Elephants playing with one another at the Manas National Park in Assam, India

This will go down as probably the best moment of all my travels. Setting out early to spot wildlife and birds at the Manas National Park in Assam, I came across a herd of elephants on a dirt track about 50 metres away from me. Initially they seemed just like a couple till I realized they were a full herd – and hidden in the trees and foliage around the track. And what do I see?

They kept coming in and out of the greenery, from babies to giant male members. And all seemed in a jovial mood. They were playing together, pushing each other into the bushes, climbing on top of the other and engaging in friendly duels. I could have watched them for hours – you rarely see such sights. Don’t miss out on their expressions – some are actually laughing.

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I finally crossed back into India after three weeks in Nepal as a part of the Great Himalayan Drive; I had entered the country on its western border and came out from the west into India’s North-East. The plan was to keep driving till the Himalayan roads ended in Arunachal Pradesh – a long journey requiring multiple night halts. The first of these happened at the Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary.

I never knew of this forest’s existence until I started asking around for a place to spend the night. Seems like it is quite a popular destination especially amongst Bengali travellers – the two Government run lodges were both full up. But I was lucky to get a room in the Hollong Lodge, located deep inside the forest – the management usually keep a room free should a last-minute VIP land up. My luck no one ‘important’ was passing that day. It turned out to be a gem of a property – will write about it later for sure.

The stay was only for a night – I had leave the following morning for Manas National Park in Assam. But it gave me enough time to explore the sanctuary a bit. Some things of note:

* At night, the authorities leave mounds of salt for animals like the bisons; these animals need their intake of salt just like we humans do.
* Managed an elephant safari lasting an hour early morning. The elephants were look quite under-nourished though despite the abundance of natural grass and other foods to eat. The guides did show us some varieties of deer, a rhino and some peacocks – but the ride was too rushed to get any good pictures.
* Interestingly, I was asked to park my car inside the garage at night – lest any passing by wild elephants damage it.

The sanctuary has lots more to offer – as you can see in the images attached – but like for any wildlife spotting, one needs to set aside time and be patient. Next time for sure.

A wild male tusker comes looking for a 'female friend' at the Tiger Tops Jungle Lodge in Chitwan National Park, Nepal

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Valentine’s Day can be a lonely affair for many. When it is for a wild male elephant on heat during its mating season, it could spell bad news.

The morning of day 18 of the Great Himalayan Drive started with animated excitement all around Tiger Tops Jungle Lodge, the property inside Chitwan National Park I was staying in. A wild male elephant had sauntered in, walking around the camp. It made its way through the driveway, around the dining area, the front lawns before making his way to the elephant stables.

Your impressions of an elephant may be that of a giant yet gentle animal. And mostly it is. But a wild tusker like this one is really, really big – and thinks little of anyone or anything in its way when it is in even a slightly aggressive mood. Scores of staff at Tiger Tops cautioned everyone to keep a safe distance – and they did too – even as they tried to ‘shoo’ it away. But what was the tusker doing here anyway?

He had come looking for a ‘friend’ said one of the staff. The elephant had apparently not found a wild female in the forest and may decided to try his luck with a domesticated one. It kept coming close and walking away for a couple of hours – keeping the staff on their tenterhooks. The over one dozen – including an even bigger tusker owned by Tiger Tops – would have been no match for the wild one had it decided to assert his authority. The only thing keeping him at bay was an electric fence – more like a length of wire with a mild current running through it. But these elephants know how to overcome these also if they want to: they either uproot the poles holding the wires in place, or get a tree trunk to smash it all.

Fortunately, on that day, the tusker decided otherwise and eventually walk away. But you can never be too careful around these creatures.

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Valentine’s Day is a day of hugs and kisses from those who love you. Not one to be told there is no love lost between you and a rhinoceros.

Out for a jungle walk in Chitwan National Park, I was hoping to see some exotic animals and birds up close and personal. Even a tiger if I am lucky – not giving much thought to what happens when you see a tiger in the wild without being on a jeep or an elephant.

After some tame sightings, we came across a rhino lurking in the tall grasses about 20 feet from the track we were on. As I fiddled to get my camera settings right, I failed to hear some snorts from the big animal. I realized something was amiss when my guide started beating a stick on the ground, making some incoherent noises and gesticulating in the direction of the rhino. In what seemed a long time, the beast must have chosen to play it safe and walked away.

