Trip Report - - Ranthambhore and Corbett National Park

 

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Destination Covers : Delhi –Ranthambore National Park –Delhi- Corbett National Park

First Drive Into Ranthambore Reserve (Morning)

      I made it to Ranthambore National Park for first time. It was April 16 and we were on our first morning drive. The weather was nice. I love it here. The smells, sounds ,and sights are just amazing to me. We were heading into Zone 8. It was a little out of the way, we drove for about 20 minutes to get to the main entrance. This part had been added to the reserve. It was pretty bumpy but refreshing to me. The color of the dirt always fascinates me. It is rich in iron. As we were heading up one of the hills, another jeep had drove by us and told us there is a tigress on her way down. We got so excited. Wow, my first drive, first day and already being blessed to see a magnificent tiger. A few of us had already gotten situated in an area where we knew she would be walking through. A couple more jeeps came and parked. Then we all waited quietly until we saw the female coming through all the dry shrubs. I got a couple nice pics of her. I used my phone to record her while she walked through the crowd.. I like having live footage of these beauties for my memories. She had snarled a little as we probably crowded her. She crossed from one side of the track to the other side. I think she was hungry and looking for a meal. As she sat down and was pretty concealed for a few minutes, we were totally in awe. How can any human being who spots a wild tiger not be under the spell. Their beauty and strength is unexplainable.

Eventually she rose up and was on a quest for some food. We had seen Sambhar in the area and she had spotted them as well. She slowly started walking in their direction. Every step she took was as quiet and focused. I love it when big cats are in hunting mode. Their muscles are tense and eyes are locked on a target. The further she got behind the dry shrubs, all the spectators couldn’t see her for about 10 minutes. All of a sudden we heard the bushes rustling and loud hoof prints stomping close to our area. She was in ambush after the deer but it escaped. She was unsuccessful this time. I almost witnessed a true live hunt. I was happy and I know there will always be other times. What an amazing morning we had. I will cherish it always. We went back to our lodge and had some lunch and delicious chai tea.

Ranthambore Reserve       Second drive (Zone 7)

This was a different area of the reserve. Nice and hot, but I like this heat.
When you enter the reserves, there always seems to be a cooler breeze or feeling because of the trees, shrubs and hills. We heard there was a male in the area, laying by the small pool.
When we arrived at the scene, the pool was empty. We could make out where the male had walked to with water droplets still on the ground. He must have been resting for a while as it was the afternoon. Usually they go back for a drink when it cools down more. His pugmarks were all over the ground too. So we circled a few times, ended up waiting quietly but the male tiger never showed up. But at least on this trip we saw Chinkara, blue bulls, spotted deer, Sambar, and peacocks.
I have yet to see a sloth bear also, or a leopard in this area. As we were heading back to the lodge for our delicious food, lots of little kids were waving at us. There was a gecko in my bathroom that night stuck to the wall. Interesting little creature. Also saw a snake the first day I got to the lodge, but I didn’t find out what species it was.

Ranthambore Day 2,morning drive.






This area is called Zone 10. A male tiger named Fateh(T42) resides there. A very big handsome male. I have seen many pictures of him.This zone is way in the back of the reserve. It took a long time to get there. Then when we got closer we had to stop by the gate and a guide was supposed to come with us. It was a hot day but the ride felt refreshing to me. I always enjoy just being out in the jungle whether I see a tiger or not. Well, we weren’t able to see him anywhere. He must have been sleeping off the heat somewhere.We saw Sambar,bluebull, Chinkara ,peacocks and one of the bluebulls was hurt. He had a ruptured belly and wasn’t moving very fast. He was probably in pain. Maybe it was a tiger who had hurt him. Ranthambore is very dry at this time of year. When the monsoon comes around it becomes very green for a few weeks. I would also like to visit once when the rains are pouring down..

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