With the morning sun came a new day bearing new hope of encountering the majestic one. My heart thrilled and spirits high, I stepped out of my room. It was 4:55 AM. Chill of early summer morning kept rushing through the gentle breeze. We were to meet our safari guide at 5 AM as the safari gates open at 6 AM sharp. We called him up and he instructed us to report at the "Khatia gate", where he was awaiting us.
The resort staff had prepared a package of breakfast for us which we were to take during the safari. The morning safari takes around 5 hours only, so hunger is not something that was at the back of our minds, but still... I jumped on the front passenger seat with my camera and hat accompanying me. The engine buzzed and we were off. The head light of the car piercing through dimness of the dawn. Trees and bushes kept trailing by as the car zoomed through the silhouettes of the foliage on either side of the road.
Instantly my thoughts drifted away from the present and ventured into the forest...
It was just Munna and Munna that ruled my straying thoughts but i had already promised myself that I will not be disheartened if ever i couldn't meet him. After all I was in Munna's territory, in the Land of Mowgli, and that itself was an enchanting feeling.
In 10 minutes we were at Khatia gate of Kanha national park. Tourists buzz in early morning to have a chance to enter first in the jungle. We were lucky to be the first few in the queue of safari jeeps.
Just as we parked the car, a tall handsome man walked up to us. His attire was that of a safari guide and an army print cap adorned his head. A tag on his right arm sleeve bore the logo of Kanha National Park. Over his left shoulder was loosely hung a dark green sleeveless winter-wear. It was summer already but the morning was still cold with temperature hovering around 12-15 degrees. He seemed to be a man of strong character. His eyes were ever observant and his mustache branded a "Yadav" style pride. I was skeptical of his profession, to me he seemed to fit into armed forces more than being a safari guide.
In the first few minutes of my conversation only I could make out this man to be an extraordinary jungle enthusiast. Mr. Ram Yadav was a native of this place. He grew up among these forests. The sight and sounds of animals were his lullaby and the park his backyard. He knew all the tigers by name and could pin point most of their location unless they have not made any movements recently. The Park is divided into four zones, Kanha, Kisli, Sarhi and Mukkhi. Kisli being the largest. Ram Yadav ji informed me that Munna had been recently sighted in and around Kanha and Kisli zone. My hopes widened as we were to cover the Kanha zone in our morning safari.
The sun was now on the horizon, it's rays peeking through the Saal trees... the gate opened. Much awaited journey into Mowgli's courtyard begun.
Safari jeeps are generally six seater. My Mother-in-law being old took the passenger seat, My wife and Sister-in-law the middle one and Ram Yadav and me jumped back on the hind elevated seat. The vintage point. Adrenaline was rushing through my veins and imaginations running wild. But my co-passenger, Mr. Yadav was a well composed man. His eyes kept swiveling in all directions. No movement escaped his eyes. A few hundred meters into the park, and we were welcomed by a herd of Gaurs (Indian Bisons) grazing beside the road. The males are lager with huge curved horns, massive neck and shoulder muscles that provide them with brutal strength. But in the calm of the morning they were just gentle giants. Mr. Yadav cautioned us not to be deceived by their soberness, they are highly territorial at times and recently had charged a safari jeep thrashing it away like a tin can. Leaving the beasts to their own business we moved on.
Kisli zone guest house is the first stop during the safari, which is just a couple of kilometers from the Khatia gate entrance. Mr. Yadav persisted on not delaying by having a halt, so we moved on. He was keen not to miss the chance of a first tiger sighting as they are quite active during this time of the day. Insisting the driver to rush on, he kept a vigil eye on the dusty road for pug marks. Even I enthusiastically followed him but my tracking skills were no match to Mr. Yadav's.
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| The view of an early morning safari as you enter into the Kanha forest |
The sight that greeted us as we ventured into the Jungle's edge left me awestruck. The golden rays of the rising sun dancing on the canopy of the forest casting an eternal radiance. The silhouettes of the forest background taking shapes when light screened through them. The muddy path that tunneled into the towering trees was light like a golden carpet... Imprinted into my soul forever.
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| A Family of Jackals |
As we entered into the forest, animal activity became more evident. Mr. Yadav pointed out at a direction to my right and called out "Indian Golden Jackal". I strained my neck and adjusted my pupils to have a view... and yes there they were, a family of Jackals playfully indulged. Raising my camera I zoomed in to have a snap. I captured the moment in a jolly click.
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| A female Hard Ground Sambar Deer |
We took a sharp left from where the dense Saal forest emerged and headed on to Kanha zone of the park. At distance a pair of Hard-ground Sambar deer were basking in the glow of the early morning sun only their antlers peeping out of the tall grass. Scattered Spotted deer population could be seen grazing in the vast open meadows. Fawns played around their mothers, while some adult deers with head held high kept an eye for predators. After a few minutes our vehicle was moving through ravines cut through small rocky elevated terrains that formed tiny gorges. At the edge of one such gorge i could make out some dark shapes moving. I turned to Mr. Yadav for identification, he simply told me that they were wild Boars with out even bothering to look have a look. To my surprise, they were indeed wild boars. It was only "Tigers" for Mr. Yadav, other animals were just chorus of the opera for him. He used to say,
"Sir ji, hum aapko tiger ki pakka sighting karaenge." But even he knew that it was completely a matter of luck.
