A Trip to Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan, India - A Photo Essay #3

While travelling, one observes things of myriad hues. One sees people, culture, sights, environs and one also feels the aura of a place. Everything cannot be presented to a reader through words without losing the advantage of brevity. So, this is why I am preparing this Photo Essay so that you can have a deeper insight to all that I saw when I was in the Ranthambhore National Park. 

The first set of pictures includes images of the deer population of Ranthambhore. Ranthambhore National Park is blessed with numerous variety of deer namely Spotted Deer, Sambhar Deer, Barking Deer, Nilgai etc.

Ranthambhore National Park possesses a rich variety of birds. I was able to capture only two though. The Peacock and the Magpie!

I was lucky enough to capture a reptile on camera. It was basking in the sun near the Kacheda Reservoir, Zone 5.

I love the hilly landscape of Ranthambhore National Park. Combined with it's flora, it makes for great viewing. This is a sideshow people often forget to enjoy, in their quest to see the elusive Tiger!

Often, man made interventions have had to be done in order to sustain the fauna population in Ranthambhore. This water tank in Zone 6 is one such intervention.

Jungle paths have to be carved for safaris but also have to be blocked if mothers give birth to animals very close to the paths!

( This is the third in the series of articles I am writing about my visit to Ranthambhore National Park in Feb - Mar 2018. Due to a hectic schedule I was unable to complete it. Now due to the pandemic, with zero travel opportunities, I am revisiting my former trips which I had documented and photographed with the intention of blogging but never did. So, I will be naming this series of retrospective posts as 'From the Vault' posts. I hope you like them :-) )

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A Trip to Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan, India #2

A Herd of Deer in Zone 5

My two safaris were incredible experiences. That said, in a jungle, only two factors can spoil your fun. One, if a predator confronts your car or two, if the people you are traveling with, misbehave by not following the etiquette of traveling in a safari. 

Vast Landscapes of Zone 6. It provides good photographic opportunities to click wildlife from a distance.

In Zone 6, the biggest charm was the flatlands which we saw. It made me feel as if I was having a safari in Africa or something. The biggest highlight of the day though was a series of tiger pugmarks we saw on the trail. A tiger had crossed that trail to head somewhere. I was able to see a Sloth Bear in this safari and some deers.

Pugmark of a Tiger, Ranthambhore National Park

The Kacheda Reservoir. We visited in late Feb.

In Zone 5, which we visited the next day, I got to visit the Kacheda Reservoir. I was disappointed to see that it was almost dry. Yet, I was able to spot a crocodile, which was basking in the sun at some distance. 

A crocodile, on the other side of the bund at Kacheda Reservoir

It was in this safari that I heard the barking of a deer (a warning signal that a predator was nearby) which was then followed by a bellow which was let out by a tiger. We were quite some distance away when we heard the roar of the tiger, but it shook everyone in the canter. But, as we were 'in' the canter we knew we were safe. Trust me, we would not have been as confident of our chances had we been on our own in the jungle!

Jungle Safari Trails taken by Canters and Gypsies

Our canter raced to look for the spot from where the roar came and very soon we reached there only to find a gypsy quietly waiting for the tiger to show itself. But, the predator had decided to sit amongst the foliage and so we could not see anything. 

Whenever wildlife is spotted is expected to be spotted, canters and gypsies accumulate at the spot.

Within 5 minutes of us reaching the spot from where the tiger had roared, all the gypsies and canters stormed in, to get a look at the tiger. Within a few minutes, the powerful roar of a tiger had turned a secluded part of the forest to resemble the parking lot of a popular mall in New Delhi. I realized that now, the tiger would not come out even if it wanted to. Tigers are shy animals.

I was, though, very satisfied with my experiences in both the safaris and will be planning to visit Ranthambore once again, the moment it is possible.

Overall, my experience of visiting Ranthambore was very good. The hills, forests, wildlife, and the natural beauty of the place make this destination a must-visit. My resort was small in scale but I was happy with the cleanliness of the room, the meals which had a homemade gue to them (something I greatly appreciated), and the evening campfires. I am more than willing to go there again!

Beautiful and Serene. A View of the Resort from the Entrance of my Cottage.

