A Wild Encounter: Bandhavgarh

My dad is a wild life enthusiast, an ardent fan of channels like Discovery and Animal Planet. Undoubtedly, I have inherited the same likings. I have grown up watching wild life shows starring Steve Irwin and Bear Grylls. 

A place which had been for long on my mind was Bandhavgarh National Park! This national park located in Madhya Pradesh is believed to have highest tiger density in India.

Bandhavgarh was declared a national park in the year 1968 having an area of 105km square. It is believed that Bandhavgarh hillock was gifted by Lord Ram to his brother Lakshman with the expectation to keep a watch on Lanka. Hence the name Bandhavgarh i.e. Brother's Fort.

It has four main zones: Tala, Magadhi, Khitauli and Panpatta. Panpatta is not open for safari's. Tala is the premium Zone and the rest two are non premium one's. The best time to visit Bandhavgarh is between Feburary to early June. The park remains closed  between July to September. The nearest airport is Jabalpur and nearest railway stations are Jabalpur & Katni.

I reached Bandhavgarh on the morning of 17th June 2014. After an extensive research and a lot of contemplation I had booked my 3 Nights 4 Days stay in TigerGarh Resort. This resort overlooks the boundary of the National Park and is very close to the Tala Zone gate. For once there was a place which tremendously outdid my expectations. 

Mr Gagan, a wild life enthusiast and nature lover owns and runs the place. There are close to 14 cottages in the Resort. Each cottages is called a den and named after a Bandhavgarh tiger. He has done the place meticulously keeping in mind the smallest of all things. The place is truly rustic and wild. But at the same time comfort isn't compromised! The interiors are well decorated and every small little thing in the resort accentuates the village theme.

Gagan has a great team to his backing. Both, the house keeping and kitchen staff are well groomed, trained and efficient. They are humble, polite and available at the drop of a hat. There is a separate dining area which is equally beautiful in design. Each meal is hygienic, lavish and scrumptious. Moreover, everyday you are treated to a new menu. Ranging from Continental to Italian and Indian to Chinese.

 

Deluxe Rooms

Day1 (17th June 2014):

The resplendent sun greeted us on our arrival. With our high energies and overflowing excitement we geared up for our tryst with tiger. We treated ourselves to a hearty breakfast and explored the resort a little. Post lunch as we started to get ready, we got face to face with our worst nightmare ever... Rains! Tiger sightings become difficult when it rains. Water is available everywhere hence tigers prefer relaxing in their dens.

Our evening safari starts at 4pm . By the time we started, rains were almost gone. Just a little drizzling continued. As the jeep went deeper and deeper into the forest. We kept feeling the tiger would appear suddenly out of the grasses. But it never did.

All we could spot were the Sambhar and Spotted Deers. Our spirits weren't tamed by the day's experience. We were still happy that we enjoyed a rainy ride into the Jungle. We were hopeful of sighting tiger in the next day's early morning safari.

Sambhar Deer

Day2 (18th June):

Day2 began with an early morning safari to the premium zone: Tala. The morning safari's are from 5am to 9.30am. We woke up not to the alarm ringing but to the sounds of rain and thunder storm. This was our second and last safari booked. We were determined to trace the wild cat.
By the time we were ready to leave, rains had completely stopped. My dad pointed that this was the perfect weather to spot a bear.

My dad's word actually came true and deep into the forest we descried a bear. The guide pointed that bear sightings were rarest of rear. We were all the more elated. The Bear was just a feet away, digging the ground searching for termites.

Bear searching for termites

Ahead in our safari we espyied Bisons, Wild boars, Monitor Lizards, Peacocks, Vulture and a few other birds.

Wild Bison

Open Space @ Tala Zone

Even though we didn't see the tiger I was happy we spotted a bear which was something no safari anywhere guaranted.

Tiger's Message brought a smile on my face.

Day3 (19th June)

Day 3 began with a morning picnic to the beautiful Chenchpur Waterfall.  My gut feeling was we would surely spot a tiger today. Haven't you heard of the saying: Third Time Lucky! However, the problem was we didn't have a safari booked for that day.

In Bandhavgarh the safari's are limited and pre-booked months in advance. Few Safari's for each day are reserved for VIP's. Half an hour before the safari, the reserved safaris if unused are given to the people public on first come first basis.

