had not faced any problem. Thus I decided to take this experiment a step further on my first family vacation abroad. This article is the first on the series about my 9 day trip covering Singapore and Malaysia without any package.

Cost Benefit : What you do not get in a package

Business district at night

If you think that travelling on your own would be cheaper, then you are probably wrong. The cost would roughly be the same which you pay for a regular tour package. But on your own can cover almost everything ‘must visit’, and may be even squeeze an additional night. That’s why its great value for every rupee you spend..

I had covered Singapore (4N 4D), Langkawi (2N 3D) and KL (2N 2D). The all inclusive cost per head was almost Rs.40K (in Oct, 2010). No package would offer you 8 N 9 D or one that include Langkawi at this price. What you normally get around 45K is 3N Singapore, 2N KL and 2N Genting. While Lakngawi is about an hour’s flight from KL, Genting is just couple of hours drive from KL. Whereas all my internal travel was by air.

For local sightseeing at Singapore, the packages will hand you the basic ticket of Hippo Ho-Ho bus ticket. It generally does not include Singapore Flyer ticket. We bought package ticket of Hippo which included Flyer ticket costing about S$30 per head.

Trip to Sentosa is included in most packages. The rides and shows offered in Sentosa in a package are cleverly bundled. They include all cheap and free shows, e.g., Song of the Sea @S$10 is the cheapest show. Similarly Dolphin show is part of Underwater World ticket. There are numerous options of ticketing available at Sentosa. Tourists are normally ferried to Sentosa by bus which is the cheapest mode of going to Sentosa. Next best is the Sentosa Express train that operates from Vivo City mall. But we went their by the best possible way – the Jewel Box cable car. As this starts from the popular Vivo City mall, one could spend time in the mall. The Sky Park located on 3^rd floor is a very good spot to spend some time and enjoy the nice breeze with the magnificent view it offers.

Most packages do not offer you trip to Jurong Bird Park in Singapore. This is one must see attraction. This is because going to Jurong involves separate transportation. The Zoo and Night Safari are at same place and hence no transportation is involved between these two.

So what additional items we got by spending almost the same amount: At least 1 extra night, Jurong Bird Park, To and fro cable car ride to Sentosa, experience local flavour with MRT travel, saw the Merlion both in daylight and at night, visited the Opera house and witnessed a performance, walked along the boat quay and Clark’s quay, had food of choice at Indian restaurants (not buffet meals) ….actually the list goes on and on. So you decide.

How you plan :

1)  When you are travelling on your own, you need to plan well in advance. Keep looking for cheap offers by airlines like Air Asia. Once you book India – KL and back tickets, plan other segments of travel and keep booking tickets periodically so that you do not feel the load on your pocket. You will be able to space out your expenditure on ticket this way. Book all tickets prior to 3 months of travel date to get best deal.

2)  Start booking hotels at least up to a month before arrival. This can also be done periodically. It is always better to book directly with the hotel.

3) My suggestion here is to compare price with various sites like Agoda, Hotels Combined, etc. Options are unlimited. Shortlist the hotels depending on what you are willing to pay. Read about them Tripadvisor. Then compare the prices with hotel’s own website. Book wherever you find it cheapest. Sometimes it is cheaper on sites like Agoda while on other occasion’s hotel’s direct site may turn out to be cheaper. An advice: if hotel is very cheap at Singapore, it may be located at a red light area. So be careful.

4)  Visa : Apply at least 15 days before departure. I found that the best deal in Delhi is provided by Riya Travels which is an authorized / approved agent by Malaysia and Singapore High Commission. For Malaysia visa they charged Rs.850/- as against Rs.1200/- by Thomas Cook or Cox & Kings. The bigger the name of the travel agency, the more you pay.

5)  Forex : Riya Travels offers good rate. You can also do your research with various agencies. But bigger the name of the operator, the costlier the forex will be. Infinity Centrum also offers good rate. I got my forex from Centrum. Get your forex at least 48 hours before departure. Carry only the amount you need. Otherwise, you will loose a couple of thousand rupees only in exchanging unused currency. You can always safely carry USD and make sure to carry only bigger notes like 100 or 50 dollars as they gets you best exchange rate.

6)  Do your research of the places you will be visiting. Download maps. Make your own schedule of sightseeing. Always keep a plan B ready.

Get, Set, Go :

Despite all these I had butterflies in tummy on landing at Singapore. On an alien place, with family in tow, I had a few anxious moments once I got out of the airport. Got into a taxi for Little India. Barely a couple of hours down the line I was so much at ease, as if I was travelling somewhere in Delhi.