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( This is the second in the series of articles I am writing about my visit to Ranthambhore National Park in Feb - Mar 2018. Due to a hectic schedule I was unable to complete it. Now due to the pandemic, with zero travel opportunities, I am revisiting my former trips which I had documented and photographed with the intention of blogging but never did. So, I will be naming this series of retrospective posts as 'From the Vault' posts. I hope you like them :-) )

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A Trip to Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan, India #1

 Ranthambhore National Park (near Sawai Madhopur, Rajasthan, Western India) is one of those rare wildlife sanctuaries where the odds of you spotting a tiger is more as compared to other parks like Corbett and Kaziranga (despite them having a far greater tiger population). Moreover, the park gets its name from the 1000+ years old Hill Fortress of Ranthambhore (which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site) which was brutally sacked by Ala ud Din Khalji (in the late 13th Century) and Akbar's (16th Century) forces. 

A Ranthambhore Fort Gate in Zone 6 of Ranthambhore National Park

This park, which was formerly the hunting grounds of the Rajas of Jaipur was nurtured by the conservator, the late Mr. Fateh Singh Rathore. It is chiefly due to his (and the forest department's) efforts that the tiger population of the park has risen to 65-70 as of February 2018.

Rugged Landscape of Ranthambhore

The dry deciduous vegetation of this sanctuary ensures visibility in the range of 50 to 200 meters from zone to zone. It is due to this factor that tiger sightings are more common here.

My visit to Ranthambhore, the second one in total, was chiefly due to fond memories from my first visit and also so that I could visit the fort this time (although it's another matter altogether that I canceled out the fort at the last moment to book another safari). 

My trip was a lovely one, my hotel (a small resort) was nice and offered a view of the Sanctuary from the porch while the safaris were lovely!

Unlike the majority of people who visit sanctuaries only to ‘see the tiger’ I, having made multiple visits to the Delhi Zoo (while bunking college) and having come across the tiger multiple times (so much so that I started avoiding the enclosure due to visual fatigue) was more keen on checking out the vegetation, the wildlife and the forest in general and try to grasp the aura of the place.

A deer amongst the foliage

Magpies, basking in the Sun

I went to Zones 5 and 6 for my two safaris. I insisted on booking the safaris online and also insisted on going to the sanctuary office to collect my Canter Boarding Passes myself. Both the activities were quite an adventure by themselves as while the online booking portal offers limited options to pay online, the drivers of canters and gypsies were at their rowdy best (in the Sanctuary office), yelling, breaking the queue… Nonetheless, I got the boarding passes without any issues and as I mentioned earlier, had memorable safaris!

A Post of the Forest Rangers in Zone 6, Ranthambhore National Park

The trip all in all was a wonderful one and it left me fighting a bout of post-travel depression yet again!

To know what were my experiences at the safaris and to know whether I came across any presence of the elusive tiger do read my next post!

(to be continued....)

( This is the first in the series of articles I am writing about my visit to Ranthambhore National Park in Feb - Mar 2018. Due to a hectic schedule I was unable to complete it. Now due to the pandemic, with zero travel opportunities, I am revisiting my former trips which I had documented and photographed with the intention of blogging but never did. So, I will be naming this series of retrospective posts as 'From the Vault' posts. I hope you like them :-) )

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International Tiger Day 2019

Paw Print of a Tiger

A Trip to Remember

I have travelled to, and continue to travel (in spits and bursts, I have to admit) across India. I have been to three Tiger Reserves—Corbett, Sariska and Ranthambore. My first trip to Ranthambore though was a memorable one. I went as a part of a media group, on a FAM trip organised by Aircel for their Save Our Tigers campaign.

Learning about Tigers from the Specialists

In this trip, we got to see the good work done by Aircel (through their Save My Tigers campaign). We got to interact with the main forest officer of Ranthambore National Park and with Wildlife Specialist, Dr. Anish Andheria. It is during one such interaction with Dr. Andheria that I asked the question 'What was the tiger holding capacity of India's forests ?'. He thought for a moment and gave an estimate of 6000 tigers.