We checked at the counter an hour prior to the evening Safari. There were safaris available for the Magadhi Zone. Without giving it another thought we purchased the tickets. As the safari began, our eyes scanned the forest as far as we could.

"This is serious business. Lets Focus" demanded the guide. He further added, "Tiger ko track karne main hi toh asli mazaa hai". The guide took our jeep to every possible spot trying to trace the wild cat.

It was already 6pm and we had nearly covered the entire permissible region of forest. We started to move towards the main gate. We were sulking but the guide said we shouldn't give up til the last minute. Just then, a few kms before the gate, far in the open fields, camouflaged by the tall dried grass, the majestic Tiger was walking. He walked pass the entire length of the boundary and disappeared in the forest again!

We started moving ahead and just about 2 kms from the gate we saw a jeep halted and the people looking into the fields. Voila! Another tiger hiding behind the grasses. He popped his head up checked us out. Hearing the commotion he decided to be there for some more time until we were gone..

The park was to close down in next 5 mins, so we didn't bother him much. I couldn't capture them in my lens. The first one was too far and the second one didn't give me much time. But at the end it didn't matter if they were far or close. It didn't matter if I was able to capture them or not. I was relieved we we weren't going home disappointed. We had managed two tiger sightings!

Bandhavgarh was an out an out amazing experience. The jungle has an extensive species of animals, plants and birds. Each zone of the forest has a different terrain. Although its a lesser popular park, it is rich in beauty, wildness and diversity.

Do visit for a truly Wild Experience!

Alluring Kashmir.......Part2

Read the previous part here: Alluring Kashmir-Part1

Well , in this part, I would let the pictures do most of the talking. Some jaw dropping scenic places of Kashmir coming up in this post.

 Pahalgham

Pahalgham the shepherd's valley is approximately 77kms from Srinagar. On the way you could see the Saffron fields and visit the Awantipura Temple. You could also treat yourselves to the Kashmiri Kahwa by stopping over at a dhabha. Kahwa is basically a tea prepared by boiling green tea leaves with Saffron strands , Cinnamon bark and Cardamom in water. This aromatic drink leaves you completely refreshed.

Awantipura Ruins

Pahalgham, one of the picturesque towns in Kashmir, is the favourite place for shooting of bollywood movies. There are various spots here like the Chandanwari, Baisaran, Aaru and Beetab Valley.  If you have less time you should atleast visit the Baisaran valley which is also called Mini Switzerland. You could hire a pony to take you there or trekk enjoying the pine trees and snowclad mountains around.

On the way to Baisaran, you would meet locals willing to let you pose with their white rabbits and sheep in return for some money. I got myself a picture clicked with a cute rabbit.

Gulmarg

Gulmarg is the Skiing destination of India having a two stage Gondala ride. As the Gondola (cable chair) moves up, you leave behind the greener pastures and get closer to the whiter, snow covered regions of Himalayas. Everywhere your eyes go, there is just snow, snow and only snow. As if vanilla ice cream was spread unevenly over chocolate brownie! :P

Stage 1 of Gondola is very crowded. There are various activities for tourists like skiing, snowboarding, sledging etc. Amidst this crowd and hurry to try out all activities, you might forget enjoying the view. If at all you manage sneaking some time to look around you would realize the place is so beautiful that for a moment you forget you are in India. I couldn't do the 2nd stage but I have read it offers a breath taking view and is relatively less crowded than the stage 1.

Sonmarg 

Sonmarg meaning the 'Meadow of Gold' is a hill station at distance of 87kms from Srinagar. I stayed in Hotel Snowland which was surrounded by huge magnificent mountains on all sides and  Nallah Sindh flowing in its backyard.

In Sonmarg there is an exciting trekk to Thajiwas Glacier... However, I gave it a miss. I didn't want to end my trip with another over crowded tourist spot. Instead I started walking towards the adjacent hills. Attempting to let the beauty of Kashmir sink in. As the sun prepared to set, I trekked to the nearby hills enjoying some blissful moments alone.

The dried trees still add to the beauty of the place.

Horses grazing on hill top, Sonmarg

  

The back side view from Hotel Snowland, Sonmarg

There are myriad things that will again draw me to Kashmir. But undoubtedly the peaceful, serene & untouched beauty of Sonmarg has won over my heart. :)