What was this all about? The guide told me the rhino was possibly going to attack us. It usually does not, but it may have felt disturbed for the wrong reasons. Maybe it was protecting its baby which we had not seen. Had it decided to attack, what should our options have been? Pray. Run in any direction. Pray more that it does not follow you. For you cannot outrun this animal. Even if you were in a jeep, it can easily overturn one by butting into it. It was our lucky day. The Gods loved us on this Valentine’s Day.

And during the rest of the visit to Chitwan too. I got some great sightings and pictures of rhinos during a jeep and an elephant safari I undertook. It was the first time I was seeing rhinos in the wild. They are impressive creatures. A joy to observe. What a beautiful world we live it. Hope we keep it safe.

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How interesting can journeys get? Very, if you are headed to Tiger Tops Jungle Lodge in Chitwan National Park in Nepal.

I set out from Kathmandu to Tiger Tops, one of the few places to stay deep inside the forest. And possibly the best considering they have been the pioneers in wildlife tourism in Nepal for decades. The first challenge was finding Meghauli Airport. As I got approached Bharatpur, it was tough to find someone who knew about this airport. I was repeatedly directed to the more popular Bharatpur airport. Eventually though I did reach the correct one.

Tucked away in the forest itself, it seemed more a grazing ground for goats and cows than for flights to take off and land. I would learn later that only limited flights came in, almost exclusively for the elite guests of Tiger Tops. My car would go no further – I had to park it in a private garage of Tiger Tops at the airport.

Passengers and bags were then loaded onto antiquated Land Rovers, possibly dating back to World War II. It is a wonder some of these still run. A bumpy but exotic drive was interrupted at a river. For everyone and everything to be transferred to a boat steered by a long pole. And onto another set of Land Rovers waiting at the opposite bank. For a ride through thick forests. It almost felt like we were some kind of explorers – a tiger or a rhino could be a few feet from us and we would not know.

The 8 km journey from the airport to Tiger Tops took 45 minutes. It would turn out to be one of the many interesting multi-modal journeys I would undertake on the Great Himalayan Drive. Keep reading.

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Topslip is located in the Anaimalai Forest Range bordering Tamilnadu and Kerala. The erstwhile Anaimalai Wildlife Santucary is now known as IGWS – Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary. A Forest Preserve, this range houses a variety of wildlife and birdlife. Wild elephant and bison sightings are quite common. Quoting from an article in The Hindu, “The IGWS and National Park harbours over 250 species of birds of 49 families and is enormously rich in other biodiversity. According to the latest reports India is home to nearly 1,300 bird species in the diverse habitats.” The neighboring Parambikulam Sanctuary is to the West of Topslip in Kerala.

The closest big town is Coimbatore which is around 80kms away. One has to head to Pollachi (40 kms), then to Anaimalai (another 15 kms), onwards to Sethumadai (10kms), to TopSlip (15kms). A Ticket is required to pass through the Forest checkpost in Sethumadai before a 15 km journey to reach 800Ft above sea level in Topslip. Being totally non-commercial, the only means of staying overnight is in Forest Guesthouses which have to be booked well in advance.

The Drive To Topslip

Reaching the Anaimalais, greenery abounds in every direction. Shady tree lined State Highways surrounded by Coconut Plantations on either side makes the drive up to Sethumadai.

A Forest Checkpost charges tickets for travelers. If one does not stay in the Forest Guesthouses in TopSlip and are only going up for a day trip, they are required to descend the forests by 6pm.

Climbing up the short twisty ghats lined with Bamboo trees, one faces a number of hair pin bends. One cannot help but start admiring the scenic green drive.

On Reaching Topslip

One needs to be careful of Monkeys as they are looking for a quick bite always. Troops of Nilgiri Langurs can be seen traversing through tall trees – a fascinating sight of acrobatics. Forest Guesthouses beckon vistors staying overnight.  Visitors on day trips can avail a Forest Guide and drive around and/or can book an Elephant Safari.

Elephant Safari

One starts breathing easier in this pristine forest environment. I presume it must be all the greenery creating a natural Greenhouse effect. Same day visitors can buy tickets for an Elephant Safari. If lucky, one can see Wildlife – Bisons, Wild Boars, Spotted Deer etc.. Really lucky ones can spot leopards! Tickets cost Rs. 400 per Elephant Ride.

The TopSlip Forest has 22 elephants for it’s forest work in the Kozhikkamuthy Elephant camp. Six to eight of these elephants are used for the elephant Safari. After loading on to an elephant – up to 3 to each side, one takes off into the dense forest for a bumpy but exciting ride.