Tiger Numbers going up a cause for celebration

Yesterday (on International Tiger Day '19), the Prime Minister released the All India Tiger Estimation Report 2018. It stated that the number of Tigers in the country had reached 3000 (2967 to be precise). This leads to a sense of jubilation amongst the people and why not? The number of Tigers had dwindled to less than 1411 until 10 years ago. This was from a high of at least 20,000+ tigers at the turn of the century. So, it's a matter of celebration no doubt.


Sparing a thought for the lost gene pool

That said we cannot forget that, as a result of Tiger numbers going down, a vast gene pool of healthy tigers has been lost. The tigers of today carrying only the genes of the 1411 tigers who survived by 2008 into the future. They would not carry the genes of the more than 20,000+ tigers who were there at the turn of the century.

Forest Chowki inside Ranthambore National Park

The Challenges Ahead

So, coming back to the present, we must make efforts to double the tiger population of the country from 3000 to 6000. For that we need to deal with factors like Poaching (Sariska), construction of Tiger Corridors (so that Tigers can move from one sanctuary to another), Creation of new Tiger Reserves, etc. Work on Tiger conservation has to continue as this is a job, only half done!


Congratulations to the Conservators!
 
In the end, I would like to congratulate all the agencies and individuals involved in the tiger conservation program. They have worked hard to achieve this milestone! Great Job!

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A Safari to Ranthambhore

My visit to Ranthambhore, the second one in total, was chiefly due to fond memories from my first visit and also so that I could visit the fort this time (although it's another matter altogether that I cancelled out the fort at the last moment to book another safari). 

 Sawai Madhopur Railway Station

I went to Zones 5 and 6 for my safaris. I insisted on booking the safaris online and also insisted on going to the Ranthambhore forest booking centre to collect my Canter Boarding Passes myself. Both the activities were quite an adventure by themselves as while the online booking portal offers limited options to pay online, the drivers of canters and gypsies were at their rowdy best (in the Ranthambhore forest booking office), yelling, breaking queue… Nonetheless, I got the boarding passes without much issues and as I mentioned earlier, had memorable safaris!

Vatika Resort, Sawai Madhopur (the resort where I put up)

To know what were my experiences on the safaris and to know whether I came across any presence of the elusive tiger do read my next post!

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Picture of the Week #90 - Ranthambhore Hill Fort (A Glimpse), Const 933 AD

Picture © Rohan Anirudh Singh

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Save Our Tigers - Kids for Tigers Express Initiative

(This is the second article in my series on Save Our Tigers)

In my Previous Article I had mentioned the importance of spreading the message of wildlife (and tiger) conservation on the ground (especially amongst the people who live in the periphery of the National Parks). Aircel Save our Tigers Campaign and its partner Wildlife Conservation Trust have undertaken such an initiative called 'Kids for Tigers Express' where an effort is made to get in touch with the children living in the villages which are located right next to the Ranthambhore National Park.

Children participating in Kids for Tigers Express Educational Campaign

I had an oppurtunity to have a one-on-one chat with Mr Goverdhan who runs the Kids for Tigers Express program in the villages around Ranthambore.. He mentioned that over a period of time he has been able to educate and create a better understanding amongst the rural children's minds with respect to the importance of tigers in the ecosystem. 

Such efforts, said Mr Goverdhan, were bearing fruits as children would now call him up, the moment they spot a tiger which strayed out of the jungles instead of panicking. Goverdhan, in turn, rings up the forest department officials (who also know him very well, by now) and alerts them about the situation and thus prompt action is taken.

The Kids for Tigers Express

The Kids for Tigers Express bus has all the equipment necessary to educate the children about wildlife conservations and tigers (in particular) like a mobile library, projector for showing documentaries over tigers e.t.c. 

Equipments inside a Kids for Tigers Express

The benefit of running the Kids for Tigers Express bus has been that children have now, started to understand the reasons as to why the tiger are needed in the ecosystem, the position of tiger in the food chain, why do tigers come out into the cultivated fields (loss of habitat), why do tigers attack humans e.t.c. Addressing such doubts in the minds of children has ensured that children understand the situation the tigers are in today and not believe in rumours and hearsay vis a vis the tigers..

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(This article of Save our Tigers series is dedicated to the 'late' Macchli - The Tigress. She was the pride of Ranthambhore.)

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