"Shall we go in December, say first weekend?" I get a message from Rajeev one day in mid November. "Why are you asking? Book!" is my answer. We haven't been to Kabini since our
previous trip in June (Kabini - The post lockdown pilgrimage), so we are overdue by several months already. After posting so many reports from Kabini, I've said enough about the Jungle Lodges Resort and the excellent facilities there, so let's jump right to the photos.
The ever co-operative Serpent Eagle on the lookout for something to eat.
On the Elephant Proof Trench (EPT for short) fencing, there are always peacocks. This time I find several of them perched in one spot. How many do you see? These have shed their signature tail feathers after the monsoon and will grow new ones in time for the next season. They were playing "Ten peacocks on the fence and one flew away. How many were left? Nine peacocks on the fence and one flew away. How many were left?" until there was only one left and he refused to fly away.
We find a lovely Malabar Pied Hornbill, actually one of a flock of them flying around. Usually they are just silhouettes high up on a tree, so I'm happy to get one like this.
Our driver's trusty Nokia rings. These are about the only handsets that can get a signal in there. Someone is telling him about a tiger on the 5 KM road, which is the old highway between Karnataka and Kerala and now ruled by wildlife. It is quite a distance away from where we are at the moment and the driver asks me whether we want to take a chance and go there. Nothing much happening where we are, so we decide to go. He drives the wheels off that Mahindra 4x4 safari vehicle and we reach the spot. And the girl is sleeping! We could have driven here leisurely and she would still be here.
We wait for about 15 minutes taking the occasional picture, by which time the word has spread and many more vehicles have joined the gang. A lot of whispering and some joker in a newly arrived Canter bus is speaking in a loud voice. He is shushed without mercy, but that has caused the lady to wake up.
"Alright, who is that idiot?" she seems to be asking. Sorry for that princess, but you know how these jokers are.
Oh well, you can't escape the paparazzi. Such is the life of a superstar. "Yawn! Time to go back to sleep, if I can."
And I get the scary looking image showing off her impressive dental work (which needs some toothpaste if you ask me. Those Colgate and CloseUp ad makers will have nightmares about her teeth!) But she is just yawning.
"Hmm maybe if I turn this way, it will be more comfortable?" She gets up and turns around, which sets off another round of loud, excited voices. People never learn. I can never understand why they can't keep quiet.
"OK guys, let me sleep in peace now. Enjoy this sleepy look for now"
"Still here? Go away!" It really looks like this is exactly what she is saying.
And we go away, leaving her to sleep in peace. We know she won't wake up soon as she looks quite well settled. Several other vehicles are still there of course, trying to disturb her as much as possible.
While we are waiting to see if she wants to get up again, another van driver gets a call about a leopard being spotted back near where we originally were before rushing here. Our driver again asks if we want to return there or wait for this girl to get up. I immediately vote for returning, getting a tiger and a leopard in the same safari is not very common.
So another bone jarring, spine rattling drive later, we spot what is possibly Kabini's most dominant leopard. A citizen called Scarface, who looks like he is settled for the evening. And he is turned the wrong way!
Just to give you an idea of where he is w.r.t the ground. This one is taken at 200 mm, the lowest my lens will go.
I ask our driver to shift positions slightly, moving a bit forward to see if we can get a better view. Not much, only about ten meters or so. But it makes a huge difference to the sighting. And at that exact time, a ray of bright sunshine from the setting Sun hits Scarface directly, lighting him up exquisitely for me.
He is not asleep as we thought, merely resting. He is deeply interested in something in the distance, most probably a female leopard which we are not able to see form here. But he does look back to see whether we are paying attention. Of course we are. Where else would our attention be?
Time for a stretch. Look at those paws!
Something on the other side now catches his attention. Probably the arrival of some more vehicles who have got the news of the sighting.
I don't what gets into his head, but he has decided to pose for me. Maybe he knows I'm an old friend. I'm grateful I have a chance to see and photograph this wonderful creature.
He settles down and then another ray of sunlight hits him perfectly again, just as he is looking at me. Thank you God!
"OK this is getting boring. I'm resting now." He puts his head on his foreleg and looks drowsy. He also looks like he has had a decent meal.
"Oh you guys never get enough of me! The previous posture was more comfortable I think" He turns back to where he was earlier.
"Will you let me sleep now?" Lazy fellow!
There is most definitely a female leopard somewhere he can see and we can't. Nothing else will explain this alertness.
We leave him then. It is almost time to leave the forest anyway. Apparently, he got down from the tree soon after we left according to those who were still there, so we didn't miss much. It was a magical 30 minutes spent with Scarface, who has remained dominant even after so many years. May he remain so for many more years.
We spot a Barking Deer or the Indian Muntjac, an extremely rare sighting. They are so shy, they vanish almost immediately. I could get only this one photo of him before he disappeared.
A Malabar Giant Squirrel is darting down a tree for a change. They are usually high up and difficult to photograph.
Another trip to the wildlife wonderland called Kabini has come to an end. Hopefully it won't be another six months before I return to this paradise. I keep using the words "Magic" and "Magical" to describe this place, but believe me there is no other word that can describe it better.
My equipment this time too has been my Nikon D500 and the Nikkor 200-500 lens. I think the combo will last for quite a few more years and many more safaris.
As ever, I hope you people enjoy these photos as much as I enjoy taking them. Until next time then, bye and drive safe.