Packing bags for Bandhavgarh

Returning to one of my new favorite location - Bandhavgarh almost after a year. Hoping to meet those majestic tigers again. Learnt that a new tiger named Mukunda male has joined the scene. Actions at Tala has shifted to Magadhi a bit. Will be taking 4 safaris - two at Tala and one each at Magadhi and Khitauli. During my last trip all safaris were at Tala. This time I will get to cover other ranges as well. Stay is booked with Green Woods resort. The trip was planned well in advance to take benefit of the long weekend ahead (5-8 April). It must be a mad rush for tickets now.

Havelock : Ultimate Andaman Experience Part-II

The main reason of  my trip to Andaman was to have an island holiday. Imagine something like lying by a serene turquoise sea, sip in a beer, occasionally have a swim and then relax. Port Blair offers none of these. Havelock has all that an island of your dream should have. Thus I had planned a 3 nights stay at Havelock. An extra day was meant to lie and relax on sun baked white sand beaches.  

Havelock is the ultimate Andaman. Most foreign tourist was seen heading straight to Havelock from airport. On my next trip I will not waste my time at Port Blair. Rather I would head straight to Havelock. My suggestion is to try and book your ferry ticket yourself. Booking counter is at the Phoenix Bay Jetty. It is like a railway reservation counter. Booking starts 3 days in advance. At least 3 Govt ferry plies daily between Port Blair and Havelock. There also is a private ferry named Makruz. The one way ticket price as in Jan 2012 was Rs.250/- for the Govt ferry. As I had booked it through hotel, they charged me Rs.400/-. The fare of Makruz was around Rs.800/-. Thus you would appreciate the value of taking pain to visit the jetty and book ticket yourself, specially if you are in a large group. The trip generally takes about 2 ½ hours. I found that the Govt ferry leaves at 6:30am, one at 11:30am and another at 2pm. Privately owned Markuz leaves at around 9am.

I had stayed at Eco Villa at Havelock on Beach no.3. This beach is a bit rocky. They are actually dead corals. However the place was decent. I found that resorts on beach no.5 are better because beaches there are not rocky. You get accommodation from 300 to 3000 - fitting almost any budget. Almost all of them are bamboo hut made out of natural materials. As on Jan, 2012, there are about 45 resorts. Almost all of them are located along the beaches, which mean each one has its pie of a small private beach. Exception to this is Hotel Kingdom Place, Hotel Sourav and Jungle View Nest, which are not on the beaches. If you are on a package, ask your agency about the hotel. A bad choice will end up you repenting your entire stay at Havelock.

Sightseeing activities can be arranged by your resort. Rates are generally fixed. If you do all activities with one agency, then you get a better deal. My auto driver offered me rates, which when I compared with the resort rates found almost the same. It is always better to have a second quote to ensure that you are not overcharged. Both rates being same, I decided to go with the auto driver Sanika as I liked his behavior. He was the only one who did not try to fleece us on the trip from jetty to hotel. So I did all activities through him.

Activities at Havelock :

1)  Kaala Pathar beach : It got its name from some of the rocks in that area. A beautiful beach with very little crowd. Go there in the morning and relax on the beach till noon. The sea is relatively calm at this place. You need to find stretches without stones. There are plenty of such stretches. Our cab had dropped us there around 9am and picked us up again at around 12 noon.

2) Radhangar beach : This is beach no 7. Touted as one of the best beaches of Asia, this certainly stands upto that billing. A wide and long white sandy beach with nice waves make it a beautiful place. There always is a decent crowd there. We have been there twice. An evening trip will allow you enjoy beautiful sunset.

3) Elephant beach : We went there for a snorkeling trip. A 30min speed boat ride will take you there. A big signboard warning you of crocodile will welcome you to this place. We got to know that in 2011, a foreign tourist was killed here by croc. Despite the risk, this is a beautiful serene beach. This is a very calm beach, ideal for snorkeling. We had our first snorkeling experience here. I feel it is safe as long as you stay within the area where snorkeling is done. Venturing out of the crowd may be riskier. A typical trip cost about Rs.2500/-

4) Diving : Along with snorkeling, diving is a popular activity. While snorkeling can be done by almost all, diving is not for all. It is costlier as well. Most resort offer diving. We did not try it. A typical single dive would cost you about Rs.3500/-.

5)  Fishing : If you have time and money to splurge, then this is one activity you can do. A trip of about 2 hours cost about Rs.3000/-.