The terrain started to transform as we made our way towards Parsatola. Road ascended into rocky uphills winding all along the way. The dusty roads were covered with safari jeep tracks from the day before evening safari. Among them were faint marks of animals footstep. Suddenly, Mr. Yadav stopped the jeep, leaning on the railing he pointed out onto the road "Pugmarks". Faint but visible to eyes were a trailing line of foot marks of a large cat... It was a male Tiger's and was quite fresh. According to Mr. Yadav it was made just a few hours ago, early dawn. He slowly traced the line on the left flank of the road where the tiger had walked for a few meters and then sat in the middle of road before walking on. The forest and animal signs were like an open book for Ram Yadav. He could read the events out as if he was present there when it occured. He told us that the tiger came out of the bush on the left side of the road walked for around fifty meters, stopped and sat down on the road for a brief moment and then walked ahead a few steps before disappearing into the bushes. The pug marks narrated exactly the similar story. For a moment I felt Mr. Yadav was lost in thoughts as he silently stared ahead into the open road. But then with a jerk he jumped up and asked the driver to slowly drive the vehicle a little ahead. He bent down again on the railing and called out, "Sir ji, there was even a leopard here before the tiger came across." He pointed out to set of parallel laid pugmarks of a smaller dimensions to that of the tiger. These were a little faded suggesting that it might be of late night. A Curse escaped my lips, we had missed the two big cats of Indian sub-continent by a few hours.
Following the tracks our vehicle moved along the jungle roads for about a few kilometers. The sun had now gone up in the sky warming the morning with it's rays. The sunlight screening through the tree is a landmark sight in the Kanha's forest. It's enchanting landscape is a paradise for professional photographers. Heading towards "Mundi dadar", we kept an eye around. On the right were tall trees
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| A Spotted Deer skipping away |
while on the left small meadows with streams occasionally cutting through. We climbed a small hill and turned sharp right on our descend. While the jeep was turning Mr. Yadav jumped up from his seat and with a focus of a stalking tiger on his face he listened to something intently in a direction beyond the meadows. He signaled the driver to stop, and gently whispered
"Alarm call" . Alarm calls are a series of particular sound produced by deers and monkeys when they spot a predator. Faint sound of deers could be heard but it felt like it was getting closer and closer. Mr. Yadav estimated that it was coming from around hundred meters away and whoever the predators was is moving straight in our direction. Our hearts skipped a beat on the possible encounter with a Tiger. I could imagine a big male tiger coming into view from the dense vegetation at the edge of the meadows. A smile stretched across my face. Our eyes were fixed in the direction that Mr. Ram Yadav pointed out. To our dismay slowly the alarm calls faded. We waited for quite a long time looking in all directions if we could make out what was happening. Finally after a long stretch of time when the calls had fallen dead silent, Yadav ji concluded that either the Tiger has sat down somewhere hidden away from the eyes of it's prey or it has crossed the road and ventured into the other side of the jungle. His theory was confirmed as we moved ahead, we could see fresh tiger's track crossing the road just fifty meters from where we waited. We had missed it by a whisker's length.
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| The Landmark "Shravan Tal" |
We decided to take a break as it was already 9:30 AM and the sun was beating down now. Navigating our way to Kanha camp as we moved, we came across the famous "Sharvan Tal". Made popular by the mythological event when king Dashrath mistakenly shot an arrow at the young boy shravan, who was then filling water from the pond to quench the thirst of his blind parents. Later, the king was cursed by the blind old couple and during his last moments died thriving for a glance of his beloved son Ram whom he had sent away for "Vanbas". A stony engraved landmark reminds us of the tale.
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| A halo of Deer Antlers |
The Kanha camp is located in the heart of kanha zone, an open unprotected area with tall trees casting their shades on the settlement below. There are refreshment rooms, a few official two room buildings, and the Kanha Museum. The museum houses some heritage artifacts, endemic animal models and preserved skeleton of certain other animals. Among all these the only thing that captured my eyes was the tabloid sculpture proudly ornamenting the camp. It is a marbled structure engraved "KANHA NATIONAL PARK" with a halo of 40,000 deer antlers arching tall over it. A sight to behold.
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| Safari Guides in the midst of their jolly conversation |
It also happens to be the rendezvous point for the safari guides and forest guards. They sit around causally sipping out some tea, chuckling out at jokes cracked at each other. They bring news of the early morning sightings and events of the morning's proceedings. It's like the information center of the jungle's reporters. Mr. Ram Yadav also joined in with the group. He is a highly respected individual among the lot. I looked at the them and the only word that my mind relayed was "RESPECT". These guys are the people who has kept the wildlife and it's legacy alive. They bring to us a mesmerizing world of animals and their lives that is beyond the perception of our corrupt minds. I stayed there listening to their talks for a brief moment. To me it felt like the hymn of t
he forest as it's people were narrating it's own tale. This moment will last for ever in our heart and soul.
The rest of the safari was not so eventful. We had an encounter with a Sloth bear. It was just a few meters away from our vehicle but out of our vision hidden in the bushes. Patience is a vital attire for wildlife enthusiasts and photographers. Ram ji was a veteran in this art. He made us patiently wait for almost an hour for the bear to come out into the open at the fringe of the bush. But dear Mr. Bear was busy munching on his termite's mount and had no intention of showing up. Scratching sounds as the bear's claws hit the ground could be heard with occasional movement and bustling of vegetation. That was all, no sighting. Ram ji explained us how bears can casually stick around a place where they find food for a long time, leisurely spent almost the whole day there.
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| An elegantly posing Peacock |
As we drove on our adrenaline hype faded away with every roll of the wheels. Herds of Spotted deers, scattered populations of Sambar, a few bird species like the Indian Roller, crested Eagle, Greater Indian Owl, Vultures and some splendidly posing Peafowls... was all that we could see. It was time now and the sun was almost overhead and we had to rush out as the park gates closed at 11 AM.
Disappointment weighing high we left the park. But it was not all over... we still had an Evening safari. Waving the Park and it's inhabitants goodbye for now our vehicle strode away along with the convey of safari jeeps that had entered the park that morning. 27th March 2017.
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| Adieu to Kanha National Park for the morning |
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