The ride typically last for up to one hour. Lucky visitors get to see wildlife – bisons, spotted deers, boars, wild hens etc..

We rode on a 33 year old Male Tusker named Surya. Surya has been domesticated now for 8 years. Surya was different than the other tuskers in that his tusks were off center and not symmetric. Surya rested it’s trunk on it’s right tusk a lot of times – signs of old age?

The Safari takes one through fairly dense forests. Apparently there were a lot of Gaur (Indian Bison) sightings the previous day but we were not that lucky. We caught a brief glimpse of a spotted deer behind the bushes and that was it. In this Jurassic Park like atmosphere, one almost expects to see plant eating dinosaurs peek through the tall trees.

Scenic Beauty

Visitors can drive up to the Kerala border where the checkpost to the Parambikulam Sanctuary exists. The drive is both scenic and refreshing. Private vehicles are not allowed after this checkpost but one can avail Forest vehicles to head into the Parambikulam Sanctuary.

Gaja Poojai

Pongal or Sankaranti – the Harvest Festival is celebrated all over India around mid January every year. This is followed by Mattu-Pongal – a celebration of the Harvest Festival for cows as they are so critical for agriculture in India.

While everyone knows about Pongal, most are not familiar with another ritual – Gaja Pooja or Elephant-Pongal – held every year in Topslip in the Anamalai Mountain Ranges to celebrate the usefulness of elephants to the Forests. While Elephant Safaris can be had round the year, the Gaja Poojai is a special once a year affair that lucky visitors have a chance to witness usually in the third week of January.

The Forest Elephants are lined up on this day, and sandalwood paste is applied to their foreheads to decorate them. This is one chance to see elephants of all sizes lined up next to each other on this special day – the young cub drawing the most attention with the children.

While the daily feed to the elephants is only 10kg of Raagi (Finger Millet) – the rest coming from the forests, Gaja Pooja is a special day for the elephants as they are fed delicacies to satisfy Lord Ganesha! The end of the Pooja is marked by a Salute to all the visitors by the assembled elephants. A sight to behold.

Entry Fomalities for TopSlip

If you are visiting the park for the day you can go directly to Top Slip (Entry INR 50). The Sethumadai checkpost is the entry point to TopSlip.

In case you plan to stay at Top Slip, accommodation must be booked in advance at the:

Summary

TopSlip is a fabulous getaway – serene, calm, unpolluted and totally uncommercial. Wildlife, birdlife are available in plenty and it also offers trekkers great options. Gaja Pooja offers a great opportunity to see tens of elephants at the same time if one can time their visit on that day. While the guesthouse accommodations can be rather basic, TopSlip offers a fabulous gateway into the wilderness – a true nature lover’s paradise!

[This article was contributed by Vijay Ramanathan - a Technology/Gadget enthusiast and Blogger. You can follow his tweets at http://twitter.com/tekdude & his blog at http://tekdude.wordpress.com/ ]

Sunset Storm in Munsiyari in Uttarakhand

This image was taken in Munsiyari, located in the Indian Himalayan state of Uttarakhand (formerly Uttaranchal). Click on the image for a larger view. You can view and order more such images at the Kunzum Gallery

By Shivang Mehta and Kahini Ghosh Mehta

Deep inside the heavily wooded forest of Corbett National Park rests a Machaan that gives shelter to hundreds of photographers, naturalists and tourists visiting Corbett every year. Approximately 30 feet in height, this old machaan gives a panoramic view of the picturesque Dhikala grasslands and the Ramganga river that supports a multitude of life forms in Corbett National Park. “The forest is always buzzing with activity,” I realized this when I spent my 3 hours on this watchtower for the first time in early 2003. Since then the watchtower has been my popular hotspot and has played an instrumental role in helping me witness some of my most memorable wild moments in Corbett National Park.

It was the month of June when I along with Kahini and my dear friend Ankur (who has always been a great support during most of my wildlife expeditions) set off from the Gairal forest rest house in Corbett early in the morning in search of the dominant male tiger in the Khinnauli belt. We had been tracking the 9 feet beauty for the last 2 days and our chances were becoming brighter as we saw fresh tracks early that morning along with frantic alarm calls of spotted deer. However luck was not in our favor again as after waiting for over 2 hours near the river side (where we were expecting the arrival of the tiger) the beast still eluded me and my camera.