6) Relaxing : The best activity at Havelock. Be lazy. Just sit in the chairs kept at the garden of your resort, sip in a beer, watch the waves and soak in the moments. This is what Havelock is sought after.

A typical Andaman package offers you a single night or two nights’ stay at Havelock and would include a trip to Radhanagar beach. All other activity mentioned above is to be undertaken at your own cost. Meals are costlier at Havelock as compared to Port Blair. Resorts generally do not offer stay with full board (AP) plans. Havelock is a non-vegetarians delight. The choices of sea food will long you to stay longer.

Local transport includes a few buses that ply between the jetty and Radhanagar beach. Most common mode of transport is auto ricksaw. Be prepared to be overcharged for your trips. They generally have fixed rates for trips to Radhanagar or Kalpathar or Elepahant beach. You can also get bi-cycles and bikes. Your resort or even the auto-wallah can arrange this for you. Bike is not a very cheap option @300/- per day plus petrol @80/- per liter, but gives you flexibility if you are a couple.

Want this Ultimate Andaman Experience further customized. Contact Us:call4tiger@gmail.com

Ultimate Andaman Experience

The much awaited family holiday at Andaman was just over. Thanks to weather Gods for showering us with brilliant weather all through our 8 day sojourn to one of the most exotic locations of India.

It was a memorable holiday for us. Havelock and Jolly Buoy trips had been fantastic. As usual, I had done my home work before leaving with a plan A and B, in case weather plays spoilsport. A customized local package which included only the things I wanted to do have helped me enjoy the holiday with full value for money. Now that I have experienced it first hand, I would like to refine the things one should do while in Andamans. I called this as the ‘Ultimate Andaman Experience’.

What you should do on your own :

1)  Rather than taking a complete package, I would suggest that you book your flight tickets. Now that Kingfisher is near dead, the options you have are Air India, Jet Lite and Go Air. I took the Jet flight from Kolkata for onward journey to avoid fog delay at Delhi. On return I took the direct flight of Go Air from Port Blair to Delhi. Thus to me the best option from Delhi is the Go Air flight.

2)  Shortlist your hotels. I would suggest not to book them in hurry. Take the help of a local tour operator and also read reviews on Trip Advisor before deciding where to stay.

Planning your Stay :

Your stay will be typically in 3 leg – on Arrival at Port Blair, Havelock or Neil Island as per your plan, and return leg of stay at Port Blair. This is the ideal plan for stay :

1 night at Port Blair. You typically arrive by 1 pm. So second half is free for local sight seeing.

2 or 3 nights at Havelock. Or even more. Try to maximize your stay at Havelock. This is where you will get the feel of an island vacation. Staying at Port Blair will give you feel of staying in a small town up in the hills. The terrain is hilly. My child asked me ‘Papa, where is the beach?’

2 or 3 nights at Port Blair. No of days will decide what you can do. I found 7 or 8 nights is the ideal Andaman Holiday.

Must avoid at Port Blair:

Before I list what are ‘must see’, I would suggest you not waste your time and money on the following while at Port Blair:

1) Fisheries museum – if you have been to any of the underwater world abroad

2)  Corbyn’s Cove Beach and Chidiya Tapu beach - These are small beaches, suitable only for a stroll. They are not for enjoying the sea, sun and sand. You will get miles of beautiful beaches at Havelock.

3) Trip to Viper Island and North Bay - Typically they club together trip to Ross, Viper and North Bay. But you have the option to take only Ross Island trip. The wiser one takes only the Ross Island Trip.

4)  Snorkeling at North Bay - Avoid this at all cost. If you compare this with what you get at Jolly Buoy or Elephant beach at Havelock, it is like a small backyard pond. Also they are grossly overpriced.

Must see at Port Blair:

These are ‘must see’ attractions. Depending on your time you can omit some of them. As I had stayed for 9 days, I had enough time to cover them. I had tried to list them down in the order of their appeal to me – from must see to worth seeing:

1) Cellular Jail including the Light n Sound show : Cover this on the afternoon of your day of arrival. Do not take a local sight seeing for the evening that includes Corbyn’s Cove. Rather head straight to the Cellular Jail. The Light and Sound show though is not spectacular (of the kind of Songs of the Sea at Sentosa), it is worth the time for its historic content.

2) Jolly Buoy via Wandoor Beach : It is a must visit for wonderful snorkeling experience. My rating for it is right at the top. A typical package consists of two way travel to Wandoor Beach (29km) by car and a ferry ticket to the Jolly Buoy Island. On the package of ferry ticket, they give you a small snorkeling and a glass bottom boat ride which is nothing but a trailer of natural treasure that exists beneath the sea. You need to pay a little bit more to get the full movie. We paid 300 rupees per head for extra snorkeling and it was worth every rupee for the wonderful experience. The guy took us deeper into the sea, occasionally diving down to pick items like starfish and sea cucumber and let us touch them. There were so many varieties of colorful fishes and corals. We all remember seeing 3 different colored star fishes – orange, blue and purple. This certainly was an experience of lifetime for us. Snorkeling is absolutely safe. Even my little daughter enjoyed it. The place is pristine and preserved. It is part of Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park. You are not allowed to carry plastics, not even water bottles. I really appreciate this act on the part of park authorities as most morons just use and throw water bottles. Jolly Buoy is not included in normal packages and hence 50% of LTC crowd arriving at Port Blair do not go there to crowd it. This is a full day tour. Snorkeling here is cheaper and 200% better than North Bay where 100% of LTC crowd goes.

3)  Baratang Island : This is another full day tour. You need to get up at 3 am and leave your hotel by 3:30 am to catch the first gate at 6am. The attractions of the trip are Mud Volcano and Limestone Caves. And the much touted journey in convoy through Jarwa Reserve. Being regular in wildlife circuit of India and having spent days in jungles, the journey is nothing spectacular as some had tried to point. No wildlife, not even a deer or monkey is seen. It is so dull that you would prefer to sleep through that 1 ½ hour journey. Jarwas had been pushed deeper by administration following the video controversy. The journey is via the Andaman Trunk Road. At the end of the Jarwa Reserve, you need to cross the creek in ferry to reach Baratang Island. The first attraction is the Mud Volcano which is not as bad some people had written in various forums. Though it is not spewing, it is not completely dead either. Occasional bubbles can be seen on the mounds of mud. However this may be boring for many who go there expecting to see a Nat Geo style volcano. You need to appreciate this rare natural phenomenon. The second attraction, the Limestone cave is also another natural wonder. A speed boat ride takes you there. The last part of journey through mangroves is interesting. I wish authorities put some lighting in the caves to see those beautiful stalactite and stalagmites. Overall it is a nice trip for all the local flavors including crossing of islands in ferry laden with bus, truck and locals. For us the icing on the cake was sighting of a Jarwa family – a couple with 2 small children, on our return. Ironically, the spot where we met them was well outside the gated convoy area. They were waiting to cross the road when our small convoy of 3 vehicles arrived. The children were shouting at the vehicles. Our driver slowed down as we cross them. As we had passed them, my eyes met the eye of the male. That piercing look remained impregnated in my mind for ever.

4) Ross Island: Typically they club together trip to Ross, Viper and North Bay. But you have the option to take only Ross Island trip. The wiser one takes only the Ross Island Trip. It was capital of British. Almost all the building is in ruins. If are not interested in seeing ruins, then you can avoid this. Takes about 2 hours.

5)  Chatham Saw Mill: I visited this place to kill time one morning - between check out from hotel and catching the ferry to Havelcok. It has lot of old machinery and has a rustic charm. But they do not allow photography at most places which put me off. Photography is allowed only at godowns where piles of logs are stocked. Takes about an hour.

I did the trip to Jolly Buoy and Baratang on my second leg of stay. In between I spent 3 beautiful nights at Havelock - the other ultimate destination of Andaman.  My next post will be on Havelock Island. 

My dear blog

My dear blog,

I have ignored you in the last twelve months. Still you did not sulk the way my daughter's moshi monster did. I had traveled a lot, yet just 5 posts. On my return today I found 108 comments lying to be moderated. Why this, why this, why this....ji? Does Facebook is killing blogging? In the last year I found myself mostly glued to Facebook. Now that I had quit playing Empires & Allies,  I am back to my writing ways. 

What else could it be. Photography. I also found Nature Wanderers last year. Got hooked to wildlife photography since I saw my first tiger in the wild. Almost invested a couple of lakh since then in upgrading equipment. Now that my wife had also got bitten by this viral bug, it is sure to stay for a longer time. This will take us regularly into our favorite National Parks. We are actually thinking of setting up travel page and utilize our knowledge of wildlife travelling. Next trips due are Bandhavgarh in April and Ranthambhore in May.

Sushanta liked my last article so much that it had been published in Pragyan. Receiving the hard copy of the magazine had wooed me back to this page I started around seven years back. Will be back soon with Andaman trip.

See you all till then.