As we continued our journey by heading towards the Dhikala grasslands the passing vehicles informed us about tiger movements on the Sambhar Road and we rushed towards our beloved Sambhar Road watchtower which gives the perfect view of the area in which the tiger was prowling. We boarded the machchan at 8:30 am and strained our ears to listen to the faintest of sounds of the alarm calls that would announce the arrival of the king. In the next couple of hours the forest went silent and the cool breeze put our dear friend Ankur to sleep. A watchtower can be a wonderful place for catching some sleep as the calmness and tranquility of the forest is very relaxing indeed.

The silence was broken by a black jungle crow that woke us up with his hoarse calls and to our surprise we sighted a beautiful collared falconet right in front of us. The rare collared falconet is a beautiful little bird and it was thrilling to see the little creature after 2 long years. The atmosphere was filled with excitement yet again as a pair of pallas fishing eagle took off from inside the forest and stormed past the watchtower making a screeching sound giving us a great shot of the flight of the eagle. Following this Kahini spotted a pair of pied kingfishers hovering over the river in search of their lunch. Their close cousins – the white throated kingfishers – followed them and looked stunning with their colorful wings wide open.

Amidst the birding action, a small herd of spotted deer inched closure to the river and boosted our chances of tracking the tiger. The weather was perfect for a tiger to approach a water body as it was getting hotter and humid as the clock ticked. And then the spotted deers in front of us made a low alarm call. We could see that all the deers were pointing in one direction and stamping their feet in the water in nervousness.

The excitement was at its peak as this is what tiger tracking is all about. This is why the tiger sends shivers down the spines of the jungle folk when it moves fearlessly in forests of India. It was only a matter of time now and we were anxiously waiting as everything was falling into place… 10 minutes went by and by now the alarm calls became louder. Kahini’s trained eyes were glued to a patch of lantana from where we were expecting the tiger to come. Ankur’s sleep had vanished and I was ready to shoot with my fingers half pressed on my camera shutter. It was 4 pm and with a slight disturbance in the lantana, out walked the tiger. Those magical stripes were shining brightly in the sun and the tiger walked past the deer herd majestically to choose his preferred spot in the river.

It was a big male and he rested royally in the middle of the sparkling Ramganga for the next 20 minutes!

(Shivang Mehta and Kahini Ghosh Mehta are wildlife photographers and film makers and also run a camp in Corbett National Park in Uttrakhand, India. Learn more about them by visiting www.naturewanderers.com)

If you read about the injured leopard cub in the forests of Ranthambhore in Rajasthan in India on a previous blog post here, and saw an earlier video here, this may be of interest to you: Lakshmi (that’s the cub’s name) is now growing, and is being taught to hunt so she can one day be left back to survive in the forests on her own.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvnNOgemNOw

To read the full blog post associated with this video, click here.

This is the story, so far, of a female leopard cub rescued by the forest department in Ranthambhore in Rajasthan in India.

For starters, why did the cub, now called Lakshmi, need to be rescued ? There were two theories going around when I visited the forest during the Christmas week of 2007.

To view a video made using photos of the cub, click here.

How did the cub get abandoned? One, a mother leopard had wandered into a village with three of here cubs. Fearing for their safety, the villagers tried to drive away the animals with stones injuring Lakshmi. The mother fled with two of her babies, unable to take Lakshmi with her.

The other story going around, told to me by a local guide Kamal, is that the mother tried to jump a ditch clinging Lakshmi between her teeth, and dropped her in the process. Unable to take her along, she abandoned the cub and left.

Is the future one of confinement? Whatever the truth, the cub is now being taken care of forest officials. While they may be doing a good job of it, their love may actually have already proven detrimental to Lakshmi’s future which may be confined to a zoo or a circus. These are some of the reasons being given by those in Rathambhore who can claim to be a bit knowledgeable about this topic:

• It may already be too late for Lakshmi to learn the way to survival in the forest even though she was only a few weeks old in December.
• The most dangerous of animals, unless they turn man-eater, never attack human beings except in self-defence. But Lakshmi is getting to interact with a lot of people – including daily visitors like me – which is taking away the fear of humans from her. In other words, she can attack any species now if left in the wild; they are all the same to her.
• Could this have been avoided? Yes, if she was kept in an big closed space away from human contact except her immediate caretaker. And allowed to hunt for small animals within this enclosure initially and eventually left in the jungle. But her being made a spectacle for all may have already proven too late for her.

Do you feel for Lakshmi? I am sure we all do.